3 Biggest Free Agency Wins in Orlando Magic History
By Alfred Ezman
3 biggest free agent wins in Orlando Magic history
2000: Tracy McGrady
After three seasons with the Toronto Raptors, the Orlando Magic acquired Tracy McGrady in a sign-and-trade deal for a first-round pick (it would eventually return to Orlando a year later and become Fran Vazquez). McGrady’s production for the Magic would be enormous throughout the early 2000s.
The scoring volume from McGrady was astronomical as he averaged 28.1 points per game in his four seasons in Orlando, clearing 25.0 points per game in each of his four seasons. He is the only player in Magic history to average 30.0 points per game in a season.
He was also great on the defensive end of the floor as his steal numbers were up over 1.3 per game each year throughout his four seasons.
He joined a team that was starting to look very good with loads of talent all over the floor like Grant Hill and Bo Outlaw. Tracy McGrady would also complete a powerful backcourt tandem with Darrell Armstrong. The Magic organization was also intrigued to see just how top-five draft pick Mike Miller would perform.
The Magic were developing hype that the league was noticing and it seemed as if they could become rather competitive for a championship once again.
Of course, none of those teams rose to the level of a contender. McGrady and Hill, both acquired on the same day in two major free-agent signings, only played 33 games together in four seasons. Orlando struggled to deal with the salary cap realities of not having Hill and rotated the roster frequently.
They made three playoff appearances but were bounced fairly quickly in the first round save for an embarrassing seven-game series defeat to the top-seeded Detroit Pistons after taking a 3-1 series lead.
That was never McGrady’s fault. He was an All-Star each year in Orlando and was a scoring champ during the 2003 and 2004 seasons. He helped lead the Magic to three playoff appearances in his stent there.
McGrady also has the most minutes per game and the best offensive plus/minus out of any Orlando player ever. He is regarded as one of the best scorers and players Orlando has ever seen.