The 2008–09 Orlando Magic season was the 20th season of the franchise 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 ...

(NBA). Led by 23-year-old center Dwight Howard, the team finished the regular season with a 59–23 record, the most wins since the 1995–96 season. The Magic would go on to defeat the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, also known colloquially as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlan ...

in six games in the 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 ...

, highlighted by forward Hedo Türkoğlu's game winner in game four of that series. They followed it up by defeating the defending NBA champion

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

in a tough, hard-fought seven-game series in the semi-finals. Finally, they defeated the top-seeded

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

in six games in the conference finals, thanks to Howard's 40 points and 10 rebounds in Game 6, to advance to the

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

for the first time since

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

, but would lose to the

Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant ( ; August 23, 1978 – January 26, 2020) was an American professional basketball player. A shooting guard, he List of NBA players who have spent their entire career with one franchise, spent his entire 20-year career with t ...

-led

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 ...

in five games. Following the season, Türkoğlu was traded to the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), E ...

in a three-team deal and Rafer Alston, Tony Battie and Courtney Lee were all dealt to the

New Jersey Nets 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 ...

. It was also Tyronn Lue’s last season as an NBA player, as 6 years later, he would return to the NBA, as head coach of the

Key dates

*June 26: The

2008 NBA draft The 2008 NBA Draft was held on June 26, 2008, at the The Theater at Madison Square Garden, Washington Mutual Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. In this NBA draft, draft, National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took t ...

took place in New York City. *July 1: The free agency period started. *October 29: The Magic opened the season with a game against the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Easte ...

. *December 12: Because of a sore left knee, Dwight Howard missed the first game of his professional career, ending a streak of 351 consecutive games played in. *January 13: The Magic scored an NBA record 23 three-pointers against the

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Confere ...

. Nine of the twelve Magic players who played that night scored at least one three pointer:

Jameer Nelson Jameer Lamar Nelson Sr. (born February 9, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player who serves as general manager for the Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Saint Joseph's Hawks men's ba ...

(5), JJ Redick (4), Keith Bogans (4), Hedo Türkoğlu (3), Rashard Lewis (3), Courtney Lee (1), Anthony Johnson (1), Brian Cook (1), and Jeremy Richardson (1). *February 2:

left a game after dislocating his right shoulder. One day later, it was announced that he suffered a torn labrum, and would require surgery to repair it, meaning he would likely miss the rest of the season. A few days prior to the injury, Nelson had been named as a reserve in the

All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that showcases the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or division, bu ...

. *February 19: As part of a three-way trade, the Magic acquired Rafer Alston from 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 of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA) ...

. *February 25: The Magic were assured a winning season after defeating the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...

. *March 11: The Magic clinched a playoff spot with a win over the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...

. *March 25: After beating the

, the Magic clinched their second consecutive division championship. With the win, they were also guaranteed of finishing the regular season with more wins than the previous season. *April 15: The regular season ended, with the Magic finishing one win shy of matching a franchise record. *April 21: Dwight Howard won the

NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award The NBA Defensive Player of the Year is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given since the 1982–83 NBA season to the best defensive player of the regular season. The winner is selected by a panel of 124 sportswriters and b ...

, becoming the youngest player to win the award as well as the first player of the Magic to do so. *April 28: Rookie Courtney Lee was accidentally hit in the face by Dwight Howard during game 5 of the Magic's first round playoff series. The following day it was announced he would miss Game 6, suffering a fractured sinus. *April 29: Dwight Howard was suspended for one game by the NBA for an incident in which Howard elbowed a

player in the face the previous night in Game 5 of the Magic's first round playoff series.Howard out for Game 6
/ref> *April 30: The Magic advanced to the second round of the NBA playoffs after defeating the

in 6 games. *May 17: In a Game 7 on the road, the Magic advanced to their first Eastern Conference finals appearance since 1996 after defeating the defending champion

. *May 30: The Magic defeated the

4–2 to advance to the

2009 NBA Finals The 2009 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2008–09 season and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. A best-of-seven playoff series starting on June 4 and concluding on June 14, 2009, ...

and made their first appearance since

. *June 9: The Magic earned their first

game victory in franchise history. They beat the

in Game 3 at

Amway 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 wa ...

by a score of 108–104. The Magic shot an NBA Finals single-game record 75% in the first half, and a record 62.5% for the entire game.Hot shooting, balanced scoring lift Magic in Game 3
/ref> The Magic had lost their first six NBA Finals games (four in 1995 and two in 2009). *June 14: The Magic's season ended, having lost the

in five games to the Lakers.

Offseason

Draft picks

Roster

Regular season

The first half of the 2008–09 season went very well for the Magic. After 41 games, the Magic were 33–8, leading the Southeast Division, as well as having one of the top four records in the league. On January 13, 2009, they scored an NBA record 23 three-pointers against the

. Nine of the twelve Magic players who played that night scored at least one three pointer. At the start of February,

, their all-star starting point guard, went down with a shoulder injury which caused him to miss the remainder of the season. The Magic then began a stretch where they did not win or lose consecutive games for almost the entire month. The Magic did make a deal at the trade deadline with the

for Rafer Alston. Still having to deal with the absence of Nelson though, Orlando managed to maintain one of the top records in the league, secured a second straight winning season, and clinched a playoff berth in mid-March. The Magic defeated the defending champion

to capture their second consecutive division championship, and on the same night assured themselves of winning more games than the previous season. Finishing the regular season with a 59–23 record, it was the most games the team had won in a season since the 1995–96 season in which they had 60 wins.

Standings

Record vs. opponents

Game log

, - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 1 , October 29 ,

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, , Dwight Howard (22) , Dwight Howard (15) , Anthony Johnson (3) ,

17,461 , 0–1 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 2 , October 31 , @ Memphis , , Rashard Lewis (23) , Dwight Howard (14) , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , FedExForum
16,139 , 0–2 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 3 , November 1 ,

Sacramento Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...

, , Dwight Howard (29) , Dwight Howard (14) , Rashard Lewis (6) ,

16,704 , 1–2 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 4 , November 3 ,

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, , Dwight Howard (22) , Dwight Howard (15) , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , Amway Arena
15,606 , 2–2 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 5 , November 6 ,

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, , Rashard Lewis, Hedo Türkoğlu (20) , Rashard Lewis, Hedo Türkoğlu, Dwight Howard (8) ,

(9) , Amway Arena
16,407 , 3–2 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 6 , November 8 , Washington , , Dwight Howard (31) , Dwight Howard (16) ,

(6) , Amway Arena
16,911 , 4–2 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 7 , November 10 , Portland , , Hedo Türkoğlu (35) , Dwight Howard (19) ,

(7) , Amway Arena
14,210 , 4–3 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 8 , November 12 , @

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...

, , Dwight Howard (30) , Dwight Howard (19) , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , Ford Center
18,185 , 5–3 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 9 , November 14 , @

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, , Rashard Lewis (23) , Dwight Howard (13) , Anthony Johnson (6) ,

American Airlines Center The American Airlines Center (AAC) is a multi-purpose List of indoor arenas, indoor arena located in the Victory Park, Dallas, Victory Park neighborhood in downtown Dallas, Texas. The arena serves as the home of the Dallas Stars of the National ...

20,085 , 6–3 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 10 , November 16 , @ Charlotte , , Hedo Türkoğlu (20) , Tony Battie, Dwight Howard (7) , Hedo Türkoğlu (4) , Time Warner Cable Arena
12,639 , 7–3 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 11 , November 18 ,

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, , Rashard Lewis, Hedo Türkoğlu,

(22) , Dwight Howard (9) , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , Amway Arena
16,353 , 8–3 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 12 , November 21 , @

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

, , Dwight Howard (24) , Dwight Howard (17) ,

(9) , Conseco Fieldhouse
14,699 , 9–3 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 13 , November 22 ,

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, ,

(21) , Dwight Howard (9) ,

(6) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 9–4 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 14 , November 24 ,

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

, , Dwight Howard (24) , Dwight Howard (13) ,

(6) , Amway Arena
16,245 , 10–4 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 15 , November 26 , @

, , Dwight Howard (21) , Dwight Howard (14) , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , Wachovia Center
14,985 , 11–4 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 16 , November 27 , @ Washington , , Dwight Howard (26) , Dwight Howard (14) , Anthony Johnson (12) , Verizon Center
13,295 , 12–4 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 17 , November 29 ,

, , Dwight Howard (32) , Dwight Howard (21) , Anthony Johnson, JJ Redick (4) , Amway Arena
17,172 , 13–4 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 18 , December 1 , @

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, , Rashard Lewis (30) , Dwight Howard (15) , Hedo Türkoğlu, Anthony Johnson (4) , TD Banknorth Garden
18,624 , 13–5 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 19 , December 3 ,

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, , Rashard Lewis, Dwight Howard (23) , Dwight Howard (14) , Rashard Lewis (5) ,

15,705 , 14–5 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 20 , December 5 ,

, , Dwight Howard (21) , Dwight Howard (23) ,

, Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , Amway Arena
16,812 , 15–5 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 21 , December 8 , @ L.A. Clippers , , Dwight Howard (23) , Dwight Howard (22) , Hedo Türkoğlu (6) ,

Staples Center Crypto.com Arena (originally and colloquially known as Staples Center) is a multi-purpose indoor arena in downtown Los Angeles. Opened on October 17, 1999, as Staples Center, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along F ...

15,222 , 16–5 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 22 , December 9 , @ Portland , , Rashard Lewis (27) , Rashard Lewis (9) ,

(6) ,

Rose Garden A rose garden or rosarium is a garden or park, often open to the public, used to present and grow various types of garden roses, and sometimes rose species. Designs vary tremendously and roses may be displayed alongside other plants or grouped ...

20,642 , 17–5 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 23 , December 12 , @ Phoenix , , Dwight Howard (19) , Rashard Lewis (8) ,

, Anthony Johnson (6) , US Airways Center
18,422 , 17–6 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 24 , December 13 , @

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

, , Rashard Lewis (27) , Rashard Lewis (9) ,

(6) ,

EnergySolutions Arena The Delta Center is an indoor venue in Salt Lake City. Opened in 1991, the arena is the home of the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Utah Mammoth of the National Hockey League (NHL). The arena has a seating capacity ...

19,911 , 18–6 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 25 , December 15 , @ Golden State , ,

(32) , Marcin Gortat (13) , Hedo Türkoğlu (8) , Oracle Arena
18,844 , 19–6 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 26 , December 18 ,

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

, ,

(24) , Dwight Howard (13) ,

(7) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 20–6 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 27 , December 20 , L.A. Lakers , ,

(27) , Dwight Howard (12) , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 21–6 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 28 , December 22 , Golden State , ,

(22) , Dwight Howard (11) ,

, Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 22–6 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 29 , December 25 ,

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, , Hedo Türkoğlu (20) , Dwight Howard (15) , Hedo Türkoğlu (5) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 23–6 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 30 , December 27 , @

, , Hedo Türkoğlu (26) , Hedo Türkoğlu, Rashard Lewis (7) ,

(8) ,

Target Center Target Center is a multi-purpose arena located in Minneapolis that opened in 1990. It hosts major family shows, concerts, sporting events, graduations and private events. Target Corporation, founded and headquartered in Minneapolis since 1902, h ...

17,003 , 24–6 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 31 , December 29 , @

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 ...

, , Rashard Lewis (23) , Dwight Howard (18) , Hedo Türkoğlu (8) , The Palace of Auburn Hills
22,076 , 24–7 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 32 , December 31 , @

, , Rashard Lewis (21) , Dwight Howard (14) ,

(5) ,

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

21,861 , 25–7 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 33 , January 2 ,

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

, , Rashard Lewis (17) , Dwight Howard (15) ,

, Hedo Türkoğlu (5) ,

17,461 , 26–7 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 34 , January 4 , @

, , Dwight Howard (39) , Dwight Howard (8) , Rashard Lewis (9) , Air Canada Centre
19,322 , 26–8 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 35 , January 6 , Washington , , Hedo Türkoğlu (22) , Dwight Howard (16) , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , Amway Arena
16,011 , 27–8 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 36 , January 7 , @

, , Dwight Howard (23) , Dwight Howard (19) , Hedo Türkoğlu (8) ,

Philips Arena State Farm Arena is a Multi-purpose stadium, multi-purpose arena located in Atlanta, Georgia. The arena serves as the home venue for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). It also served as home to the Atlanta Thrasher ...

13,748 , 28–8 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 37 , January 9 ,

, , Hedo Türkoğlu (21) , Marcin Gortat (11) ,

(9) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 29–8 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 38 , January 11 , @

, , Dwight Howard (24) , Dwight Howard (14) ,

, Hedo Türkoğlu (5) , AT&T Center
18,216 , 30–8 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 39 , January 13 , @

, , Dwight Howard (25) , Dwight Howard (15) ,

(11) , ARCO Arena
11,168 , 31–8 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 40 , January 16 , @ L.A. Lakers , ,

(28) , Dwight Howard (20) ,

(8) ,

18,997 , 32–8 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 41 , January 17 , @

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

, , Hedo Türkoğlu (31) , Dwight Howard (20) , Hedo Türkoğlu,

(5) ,

Pepsi Center Ball Arena (formerly known as the Pepsi Center) is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Denver, Colorado, United States. It is situated at Speer Boulevard, a main thoroughfare in downtown Denver, and is served by two nearby exits off Int ...

19,749 , 33–8 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 42 , January 22 ,

, , Hedo Türkoğlu (22) , Dwight Howard (11) ,

(3) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 33–9 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 43 , January 24 , @

, , Dwight Howard (22) , Dwight Howard (10) ,

(7) , American Airlines Arena
19,600 , 33–10 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 44 , January 27 ,

, , Mickaël Piétrus (27) , Mickaël Piétrus, Dwight Howard (10) ,

, Hedo Türkoğlu (8) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 34–10 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 45 , January 29 ,

Cleveland Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...

, , Dwight Howard (22) , Dwight Howard (18) , Rashard Lewis (5) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 35–10 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 46 , February 1 , @

, , Dwight Howard (29) , Dwight Howard (14) ,

(10) , Air Canada Centre
19,800 , 36–10 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 47 , February 2 ,

, , Dwight Howard (35) , Dwight Howard (11) , Hedo Türkoğlu (4) ,

16,551 , 36–11 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 48 , February 4 , L.A. Clippers , , Anthony Johnson (25) , Dwight Howard (15) , Hedo Türkoğlu (6) , Amway Arena
16,101 , 37–11 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 49 , February 6 , @

, , Dwight Howard (21) , Dwight Howard (20) , Hedo Türkoğlu (11) , Conseco Fieldhouse
13,559 , 37–12 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 50 , February 8 ,

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

, , Dwight Howard (30) , Dwight Howard (16) , Hedo Türkoğlu (8) , Amway Arena
16,533 , 38–12 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 51 , February 11 ,

, , Dwight Howard (16) , Dwight Howard (15) , Hedo Türkoğlu (5) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 38–13 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 52 , February 17 , Charlotte , , Dwight Howard (45) , Dwight Howard (19) , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 39–13 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 53 , February 18 , @

, , Rashard Lewis (17) , Marcin Gortat, Dwight Howard (8) , Rashard Lewis (8) , New Orleans Arena
16,651 , 39–14 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 54 , February 20 , @ Charlotte , , Hedo Türkoğlu (24) , Dwight Howard (16) , Rafer Alston (8) , Time Warner Cable Arena
19,244 , 40–14 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 55 , February 22 ,

, , Dwight Howard (32) , Dwight Howard (17) , Rafer Alston (9) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 41–14 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 56 , February 24 , @

, , Dwight Howard (26) , Dwight Howard (12) , Rashard Lewis, Rafer Alston (5) ,

21,902 , 41–15 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 57 , February 25 , @ New York , , Hedo Türkoğlu (33) , Dwight Howard (21) , Rashard Lewis (4) ,

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...

19,763 , 42–15 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 58 , February 27 ,

, , Dwight Howard (21) , Dwight Howard (13) , Rafer Alston (6) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 42–16 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 59 , February 28 , @

, , Rashard Lewis, Hedo Türkoğlu (23) , Dwight Howard (8) , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , Wachovia Center
19,703 , 43–16 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 60 , March 3 , Phoenix , , Rashard Lewis (29) , Rashard Lewis (12) , Hedo Türkoğlu, Rafer Alston (6) ,

17,461 , 44–16 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 61 , March 6 ,

, , Dwight Howard (26) , Dwight Howard (15) , Rafer Alston (6) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 45–16 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 62 , March 8 , @

, , Dwight Howard (18) , Dwight Howard (15) , Rafer Alston (8) , TD Banknorth Garden
18,624 , 46–16 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 63 , March 9 , @

, , Dwight Howard (27) , Dwight Howard (14) , Rafer Alston (5) , The Palace of Auburn Hills
20,039 , 46–17 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 64 , March 11 ,

, , Tony Battie (18) , Marcin Gortat (15) , Rafer Alston, Anthony Johnson (6) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 47–17 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 65 , March 13 , @ Washington , , Mickaël Piétrus (21) , Dwight Howard (13) , Dwight Howard (7) , Verizon Center
18,152 , 48–17 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 66 , March 15 ,

, , Dwight Howard (28) , Dwight Howard (20) , Hedo Türkoğlu (8) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 49–17 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 67 , March 17 , @

, , Rafer Alston (23) , Dwight Howard (15) , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , Quicken Loans Arena
20,562 , 49–18 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 68 , March 18 , @

, , Dwight Howard (28) , Dwight Howard (12) , Dwight Howard, Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , Bradley Center
13,819 , 50–18 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 69 , March 21 , New York , , Rashard Lewis (27) , Marcin Gortat (8) , Hedo Türkoğlu (9) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 51–18 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 70 , March 23 , @ New York , , Dwight Howard (29) , Dwight Howard (14) , Hedo Türkoğlu (3) ,

19,763 , 52–18 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 71 , March 25 ,

, , Dwight Howard (24) , Dwight Howard (21) , Rafer Alston (6) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 53–18 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 72 , March 27 ,

, , Rashard Lewis (19) , Marcin Gortat (11) , Dwight Howard, Rafer Alston (5) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 54–18 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 73 , March 30 , @

, , Dwight Howard (22) , Dwight Howard (18) , Hedo Türkoğlu, Rafer Alston (5) , American Airlines Arena
19,600 , 55–18 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 74 , April 1 ,

, , Dwight Howard (30) , Dwight Howard (9) , Hedo Türkoğlu (6) ,

17,461 , 55–19 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 75 , April 3 ,

, , Rashard Lewis (22) , Dwight Howard (11) , Rafer Alston (10) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 56–19 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 76 , April 4 , @

, , Dwight Howard (21) , Dwight Howard (23) , Dwight Howard (5) ,

19,608 , 57–19 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 77 , April 7 , @

, , Rashard Lewis (22) , Rashard Lewis (12) , Rashard Lewis, Hedo Türkoğlu (4) , Toyota Center
18,389 , 57–20 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 78 , April 8 , Memphis , , Hedo Türkoğlu (20) , Dwight Howard (13) , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 58–20 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 79 , April 10 , New York , , Hedo Türkoğlu (24) , Dwight Howard (14) , Hedo Türkoğlu, Rafer Alston (5) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 58–21 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 80 , April 11 , @

, , Hedo Türkoğlu (16) , Dwight Howard (8) , Rafer Alston (8) ,

Izod Center Meadowlands Arena (formerly Brendan Byrne Arena, Continental Airlines Arena and Izod Center) is a closed indoor sports and concert venue located in the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States. Since closing, ...

17,123 , 58–22 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 81 , April 13 , @

, , Courtney Lee (17) , Marcin Gortat (18) , Rafer Alston (4) , Bradley Center
14,683 , 58–23 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 82 , April 15 , Charlotte , , Tony Battie (21) , Dwight Howard (12) , Mickaël Piétrus (5) , Amway Arena
17,461 , 59–23

Playoffs

The Magic drew the

in the first round of the

. With the series tied at two wins for each team, Game 5 saw Vivani an incident in the 1st quarter involving Dwight Howard throwing an elbow at 76ers center Samuel Dalembert. Howard was assessed a

technical foul In basketball, a technical foul (colloquially known as a "T" or a "tech") is any infraction of the rules penalized as a foul which does not involve physical contact during the course of play between opposing players on the court, or is a foul by a ...

but was not ejected from the game. The NBA reviewed the play and suspended Howard for Game 6. A second incident involving an elbow from Dwight Howard happened in Game 5 not long after the elbow to Dalembert. This time however, Magic rookie Courtney Lee was the recipient of the hit from his teammate. Lee left the game and did not return. Suffering a fractured sinus, it was announced that Lee was expected to have surgery and could miss the remainder of the postseason. Neither player's absence would prove costly to Orlando in Game 6, who won the series with a blowout on the road, and Lee returned to action in the next series wearing a protective face mask, such as one worn by Richard Hamilton. In the Eastern Conference semi-finals, the Magic faced the defending champion

. Facing a 3–2 series deficit, the Magic tied the series with a home game victory in Game 6 and advanced to the Eastern Conference finals by winning Game 7 on the road, ending Boston's 32–0 undefeated record when leading the series 3–2. Assistant Coach

Patrick Ewing Patrick Aloysius Ewing Sr. (born August 5, 1962) is a Jamaican-American basketball coach and former professional player who is a basketball ambassador for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he played most o ...

had guaranteed a win in Game 7. Returning to the conference finals for the first time since 1996, the Magic's opponent was the

, who compiled the league's best regular season record led by the season's MVP,

LeBron James LeBron Raymone James Sr. ( ; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is the NBA's all-time leading scorer and ...

. That didn't stop the Magic as they closed the series out at home in Game 6, winning 103–90 as Dwight Howard scored 40 points, a career high for him in a playoff game. The Magic won the series 4–2, the Eastern Conference championship, and the right to face the

in the

. After dropping the first two games in the series, the Magic finally won their first ever game in the finals in Game 3. With the franchise losing their first six finals games 1995 and 2009 combined, it was the second most games a team had lost in the finals before earning their first win. However, in Game 4 the Magic lost to the Lakers 99–91 in overtime; the Lakers took a 3–1 series lead and won again in Game 5, thus ending the Magic's longest playoff run in team history and ending up 1–8 in the finals.

Game log

, - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 1 , , April 19 , ,

, , , , Dwight Howard (31) , , Dwight Howard (16) , , Rafer Alston (5) , ,

17,461 , , 0–1 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 2 , , April 22 , ,

, , , , Courtney Lee (24) , , Dwight Howard (10) , , Rashard Lewis (6) , , Amway Arena
17,461 , , 1–1 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 3 , , April 24 , , @

, , , , Dwight Howard (36) , , Dwight Howard (11) , , Courtney Lee (5) , , Wachovia Center
16,492 , , 1–2 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 4 , , April 26 , , @

, , , , Dwight Howard (18) , , Dwight Howard (18) , , Rafer Alston (5) , , Wachovia Center
16,464 , , 2–2 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 5 , , April 28 , ,

, , , ,

Howard Howard is a masculine given name derived from the English surname Howard. ''The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names'' notes that "the use of this surname as a christian name is quite recent and there seems to be no particular reason for ...

, Lewis (24) , , Dwight Howard (24) , , Alston, Türkoğlu (4) , , Amway Arena
17,461 , , 3–2 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 6 , , April 30 , , @

, , , , Rashard Lewis (29) , , Marcin Gortat (15) , , Rafer Alston (10) , , Wachovia Center
16,691 , , 4–2 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 1 , , May 4 , , @

, , , , Rashard Lewis (18) , , Dwight Howard (22) , , Rafer Alston (7) , , TD Banknorth Garden
18,624 , , 1–0 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 2 , , May 6 , , @

, , , , Lewis, Piétrus (17) , , Dwight Howard (12) , , Anthony Johnson (7) , , TD Banknorth Garden
18,624 , , 1–1 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 3 , , May 8 , ,

, , , , Rashard Lewis (28) , , Dwight Howard (14) , , Hedo Türkoğlu (4) , ,

17,461 , , 2–1 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 4 , , May 10 , ,

, , , , Dwight Howard (23) , , Dwight Howard (17) , , JJ Redick (7) , , Amway Arena
17,461 , , 2–2 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 5 , , May 12 , , @

, , , , Rashard Lewis (19) , , Dwight Howard (17) , , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , , TD Banknorth Garden
18,624 , , 2–3 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 6 , , May 14 , ,

, , , , Dwight Howard (23) , , Dwight Howard (22) , , Alston, Lewis, Türkoğlu (3) , , Amway Arena
17,461 , , 3–3 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 7 , , May 17 , , @

, , , , Hedo Türkoğlu (25) , , Dwight Howard (16) , , Hedo Türkoğlu (12) , , TD Banknorth Garden
18,624 , , 4–3 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 1 , , May 20 , , @

, , , , Dwight Howard (30) , , Dwight Howard (13) , , Hedo Türkoğlu (14) , , Quicken Loans Arena
20,562 , , 1–0 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 2 , , May 22 , , @

, , , , Rashard Lewis (23) , , Dwight Howard (18) , ,

Johnson Johnson may refer to: People and fictional characters *Johnson (surname), a common surname in English * Johnson (given name), a list of people * List of people with surname Johnson, including fictional characters *Johnson (composer) (1953–2011) ...

, Türkoğlu (4) , , Quicken Loans Arena
20,562 , , 1–1 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 3 , , May 24 , ,

, , , , Dwight Howard (24) , , Hedo Türkoğlu (10) , , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , ,

17,461 , , 2–1 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 4 , , May 26 , ,

, , , , Dwight Howard (27) , , Dwight Howard (14) , , Hedo Türkoğlu (8) , , Amway Arena
17,461 , , 3–1 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 5 , , May 28 , , @

, , , , Hedo Türkoğlu (29) , , Dwight Howard (10) , , Rafer Alston (4) , , Quicken Loans Arena
20,562 , , 3–2 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 6 , , May 30 , ,

, , , , Dwight Howard (40) , , Dwight Howard (14) , , Hedo Türkoğlu (5) , , Amway Arena
17,461 , , 4–2 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 1 , , June 4 , , @ L.A. Lakers , , , , Mickaël Piétrus (14) , , Dwight Howard (15) , ,

(4) , ,

18,997 , , 0–1 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 2 , , June 7 , , @ L.A. Lakers , , , , Rashard Lewis (34) , , Dwight Howard (16) , , Rashard Lewis (7) , , Staples Center
18,997 , , 0–2 , - bgcolor="#bbffbb" , 3 , , June 9 , , L.A. Lakers , , , ,

, Lewis (21) , , Dwight Howard (14) , , Hedo Türkoğlu (7) , ,

17,461 , , 1–2 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 4 , , June 11 , , L.A. Lakers , , , , Hedo Türkoğlu (25) , , Dwight Howard (21) , , Rashard Lewis (4) , , Amway Arena
17,461 , , 1–3 , - bgcolor="#ffcccc" , 5 , , June 14 , , L.A. Lakers , , , , Rashard Lewis (18) , ,

, Lewis (10) , , Lewis,

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

(4) , , Amway Arena
17,461 , , 1–4

Player statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Awards and records

* Dwight Howard – Defensive Player of the Year, All-NBA 1st Team, All-Defensive 1st Team, Rebounding Champion, Blocks 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 ...

* Rashard Lewis –

–

Records

*Orlando broke the 3-point record with 23 made 3-pointers on January 13, 2008, in Sacramento. * Rashard Lewis led the league in 3-point field goals.

Transactions

Trades

Free agents

Additions

Subtractions

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2008-09 Orlando Magic Season Orlando Magic seasons

Orlando Orlando commonly refers to: * Orlando, Florida, a city in the United States Orlando may also refer to: People * Orlando (given name), a masculine name, includes a list of people with the name * Orlando (surname), includes a list of people wit ...

Eastern Conference (NBA) championship seasons 2008 in sports in Florida 2009 in sports in Florida 2008 in Orlando, Florida 2009 in Orlando, Florida