Do the Orlando Magic Have a Title Run In Them?

After years of abysmal play and first-round exits for the Orlando Magic, it felt like the Magic were just one of those teams consistently losing, but these Magic feel different. There is hope and joy about the current Orlando Magic that has the belief that their name requires.

Going into the 2024-2025 season, there was hope that Paolo Banchero would step into superstardom and the Magic would enter the spotlight. The start of the season answered these hopes.

The Magic came out of the gates with vigor, winning three of their first four, and Paolo Banchero dropped a career-high 50 points, with 13 rebounds and nine assists against the Indiana Pacers.

Everything felt different to the Magic fanbase. The team looked good. But then, in the fifth game of the season, in the fourth quarter, tragedy strikes.

Paolo Banchero would leave the game. He would later be diagnosed with a torn right oblique. His estimated return is not until around Christmas.

This was a major blow to the Magic, and they would go on to lose their next five games, including the game Banchero left, losing to Chicago by three.

To right the ship, the Magic would need someone to step up, and they did. Franz Wagner has answered the call in a large way.

Since the Banchero injury, Wagner has averaged 25 points, 6.6 assists, 5.9 rebounds, and almost two steals per game. In addition to that, he scored over thirty in six of those games.

Though it has not just been all Wagner, the entire team has stepped up in the absence of Banchero and managed to keep Orlando afloat and have the Magic sitting pretty as the 3rd place team in the Eastern Conference.

This begs the question: What can this Magic team do when they have their budding superstar back?

Well, adding anyone averaging 29 points, nine rebounds, and six assists to a team is sure to add wins, and that is precisely what to expect when Banchero rejoins this team as a Christmas present to a city and team that are eager to get him back and cheer this entire team on for the rest of the regular season, and yes, into the postseason.

This team has true hope for the first time since the Dwight Howard years, and they will be around for a long time. With an average age of just 25.1 years old, ranking 11th youngest in the NBA, a core in Orlando is looking to make a run for the Eastern Conference soon.

But why can’t soon mean right now?

The Magic are 15-8 without their best player, who was playing at MVP level before getting hurt; they now are being led by Franz Wagner, who looks like an all-star. They are just 4.5 games back from the No. 1-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers.

With the additions of veterans through free agency over the past couple of years, such as Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Gary Harris, they are poised to win now and later.

In a top-heavy Eastern Conference, the Orlando Magic can maintain their course and host a team such as Atlanta in the playoffs.

Then, they could make it through the playoffs with players who can become extremely hot, such as Wagner and Banchero. It isn’t unreasonable to say they could make it through other Eastern Conference foes such as the Bucks, Knicks, Cavaliers and Celtics.

A successful season for the Magic is to win a playoff series this year. That would be a huge step forward and the first playoff series win in just over 15 years. But don’t expect these magicians to stop there. The Magic are looking to fly and might have the pixie dust for it.

Massimo Manfra is a first-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email mgm6116@psu.edu.