The

1995–96 NBA season The 1995–96 NBA season was the 50th season of the National Basketball Association (NBA), though the 50th anniversary was not celebrated until the following season. The Chicago Bulls defeated the Seattle SuperSonics 4 games to 2 in the NBA Final ...

was the Magic's seventh season in the

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 S ...

. During the off-season, the Magic signed free agent

Jon Koncak Jon Francis Koncak (born May 17, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player. A 7'0" center from Southern Methodist University (SMU), Koncak was selected with the fifth pick in the 1985 NBA draft by the Atlanta Hawks. Koncak spent t ...

. Coming off their trip to the

NBA Finals The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awa ...

, where they were swept in four games by the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...

, the Magic won their second straight Atlantic Division title with a 60–22 record, a regular season record which still stands as the best in franchise history. This despite missing

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 greates ...

for the first 22 games of the season due to a preseason thumb injury.

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 pla ...

stepped up in O'Neal's absence and was awarded Player of the Month for November, as the Magic got off to a 13–2 start, and later held a 34–14 record at the All-Star break. At midseason, the team traded

Jeff Turner Jeffrey Steven Turner (born April 9, 1962) is an American retired professional basketball player and broadcasting announcer. Turner played ten NBA seasons (1984–1987; 1989–1996), spending time with the New Jersey Nets as well as the Orlando M ...

to the expansion

Vancouver Grizzlies The Vancouver Grizzlies were a Canadian professional basketball team based in Vancouver. They were part of the Midwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team was established in 1995, along w ...

in exchange for

Kenny Gattison Kenneth Clay Gattison (born May 23, 1964) is an American former professional basketball player and National Basketball Association (NBA) assistant coach. College career Born in Wilmington, North Carolina, Gattison was a four-year lettermen at Old ...

, who never played for the Magic due to arm and neck injuries. This season also saw three-point specialist Dennis Scott take a place in the league history books by scoring 267 three-point field goals, a single season record since broken by

Stephen Curry Wardell Stephen Curry II ( ; born March 14, 1988) is an American professional basketball player for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players of all time, ...

. Scott set a then-record of 11 three-point field goals in a 119–104 home win against the Atlanta Hawks on April 18, 1996. Hardaway averaged 21.7 points, 7.1 assists and 2.0 steals per game, and was named to the All-NBA First Team, while O'Neal averaged 26.6 points, 11.0 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game in 54 games, while being named to the All-NBA Third Team, and Scott provided the team with 17.5 points per game. In addition,

Horace Grant Horace Junior Grant Sr. (born July 4, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player who is a special advisor for Michael Reinsdorf, the president and chief operating officer of the Chicago Bulls. He attended and played college baske ...

provided with 13.4 points and 9.2 rebounds per game, while Nick Anderson contributed 14.7 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game, and Brian Shaw contributed 6.6 points and 4.5 assists per game off the bench. Both Hardaway and O'Neal were selected for the

1996 NBA All-Star Game The 1996 NBA All-Star Game was the 46th edition of the NBA All-Star Game, an exhibition basketball game played on February 11, 1996. The event was held at the Alamodome in San Antonio and was a part of the 50th season of the NBA. The game was te ...

, while Grant made the NBA All-Defensive Second Team. Hardaway also finished in third place in

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

voting, while O'Neal finished tied in ninth place. This was also the only season of O'Neal's NBA career, where he hit his only three-pointer in a 121–91 home win against the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

on February 16, 1996. Despite the franchise best record, the Magic were beaten by the top seed in the East, the dominant Chicago Bulls, who finished with a then all-time best record of 72–10. In the

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

, the Magic would sweep the Detroit Pistons in three straight games in the Eastern Conference First Round. In the Eastern Conference Semi-finals, they defeated the 6th-seeded

Hawks Hawks are birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. They are widely distributed and are found on all continents except Antarctica. * The subfamily Accipitrinae includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, sharp-shinned hawks and others. This subfamily a ...

in five games, despite losing Game 4 at

The Omni Omni Coliseum (often called The Omni) was an indoor arena in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Completed in 1972, the arena seated 16,378 for basketball and 15,278 for hockey. It was part of the Omni Complex, now known as the CNN Center. It was ...

in Atlanta, 104–99. The Eastern Conference Finals matched up the Magic with the Bulls, the team they had eliminated in the previous year's playoffs. However, Grant went down with an elbow injury in Game 1, which the Magic lost on the road, 121–83, and he was out for the rest of the series. The Magic suffered another painful blow when Anderson went down with a wrist injury in a 86–67 home loss in Game 3, and he was also out for the rest of the series. The Bulls would be too strong as they swept the Magic in four straight games. Thereby, the Magic became the first team to be eliminated from the playoffs in a sweep for three consecutive seasons since the 1950 Chicago Stags. The Bulls would defeat the

Seattle SuperSonics The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly known as the Seattle Sonics) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league's Western Confe ...

in six games in the

, winning their fourth championship in six years. Following the season, the All-Star center O'Neal left the team, signing as a free agent with the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

after four seasons in Orlando, and Gattison and

Anthony Bowie Anthony Lee Bowie (born November 9, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player. He is a former NBA shooting guard, most renowned for his stint with the Orlando Magic. With the Magic, Bowie became one of the top bench players, of ...

were both released to free agency.

Draft picks

Roster

Roster Notes

* Power forward

was acquired from the expansion

at midseason, but did not play for the Magic due to arm and neck injuries.

Regular season

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Playoffs

The Magic opened up their playoffs campaign on April 26 against the Detroit Pistons, a game they won convincingly 112-92 at home in the

Orlando Arena Amway Arena (originally known as Orlando Arena and later TD Waterhouse Centre) was an indoor arena located in Orlando, Florida. It was part of the Orlando Centroplex, a sports and entertainment complex located in Downtown Orlando. The arena was ...

. The Magic would also win Game 2 at home before clinching the series, and a sweep, of the Pistons in Game 3 away from home at the

Palace of Auburn Hills The Palace of Auburn Hills, commonly referred to as the Palace, was a multi-purpose arena built in 1988 and located in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It was the home of the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Detroit Shoc ...

. The second round put the Magic against the Atlanta Hawks. The Magic opened the series with two convincing wins at home, both with scoring margins greater than 20 points. The Magic carried this momentum into Game 3 away from home at the Omni, winning a closer fought match 102-96. The Hawks won Game 4, avoiding the sweep, but the Magic were too strong and won Game 5 at home to clinch the series 4-1. The Eastern Conference finals saw the Magic face the Chicago Bulls and

Michael Jordan Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. His biography on the official NBA website states: "By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the g ...

, a team they had eliminated in the previous years playoffs. With Horace Grant out with an elbow injury from Game 1, the dominant Chicago Bulls would prove to be too strong for the Orlando this year, sweeping the series 4-0 and denying the Magic consecutive trips to the NBA finals. , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 1 , April 26 ,

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

W 112–92
, Dennis Scott (23) ,

(13) , Brian Shaw (11) ,

17,248 , 1–0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 2 , April 28 ,

W 92–77
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W 101–98
,

(24) ,

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The Palace of Auburn Hills The Palace of Auburn Hills, commonly referred to as the Palace, was a multi-purpose arena built in 1988 and located in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It was the home of the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Detroit Shoc ...

20,386 , 3–0 , - , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 1 , May 8 ,

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

W 117–105
,

(41) ,

(13) , O'Neal, Hardaway (6) ,

17,248 , 1–0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 2 , May 10 ,

W 120–94
,

(28) ,

(11) ,

(7) ,

17,248 , 2–0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 3 , May 12 , @

W 103–96
,

(24) ,

(12) ,

(6) ,

Omni Coliseum Omni Coliseum (often called The Omni) was an indoor arena in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. Completed in 1972, the arena seated 16,378 for basketball and 15,278 for ice hockey, hockey. It was part of the CNN Center, Omni ...

15,476 , 3–0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 4 , May 13 , @

L 99–104
, Grant, Hardaway (29) ,

(20) ,

(11) ,

12,645 , 3–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 5 , May 15 ,

W 96–88
,

(27) ,

(15) , O'Neal,

Scott Scott may refer to: Places Canada * Scott, Quebec, municipality in the Nouvelle-Beauce regional municipality in Quebec * Scott, Saskatchewan, a town in the Rural Municipality of Tramping Lake No. 380 * Rural Municipality of Scott No. 98, Saska ...

(4) ,

17,248 , 4–1 , - , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 1 , May 19 , @

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

L 83–121
,

(38) ,

(6) ,

United Center United Center is an indoor arena on the Near West Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is home to the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL). It is named ...

24,411 , 0–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 2 , May 21 , @

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

L 88–93
,

(36) ,

(16) , Brian Shaw (6) ,

24,395 , 0–2 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 3 , May 25 ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

L 67–86
,

(18) ,

(12) , Hardaway, O'Neal (3) ,

17,248 , 0–3 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 4 , May 27 ,

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

L 101–106
, Hardaway, O'Neal (28) ,

(9) ,

(8) ,

17,248 , 0–4 , -

Player statistics

NOTE: Please write the players statistics in alphabetical order by last name.

Season

Playoffs

Awards and honors

– All-NBA 3rd team, All-Star *

– All-NBA 1st Team, Player of the Month (November), All-Star *

– All-Defensive 2nd Team * Nick Anderson – Rich and Helen DeVos Community Enrichment Award

League records

During the 1995–96 season, Dennis Scott set the record for most three-point field goals scored in a regular season with 267.

Transactions

References

Orlando Magic on Basketball Reference
{{DEFAULTSORT:1995-96 Orlando Magic Season Orlando Magic seasons 1995 in sports in Florida 1996 in sports in Florida