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. This would be Michael Jordan's last season in the NBA ...

was the 14th season for the Orlando Magic 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 St ...

. During the off-season, the Magic signed free agent All-Star forward Shawn Kemp. However, Grant Hill only played just 29 games due to his continuing ankle injuries, and

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 ...

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 for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). After playing for Marquette Universit ...

. 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 league's Western Conference ...

in exchange for rookies Drew Gooden 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) 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- ...

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 The 2003 NBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game which was played on February 9, 2003 at the Philips Arena in Atlanta, home of the Atlanta Hawks. This game was the 52nd edition of the North American National Basketball Association (NB ...

. McGrady also finished in fourth place in Most Valuable Player 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 Patrick Joseph Garrity (born August 23, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player who played for ten years in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was a member of the National Basketball Players Association Executive Comm ...

provided the team with 10.7 points per game,

Darrell Armstrong Darrell Eugene Armstrong (born June 22, 1968) is a former American professional basketball player, who played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association. He is currently an assistant coach for the NBA's Dallas Mavericks, who won the cha ...

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 eit ...

, 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 league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at L ...

, 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 is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

, and Grant re-signed with the Los Angeles Lakers. After the playoff defeat, the Magic entered a state of rebuilding and did not return to the playoffs until 2007.

Draft picks

Roster

Roster Notes

* Small forward Grant Hill 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 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 t ...

W 99–94
,

(43) , Drew Gooden (15) ,

Jacque Vaughn Jacque T. Vaughn (born February 11, 1975) is an American professional basketball coach and former player. He serves as head coach of the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Playing career High school A native of Pasadena ...

(6) ,

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 ...

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

L 77–89
,

(46) , Drew Gooden (11) ,

(6) ,

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

W 89–80
,

(29) , Gooden, McGrady (7) ,

(8) ,

TD Waterhouse Centre 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 ...

17,283 , 2–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" , 4 , April 27 ,

W 100–92
,

(27) , Drew Gooden (13) ,

(9) ,

17,283 , 3–1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 5 , April 30 , @

L 67–98
,

(19) , Drew Gooden (15) ,

(4) ,

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

L 88–103
,

(37) , Drew Gooden (12) ,

(5) ,