On This Day: Magic Advance To First NBA Finals

The greatest win in Magic franchise history.

Jeremy Brener | Jun 4, 2022

On This Day: Magic Advance To First NBA Finals /

Perhaps the greatest moment in Orlando Magic history was Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals where the team advanced to its first NBA Finals as a franchise.

It took just six years for the Magic to go from expansion franchise to NBA finalist, but the team formed within the six years was special.

The team was a good mix of drafted players and veterans. Nick Anderson, Dennis Scott, Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway helped build the foundation while veterans Horace Grant, Anthony Bowie and Jeff Turner helped turn the team from pretenders to contenders.

The Magic faced off against Reggie Miller and the Indiana Pacers, where the home team won each of the first six games in the series. And in Game 7, that pattern continued.

The Magic had a small lead early, but as the game progressed, the lead grew, ultimately ending in a 24-point blowout to send Orlando to its first NBA Finals. Shaq led all scorers with 25 points and 11 rebounds, and each member of the starting lineup scored in double figures.

The Magic would ultimately lose to the Houston Rockets in four games in the Finals, but the 1995 team helped put Orlando on the basketball map. The core of the 1990s teams never got further than it did in 1995 and was practically broken up after Shaq left for the Los Angeles Lakers after the 1995-96 season.

The 1994-95 Magic is still celebrated in Central Florida to this day as one of the most beloved teams in franchise history 27 years later.

Published Jun 4, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.