Magic’s Chuma Okeke has arthroscopic surgery on right knee, out at least four weeks

Orlando Magic forward Chuma Okeke will miss the next four weeks after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his left knee, the team announced on Tuesday. The procedure Okeke had is a chondroplasty, which repairs damaged cartilage. 

Okeke left the Magic’s game against the Indiana Pacers on Nov. 20 because of knee soreness and hasn’t played since. In 18 games this season, including seven starts, he has averaged 5.4 points on 50.9 percent true shooting, plus 4.2 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 21.8 minutes.

When Okeke got hurt against Indiana, Orlando was in the middle of a stretch in which it lost 11 of 12 games. It then went on a six-game winning streak before a 126-125 loss against the Atlanta Hawks on Monday. 

Okeke tore his ACL in his left knee at Auburn during the 2019 NCAA Tournament and missed the first year of his professional career as a result. 

Despite the recent streak, the Magic are 11-21 on the season with the fifth-worst net rating in the NBA. Few teams have been more banged-up this season — Wendell Carter Jr., Markelle Fultz, Jalen Suggs, Cole Anthony and Gary Harris have all been sidelined for more than half of their games. 

In happier Orlando news, Carter told the Orlando Sentinel‘s Khobi Price that he’s ramping up toward a potential return on Friday against the San Antonio Spurs. Carter has missed more than a month because of a strained right plantar fascia.