Paolo Banchero brought the ball up the court, read the floor and waited for a screen to be set.

Then he made his move.

In a matter of moments, the Magic forward spun around a Denver defender, drove down the lane and elevated for a dunk.

Orlando‘s bench, along with the Kia Center, erupted as Banchero was embraced by his teammates when the Nuggets called timeout trailing by six points with under six minutes to play in Saturday’s contest.

“That was fun,” Banchero said about the play in the locker room after Jamahl Mosley‘s squad held onto win late at home. “I just got the switch on Bruce Brown, made a good move and finished at the rim. It was a good move.”

The fourth-quarter sequence was a highlight that served as a reminder of the type of player Banchero was before he missed 10 games because of a left groin strain.

In the 11 games before he got hurt on his 23rd birthday (Nov. 12) at New York, Banchero averaged 23.3 points on 46.6% shooting from the floor with 9.1 rebounds, 4.3 assists and almost a full block (0.9) in 34.7 minutes per contest.

In the 10 games post-injury, however, he only averaged 17.5 points on 39.7% shooting from the floor with 7.6 rebounds, 4.8 assists and less than half a block (0.4) in 32.9 minutes per contest ahead of Monday’s game at Toronto.

“I feel good,” Banchero said. “I’ve just been, (as) I said earlier in the season, trying to pick my spots and just play the role that I’m trying to, being asked to play for this team and just be that consistent force on both sides of the ball, whether it’s guarding somebody or making the extra pass.”

Banchero making those extra passes has led to better shooting from beyond the arc for his teammates.

With Banchero on the court, Orlando shot 36.1% from 3-point range heading into Monday’s game, according to league-tracking data. Without Banchero, however, that percentage dropped to 31.2% — nearly a full 5% difference from distance.

While his passing is slightly up from pre-injury (4.8 assists vs. 4.3), his own long-range shooting numbers have dropped. Before the injury, Banchero shot 25% from 3 on 4 attempts per game (still a career-low).

In his return, he had shot 19.4% from distance on 3.6 attempts per night entering Monday.

His teammates aren’t concerned.

“He’s a young player,” veteran forward Jonathan Isaac said in the locker room. “He’s in a bit of a tough situation right now and he’s figuring it out. We all know the player he is. There’s an encouragement that’s needed, there’s motivation on the inside that’s needed, and he’ll get it. That’s the least of our worries.

“We’ll continue to band around him and continue to play good basketball, and he’ll be ready when the time is right,” Isaac added.

The tough situation that Isaac was referencing includes the fact that Orlando had played the last six games without rising star Franz Wagner (who was ruled out of his ninth because of a left high ankle sprain) and All-Defensive guard Jalen Suggs (left hip bruise).

Still, playing without key teammates is nothing new for Banchero, and he didn’t view it as an excuse.

“It’s always different when you’ve got certain guys out there, certain guys out,” he said. “But it’s something that the team has had to deal with many times this season and in the past. So, it’s not too foreign. It’s just the ‘next man up mentality,’ everybody’s got to go out there and step up for those that are out.

“And when everybody’s back healthy, that’s when we’ll be at our strongest,” he added.

Orlando aims to continue to get healthier when it continues its three-game road trip Wednesday at Indiana.

Jason Beede can be reached at jbeede@orlandosentinel.com

Up next …

Magic at Pacers

When: 3 p.m., Wednesday, Gainbridge Fieldhouse

TV: FanDuel Sports Network Florida