Forward Jonathan Isaac (1) Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

Magic forward Jonathan Isaac hits significant milestone in effort to play for first time since 2020

It's been 883 days since Jonathan Isaac played in an NBA game. The Orlando Magic forward made a huge step on Monday in his potential return to the court.

Isaac played in 27 games, making 10 starts, as a rookie during the 2017-2018 campaign and appeared in a career-high 75 games (64 starts) during the 2018-2019 season. He then played in 32 of the Magic's first 34 games in the 2019-2020 season, before suffering a serious left knee injury in the team's victory over the Washington Wizards on New Year's Day 2020.

That NBA season of course, came to a crashing halt in March and as Isaac rehabbed from the injury, play was put off until late July before resuming in the "bubble." In just his second game back, Isaac went down with a season-ending torn ACL in the same knee during Orlando's win over the Sacramento Kings on Aug. 2, 2020.

It was announced at the end of August 2020 that the former No. 6 overall pick would also miss the entire 2020-2021 season. Despite the serious injuries, Orlando signed Isaac to a four-year contract extension that December.

As Isaac's rehab remained stagnant through much of the 2021-2022 campaign, Magic president Jeff Weltman announced that the Florida State product would miss the entire season due to his knee injury. In March 2022, Isaac suffered a minor hamstring injury and underwent a procedure.

It looks like 2023 is off to a better start for Isaac and perhaps, finally, he can return to the court for the young Magic, who are the third worst team in the Eastern Conference at 13-24.

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