The Orlando Magic hope to build on their promising end to last season — banking on continuity and internal growth to elevate them to the higher levels of the NBA hierarchy. They have done that already with a solid start hovering around .500 through the first six games.
With the Magic already putting themselves in the early postseason chase, Orlando is going to start getting at least a little national recognition.
To be sure wins lead to attention — whether that be All-Star bids or the potential to win awards. And Orlando certainly has the players who could get at least some consideration for nearly every award the NBA hands out at the end of the season.
The Orlando Magic are still looking to make their mark in the NBA and announce themselves on a bigger stage. When they do, they should have plenty of players who step up and put themselves in some postseason award races.
Last season, the only Magic player to win an award was Paolo Banchero, last year’s Rookie of the Year. The former Duke standout averaged 20.0 points per game. He had 15 games of at least 25 points and 40 games of at least 20 points, the most among rookies last season.
Banchero received 494 points (98 first-place votes) from a panel of 100 sportswriters and broadcasters.
He became the third Magic player in franchise history to win Rookie of the Year, joining Shaquille O’Neal and Mike Miller, respectively.
It is on to bigger and better things for him and now for this team. If Orlando has a good season, there will be award recognition — or at least discussion — that will be in order.
The more successful a team is, the more national attention players receive, leading to more recognition from the voters.
Let’s take a look at which Magic players have the best chance to bring home each of the major NBA awards for the 2024 NBA season.