Despite finishing with the second-worst record in the NBA, the Orlando Magic had a season to remember. It was our first full season after trading away franchise cornerstones Nikola Vucevic, Evan Fournier, and Aaron Gordon, as well as the first year we saw our new young core play together. Of course, this season was not perfect. Devastating losses, injuries, and inconsistency plagued the Magic for most of the year. But even though our record may not show it, this season was a success. The tumult of this season was necessary for our young players to learn and improve. Even the losses themselves were blessings in disguise, as they awarded us the first overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. Our season may have been lost for the greater good of the team, but that does not mean there weren’t any enjoyable moments. Many of the games we played this year showed flashes of greatness, gave hope for our future, and displayed the perseverance and grit of a young, win-hungry Orlando Magic team that will be elite within a few years. There were plenty of games that fit this criteria, but we wanted to emphasize the ten most meaningful Magic games of this past season, the ones that best remind the league that the Magic are more than just a bunch of young guys who are very good at playing basketball. 

10.) MILWAUKEE @ ORLANDO: December 28, 2021— 127-110 (L)

The reigning NBA champions came into Orlando for two games, expecting to run the young, inexperienced Magic out of the gym both times. Even though the Bucks won both of these games, the Magic put up one heck of a fight during the first one. Nothing came easy for Milwaukee, even though Orlando had lost most of their core to injuries and COVID-19. Our 10-day replacement players stepped up, with Hassani Gravett starting and Admiral Schofield, Freddie Gillespie, and Tim Frazier playing significant minutes. They proved that they could play at the league’s highest level against one of its best teams. But the reason why we included this game on this list was because of rookie Franz Wagner. The media had mostly ignored Wagner up until that point when discussing the league’s best rookies, perhaps because they felt he didn’t have the “star power” that some of the top-four picks had. But last year’s 8th overall pick dispelled that notion during this game, going 60% from the field, 50% from beyond the arc, and finishing with a career-high 38 points against former Defensive Player of the Year Giannis Antetokounmpo. He put the Magic on his back in only his 35th NBA game, and almost beat the reigning champions in that process.

Because the Franz Wagner Masterclass resulted in a loss, we can only rank it so high. But we chose to put it ahead of several thrilling wins because this game proved that Franz Wagner was going to be a core Magic player for years to come. Concerns about his summer league and preseason play caused fans to initially write off Wagner as a backup wing at best. But against Milwaukee, he proved everyone wrong. No more could anyone doubt Franz Wagner. Up to that point, no rookie had even sniffed 38 points, let alone against Giannis and the Bucks. But on that night, Wagner proved that he was more than just Moritz’s little brother. He is a future star, and we’re lucky to have him. This game may have been special for him, but we guarantee that he will have even better games in the future.

9.) DENVER @ ORLANDO: December 1, 2021—103-108 (W)

This game was Cole Anthony’s first game back from an ankle injury, which sat him for six games. And it was clear that he had been itching to play ever since he got hurt. Anthony led Orlando to a close five-point victory against MVP Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets, finishing with 24 points while shooting 48% from the field. But he wasn’t the only contributor.  Wendell Carter Jr. matched Jokic’s 18 points off an astounding 72% of his attempts, Franz Wagner added to his month-long double-digit streak with 15 points on 67% efficiency, and big brother Moe Wagner came off the bench to score 12 points going 63% on his field goals. This was a team effort, and it showed.

This game was also Aaron Gordon’s first game back at Amway since being traded. The former Magic man finished with 17 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists off 58% from the field in his return, but he’ll be remembered in this game for missing a pivotal shot in the final seconds, sealing the win for his former team. Gordon had spent seven years with the Orlando Magic ever since he was drafted 4th overall in 2014, and seeing him play against us felt unnatural. But trading Gordon last year was the right move, as it kicked off the rebuild we so desperately needed. We will always thank Aaron Gordon for the great memories he gave to us, but winning against him felt especially good.

8.) DALLAS @ ORLANDO: January 30, 2022—108-110 (W)

A lot of Magic games this season ended in blowouts, mostly with the other team remaining victorious. Very rarely did we have moments where the game came down to the wire, and when we did, we usually lost those as well. Coming into the game against Dallas on January 30th, we expected nothing different. They already beat us two weeks earlier, and Luka Doncic was not going to slow down for us. But a fantastic 41-point second quarter kept us in the game, keeping it close against a Mavericks team that would eventually make it to the Western Conference Finals a few months later. And after Franz Wagner broke the 107-107 tie with less than a minute remaining, the Magic came out on top, ending a tense, thrilling game.

Stopping Doncic was not an easy task, as he finished with 34 points, but Orlando saw most players score in double-digits. The team’s leading scorer was not Wagner, Wendell Carter, or even Cole Anthony, but rather Chuma Okeke, who came off the bench to score 19 points off of 70% shooting from the field and 50% from three. Moe Wagner and Gary Harris also finished in double-figures respectively, and the former went viral after exchanging words with Doncic, in an attempt to get into the Mavericks star’s head. As for the starters, Anthony ended with 16 points, Wagner with 18, Mo Bamba with 10 points, and Carter with 14 points and 14 rebounds. And although Jalen Suggs only scored 5 points off a pitiful 20% shooting, he played great defense on the Mavericks, including an impressive block-from-behind in the third quarter. This game was a great example of outstanding team basketball from the Magic, and pretty soon those victories will not be close anymore.

7.) ORLANDO @ TORONTO: March 4, 2022—103-97 (W)

Since the 2021 NBA Draft, the media had been comparing 4th overall pick Scottie Barnes to 5th overall pick Jalen Suggs. Raptors fans were initially insecure that passing on Suggs would come back to haunt them, but the on-court results from both eased their fears. Barnes shined throughout the season, which ended with him winning Rookie of the Year, and injuries and shooting woes had made Suggs an easy target for the league. Raptors fans attempted to assert the dominance they think they have over the Magic by making fun of Suggs every chance they could. They would shout, “Scottie’s Better” to Suggs whenever he shot free throws, they would infiltrate Magic fans’ Twitter accounts and flood their comments section with Suggs slander, and they would praise Barnes up at Suggs’s expense against the former’s wishes. And for the most part, difference between the two rookies did not prove their trash talk unsubstantiated. 

But not this game.

Jalen Suggs showed flashes of impeccable defense and finished with 15 points, 6 rebounds, and 7 assists on Scottie Barnes and the Raptors, who finished with only 10 points off a poor 27% shooting performance from the field. Six other Magic players finished in double figures, including fellow rookie Franz Wagner and even backup guard RJ Hampton. We’d point out that only four Raptors can say the same, but that would imply that more than six could actually play meaningful minutes. This game shut Raptors fans up (temporarily) as they watched the guy they wanted their Raptors to take in last summer’s draft outperform the guy they passed on him for. And there will be more of those games to come. Barnes may have won Rookie of the Year, and all credit to him. He’s a heck of a player. But that doesn’t mean Suggs won’t be better down the road. And if Raptors fans keep mocking him, he’ll make sure to prove that passing on him was the wrong decision.

6.) ORLANDO @ CHARLOTTE: January 14, 2022—116-109 (W)

A key factor in Jalen Suggs’s disappointing rookie season was the thumb injury he suffered on November 29th, which sidelined him for 20 games. Fans patiently awaited for the day that Orlando’s 5th overall pick would return, and that day would come a month and a half later against former Magic coach James Borrego and the Charlotte Hornets. Suggs was not passive in his return, coming off the bench to earn 12 points, 6 rebounds, and 7 assists off of 63% shooting. Magic fans missed his playmaking and defensive impact, both of which were a large part of Orlando’s victory against Charlotte. It was a fantastic return for one of the team’s most important players.

But this was not the “Jalen Suggs Game” like we expected it to be. He played very well, but the Wagner Brothers stole the show. Franz eviscerated Charlotte’s defense with 19 points off of 72% shooting, even dishing out 7 assists of his own. But even more impressive was Moe, who came off the bench to score 26 points, shooting 65% from the field and 50% from beyond the arc. Charlotte simply had no answer for the Wagner Brothers, who showed how good they could be together. Moe officially became a fan-favorite after this game, and Franz made Magic fans love him more than they already did. We should also point out the contributions of Robin Lopez and Gary Harris, two veterans who finished with 10 and 18 points respectively. Both of them were integral to this victory, as was Suggs, but this game was proof that Michael Jordan does not own the Charlotte Hornets—the Wagner family does.

5.) MINNESOTA @ ORLANDO: March 11, 2022—110-118 (W)

By this season, most Magic fans had reluctantly accepted that Mo Bamba was not the player we thought was worthy of the 6th overall pick that we used on him in 2018. He did not develop into the defensive powerhouse we thought he would be, and now the Magic are choosing to prioritize Wendell Carter Jr. as the team’s center, who was taken one pick after Bamba. His role increased this season with a new coach and a spot in the starting lineup alongside Carter, but he was too inconsistent to be considered a core piece going forward. As of now, his future with the team is uncertain, as he approaches Restricted Free Agency this summer. But he did have some incredible games, including a 27-point, 12-rebound performance on March 11th against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

For a while, it looked like the game was going to be another Magic loss, as Minnesota stars Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards were impossible to stop. But the Magic kept it close, eventually taking the lead in the third quarter. We ended up winning the game, primarily due to Bamba’s elite performance that showed why he was so highly-touted in a draft class that included Luka Doncic and Trae Young. Wendell Carter Jr. contributed with 20 points and 10 rebounds of his own, and Markelle Fultz and Moe Wagner came off the bench to score 14 and 18 points respectively. But this was Mo Bamba’s game. He was dominant all the way through, and the Magic would have lost without him. We don’t know whether or not Bamba will be on the team next year, but if we do indeed decide to move on from him, we will always remember games like this, that prove that Mo Bamba was more than just a song title during his time in Orlando.

4.) CHICAGO @ ORLANDO: January 23, 2022—95-114 (W)

Fans would agree that the most important Magic player of the past ten years was Nikola Vucevic. He came to Orlando in 2012 as part of the Dwight Howard trade, and since then, he earned two All-Star Game appearances and led the Magic to the playoffs twice. But for as great as he was, he was not enough to win them a championship. In order for that to happen, Orlando needed to let him go and start from scratch. And the front office new that. On March 25, 2021, the Orlando Magic traded Vucevic to the Chicago Bulls for Wendell Carter Jr., Otto Porter Jr., and two draft picks. It was the most devastating trade in almost a decade, and it officially ended an era in Orlando. 

The Magic played his Bulls three times this season, losing two of those games. But our sole victory was a statement win for us. Vucevic had a relatively modest game, finishing with 13 points and 13 rebounds on only 21% shooting. But the player we got in return for him, Wendell Carter Jr., finished with 19 points on 67% shooting from both the field and the three-point line. The two centers had similar point totals, suggesting that the trade between them was even and fair. But Chicago’s price for acquiring Vucevic was more than just Carter. One of those picks they traded to us turned out to be Franz Wagner, who finished with 18 points off of 50% shooting. Carter and Wagner both outperformed Vucevic in this game, which is why we ranked this game so highly. It proved that a new era of Magic Basketball was upon us, led by the guys we traded our former franchise for. But it’s not just Wagner and Carter; the Magic have promising pieces throughout the roster. Moe Wagner led the Magic in scoring with 23 points off of 69% shooting. Cole Anthony and Chuma Okeke scored 11 points each. Jalen Suggs finished 15 points, 7 assists, and 2 of the best dunks of the entire season, after one of which he indicated who won the Nikola Vucevic trade by pointing at the word “Magic” on his chest. This game showed that the future of Magic basketball was as bright as the Central Florida sun. Gone were the days of seventh-seeds and fifteenth overall picks. Soon, the league will fear Wendell Carter, Franz Wagner, and the Orlando Magic.

3.) ORLANDO @ MINNESOTA: November 1, 2021—115-97 (W)

This was Orlando’s second win of the season, but it was the first of many victories that showed how much grit the new-look Magic had. For the past several seasons, the Magic had struggled to close games out, often blowing leads during the fourth quarters of very winnable games. But their victory against Minnesota on November 1, could not be any more different. The game was very close for three quarters, but the Magic exploded in the fourth quarter, scoring 43 points against Minnesota’s 19. We can’t think of a more dominant fourth quarter the Magic had this season, a nice change of pace from the blown leads we suffered in years past.

Cole Anthony had a game to remember, finishing with 31 points off 47% shooting. Franz Wagner put himself on the league’s radar with 28 points off 55% shooting and one of the best dunks of Orlando’s season, a poster over both Jarred Vanderbilt and Karl-Anthony Towns. Jalen Suggs and Wendell Carter Jr. both contributed with fifteen points. Four core Magic members proved why they are considered as such during this game. And while the Timberwolves seemed to lose steam late in the game, the Magic put their foot on the gas and kept it there. They looked like a bunch of guys having fun at the Timberwolves’ expense. The Magic could not be stopped in the fourth quarter, which is a sentence I’m sure I will write again and again.

2.) UTAH @ ORLANDO: November 7, 2021—100-107 (W)

The Orlando Magic notched their first win at Amway Center on November 7th against the Utah Jazz, who finished with the Western Conference’s best record last year. It was a tight matchup from the very beginning, with the Jazz mostly on top. At moments, this game looked lost for Orlando. They could have easily cut their losses and conceded defeat to a better Jazz team, but they didn’t. They fought back against the Jazz after another fourth-quarter surge earned them victory. The final minutes of this game put the perseverance and resolve of these young players on full display, much more than any other game this year. The Magic played some of the best basketball they have played all season out of a strong, insatiable desire for a win. And our willingness to step up when it mattered most was what made this game, in our opinion, the most memorable one of this year.

This was also Cole Anthony’s most memorable game of the season. He finished with 33 points off of 65% from the field and 50% from three. At that point, Anthony was the team’s best performer, and we had seriously considered him to be the potential face of our franchise. He led the Magic’s late-game run, as 24 of his points came in the second half. But what also made this game memorable was the viral postgame interview he gave with Dante Marchitelli, responding to every word Marchitelli spoke with an emphatic “Facts” while acknowledging the efforts his teammates contributed to the Magic’s victory. He shouted out RJ Hampton, who came off the bench to deliver the three-pointer that would seal the victory for Orlando. He shouted out Wendell Carter Jr., who put up 22 points and 15 rebounds on 64% shooting from the field and 57% from the line. He shouted out Mo Bamba, who contributed 9 points and 7 rebounds with 67% shooting. He shouted out the Orlando Magic, a team that used performances like this to prove that they will be feared throughout the league in just a few short years. Now that’s facts.

1.) INDIANA @ ORLANDO: February 28, 2022—103-119 (W)

This season was one with many questions that the Orlando Magic had to answer. How would the team’s young players perform with increased roles? How would rookies Jalen Suggs and Franz Wagner transition from college basketball to the NBA? What holes needed to be filled in order for the team to contend for a championship in the future? These questions and more were on the minds of fans and players alike, but none more than a question we had asked since last season: when would franchise cornerstone Markelle Fultz return from his devastating ACL injury he suffered last year? For a while, it looked like that question would have to be answered next season. President Jeff Weltman and head coach Jamahl Mosley dodged questions about Fultz’s status from reporters, even after a full year had passed since his injury. But fans would grow crazy seeing Fultz practice with the team, giving them hope that his long-awaited return would come. Seeing Fultz play NBA basketball again was at the top of fans’ wishlists for this season, and for good reason. The former number one overall pick looked like he was finally living up to that status last year before he went down. And the fans got what they wished for on February 26, 2022, when Fultz went on the Orlando Magic Pod Squad to say two words:

“I’m back.”

And back he was. Markelle Fultz made his season debut two days later against the Indiana Pacers, and he played like he never left. He came off the bench to score 10 points and 6 assists on 71% shooting. Fultz only played sixteen minutes that game, but those were the best sixteen minutes of this season. Those sixteen minutes were everything we had wanted to see this season. Markelle Fultz was officially back. The fans showered him in applause when he first checked into that game, and every bucket he made and pass he threw put a smile on all of our faces. After all that time spent waiting and waiting, Markelle Fultz was finally back. His teammates celebrated with efficient performances of their own. Jalen Suggs notched 14 points and 10 assists on 55% shooting, Cole Anthony and Gary Harris scored 11 each, RJ Hampton came off the bench to contribute 12 points on 55% shooting, Franz Wagner and Mo Bamba had 15 points each, with the latter nabbing 10 rebounds, and Wendell Carter Jr. led the way with 21 points and 12 rebounds off of 80% shooting. It was only fitting that Markelle Fultz’s return would end up as a victory. That game was symbolic of greater days ahead. This game, more than any other game before or after, best represented this season. No longer would we look at the injury report and see five names on it. No longer would we wait patiently for franchise faces to return. No longer would we suffer loss after loss and think, “If only Markelle were here.” No longer would we have to dread watching Magic basketball. Not after this game. This game officially kickstarted the new era of Magic basketball, one of promise and hope, two things that the Magic haven’t had in a long time. And for those reasons, this was our choice for the best game of this season.

Markelle Fultz is back. And soon, the Orlando Magic will be too.