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Eastern Conference Power Rankings: Orlando Magic aim to climb into contender tier

The Orlando Magic had as much spending power as any team in the Eastern Conference. They remained very patient with their internal development. Has that moved them up the pecking order in the Eastern Conference?

By Philip Rossman-Reich

The Orlando Magic will be in the middle of a competitive Eastern Conference race. Where they fit in the middle of that race will be the biggest intrigue of the 2025 season. The race is already on.
The Orlando Magic will be in the middle of a competitive Eastern Conference race. Where they fit in the middle of that race will be the biggest intrigue of the 2025 season. The race is already on. / Mike Watters-USA TODAY Sports
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The first wave of the offseason is over. The draft is behind us as is the first wave of free agency. Most of the money around the league has been spent.

As the league descends upon Las Vegas for Summer League, the trade market may begin to move with every executive and decisionmaker all in one place for the games, team meetings and Vegas negotiations. This is NBA convention.

There are perhaps a few lingering trades to think about—will the Utah Jazz move Lauri Markkanen or the New Orleans Pelicans move Brandon Ingram? Even the Orlando Magic might get involved with the potential to go sign Tyus Jones if needed (the Magic reportedly still have their room mid-level exception to spend) and the Los Angeles Lakers may be fishing around to make a move after a very quiet offseason.

But, for the most part, the NBA is set to go dormant for the summer, turning its focus on the Olympics at the end of July and then looking ahead to the start of training camps at the end of September. The work is done, and the upcoming season's battle lines are beginning to form.

Everyone in the Eastern Conference has one goal these days: Defeat the Boston Celtics.

The defending champions are at the top of the mountain and after bringing everyone back from their dominant title-winning team, everyone is looking up at them around the league. The battle for the Eastern Conference is figuring out who is going to challenge them.

For the first time in a long time, the Magic should be considered among those teams competing for their place in the Eastern Conference.

They spent the 2024 season announcing themselves to the NBA world. Their breakthrough to the playoffs and Paolo Banchero's becoming an All-Star and shining on the playoff stage has made the Magic one of the best young teams in the league and a team even the national media are starting to notice.

Orlando was fairly quiet this offseason. Even with the potential and reporting that they would make a big splash, the Magic held the boat steady. They added a starter in Kentavious Caldwell-Pope but then doubled down on their own roster.

The Magic are betting they can grow internally and repeat their success in 2024.

The rest of the Eastern Conference is not lying down though.

The Philadelphia 76ers made the biggest move and were likely to outperform last year's 7-seed showing. The battle for seeding in the Eastern Conference came down to the season's final day with the Magic able to finish as high as fourth on the final day and as low as eighth.

Expect another battle every day of the season. Every team fighting for a playoff spot will be battling for all 82 games. Take some time to take a deep breath now, because the 82-game season will be a battle every day and every win and loss will matter by the time we get to April.

Now that the Magic are in the race, we have to ask where do they stand? As the offseason begins to quiet down, we get the NBA Cup groups and the 2025 season becomes real, it is time to assess where the team stands in the current Eastern Conference power rankings.

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