Magic star Paolo Banchero sidelined indefinitely with oblique injury

CLEVELAND — After undergoing further testing Thursday in Cleveland, Magic forward Paolo Banchero has been diagnosed with a torn right oblique, president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman announced.

Banchero will be out indefinitely and his return to play will depend on how he responds to treatment, the team said. He will be re-evaluated in four to six weeks, according to the team.

Banchero suffered the injury during the fourth quarter of Orlando’s game at Chicago on Wednesday night.

The Magic forward entered Orlando’s media interview room at United Center after receiving treatment from the medical staff postgame. The right side of his core was wrapped underneath his shirt.

It’s a major blow for the Magic, who had already listed Banchero as questionable for Friday’s game at Cleveland earlier in the day. In addition, Franz Wagner (illness) is listed as questionable against the Cavs.

Banchero, 21, played 37 minutes at Chicago and scored a team-high 31 points to go with seven rebounds and four assists, just two days after becoming the youngest player in franchise history record a 50-point performance.

Through the first five games of the season, Banchero averaged 29.0 points, 8.8 rebounds and 5.6 assists in 36.4 minutes. Both his scoring and assists were team highs despite a small sample size.

He has already led (or tied) the team in scoring three times, in rebounding twice and in assists three times.

Up until this point in his young career, Banchero had stayed relatively healthy. Last season, he only missed two regular-season games (Feb. 25-27) due to an illness.

During his NBA Rookie of the Year campaign in 2022-23, he missed 10 games, including seven games due to a left ankle sprain and three due to back tightness.

But the latest oblique injury is expected to keep him sidelined for an extended period.

It will be a minimum of four weeks, or as many as six, until a re-evaluation, the team said. Six weeks from Thursday is Dec. 12, which includes a lengthy stretch of 21 games.

Out indefinitely, it’s not yet known exactly when Banchero will be back.

And how Orlando responds without Banchero on the court could determine the course of the season, even before he returns to the court.

The Magic have harped on their depth since the start of last season but now it will be put to the test with their top scorer out for the foreseeable future.