Who are the top trios in Orlando Magic history?
1) Shaquille O’Neal / Anfernee Hardaway / Nick Anderson
There is no other trio that this could be.
While the late-2000s team had a great team unity, admittedly they were not the strongest individuals. Who do you put in as that second guy with Dwight Howard? I mean, I listed the coach as a key part of the trio.
They might have been a better team, but their trios did not put fear into the heart of anyone.
Not in the way Shaquille O’Neal, Penny Hardaway and Nick Anderson could.
As Brett has written throughout the summer, Anderson’s career could have really blossomed differently if he had been kept in a more featured role. But this was also the role he was best for in the end as O’Neal and Hardaway had Hall of Fame potential (something Anderson did not really have).
In the 1995 and 1996 seasons, Anderson averaged 15.3 points per game on 55.4 percent effective field goal percentage. He was able to focus more on his defense, where his size at the guard position and became a solid defensive player. And his 3-point shooting made him a key weapon as the Magic surrounded Shaquille O’Neal with shooting weapons.
The other two guys in this trio?
O’Neal was a monster in the post (worthy of his own week on NBATV, actually) and Hardaway is going to be the great “Deep Cut” of the 1990s. His prime may be lost to history in the larger scheme of things, but a look at his game and the way he played showed he was one of the best players in the league for those years he was in his prime.
This was the best collection of top-end talent the Magic have ever had. In many years this trio would have certainly been enough to win a title. Who is to say what would have happened if not for Michael Jordan‘s return to dominance?
That Magic team was very close to a probable dynasty with O’Neal and Hardaway playing a perfect pair and complement. There was really no way for any team to defeat them. They just needed to mature.
They never got the chance. But they will always exist in Magic folklore as one of the very best.