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Orlando Magic officially looking to bring D-League team to Florida

By Philip Rossman-Reich

Jan 14, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic guard Devyn Marble (11) dribbles the ball against the Houston Rockets during the second quarter at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 14, 2015; Orlando, FL, USA; Orlando Magic guard Devyn Marble (11) dribbles the ball against the Houston Rockets during the second quarter at Amway Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Orlando Magic has sent out requests for proposal to several cities throughout Florida as they take concrete steps to bring a D-League team to Florida.

The Orlando Magic officially announced they are beginning the process to bring a D-League team to North or Central Florida.

The franchise would be a direct one-to-one affiliate with this proposed team and not the hybrid association the team has with its current D-League affiliate, the Erie Bayhawks.

The Magic are surveying several different locations throughout Florida as potential sites for this new D-League team including CFE Arena at UCF, Silver Spurs Arena in Kissimmee and the HP Fieldhouse at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports complex at Disney. Jacksonville, Daytona, Estero, Fort Myers and Lakeland are the other cities the Magic have made a request for proposal to gauge interest in hosting a new team.

“Our goal is to have our Development League team closer to home, and we are beginning our due diligence to look at options in Central and Northern Florida,” said Orlando Magic CEO Alex Martins in a press release. “Having our D-League team closer to Orlando would give us the best opportunity to continue to develop our young players, while also extending the Magic brand in our region.”

Currently, the Magic have what is called a hybrid affiliation with the Erie Bayhawks in Erie, Pa. This means the Magic have control over the basketball operations of the team, but the organization still otherwise runs independently of the Magic.

The arrangement has been a successful one with the Magic installing a strong coaching staff in Erie led by Bill Peterson and having several prospects they have kept a close eye on and brought to their Summer League teams. Devyn Marble has spent several stints in the D-League.

However the trend around the NBA now is for teams to directly own and operate their D-League teams in cities close to their parent club.

For example, the Magic last night nearly were down both Elfrid Payton and Evan Fournier due to injury. They were also without Marble who was in Erie on assignment. There would have been no way for the team to recall Marble in an emergency from Pennsylvania if Fournier was not able to play.

If the team were in, say, Jacksonville, that emergency call up could certainly happen much quicker.

That is part of the consideration in seeking a team nearer to Orlando for the D-League affiliate.

Orlando is currently in the second year of a three-year affiliation with Erie. No team would be established and started before the 2018 season.

It also helps that Charlotte has now announced their own one-to-one affiliate with a team in Greensboro. This marks the first team in the Southeast in the current D-League landscape. Adding some geographically close teams would help make it easier to build a D-League team in the area.

The Magic have long looked to bring a D-League team closer to home and so this step is the first concrete one in that process. They are not looking to move the Bayhawks and the Bayhawks would likely continue to exist independently with a new affiliation after the current deal expires or the Magic establish this new D-League team.

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The stars are aligning for the Magic to expand their footprint in Florida with a D-League franchise.