The Orlando Magic intend to hold rookie forward Jonathan Isaac out of action for the foreseeable future while the team tries to help him recover fully from a stubborn right ankle injury that has kept him out of 20 of the team's 36 games this season.
Isaac, the sixth overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft, sprained his ankle on Nov. 11.
He missed 17 consecutive games before he played again on Dec. 17. But in his second game back, he tweaked the ankle. After he missed two more games, he played again on Dec. 26, but he continued to have problems running up and down the floor.
Magic officials have put Isaac on a program to rehabilitate his ankle and help him regain the conditioning he's lost while he's been unable to run.
Isaac has said the ankle injury is the first ankle injury of his life.
On Friday, Isaac was asked what team officials have told him.
"Just be patient and wait for this thing to heal completely," Isaac answered. "Just take my time day-by-day."
The Magic continue to have high hopes for the lanky 20-year-old, but there's no question that his ankle injury has severely limited his progress this season.
On Thursday, coach Frank Vogel was asked how much Isaac's development has been impacted by the injury.
"It's hampered him a lot," Vogel answered. "But mentally he's still being taught the game and still being kept engaged in everything. There's still development. There's still growing. There's still experience happening. It's just a lot slower than it would be if he was in there."
Isaac, who is 6-foot-10, has made his biggest impact with his defense. Blessed with agility, height, long arms and a keen mind, Isaac regularly alters shots. He also has fought hard when he scraps for rebounds against bigger, more experienced players.
The Magic have held opponents to just 101.4 points per 100 possessions when Isaac has been on the court this season, according to the NBA's statistics database. The Magic's defense has been worse when Isaac isn't playing; with Isaac on the bench, opponents have scored 108.9 points per 100 possessions.
To be sure, those numbers should be regarded with some caution since Isaac typically has played against opponents' second units. But his defensive statistics are still impressive. He has the best individual defensive efficiency rating of any Orlando player.
Isaac missed one other game this season because of an illness.
