The

2002–03 NBA season The 2002–03 NBA season was the 57th season of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The season ended with the San Antonio Spurs beating the New Jersey Nets 4–2 in the 2003 NBA Finals. Notable occurrences *The Hornets relocate from Ch ...

was the 14th season for the

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 Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NB ...

in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

. During the off-season, the Magic signed free agent All-Star forward

Shawn Kemp Shawn Travis Kemp Sr. (born November 26, 1969) is an American former professional basketball player who played for the Seattle SuperSonics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Portland Trail Blazers, and Orlando Magic in the National Basketball Association ( ...

. However,

Grant Hill Grant Henry Hill (born October 5, 1972) is an American professional basketball executive and former player who is a co-owner of the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and a part-owner of Orlando City SC of Major League ...

only played just 29 games due to his continuing ankle injuries, and Horace Grant only played just five games with a sore left knee, and was released to free agency after feuding with head coach

Doc Rivers Glenn Anton "Doc" Rivers (born October 13, 1961) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). An NBA player for 14 seasons, he was an NB ...

. At midseason, the Magic traded Mike Miller to the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the ...

in exchange for rookies

Drew Gooden Andrew Melvin Gooden III (born September 24, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player who is currently a broadcaster for Monumental Sports Network. The power forward (basketball), power forward played 14 seasons in the Nationa ...

and Gordan Giriček. Despite the absence of Hill and Grant, and a 24–26 record at the All-Star break, the Magic finished fourth in the Atlantic Division with a 42–40 record.

Tracy McGrady Tracy Lamar McGrady Jr. (born May 24, 1979), nicknamed T-Mac, 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-N ...

won his first scoring title leading the league in scoring with 32.1 points, 6.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 1.7 steals per game per game, as he was named to the All-NBA First Team, and selected for the 2003 NBA All-Star Game. McGrady also finished in fourth place in

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player (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 particular competition, or ...

voting with 4 first-place votes. In addition, Hill averaged 14.5 points, 7.1 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game, while Pat Garrity provided the team with 10.7 points per game, Darrell Armstrong contributed 9.4 points, 3.9 assists and 1.6 steals per game, and Kemp provided with 6.8 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. Gooden was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team, while Giriček was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team. In the Eastern Conference First Round of 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 took a 3–1 series lead over the top-seeded

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

, but went on to lose the next three games, thus the series. Following the season, Kemp retired, while Armstrong signed as a free agent with the

New Orleans Hornets New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

, and Grant re-signed 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 Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

. After the playoff defeat, the Magic entered a state of rebuilding and did not return to the playoffs until

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

Draft picks

Roster

Roster Notes

* Small forward

played 29 games (his last game being on January 16, 2003) but missed the rest of the season and the playoffs due to having left ankle problems. He was placed on the injured list on January 18, 2003, and underwent season-ending surgery in March 2003.

Regular season

Season standings

:z – clinched division title :y – clinched division title :x – clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

Game log

Playoffs

, - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 1 , April 20 , @

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

W 99–94
,

(43) ,

(15) , Jacque Vaughn (6) ,

The Palace of Auburn Hills The Palace of Auburn Hills, commonly known as the Palace, was a multi-purpose arena located in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Opened in 1988, it was the home of the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Detroit Shock of the ...

21,261 , 1–0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 2 , April 23 , @

L 77–89
,

(46) ,

(11) , Jacque Vaughn (6) ,

22,076 , 1–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 3 , April 25 ,

W 89–80
,

(29) , Gooden, McGrady (7) , Darrell Armstrong (8) , TD Waterhouse Centre
17,283 , 2–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 4 , April 27 ,

W 100–92
,

(27) ,

(13) ,

(9) , TD Waterhouse Centre
17,283 , 3–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 5 , April 30 , @

L 67–98
,

(19) ,

(15) ,

(4) ,

22,076 , 3–2 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 6 , May 2 ,

L 88–103
,

(37) ,

(12) ,

(5) , TD Waterhouse Centre
16,909 , 3–3 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 7 , May 4 , @

L 93–108
,

(21) ,

(17) ,

(6) ,

22,076 , 3–4 , -

Player statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Awards and honors

– All-NBA 1st Team, Scoring Champion,

All-Star An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry. Sports "All-star" as a sport ...

– All-Rookie 1st Team * Gordan Giriček – All-Rookie 2nd Team

Transactions

Overview

Player Transactions Citation:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2002-03 Orlando Magic season Orlando Magic seasons 2002 in sports in Florida 2003 in sports in Florida 2002–03 NBA season by team 2002 in Orlando, Florida 2003 in Orlando, Florida