Excitement for the Orlando Magic's 2026 season has continued to build.
Ever since the team acquired Desmond Bane, the expectations for the Magic have gone through the roof. Immediately, the Magic were considered contenders in the Eastern Conference. They were expected to finish third in the East and advance on what they were supposed to accomplish last season before injuries derailed their season.
Either way, the Magic knew they needed to act boldly this summer if they were serious about being title contenders.
Those expectations have only increased as the team has come together in training camp -- and Franz Wagner leading Germany to a title at EuroBasket in a tournament that featured MVP-level players like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic.
That feeling is present within the AdventHealth Training Center, too. The Magic know the opportunity that is ahead of them. They know what this team is capable of doing. And they are eager to show it.
The question is just how far this team can go.
The general thought is the Magic should win their first playoff series since 2010. Fans would certainly be satisfied with that and a competitive series that hints at the team's potential to grow into a title contender.
This is likely a multi-year journey to try to compete for a championship. This Magic team is not going to go away any time soon, considering how young all of their key players are.
But when a title window is open, it is open. And that title window might be open now. There is no wasting time or throwing away seasons when that title window is open like this.
This may be the season the Magic win a title. And ESPN only fed fuel to that fire with a prediction model that Kevin Pelton revealed earlier this week.
Pelton decided to highlight one of his 1,000 simulations using his stat-based model to show how wild the season could somewhat reasonably get -- Boston Celtics over Portland Trail Blazers for the NBA Cup, what?
And when all the dust settled on the year, the Magic not only were the runaway winners of the top seed in the East, clearing the second-seed by seven wins at 57-25, but also NBA champions, defeating the Golden State Warriors in seven games.
Pelton's predictions had the Orlando Magic losing only four games in the Eastern Confernece playoffs, defeating the Chicago Bulls, Toronto Raptors and New York Knicks to the team's third NBA Finals appearance.
The Magic defeated the Warriors on the road in Game 7 thanks to 32 points from Paolo Banchero in his narrative-filled model.
Pelton is not exactly forthright with his methodology or how often the Magic came out on top or reached the Finals in his more than 1,000 models. This simulation could be an outlier -- and one to highlight how wild the season can get (like the Minnesota Timberwolves losing in the Play-In to miss the Playoffs entirely).
But the possibility is real. It is more real than it has been for more than a decade. And that is reason enough to be excited for the Magic's season to begin.
How realistic is a title run?
Orlando Magic fans have not been able to talk seriously about winning a title since Dwight Howard was on the team. Nobody wants to put the cart before the horse.
But the Magic are acting more and more like a title-contending team. They have two potential All-Stars in Paolo Banchero (an All-Star in 2024 and a likely perennial All-Star, save for injury) and Franz Wagner (an almost certain All-Star at least in the league's new U.S.-vs.-World All-Star Game format).
The team pushed the chips in trading two rotation players and four first-round picks for Desmond Bane to take that step into contention and solve their offensive issues. The team is in the luxury tax for the first time since 2012 and will be above the first apron at least starting next year.
That suggests the Magic need to be in title-winning mode.
There is still a bit of uncertainty on how this whole thing will work -- entering Thursday's preseason finale, Banchero, Wagner and Bane have played a total of 32 possessions together in the game against the Philadelphia 76ers (at just 93.8 points per 100 possessions).
But the promise is evident to anyone watching the team. Josh Robbins of The Athletic spoke to several scouts about the Magic's potential, and they all agree this is a team that could make noise in the Eastern Conference.
Make it to the Finals good? Nobody is quite willing to go there.
But acknowledging how open the Eastern Conference appears to be, thanks to the injuries to Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton, presumably knocking out the last two Eastern Conference champions from contention, leaves the Magic clearly in the conversation to be a surprise team.
If the Orlando Magic are nearly universally considered the third- or fourth-best team behind the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks in the East, it would not take much for them to tip over the top and make Kevin Pelton's predictions come true. One hot run or jolt of confidence could turn them into an Eastern Conference finalist or conference champion.
Orlando certainly has the defensive foundations to be a difficult team to play throughout the season and playoffs. If the Magic have found consistent offense, they are a team to watch out for deep into May and June.
The Magic certainly have not been hiding from these championship aspirations. They believe they can take a massive leap this season.
No one should be clearing room in the trophy case quite yet. There is a lot of work to do to get to the championship level.
But for the first time in a long time, it does not feel merely like a dream. It is something the team has laid the groundwork to achieve.
Whether it comes this year or in the near future that door feels wide open. And Magic fans are certainly excited to hear those dreams confirmed around the league.