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Orlando Magic
The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The franchise was established in 1989 as an expansion franchise, and such notable NBA stars as Shaquille O'Neal, Penny Hardaway, Grant Hill, Tracy McGrady, Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson, Rashard Lewis and Nikola Vučević have played for the club throughout its history. , the franchise has played in the NBA playoffs 16 times in 32 seasons, and twice went to the NBA Finals, in 1995 and 2009. Orlando has been the second most successful of the four expansion teams brought into the league in 1988 and 1989 in terms of winning percentage and playoff success, after the Miami Heat. Franchise history 1985–1986: Team creation In September 1985, Orlando businessman Jim L. Hewitt approached Philadelphia 76ers general manager Pat Williams as they met in Texas on his id ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eastern Conference (NBA)
The Eastern Conference is one of two conferences that make up the National Basketball Association (NBA), the other being the Western Conference. Both conferences consist of 15 teams organized into three divisions. The current divisional alignment was adopted at the start of the 2004–05 season, when the now Charlotte Hornets began play as the NBA's 30th franchise. This necessitated the move of the New Orleans Pelicans from the Eastern Conference's Central Division to the newly created Southwest Division of the Western Conference. The NBA first started awarding an Eastern Conference championship trophy during the 2000–01 season, renaming it after Hall of Famer Bob Cousy in the 2021–22 season. Also in 2021–22, the league began awarding the Larry Bird Trophy to the Eastern Conference Finals Most Valuable Player, named after Hall of Famer Larry Bird. Current standings Teams Former teams ;Notes * denotes an expansion team. * denotes a team that merged from t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2009–10 NBA Season
The 2009–10 NBA season was the 64th season of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The 1,230-game regular season (82 games for each of the 30 teams) began on October 27, 2009, and ended on April 14, 2010. The season ended when the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Boston Celtics four games to three to win their second consecutive NBA championship in the 2010 NBA Finals. The 2009 NBA draft was held on June 25, 2009, and Blake Griffin was selected first overall by the Los Angeles Clippers. The Dallas Mavericks hosted the 59th Annual All-Star Game at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on February 14, 2010. For the second time in NBA history, all eight Western Conference playoff teams won at least 50 games, and only 7 wins separated the Western Conference No. 1 seed from No. 8 seed. Both of these events first occurred in 2008. Cleveland's league-leading 61 wins was the lowest win total to lead the league since the Indiana Pacers won 61 games in 2003–04. The New Jersey Ne ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nikola Vučević
Nikola Vučević (Serbian Cyrillic: Никола Вучевић, ; born 24 October 1990) is a Montenegrin professional basketball player for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the USC Trojans before being drafted 16th overall in the 2011 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. Vučević, who spent his rookie season with the 76ers, was traded to Orlando Magic before the start of the 2012–13 season as a part of the four-team trade that sent Dwight Howard to the Los Angeles Lakers. He played nine seasons for the Magic and was named an NBA All-Star twice during his tenure with the team. In the middle of the 2020–21 season, the Magic traded Vučević to the Chicago Bulls. Early life Vučević was born in Morges, Switzerland during the time his professional basketball player father, Boro, played for a club based in nearby Lausanne. The youngster was primarily raised in Belgium where the family moved in 1992 when his fathe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rashard Lewis
Rashard Quovon Lewis (born August 8, 1979) is an American former professional basketball player. Lewis entered the NBA directly from Alief Elsik High School. He rose to prominence in the NBA as a scorer with the Seattle SuperSonics, and was later a member of the Orlando Magic, Washington Wizards and Miami Heat. He garnered two NBA All-Star selections, one with Seattle and another with Orlando. Lewis reached the NBA Finals three times, winning an NBA championship in 2013 as a member of the Heat. NBA career Seattle SuperSonics (1998–2007) Despite being recruited by Florida State, Kansas and Houston, Lewis bypassed college and opted for the 1998 NBA draft, wherein he was selected by the Seattle SuperSonics with the 32nd overall pick. At the time of his selection, he was the last player remaining in the "green room", where fifteen of the top draft prospects sit until their selection. He and teammate Ray Allen made Seattle a contender during the early 2000s. In 2001, Lewis was selec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jameer Nelson
Jameer Lamar Nelson Sr. (born February 9, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player who serves as assistant general manager for the Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Saint Joseph's Hawks, where he was named national college player of the year in 2004. Drafted 20th overall in the 2004 NBA draft, Nelson spent the first ten years of his NBA career with the Orlando Magic. In 2009, he was named an All-Star and made an appearance in the NBA Finals with the Magic. He has also played for the Dallas Mavericks, Boston Celtics, Denver Nuggets, New Orleans Pelicans and Detroit Pistons. High school career Nelson attended Chester High School in Chester, Pennsylvania and was a letterman in basketball. In 2000, he helped lead his team to the PIAA AAAA State championship. College career Nelson began his play at Saint Joseph's University in the 2000–01 season. He had a breakout freshman season in which he was named unanimous Nationa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dwight Howard
Dwight David Howard II (born December 8, 1985) is an American professional basketball player for the Taoyuan Leopards of the T1 League. He is an NBA champion, eight-time All-Star, eight-time All-NBA Team honoree, five-time All-Defensive Team member, and three-time Defensive Player of the Year. Howard, who plays center, spent his high school career at Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy. He chose to forgo college, entered the 2004 NBA draft, and was selected first overall by the Orlando Magic. Howard set numerous franchise and league records with the Magic. He led the team to the 2009 NBA Finals. In 2012, after eight seasons with Orlando, Howard was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, with whom he spent three separate one year-stints over the course of his career, winning the NBA championship in 2020. He has also played for the Houston Rockets, the Atlanta Hawks, the Charlotte Hornets, the Washington Wizards, and the Philadelphia 76ers. Early life Howard was born in Atlanta, t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tracy McGrady
Tracy Lamar McGrady Jr. (born May 24, 1979) is an American former professional basketball player, best known for his career in the National Basketball Association (NBA). McGrady is a seven-time NBA All-Star, seven-time All-NBA selection, two-time NBA scoring champion, and winner of the NBA Most Improved Player Award in 2001. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2017. McGrady is regarded as one of the greatest scorers and shooting guards in NBA history. McGrady entered the NBA straight out of high school and was selected as the ninth overall pick by the Toronto Raptors in the 1997 NBA draft. Beginning his career as a low-minute player, he gradually improved his role with the team, eventually forming a duo with his cousin Vince Carter. In 2000, he left the Raptors for the Orlando Magic, where he became one of the league's most prolific scorers and a candidate for the NBA Most Valuable Player Award. In 2004, he was traded to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Grant Hill
Grant Henry Hill (born October 5, 1972) is an American former professional basketball player who is a co-owner and executive of the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He attended Duke University and is widely considered one of its greatest players. After playing college basketball for four years, Hill played in the NBA for four teams in his professional career: the Detroit Pistons, the Orlando Magic, the Phoenix Suns, and the Los Angeles Clippers. For most of his career, he played the small forward position. Hill also works as a basketball analyst for CBS and Turner Sports. Hill played basketball for the Duke Blue Devils for four years. He was the 1994 ACC Player of the Year, a two-time NCAA All-American, and a two-time NCAA champion. Hill was touted as one of the best players in Duke history and as one of the greatest college basketball players of his era. After graduating from Duke in 1994, Hill was selected by the Detroit Pistons with the third ov ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Penny Hardaway
Anfernee Deon "Penny" Hardaway (born July 18, 1971) is an American college basketball coach and former professional player who is the head coach of the Memphis Tigers men's basketball team in the American Athletic Conference (AAC). Hardaway played college basketball at Memphis and 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he was a four-time NBA All-Star and a two-time All-NBA First Team member. Early life Hardaway is the son of Fae Hardaway (born 1951) and Eddie Golden. The name ''Anfernee '' () was that of a schoolmate of his mother. When she left Memphis to work in Oakland in 1974, she left her son with her mother Louise. His nickname came as a result of his grandmother's calling him "Pretty" with a southern drawl, thus sounding like "Penny". Hardaway's first love was football but his grandmother did not want him to get hurt. He grew up in the Binghampton neighborhood of shotgun houses in Memphis, Tennessee. As a teenager Hardaway refereed youth sports ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shaquille O'Neal
Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), known commonly as "Shaq" ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program ''Inside the NBA''. O'Neal is regarded as one of the greatest basketball players and centers of all time. He is a and center who played for six teams over his 19-year career in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and is a four-time NBA champion. After playing college basketball for the LSU Tigers, O'Neal was drafted by the Orlando Magic with the first overall pick in the 1992 NBA draft. He quickly became one of the best centers in the league, winning Rookie of the Year in 1992–93 and leading his team to the 1995 NBA Finals. After four years with the Magic, O'Neal signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Lakers. They won three consecutive championships in 2000, 2001, and 2002. Amid tension between O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, O'Neal was traded to the Miami Heat in 2004, and his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Expansion Team
An expansion team is a new team in a sports league, usually from a city that has not hosted a team in that league before, formed with the intention of satisfying the demand for a local team from a population in a new area. Sporting leagues also hope that the expansion of their competition will grow the popularity of the sport generally. The term is most commonly used in reference to the North American major professional sports leagues but is applied to sports leagues in other countries with a closed franchise system of league membership. The term refers to the expansion of the sport into new areas. The addition of an expansion team sometimes results in the payment of an expansion fee to the league by the new team and an expansion draft to populate the new roster. Reasons for expansion In North America, expansion often takes place in response to population growth and geographic shifts of population. Such demographic change results in financial opportunities to engage with the n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada. It is the premier men's professional basketball league in the world. The league was founded in New York City on June 6, 1946, as the Basketball Association of America (BAA). It changed its name to the National Basketball Association on August 3, 1949, after merging with the competing National Basketball League (NBL). In 1976, the NBA and the American Basketball Association (ABA) merged, adding four franchises to the NBA. The NBA's regular season runs from October to April, with each team playing 82 games. The league's playoff tournament extends into June. , NBA players are the world's best paid athletes by average annual salary per player. The NBA is an active member of USA Basketball (USAB), which is recognized by t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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