When Paolo Banchero suffered an injury during the Magic’s loss to the Chicago Bulls, things quickly started to look bleak for Orlando. The team had a tough road trip and lost five games in a row. Meanwhile, the Magic have found their footing and are back in third place in the Eastern Conference after winning six games in a row.

The team’s driving force during this turnaround was Franz Wagner. When Banchero went down, everyone knew Wagner would have to step up. After all, he is the team’s second-best player and has already signed a max extension. This is his chance to fulfill the contract.

In fact, right now it looks like Wagner is headed to the All-Star game in San Francisco. He has put up great numbers, averaging 25.4 points, 6.2 rebounds and 5.8 assists over the past ten games.

Wagner is doing most of the heavy lifting, but he’s not the only player helping the Magic survive the absence of two of their starters.

Losing one starter is already a big blow. Losing two is even worse. Wendell Carter Jr. hasn’t played since the Magic’s loss to the Dallas Mavericks, meaning Orlando was not only without a starting power forward, but also without a starting center.

Fortunately, Goga Bitadze is no stranger to having to step into the starting lineup. Bitadze is a different player than Carter Jr. and doesn’t play a role on the floor, but has been valuable in his own way. So far in November, Bitadze has scored double figures in all but two matches. Most recently, he had 17 points against the Phoenix Suns on 7-8 shooting from the field.

The big man is also averaging 1.7 blocks and 8.6 rebounds per game in November. He has given the Magic consistent defense, scoring inside and rebounding strongly. Bitadze may not be the flashiest player, but he knows how to play his role and does it well.

His consistency is a big reason why the Magic have been able to bounce back and survive the absence of two starters.

Going into the season, it was clear that the Magic desperately needed at least one of Anthony Black, Tristan da Silva and Jett Howard to play well in a major role. Black has done exactly that. He went from being in and out of the rotation depending on who was available as a rookie, to being one of the Magic’s most important players off the bench.

Zwart has mainly grown as a playmaker, with an average of 4.3 assists over the last ten games. That’s the second-best on the team, behind only Franz Wagner, and incredibly important now that Banchero is out. Banchero is the team’s best playmaker, so someone had to step up in his absence. Black has done that while also averaging 8.5 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.2 steals over the past ten games.

The youngster’s play has been a success story in itself, even if Black clearly still has room to grow. He’s still struggling with turnovers in some games and isn’t shooting the three consistently yet, but he will eventually. At 20 years old, Black is still the youngest player on the Magic roster and still early in his development.

Nevertheless, his visible growth has been incredibly valuable to the Magic, and not just when it comes to keeping the team afloat in Banchero’s absence. If Black continues on the same trajectory, he could be one of the Magic’s most important players in the future.