Ranking the 10 championship-less NBA teams by closeness to title

A common theme among the teams already listed is that they are young teams that don’t boast a historical record of being an attractive free-agent destination. If that were a tier of its own, the Orlando Magic would top it.

Youth is the name of the game in Disney World and there’s plenty of it. There’s reigning NBA Rookie of the Year Paolo Banchero. Franz Wagner is playing beyond the value of his rookie contract. Wendell Carter Jr. has plenty of value, either as a future of the team or a trade asset.

There’s also a trio of young guards whose futures are unclear, but all seem to be positioning themselves as potential pieces for the Magic. Markelle Fultz (who has seemingly been in the NBA forever), Cole Anthony, and Jalen Suggs are all sources of intrigue on that roster.

Orlando is the lone team with two lottery picks in the draft, selecting 6th and 11th in the draft. They took Anthony Black with the former and Jett Howard with the latter, with some positing Howard as a reach at that spot.

The Magic don’t look ready to break their title drought in the next year, two years, maybe even five years. If they can keep their core together, however, they can overcome the stigma of not being a free agent destination and develop their best teams since the heyday of Dwight Howard.