ORLANDO, Fla. — Jalen Suggs’ absence from the Orlando Magic’s last two games has given R.J. Hampton a chance that he’s been relishing.
With Suggs missing Tuesday’s 102-99 home loss to the Phoenix Suns with a sprained right ankle, Hampton was once again in the starting lineup and guarding the opponent’s top guard — Suggs’ normal task.
Hampton’s defensive assignment in Saturday’s loss to the Memphis Grizzlies was All-Star guard Ja Morant. The Suns were without their All-Star guards Chris Paul (right thumb fracture) and Devin Booker (COVID-19 health and safety protocols), so Hampton started on Cameron Payne, who averaged 15 points and 10.7 assists in his previous three games.
“These are going to be great matchups for him in different instances,” Magic coach Jamahl Mosley said ahead of Tuesday’s matchup. “It’s a great opportunity and chance to excel defensively.”
Hampton finished with three steals, including one for a layup with less than three minutes that helped the Magic keep the game close down the stretch, but the Magic (16-50) fell to the Suns (52-13) after Mikal Bridges blocked Franz Wagner’s 3-point attempt with four seconds to seal the win.
Payne finished with 18 points (6 of 16), 12 assists and six rebounds. Deandre Ayton led Phoenix with 21 points (10 of 19) and 19 rebounds.
Hampton’s on-ball defense was a focal point while he missed 14 games leading into the All-Star break with a left knee injury.
“My team calls on me to do that every night,” Hampton said. “I take pride in that and it’s something I love doing. It’s fun. Playing against some of the tougher guards has been great for me. I’ve seen a lot and learned a lot from them.”
With Hampton’s size (6-4) and speed, the Magic believe the 21-year-old guard has the tools to be a high level on-ball defender.
“Defensively, what he’s done and shown early on is his ability to just get into the basketball,” Mosley said. “Disrupt the point guard. His on-ball defense is going to be his calling card.”
Wendell Carter Jr. returned to the lineup after missing the previous two games because of a non-COVID-19 illness. He finished with a team-high 20 points (8 of 14) and 12 rebounds for his seventh consecutive double-double and team-high 29th. Carter entered Tuesday averaging 19.3 points (66.7% shooting), 14 rebounds and 2.7 assists in his previous three games post-All-Star break.
The Magic traveled to New Orleans after Tuesday’s game for Wednesday’s road game with the Pelicans.
Markelle Fultz (11 points, four assists and three rebounds in 17 minutes), who returned from his left knee anterior cruciate ligament tear last Monday, won’t be available because he’s still not allowed to play in both games of back-to-backs. Orlando’s back-to-back games will come against the Golden State Warriors at home on March 22 and at the Oklahoma City Thunder on March 23.
“We’re just going to continue to monitor it,” Mosley said of Fultz. “We’re just going to continue to see how he responds to the one game and go from there.”
