How did the Orlando Magic’s rivals fare in the NBA Draft?

The Orlando Magic still have hopes of making the Playoffs. To do so, they will have to climb over several teams. Did they make up ground on Draft Night?

Everything can change quickly in the NBA. Often, it only takes a day.

Many of these days take place very near to the NBA Draft, and the time period can be a turning point for a franchise, or perhaps at least a sign things are headed in the right direction.

For a rebuilding team like the Orlando Magic, the draft is especially important as a clue to the future, as an opportunity for renewed optimism and as a point to analyze the team’s chances for the upcoming season.

While this task is obviously centered on the team itself, and there is plenty of analysis up now on the site, the Magic do not play in a vacuum. Whether they got better or worse, it is all relative to what else happened in the NBA. And what their rivals are up to.

For this task, a rival can be deemed as any team that stood between the Magic and the final Playoff spot. These are the teams the Magic have to climb past to achieve their ultimate goals.

After all, the team and its fans are all slathering over a long-awaited return to the postseason. So judging from last year, that makes the rivals as follows: