Franz Wagner has been ruled out of playing by the Orlando Magic in Game 6 of their first-round playoff matchup against the Detroit Pistons because of a right calf strain.
Wagner suffered the injury in Game 4 on Monday in a 94-88 win over the Pistons, which gave the Magic a 3-1 series lead. He was initially listed as questionable to play in Game 5 on Wednesday, but the forward was ruled out ahead of tip-off in Detroit.
The 24-year-old was limited to 48 appearances during the regular season due to a left high ankle sprain. He returned to play six out of their last seven games ahead of the postseason and is now sidelined once again for an uncertain amount of time.
“I think it is always going to depend on how he responds to the treatment day to day,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said of the injury on Wednesday. “Just being off of it for now and getting constant treatment around the clock is going to be important. I don’t know if there is a timeline to it, but just being able to see how he responds day to day as we go forward.”
The Magic have listed Franz Wagner (Right Calf; Strain) as out for Game 6 tomorrow against the Pistons.
The full injury report: pic.twitter.com/Q1QVG5u48Q
— Cody Taylor (@CodyTaylorNBA) April 30, 2026
The Magic lost 115-109 to the Pistons on Wednesday, leaving the series at 3-2 as it shifts back to Central Florida. Without Wagner, who is regarded as perhaps their top perimeter defender, the Magic allowed Cade Cunningham to score a franchise playoff record 45 points.
While Paolo Banchero countered with a 45-point performance of his own, the effort wasn’t enough after the Magic missed 14 free throws (16-for-30) and were outrebounded 49-33. Jamal Cain, who started for Wagner, finished with five points and four rebounds.
If Orlando is to close out the Pistons in Game 6 and win its first playoff series in 16 years, it will have to do so without Wagner on Friday (7 p.m. EDT, Prime Video). The group is confident it can rally around Wagner and pull off the upset.
“It impacts quite a bit,” Mosley said of the loss of Wagner. “You obviously know how he has been playing and what he has been doing for us. More than anything, you just hate to see him out, with him being able to come back (from the ankle injury) and then bounce back out. For us, it changes things in a big way, but obviously, we always talk about next-man-up mentality.”
This article originally appeared on Rookie Wire: Magic news: Franz Wagner ruled out of playing in Game 6 vs. Pistons