FanSided continues its series looking at each team’s all-time best starting five with a look at the Orlando Magic. Who should be among the team’s five best?
Orlando Magic history is an interesting thing to study. The franchise’s relatively short history is full of great players and dynamic storylines.
That much is seen in the list of the Magic’s all-time greatest players.
Shaquille O’Neal and Anfernee Hardaway were cultural touchstones and established the Magic as a legitimate NBA franchise. They took a young franchise and brought it to unprecedented heights (of course, it was young). They are the duo many still associate with the name “Orlando Magic.” This Magic Moment brought that out more than anything.
Tracy McGrady kept the Magic going with some stellar play. He is most likely the best scorer in the team’s history. And then Dwight Howard rechristened the championship dreams for the franchise for nearly a decade.
The Magic have had some truly great players and some truly great teams that are part of the NBA’s history — if only a footnote in the stories of Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, perhaps.
Naming an all-time starting lineup is never an easy exercise. Certainly it is easy to fudge positions to make sure those core four players get in — is Dwight Howard exclusively a center, or can he play power forward?
FanSided continued its video series naming the top starting lineups for each NBA team and came up with this all-time starting lineup for the Magic:
PG- Anfernee Hardaway
SG- Nick Anderson
SF- Tracy McGrady
PF- Horace Grant
C- Shaquille O’Neal
There is no complaining with that list (if Howard is not a center). Certainly, as Mike Carman of FanSided states, there is plenty of debate between O’Neal and Howard in Magic history. But there is no arguing with the other guys on the list.
Hardaway is one of the most unique and gifted players in NBA history. He was a star in his own right and helped carry the Magic after O’Neal left until his body broke down.
McGrady was of course a scoring savant and the only option for that forward spot. Nick Anderson is a fan favorite and a strong player too.
At power forward, if Howard is out of the equation, there is some debate for sure. Horace Grant was a key component of the 1995 championship team, but so was Rashard Lewis for the 2009 championship team.
Lewis was a transformative player in a different way. He was the first stretch-4 on a Finals team. He did not produce tremendous statistics, but he was integral to the team.
If I were making a first and second all-time Magic team, I would have him in there over Grant.
In fact, here is my list:
PG: Anfernee Hardaway . . . Darrell Armstrong
SG: Nick Anderson . . . Steve Francis
SF: Tracy McGrady . . . Hedo Turkoglu
PF: Rashard Lewis . . . Horace Grant
C: Shaquille O’Neal . . . Dwight Howard
This list touches on just about every era of Magic basketball and hits all the fan favorites. It certainly is not without its controversy.
Scott Skiles and Jameer Nelson are left off in favor of Darrell Armstrong. Steve Francis was troubled in his time with the Magic, but put up surprisingly good numbers. Hedo Turkoglu’s brilliance during that Finals run might help him surpass fan favorite Dennis Scott.
The Magic could go three-deep on decent lineups, honestly.
The starting five though seems relatively set with maybe one or two guys on the outside with legitimate arguments to get in.
Next: ESPN names Shaquille O'Neal top American athlete of 1995
Feel free to share your all-time starting fives in the comments below.