Paolo Banchero will be out for several weeks with a high ankle sprain, stripping the Orlando Magic of their best frontcourt option as they visit the New York Knicks on Sunday at Madison Square Garden. The matchup arrives with both teams at 0-2, but Orlando has the steeper immediate hole because Banchero was expected to carry much of the offense.
The timing matters because the Knicks were already trying to steady themselves after losses to a retooled Philly squad and the Tatum-led Celtics, and they entered as the first defending champion to start 0-2 since the 2011-12 Mavericks. That is the kind of slow opening that can make a home game against another winless team feel like a reset point, even if the pressure is heavier on the visitors.
The last time these teams met, on Dec. 13, 2025 in the NBA Cup, the Knicks won 132-120 behind 40 points from Jalen Brunson, 29 from Karl-Anthony Towns and 24 from OG Anunoby. Orlando got 26 from Jalen Suggs and 25 from Banchero that night, which is part of why his absence now changes so much. The Magic were averaging 109 points and allowing 123.5 through two games, a poor start that makes losing their top scorer even more damaging.
Tristan da Silva was expected to move into the starting group with Banchero sidelined, and that shift shows how much of Orlando’s attack now has to be redistributed. More of the load falls to Wendell Carter, Jr., Franz Wagner, Desmond Bane and Suggs, while Jose Alvarado was questionable with an ankle sprain and Jonathan Isaac, Noah Penda and Izaiyah Nelson were already out..com liked the Knicks at 69 percent, a nod to New York’s edge on paper even with its own frontcourt concerns.
For Orlando, the next several weeks are about surviving without the player built to organize its offense at the top of the floor. For New York, this is a chance to turn an uneasy start into something more settled before the standings harden around them.
