Of course, it’s about winning in sport and proving that you are objectively better than the others. And in the end, there are even songs about it, only the title counts, everyone else is a loser that nobody remembers. If you apply these criteria, then Franz Wagner has had a terrible first NBA season. His club, the Orlando Magic, has the second-worst record (22-60) in the North American Basketball League and did not qualify for the playoffs, which began Tuesday with a mini-tournament for the remaining four of the 16 spots.
But you can also see sport as a challenge, how good you can get in a discipline, and then pretty much everyone agrees that Wagner took a few steps in the direction of the room that only very, very few athletes get into and on the door it says: Admission only for the best in the world.
Having had an outstanding debut season, the impressive stats (15.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game) only tell part of the story, just as in a team sport, people win the title who do nothing lost in the best-in-the-world room. The NBA talent exchange is always a look into the crystal ball. (Wagner was ranked eighth in his class, earlier than any German before him: Detlef Schrempf in 1985.) You can be as good as you want at college, and Wagner made it to the quarterfinals with Michigan — he plays too against people who go on to become lawyers and dentists. You only realize how good someone really is when they compete against the best. “They are so incredibly good,” Wagner said recently to the SZ. “But you only notice that when you play directly against them: how athletic they are, how fast, how talented.”
That’s exactly what they say about Wagner: how elegantly he moves, how unbelievably high his understanding of the game is despite his only 20 years, how he misleads even savvy professionals. Of course there are videos of him with nimble dribbles, fine passes, crashing dunks. But his qualities are most evident when he hits the ball not Has. Running free in the NBA is like trying to run from one building to another in the pouring rain. You have to wait for that moment when it’s not pouring so heavily, and then get over there as quickly as possible using the shortest route that you must have spotted beforehand.
Wagner should pack on a few muscle kilos in order to seek physical contact with opponents more fearlessly
Wagner recognizes these situations, recognizes the way, and then he gets the ball. That’s the advantage for a young player when his club has a bad record: he can develop and make these steps; in Orlando they just didn’t want it to go too fast. “We want to do it perfectly and not skip a step,” said coach Jamahl Mosley at the end of the regular season. They want to build something, and they hope they’ve laid the groundwork for that, especially with Wagner, because he’s still a little way from that best-of-the-world space.
He should now pack on a few muscle kilos if possible in order to seek physical contact with opponents more fearlessly, both when moving to the basket and on defense. And they want him to find ways to score other than those that have worked well this season and are now familiar to opponents. It is therefore often said that the second season is more difficult and more important than the first, and for Wagner summer break work begins: now, while others are fighting for the title.
In search of the target water: Maxi Kleber.
(Photo: Ron Jenkins/AFP)
For example, Maxi Kleber of the Dallas Mavericks, who meet Utah Jazz in the first round. In Dallas, they agree they have a serious shot at the title – if that glue is healthy and confident. Of course it depends on the stars in the playoffs, with the Mavericks it’s Luka Doncic. But Kleber’s versatility on the defensive end and his marksmanship make him what the US calls the “title puzzle piece.” However, for weeks Kleber has seemed as if someone had stolen his target water, since February he has only hit 24 percent of throws from beyond the three-point line.
The Celtics need the basket protector Theis against the offensive spectacle of the Nets
It’s not just about the points themselves, Kleber managed seven per game, but also that the Mavericks need him as a pick-and-roll option for Doncic (who decides after the block whether to score himself or put down to Kleber) and as a threat from beyond the three-point line when Dwight Powell pulls to the basket. One way to get out of such a deep valley is to have a sense of achievement at the end of the regular season, but Kleber was injured then. In an emergency, he must now free himself from the crisis.
Favorite with the Boston Celtics: Daniel Theis.
(Photo: Morry Gash/AP)
Things are looking a little better for Daniel Theis, who the Boston Celtics brought back in February and says about coach Ime Udoka that he now sees him not only as a regular center due to Robert Williams’ injury, but as an important one in the title fight Player. The Celtics are second seeded in the Eastern Conference. In the first round there could be a duel with the Brooklyn Nets, who did not have a good record due to Kevin Durant’s injury and Kyrie Irving’s lateral thinking, but are considered favorites should they win the play-in game against Cleveland ( on Wednesday night). The Celtics need the basket protector Theis against the offensive spectacle of the Nets.
Wagner should now work to ensure that Orlando Magic is one of the playoff candidates as soon as possible; Kleber and Theis are hoping that the title will work out this year. It’s also about how good they can all be in this sport, but in the end it’s all about winning.