Evan Fournier Knee Injury Diagnosed as Sprained MCL; Out vs. Kings

The Orlando Magic will reportedly be short-handed for Friday's matchup against the Sacramento Kings.

On Thursday, Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel reported an MRI determined swingman Evan Fournier suffered a sprained left MCL. Robbins cited a Magic official who said Fournier would not play in Friday's game.

Fournier entered the league as a first-round pick of the Denver Nuggets in 2012, but the Magic acquired him via trade in 2014.

He is averaging a career-best 17.8 points and 3.2 rebounds per game this season and can extend his offensive arsenal beyond the three-point line (37.9 percent this season) and take advantage of openings created when opposing defenses collapse on Nikola Vucevic and Aaron Gordon.

Fournier, 25, is not an unrestricted free agent until 2021, although he has a player option on his contract for the 2020-21 campaign.

Considering this is a lost season for the Magic, there is no need to push him to a quick return. His long-term availability is far more important than his ability to play out the string in the 2017-18 season.