A Mindset Shift for Orlando Magic's Jalen Suggs in 2025-2026 Season

Adam Koffler discusses the impact of Jalen Suggs on the Orlando Magic during the 2025-2026 NBA season. How Suggs has improved his offensive game since coming into the league, and what that means for the Magic this season.

Jalen Suggs is still ramping up to full strength this season after battling a knee injury that cut his 2024-2025 season short. He played just 35 games last season due to a back injury sustained in early January and a trochlea injury to his left knee in late January.

To date, Suggs has played in 13 of the Orlando Magic's first 18 games of the 2025-2026 season. He hasn't yet been cleared to play in back-to-back sets (four games), and he also missed a game due to a sore right groin.

Despite not yet being cleared for back-to-backs, Suggs' minutes have ramped up of late. After averaging right around 20 minutes per game for the first seven games of the season, Suggs has averaged nearly 30 minutes per game in his last six. And with the increased minutes for Suggs have come wins. After starting the season 1-4, the Magic now boast a record of 10-8. They're 8-5 with their starting point guard, and just 2-3 without him. Coincidence? Absolutely not!

Suggs Considered "All World Defender" Entering NBA

Suggs was the fifth overall pick out of Gonzaga in the 2021 NBA Draft. He played just one season with the Zags, averaging 14.4 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.9 steals, and 0.3 blocks per game. He got to the rim with ease, shooting 50.3% from the field, but struggled a bit from distance (33.7% 3PT) and from the charity stripe (75.4%).

Suggs was drafted due to his defensive ability, with hopes that he would develop into a great offensive player in due time.

59 days from college hoops

Gonzaga Basketball Play of the Day: April 3, 2021

Jalen Suggs blocks Cody Riley at the rim and then threads the needle to Drew Timme for a dunk in transition. pic.twitter.com/KmPAMijKnu

— Steven Karr (@SKarrG0) September 8, 2023

To nobody's surprise, he struggled with efficiency as a rookie in the NBA, with an effective field goal percentage (eFG%) of just 40%. But what Suggs lacked in scoring efficiency, he more than made up for as a passer and as a menace on the defensive end.

Suggs averaged 4.4 assists and 1.6 stocks (1.2 steals + 0.4 blocks) per game as a rookie. The Magic got exactly the player they thought they drafted fifth overall. But could he improve in Year 2?

Increased Offensive Efficiency Throughout His Career

Suggs improved his shooting as a sophomore. Then he really turned it up a notch in Year 3.

During the 2023-2024 season, Suggs averaged a career-high 12.6 points per game on an eFG% of 58%. With Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner firmly in the mix, Suggs could focus on his scoring efficiency while his teammates shouldered most of the scoring load.

He also played in a career-high 75 games that season. He hasn't played more than 53 games in any of his other three full seasons to date.

The 2024-2025 season presented different challenges, hence the dip in scoring efficiency. For the first time in his NBA career, Suggs was called upon to be a volume scorer with early-season oblique injuries to Banchero and Wagner.

His efficiency took a hit, but Suggs proved to the masses, and himself, that he could score the basketball at a high clip when given the opportunity. That was a big step for him.

But then he got hurt. First, the back injury, then the knee injury. But Suggs attacked rehab this past summer. And he did so knowing two things. One, that he could score the basketball with greater efficiency, and two, that he could put up points in bunches if necessary.

Suggs knew that if he were going to help this Magic team win going forward, he would have to become a more well-rounded and efficient two-way player. So far this season, he's done just that.

A "Mindset Shift" Coming Into This Season

Suggs has always been known for his tenacious defense. That's never waned. He's never averaged fewer than 1.5 stocks per game in any one of his five NBA seasons. In the last three seasons, he's averaged 2+ stocks per game.

His defense turns into transition offense, which in turn helps his team push the pace and score easier baskets. "His ability to push the basketball changes the game," said head coach Jamahl Mosley ahead of the team's game vs. the Knicks last weekend.

The Magic are 4-2 in their last six games since Jalen Suggs’ minutes have been ramped up

He didn’t play in one of those losses, was a +21 in the other

Mose on Suggs’ value offensively:

“His ability to push the basketball changes the game. He has such an elite speed about him.” pic.twitter.com/zcyhDZm2s0

— Adam Koffler (@AdamKoffler) November 22, 2025

That night, Suggs went on to score an efficient 26 points, a season high. Since his minutes have ramped up to around 30 back on November 9, he's averaging 18.3 points per game on 66% True Shooting, 54% FG, and 93% FT. And his defense hasn't suffered one bit, as he's averaging 2.2 stocks per game in his last six games.

Of players with a Usage Rate north of 20%, Suggs is one of three guys this season (minimum 10 games) with a True Shooting percentage over 67%. The other two, Nikola Jokic and Jalen Duren, two centers. That's how efficient he's been as a scorer, and that comes even with a Usage Rate over 20%.

Granted, it's a relatively small sample of just 13 games, but it's clear Suggs came into Year 5 with a different mindset. He told me about that mindset shift after his 26-point performance against the Knicks.

Jalen Suggs has become a highly-efficient two-way player after coming into the league labeled an “elite defender”

After another efficient scoring night, I asked him what he attributes to his growth on the offensive end:

“Mindset. Locked in to see the bigger picture this summer” https://t.co/swFdNpFKpM pic.twitter.com/xvOwXHQu4g

— Adam Koffler (@AdamKoffler) November 23, 2025

What's most impressive is the fact that his emotion and tenacity on the defensive end remain tried and true even as he refines his game on the other end of the floor. As Mosley always says, "That's who he is."

THIS is Jalen Suggs https://t.co/1lbAvBbW5W pic.twitter.com/I7x2f8JORj

— Orlando Magic (@OrlandoMagic) November 23, 2025

Suggs knows his role on this team is to bring the energy on the defensive end every night, but he knows that to help this team win more consistently, it'll be his efficiency on the offensive end that will put them over the top.

Since Suggs' minutes were ramped up two weeks ago, the Magic have won six games and lost three. In one of those losses, Suggs was a team-high +21. He didn't play in the other two losses. That's how important the fifth-year point guard is to the success of the Orlando Magic this season.

Way Forward

Expectations were high for this Orlando Magic team coming into the 2025-2026 season after trading a haul of future picks for Desmond Bane this offseason. An elite three-point shooter and shot creator is exactly what this team needed to pair alongside Paolo and Franz.

What wasn't so clear was the impact a healthy Suggs might have on wins and losses. After nearly one quarter of the season is in the books, the answer is starting to take shape. Despite all of the star power in Orlando, Suggs is the true x-factor. It begins with his tenacity on the defensive end, but a mindset shift coming into this season has unlocked something special on the offensive end of the floor.

As crazy as it might sound with a "Big Three" in Orlando, the Magic need Suggs to stay healthy and engaged if they're going to make a legitimate run at a title this season.

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