The Orlando Magic have racked up over 1,100 wins in franchise history and played in the playoffs 15 times.
However, the Magic are one of the few organizations in the NBA that doesn't have a championship. Despite having a few Hall of Famers play for the franchise, the Magic are still searching for that elusive first title in organizational history.
For this piece, we'll be taking a look at the five best Orlando teams in franchise history. A few of them came close to winning it all.
5. 2010-11
Dwight Howard averaged 22.9 points and 14.1 rebounds per game to lead the Magic to 52 wins. Orlando had the 16th best offense scoring-wise and the fourth-best defense.
However, the Atlanta Hawks turned out to be too pesky for Orlando in the first round of the 2011 playoffs.
Despite getting 27.0 points and 15.5 rebounds a night in the six-game series from Howard, the Magic fell to the Hawks.
4. 2009-10
Stan Van Gundy's club won 59 games and was a top-10 offensive and defensive unit. Howard was once again phenomenal. Superman averaged 18.3 points, 13.2 boards and 2.8 blocks a night for Orlando.
The Magic began the 2010 playoffs by taking out the Charlotte Bobcats in four quick games. Orlando then swept the Hawks in the second round to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they would take on the Boston Celtics.
Boston wound up winning the series in six games. Howard put up 21.8 points and 10.8 rebounds per game but the Magic couldn't stop Celtics superstar Paul Pierce. The Truth averaged 24.3 points.
3. 1995-96
Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway guided the Magic to 60 wins. Orlando averaged 104.5 points a night. Shaq put up 26.6 points and 11.0 rebounds per game and Hardaway notched averages of 21.7 points, 4.3 boards and 7.1 assists.
The Magic swept the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the '96 playoffs. After making quick work of the Hawks in the second round, Shaq and Co. were headed to the Eastern Conference Finals to face Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls.
MJ and the Bulls won 72 games in the regular season. They easily swept the Magic in the '96 ECF. Jordan averaged 29.5 points per game.
2. 1994-95
Head coach Brian Hill guided the team to 57 wins. Orlando put up 110.9 points a night in the regular season. That was first in the NBA.
The Magic took care of the Celtics, Bulls and Indiana Pacers in the '95 Eastern Conference playoffs to get to the Finals. Orlando's defeat of Chicago in 1995 is the only playoff series Michael Jordan lost with the Bulls from 1991 to 1998.
In the 1995 Finals, Orlando ran into Hakeem Olajuwon and the Houston Rockets. The Magic got swept by Houston, with Olajuwon winning Finals MVP after averaging 32.8 points, 11.5 boards and 5.5 assists.
1. 2008-09
Dwight Howard averaged 20.6 points and 13.8 rebounds for the Magic in the regular season. Stan Van Gundy surrounded Howard with four shooters and Orlando had arguably the toughest offense to guard in the NBA.
The Magic started the 2009 postseason with a 4-2 series win over the Philadelphia 76ers. Orlando followed that up with a seven-game series win over the Celtics in the second round.
The 2009 Eastern Conference Finals was the matchup everyone wanted to see: LeBron James vs. Dwight Howard. Superman put up 25.8 points and 13.0 rebounds and the Magic eliminated The King to get to the Finals.
Orlando matched up against Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2009 Finals. The Purple and Gold wrapped up the series in five games, with Kobe winning Finals MVP.
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