Penny & Pops Podcast - Orlando Magic Basketball

Orlando: The NBA’s Worst Small Market Franchise? - Episode 57 - June 25, 2021 by Penny & Pops Podcast - Orlando Magic Basketball

We’ve been gone a while. Almost 3 months. In that time, WeltHamm blew it all up at the trade deadline. We traded away our 2-time All-Star who didn’t want to leave Orlando. Cole Anthony had a solid rookie campaign and I’m very glad we have R.J. Hampton. We finished the injury-plagued 72-game season 21-51. But now Steve Clifford is gone, in a mutual parting where Clifford likely wisely chose to walk...

With the help of a 9-game losing streak along the way, the Magic enter this trade deadline week with the 4th-worst record in the NBA. Operation 3-month tank is going as planned so far. Many teams around the league want their hands on certain Magic players, most of the rumored deals sound like B.S. but it sounds like Aaron Gordon and Evan Fournier are out the door. WeltHamm should be making moves b...

Sometimes the basketball gods force your hand. That’s what’s happening this 2021-2022 season. The Magic took advantage of their weak schedule to begin the campaign. Best record in the NBA. Then Fultz goes down for the season, combined with other starters like Fournier and Aaron Gordon missing many games, combined with more injuries to other rotation players, and we’ve plummeted down the standings...

How does having the best record in the NBA sound, Magic fans? For the first time in franchise history, your Orlando Magic man are 4-0. Why is this happening? We’ll talk players, appealing numbers, what’s not sustainable, and compare the Magic with our East competition. It’s not crazy to be optimistic and have hopes of a potential sixth seed or better. The increase in injuries and the threat of COV...

The Magic concluded the preseason 2-2 and their 32nd regular season starts two days before Christmas. Markelle Fultz and Jonathan Isaac signed extensions, indicating that WeltHamm have given up on Orlando being a free agency destination for at least the next few years. Fans are back at Amway Center. And we begin this 72-game campaign with the cloud of COVID-19 over everything as well as a season o...

The draft and free agency have happened. Not a lot of action from a Magic perspective, so there are thoughts to be shared as this is year 4 of WeltHamm in charge. Magic founder Jimmy Hewitt passed away, COVID-19 is still a problem as NBA players and staffers are testing positive in training camps, preseason is ongoing, and the 2020-2021 NBA season is tipping off just before Christmas. #LetsGoMagic...

This is our Orlando Magic pre-draft, pre-free agency episode, but it’s also going to be a review of the Jeff Weltman and John Hammond front office regime. WeltHamm have sort of reached that fork in the road where they have to be decisive on a path moving forward. They were hired in May 2017, so they’ve had 3 full seasons of being in charge. Going into their 4th campaign now, we’re at the point whe...

It only makes sense that the return of ‘Magical Movies’ would involve the only other Bucks-Magic playoff series between the two franchises. We’re going back to 2001. Game 3, Magic trying to avoid a beat-of-5 series sweep. We played the first 2 games in Milwaukee fairly close. This Game 3 at home is owned by a 21-year-old Tracy McGrady who racks up a 42-point near triple-double performance in the M...

They did it again! Orlando upset Toronto last year in Game 1 as the 7th seed. It was an even bigger mountain to climb on neutral soil as the 8th seed Orlando Magic claimed victory over the #1 seed Milwaukee Bucks 122-110 on Tuesday afternoon. 16-of-41 3-point shooting proved to be the difference. Nikola Vucevic exorcised some Marc Gasol demons to post 35 points, 14 rebounds, and 4 assists on 15-of...

The Orlando Magic concluded their 2019-2020 regular season with a 33-40 record including going 3-5 in their NBA Bubble ‘seeding’ games at Disney World. As the 8th seed in the East, the Magic have the tall task of taking on the #1 seed Milwaukee Bucks who finished with the best record in the league at 56-17. Orlando lost all 4 regular season matchups, though various circumstances have rendered thos...

The Orlando Magic have lost 4 in a row since their 2-0 bubble start. Jonathan Isaac had his knee surgery. Aaron Gordon, Michael Carter-Williams, and Evan Fournier have missed time from the floor. Mo Bamba revealed he had COVID-19 and has not seen any court time the past two contests. Now Terrence Ross has left the bubble. When it rains, it pours. Brooklyn, led by former Magic coach and player Jacq...

The elation Magic fans had seeing the return of Jonathan Isaac to the court a week ago has now been replaced with horror. J.I. tore his ACL in the second ‘seeding’ game Sunday evening v. the Kings. This is going to change the team’s long-term plans as JI’s track record of ankle and knee issues have to be factored into that outlook. The Magic are 2-0 though in the Disney World village, scoring at a...

The games start counting now. Scrimmages are over. The great news for the Orlando Magic is they have the services of Jonathan Isaac again as the team will hope their roster continuity assists them in the Disney World bubble. What’s the Magic’s best 5-man lineup? We discuss the village setup and give our record predictions for the Magic’s eight seeding games in two weeks as the quest for the East’s...

The NBA is so far successfully acclimating itself to village life at Disney World as COVID-19 issues rage outside its bubble across the state of Florida. That means Orlando Magic basketball is back with three scrimmages and those 8 regular season restart seeding games coming our way. The chase for the 7th seed in the East is on. What would you bring with you if you had to be in the bubble for 4 mo...

The NBA appears to be settling on concluding the 2019-2020 campaign at Walt Disney World’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in a single-venue campus/village/bubble environment with games being played beginning in July and August without fans in attendance. The Coronavirus is likely going to be an issue now and for the 2020-2021 campaign. With that in mind, we discuss our preferences - based off o...

‘Magical Movies’ features a Hedo Turkoglu (24 points) bank shot winner that topped off a 9-0 run in the final two minutes of a 109-108 win for the Orlando Magic on the road in Rose Garden Arena over the Portland Trail Blazers on December 9, 2008. It’s a contest that Brandon Roy (30 points) and LaMarcus Aldridge (25 points) should have won for the home side. Rashard Lewis (27 points), Jameer Nelson...

“Don’t cool ‘em off, T-MAC! Don’t blow on those fingers! I don’t want you to cool off!” ‘Magical Movies’ is back with a Tracy McGrady offensive clinic. A 110-96 win for the Orlando Magic at home inside the TD Waterhouse Centre over the Chicago Bulls on February 21, 2003. The game is played immediately after GM John Gabriel deals away Tracy’s best friend Mike Miller to the Memphis Grizzlies for Dre...

‘Magical Movies’ is back with an emotional 96-94 win for the Orlando Magic at home inside the O-rena over the Los Angeles Lakers on February 22, 1998. Nick Anderson drops a game-high 30 points, the game-winning 3-pointer, shows off his Merton Hanks duck walk, and gets a small dose of revenge against Shaquille O’Neal. Derek Harper, Bo Outlaw, Danny Schayes, Horace Grant, and Derek Strong bring the...

‘Magical Movies’ returns with an unbelievable 106-104 comeback win for the Orlando Magic at home inside Amway Arena over the soon-to-be champion San Antonio Spurs on February 9, 2007. It’s a Magic team finding its way with Brian Hill coaching, a 21-year-old Dwight Howard saving the game with a huge block and then winning it on a sky-high inbound alley-oop slam, Jameer Nelson going berserk on his 2...

The debut of ‘Magical Movies’. We find a clip of an old game in its entirety, watch it, but instead of breaking down the game, we have categories and hand out awards. It’s a fun way to look at how the Magic used to be and enjoy the nostalgia. It all begins with a thrilling 106-98 win for the Orlando Magic at home in O-rena over the defending champion and 3-peat seeking Chicago Bulls on December 10...

The 24-31 Orlando Magic are hopefully refreshed coming off the All-Star Break. The 8th seed in the East is 2-0 with James Ennis on the floor, much needed since it came after losing 7 of eight contests. Aaron Gordon getting robbed of another All-Star dunk contest title is of course a topic. Can the Magic take their outrage and motivate themselves to a strong push into the playoffs? The Ringer rolle...

Part 2 of Pops’ Los Angeles trip continues with a Paramount film studio tour, breweries, and the Grand Central Market. It’s tough to avoid greediness. After Orlando took down the Lakers at Staples Center, the 2nd night of the back-to-back ended in defeat at the hands of Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers. The Magic are currently 20-22, still the 7th seed in the Eastern Conference, and 2-2 on this six-...

Reporting from Los Angeles, Pops details a busy first vacation day capped off by a Markelle Fultz triple-double performance. Orlando disposes of the Lakers on their own Staples Center court. The Magic did it short-handed yet again. Steve Clifford’s squad is now 2-1 on this West road trip and this Magic squad have a win-loss record of 20-21 midway through the NBA regular season. Rolling out guys li...

Following a beautiful blowout of the Washington Wizards, the Orlando Magic are currently 18-20 and the 7th seed in the Eastern Conference. Despite losing Jonathan Isaac until at least March to start 2020, Al-Farouq Aminu for the rest of the regular season, and still missing Michael Carter-Williams due to a shoulder injury, Orlando is 4-1 to start the month of January. #MagicAboveAll #LetsGoMagic W...