Jalen Suggs pulled up to the Twin Cities Pro Am at Minnehaha Academy this summer with the intention of being a spectator.

He came to the gym straight from the airport, and was merely in attendance to support his dear friend, Paige Bueckers, who was making a celebrity coaching appearance in the event.

That didn’t last long. Minutes into the game, Suggs disappeared back into the school’s equipment room. Soon after, he emerged in basketball gear and made his way over to Bueckers’ bench.

Game on.

Suggs spent the rest of the night making one highlight play after another, much to the enjoyment of not only all of those in attendance, but also himself.

The guard was enjoying himself on the basketball court again.

As it turns out, it was a sign of things to come.

Suggs has made multiple trips to Target Center since becoming a pro, and he has yet to lose an NBA game in the house where he claimed state titles in high school.

But Friday’s Magic win over the Timberwolves felt different for the Orlando guard.

“This almost felt like the first time (playing at home) again,” the St. Paul product said postgame.

Because, for the first time as a professional, Suggs again feels like that guard who dominated the Minnesota prep scene for Minnehaha Academy. He feels like himself.

“These past three years, not only was I a shell of myself, but I was kind of living a life of somebody I wasn’t,” he said.

That can happy so easily in the NBA, a league chews up and spits out players on an annual basis. If you aren’t entirely confident in who you are and what you do, you will not prosper.

Suggs has spoken at length about his mental health at multiple points this season, dating all the way back to Media Day at the outset of training camp. It was a major focus for Suggs, the No. 5 overall draft pick in the 2021 NBA draft, in the offseason after two years of on-court struggles and injury issues.

Suggs worked on his temperance and self discipline while getting his mental and spiritual states into the proper space. At the end of last season, Suggs took a couple of weeks for a needed break filled with time spent with family and friends.

“Then,” he said on media day, “I really just started to deep dive into bettering myself.”

Finding himself as a person allowed Suggs to rediscover the things he loved most — basketball included. He regained his adoration for the game.

“The difference that it’s made in my perspective, my outlook and how I approach each day has been massive,” Suggs said on media day. “It’s helped me fall back in love with this sport again and the work of it, which has been a beautiful thing.”

That love is on display on a nightly basis, and Friday was no exception. He finished with 15 points on the strength of four three-pointers, along with six rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot. Sure, he would smile when he would knock down another key shot during Orlando’s second-half comeback. But just as telling was the tenacity with which he played. Orlando was more physical than Minnesota in the way it has been more physical than many opponents this season.

The Magic shouldn’t possess that trait as a still fairly young team. But Suggs sets an aggressive, bulldog-like tone that others follow. You can’t bring that type of intensity on a nightly basis unless you love what you’re doing.

That’s the way he played in high school, and the same style is now being replicated on the game’s biggest stage. It’s resulted in Suggs being one of the game’s best perimeter defensive players, and the engine of an upstart squad exceeding expectations.

Orlando went into Target Center, which has become one of the most hostile arenas in the NBA, on Friday and emerged victorious. That’s something only four other teams can say this season.

Suggs’ fearlessness is permeating throughout the Magic roster. That on-court courage, he said, is born out of his revived belief.

“I didn’t trust myself (in the past), I didn’t believe in myself, because I didn’t know myself,” Suggs said Friday. “But getting back to that, finding confidence in myself and my teammates and what my teammates give me and all the work that I put in, the love that my family gives me and the lord Jesus Christ gives me. Naturally, I think the confidence just begins to come back. To have all that flowing again is a good feeling.”

Possessing that feeling allows Suggs to thoroughly enjoy moments as special as Friday’s.

“Coming back and being able to experience this all again, be me, to feel all the love here at Target Center again was super dope,” Suggs said. “These past couple of days have meant a lot. (Thursday) night, getting in, and just seeing the city, seeing all my people just brings back a lot of memories. It was an emotional day today.”

The seats behind the Orlando bench were packed with Suggs supporters. He admitted he was “so nervous” to start the game. His muscles were tight, his stomach was in knots.

“I kept seeing just faces in the crowd. I wanted to go talk to my people, share my love,” Suggs said. “The boys helped me stay locked in, though. Be present on the court. This building is so special, I have a lot of memories here. But the unit, man, being able to share that with them and get the dub, which is all I wanted, all that with them, it made me happy. Smiles all around tonight.”

That has often been the case for Suggs this season. The 22 year old doesn’t feel he can properly express the joy he has felt after finally, truly finding his way in the NBA.

“A great group of guys playing good basketball, getting to experience winning in this league and making strides myself as a human being,” Suggs said. “So yeah, I’ve been all smiles recently. I can’t wait to keep attacking this thing.”

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