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In a recent episode of the Star Struck podcast, Orlando Magic legend Penny Hardaway detailed how current Milwaukee Bucks head coach Doc Rivers played a role in his difficult departure from the franchise.
Hardaway said Rivers, who became the Magic’s head coach in 1999, was direct with him about the team’s perception of his career at that point.
“Doc Rivers came in and you know how much blood, sweat and tears I gave to Orlando and Doc Rivers was honest with me and said to me, ‘If you stay here, we're going to have to rebuild your image.' And I was like ‘Man, I am Orlando. Shaq is gone. Everybody knows me, Shaq and Penny, Orlando.' What crushed me was that he said that ‘We're going to rebuild your image around here in Orlando.' And I was trying to play through injury for my team and that moment was just the hardest for me.”
“After that, I said maybe it's time for me to go, and that was hard moment for me because all I knew and what everybody knew for me was Orlando. And to make a move to go somewhere else, I didn’t really know how that was going to be. Hindsight, I wish I would’ve just stayed with Doc and fought through it, but I made the decision that God put on my heart to do and I’ll never second guess God.”
He added that his relationship with the city and fanbase had shifted in the aftermath of his injuries.
“The city that I loved, that I got drafted by, was the guy, first team All-NBA, Olympian and all that, they don't really like me anymore because I got injured and that was very hard on my brain.”
Penny Hardaway recalls Doc Rivers’ role in difficult Magic exit
Hardaway spent six seasons with the Magic after being selected third overall in the 1993 NBA Draft by the Golden State Warriors and traded to Orlando in exchange for three first-round picks and the draft rights to Chris Webber. He quickly emerged as one of the league’s brightest young stars, forming a dynamic duo with Shaquille O’Neal and helping guide the team to its first NBA Finals appearance in 1995, where they fell to Hakeem Olajuwon and the Houston Rockets.
During his tenure in Orlando, Hardaway averaged 19 points, 6.3 assists, 4.7 rebounds, and 1.9 steals per game while shooting 47.2% from the field and 31.1% from three-point range in 369 appearances. He earned four NBA All-Star selections, two All-NBA First Team honors, and one All-NBA Third Team nod before injuries began to affect his career trajectory.
Hardaway was eventually traded to the Phoenix Suns in 1999 in exchange for Danny Manning, Pat Garrity, and two first-round draft picks. His time in Orlando was later honored when he was inducted into the Magic’s Hall of Fame in 2017.
Doc Rivers’ comments marked a turning point for Penny Hardaway, who said the idea of rebuilding his image in a city where he had reached superstar status was a difficult reality to accept. His remarks underscore the emotional challenges athletes face when injuries alter their public perception and relationships with the franchises where they built their legacies.
