Jamahl Mosley likes to remind everyone that Jalen Suggs was once a quarterback.
A high school quarterback so good that several Big Ten teams, including Ohio State, were sniffing around for him before he chose basketball (attending a school that does not have a football team).
The Magic have often extolled the physical toughness that comes from having a football player on the court. Rarely do they talk about the offensive part of that and what Suggs learned as a point guard.
It was always a controversial call to groom Suggs as a point guard. He was drafted as a combo guard. His offense has always lagged well behind his defense and his defensive energy.
Injuries have slowed so much of his development.
As the Magic are becoming more serious as a competitive team, Suggs’ role as a point guard is under scrutiny. Is he the right player to manage and lead the team as the lead guard? Will a potential new coach give him the same freedoms, box him in or discard him?
Suggs is still the team’s heart and soul, but he has a lot to prove. And he has to play this point guard role.
This season has been as up and down for Suggs as it has been for the entire team. He has had his good moments and his bad moments. He has had moments that make everyone understand why he is so vital to this team and moments that make everyone question his future with the team long term.
These final games will not answer those questions definitively one way or the other. But Suggs is making his case to be the point guard still.
