Anthony Black Ruled Out for Friday, Forcing Magic to Shuffle the Deck

The Orlando Magic are officially putting Anthony Black on ice for Friday night. Underdog NBA confirmed the guard is out with an ankle injury, meaning Orlando has to figure out how to replace a guy who basically lives in the passing lanes.

Ankle injuries in the NBA are treated with the same level of secrecy as a nuclear launch code, but the result is always the same. You wake up, check the injury report, and suddenly your favorite team's perimeter defense looks like a screen door on a submarine.

"Underdog NBA reported: 'Anthony Black (ankle) listed out for Friday.'"

Black is not just a warm body for the Magic. He logged nearly 30 minutes a night last season, starting 40 games and swiping 1.4 steals per contest. When you take that kind of defensive production off the floor, opposing guards suddenly start looking at the rim like it is an all-you-can-eat buffet.

This is also not his first run-in with the medical staff this calendar year. Black missed a massive 16-game chunk earlier in 2026 with an abdominal strain, and he was already dealing with a right ankle sprain back in the preseason. At a certain point, the guy just needs a break that does not involve an MRI tube.

For the sickos staring at the betting board, this completely scrambles the math. Without Black eating up 30 minutes of backcourt run, the usage rates for the rest of the Orlando guards are about to spike. Prop bettors are going to be refreshing the starting lineup announcement like they are trying to get concert tickets.

The Magic will have to patch together their rotation for Friday and hope this ankle issue is just a minor speed bump. If it lingers, Orlando is going to have a very long, very porous month of basketball ahead of them.