The Osceola Magic are one of the pillar franchises of the G-League.
No, the team has not won the title since the bubble championship in 2021. But since moving to Kissimmee for the 2024 season, the Magic have been a standout team, going 22-12 in both 2024 and 2025 and 26-10 last season. They reached the G-League Finals in 2025 and the Eastern Conference Finals last year.
Nobody could question the work coach Dylan Murphy and general manager Kevin Tiller II did in putting together a team that could win and begin filtering players to the NBA and elsewhere.
Like the main club, they had experienced some on-court success but had not achieved the big goal they were after. Like the main club, Osceola was looking for a new coach this offseason after Murphy left to join the coaching staff at Michigan.
The Orlando Magic have entrusted the Osceola Magic to a new coach in Ronnie Burrell.
In Burrell, they bring in a coach who has succeeded in the G-League, gained NBA bench experience and can copy many of the same traits they are looking for in their main roster.
"It's big shoes to fill," Burrell said as he was introduced as the coach Wednesday at the AdventHealth Practice Courts at the Kia Center. "It's a G-League team with tradition, which is kind of a rare thing. It's a team that is used to winning and used to having talent. That's pressure on my shoulders. It's part of the job to be done is to continue that and try to win games while helping guys achieve their goals. That's what the G-League is about."
The Orlando Magic are also getting a new coach. There is plenty of excitement about what Sean Sweeney and his staff will bring to this team as he tries to build on the parent club.
But neither the Orlando nor the Osceola Magic are starting from scratch. They have teams capable of making the Playoffs and eager to do more.
The Magic are trying to build on a foundation and create something new at all places within the organization.
Building on a foundation
The G-League is a unique league, as Ronnie Burrell admitted. Everyone seemingly has the motive of improving and getting better for the next job -- whether that is getting a roster spot in the NBA or a coaching job elsewhere.
Everything is transient.
The players who perform well end up signing 10-day contracts or getting new two-way deals midway through the season. Teams are constantly adjusting to sudden roster shocks. And that is part of the league's goal.
There are few things steady. The Osceola Magic have some foundations to build on.
Burrell comes to the Osceola Magic after spending time with the Portland Trail Blazers last year (Burrell already joked about facing Sean Sweeney's San Antonio Spurs in last year's playoffs).
He spent the past three years with the Brooklyn Nets and Portland Trail Blazers. Before that, he was the head coach of the Long Island Nets in the G-League. He won the league's Coach of the Year Award in 2023 and constructed the league's top defense that season.
In his lone season as the Nets' head coach, the team went 23-9 and reached the Eastern Conference Finals. Current Magic assistant coach Mfon Udofia took over when Burrell left for the parent club.
Burrell comes with his own set of experiences and successes at this level. He said he was eager to get back to coaching in the G-League and return to the lead role on the bench.
"It's a challenging job," Burrell said Wednesday. "I wanted to be challenged. It's different from being an assistant. It also helps better prepare you for coaching in the NBA at different levels. It's a process I have been through before, and I get to do it again. I'm more than grateful."
Burrell said his first go-around as a head coach was filled with plenty of mistakes. But at this level, the foundation is honesty and being clear about what is expected of players to get that NBA opportunity.
That honesty is necessary as players work through their individual goals to impress personnel around the league while helping their team towin. Doing that and translating what the parent club wants makes the G-League even more difficult.
That is what Burrell is stepping into. In addition to the changes going on throughout the organization.
Creating something new
It is a time for change for the entire Orlando Magic organization.
The NBA team is getting set to begin its training camp under coach Sean Sweeney next week. Ronnie Burrell is still getting to know his roster and his role in the team's bigger ecosystem.
That roster is still unsettled with the Magic often keeping two-way players -- Alex Morales, Colin Castleton and Izaiyah Nelson -- with the parent club for long stretches. This is not a team chock full of young players who could get a spot assignment like Jase Richardson did last year.
Malakhi Branham and JD Davison are reportedly signed to training camp deals and are G-League veterans who will boost the roster as they fight for NBA attention. There will be more additions to camp that will filter their way to Osceola that are not yet reported or announced.
For as much as there is a foundation for both Sweeney and Burrell to build on, they are also looking to build something new.
"I wanted to be part of a new culture," Burrell said Wednesday. "The Orlando Magic are going through a culture change, but it is very impressive to watch Sean Sweeney and the front office. The things they are imparting, the processes that we'll try to duplicate as best as we can in part in Osceola. I feel like we are a cog in the machine of the Orlando Magic trying to help strengthen this franchise on its way to ascend."
Burrell said what will move downstream from the parent club is still in a development phase.
Sweeney has yet to implement his style and standards fully. That comes in training camp, which G-League coaches often participate in as extra help and working with the players likely headed to Osceola.
This is still a team in development. This is still a culture in development.
But both versions of the Magic are eager to get things started and begin building again.
Add us as a preferred source on Google