The Mount Rushmore of the Orlando Magic
- Penny Hardaway
- Dwight Howard
- Tracy McGrady
- Shaquille O’Neal
Shaquille O’Neal kicks off this Mount Rushmore with his third(!) appearance. O’Neal has a genuine claim for being the Magic’s greatest player of all-time, as he led Orlando to the first NBA Finals appearance in franchise history.
O’Neal also made four All-Star Game appearances, three All-NBA teams, and won the scoring title during his time in Orlando—quite a résumé.
Perhaps O’Neal’s top competition for the GOAT title, Dwight Howard comes in as the other great center on the list. Howard won three consecutive Defensive Player of the Year awards during his time in Orlando, and made five straight All-NBA First Team appearances, as well.
Perhaps most importantly: Howard led the Magic to the 2009 NBA Finals, defeating LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers along the way.
The third player on the list is Tracy McGrady, who represented hope throughout the early 2000s. He won two scoring titles, made two All-NBA First Team appearances, and was All-NBA Second Team during the other two years he spent in Orlando.
McGrady’s average of 32.1 points per game in 2002-03 currently stands as the highest-scoring season by any player in Magic history.
The fourth and final player on the list is Penny Hardaway, who was a slew of career-shortening injuries away from being a Hall of Fame lock. Hardaway and O’Neal led the Magic to the 1995 NBA Finals, and Hardaway continued to play at an All-NBA level once O’Neal left.
Nikola Vucevic is quietly rising up the list of all-time Magic players, but as of now, these four are safe and secure on the Mount Rushmore.
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