The NBA schedule is starting to make its way out with a full release expected this week (Thursday is reportedly the day).
At long last, everyone will be able to plan their lives for the next six months and get to the business of this highly anticipated season for the Orlando Magic.
The schedule release is not just the day everyone gets their plans through April. It is also a statement of the stories and teams the NBA will feature throughout the season. It is a statement of who matters.
That is what the national television schedule really says. It is why fans of teams like the Magic, who are so infrequently in the spotlight, hang on to the number of national TV appearances. They want their team in the spotlight.
With the Magic potentially having two All-Stars in Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, and among the favorites to win the East, they are expected to get a lot more national attention. That is something they have not had in a very long time.
But will the Magic actually get this attention? Does the league actually view the Magic as a title contender?
If the early schedule releases are any indication, the Magic may not get quite the spotlight they hoped.
Orlando was never going to be an option for opening night or for Christmas. Banchero and Wagner are not big enough stars to merit that kind of attention (yet) and the Magic are not clear-cut title contenders.
But the league is not putting attention on the Eastern Conference . . . at all.
Shams Charania of ESPN reported the season will open Oct. 21 with the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder followed by the Los Angeles Lakers hosting the Golden State Warriors.
The Christmas Day schedule also lacks Eastern Conference teams. The Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks will open the Christmas schedule, but the rest of the games feature Western Conference teams.
It might be that kind of season. The Eastern Conference might be the secondary player in this story this season.
And that means the Magic might be left out in the cold again.
The Magic have been ignored
The Orlando Magic are not seeking attention of course. They just want to win. And getting on national TV is a byproduct of that.
With two straight playoff appearances and two potential young All-Stars, the Magic are slated to get a little more attention. On top of that, the Magic's acquisition of Desmond Bane has vaulted the team into the conversation to win the Eastern Conference.
It might be premature to call the Magic favorites to win the East, but they are expected to be among the top teams in the East.
Of course, the Magic have not exactly been national darlings at this point.
Even with the No. 1 pick in Paolo Banchero, the national TV schedule has passed over the Magic. He got only one national TV appearance as a rookie -- and that was taken away after Chet Holmgren was injured in the summer. They got only one in the 2024 season.
Even after making the Playoffs as the 5-seed and reaching Game 7 in the first round in 2024, the Magic got only five national TV appearances last year on the initial schedule. Two more were added when the Orlando Magic reached the NBA Cup quarterfinals against the Milwaukee Bucks and then another late in the season against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
With the Magic seemingly climbing the ranks, it would make sense that the team could get a few more games on national TV.
Their pair of games in Europe to play the Memphis Grizzlies will surely get some national TV treatment. The game in Berlin seems ripe for an Amazon Prime slot, and the Sunday afternoon game would not be a good ABC or NBC option, but could find its way onto ESPN (going against the NFL Playoffs).
The league wants to promote those games, at the least.
The Magic should have more national TV appearances this season simply because they improved. Simply because they are expected to be bigger players on the national stage.
But how many more? These opening salvos of the schedule suggest the Eastern Conference as a whole is going to get pushed to the side in favor of Central Time Zone teams in the Western Conference like the Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets and Minnesota Timberwolves.
Magic must make their mark
The Orlando Magic may not be at the forefront of the story the NBA tries to tell this season. But they are no longer bit players.
The Magic are a team that the rest of the Eastern Conference will have to deal with. And they are expected to win a lot more games. They will get more than five national TV appearances when the schedule comes out.
The question will be what they do with them.
Orlando went 1-6 on nationally televised regular-season games last year. That included some pretty frustrating losses. The Magic did not put their best foot forward in the spotlight.
Being on national TV is something that is typically earned from being one of the better teams in the league. The Magic are one of the better teams in the league -- consistently ranked in the top 10 of most power rankings around the league.
They have merited this attention. The Magic have earned a spot near the front of the stage, so to speak.
Whether they maintain that spot will come down to what they do with it. If Orlando wants to take a step up into contention, the team is going to need to win these kinds of games. Especially if they get more of them.
It just may not be as many as attention-starved fans want. The Eastern Conference is certainly down this season. The NBA is already telegraphing it.