1996–97 Orlando Magic season

The 1996–97 NBA season was the eighth season for the Orlando Magic in the National Basketball Association.^[1] After losing All-Star center Shaquille O'Neal via free agency to the Los Angeles Lakers during the off-season, the Magic acquired Felton Spencer from the Utah Jazz,^[2][3][4] and signed free agents Gerald Wilkins,^[5][6][7] Derek Strong,^[8][9] and Danny Schayes.^[10] However, after only playing just one game for the team, Spencer was then dealt along with Donald Royal and Jon Koncak to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for Rony Seikaly.^[11][12][13]

1996–97 Orlando Magic season
Head coach	Brian Hill (fired) Richie Adubato (interim)
President	Bob Vander Weide
General manager	John Gabriel
Owner(s)	Richard DeVos
Arena	Orlando Arena
Results
Record	45–37 (.549)
Place	Division: 3rd (Atlantic) Conference: 7th (Eastern)
Playoff finish	First round (lost to Heat 2–3)
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
Television	WKCF Sunshine Network
Radio	WDBO
< 1995–96 1997–98 >

Early into the regular season, the Magic played two games overseas against the New Jersey Nets in Tokyo, Japan, winning both games.^[14][15][16] After an 8–4 start in November, the Magic struggled losing 10 of their 12 games in December, and held a 24–20 record at the All-Star break.^[17] The team lost five straight after the All-Star break, as head coach Brian Hill was fired 49 games into the season, and Penny Hardaway was generally blamed for leading a player revolt that resulted in his dismissal.^[18][19][20] Hill was replaced with assistant Richie Adubato for the remainder of the season, as the Magic finished in third place in the Atlantic Division with a 45–37 record, and earned the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference.^[21]

Hardaway averaged 20.5 points, 5.6 assists and 1.6 steals per game, and was named to the All-NBA Third Team, and was selected for the 1997 NBA All-Star Game in Cleveland, Ohio,^[22][23][24] despite only playing 59 games due to knee injuries,^[25][26][27] while Seikaly averaged 17.3 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game, and Horace Grant provided the team with 12.6 points, 9.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game. In addition, three-point specialist Dennis Scott contributed 12.5 points per game, and led the Magic with 147 three-point field goals, and Nick Anderson provided with 12.0 points and 1.9 steals per game, along with 143 three-point field goals, but struggled shooting just .404 in free-throw percentage. Off the bench, Wilkins contributed 10.6 points per game, while Strong averaged 8.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, and Brian Shaw provided with 7.2 points and 4.1 assists per game.^[28]

Seikaly finished tied in twelfth place in Most Improved Player voting, and Grant finished tied in sixth place in Defensive Player of the Year voting.^[29] The Magic entered the 1997 NBA playoffs without Grant, who was out with a season-ending wrist injury, and was replaced with Strong as the team's starting power forward.^[30][31][32]

In the Eastern Conference First Round, the Magic faced off against their in-state rivals, the Miami Heat. After losing the first two games on the road to the Heat, the Magic would win the next two games at home to tie the series at 2–2; Hardaway scored 42 points in Game 3, and 41 points in Game 4.^[33][34] However, the Magic lost Game 5 on the road to the Heat, 91–83, thus losing the series in five games.^[35][36][37] As of 2025, this was the only NBA playoff matchup between both teams from Florida.

Following the season, Scott was involved in controversy after a public outburst at a youth basketball camp in Sterling, Virginia during the off-season, in which he threatened to retire from the NBA due to a contract dispute with the Magic;^[38][39][40] he was later on traded to the Dallas Mavericks after seven seasons in Orlando.^[41][42][43] Meanwhile, Shaw was dealt to the Golden State Warriors,^[44][45][46] and Adubato was fired as head coach.^[47]

Draft picks

Main article: 1996 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	School/Club Team
1	27	Brian Evans	SF	United States	Indiana
2	49	Amal McCaskill	C	United States	Marquette

Roster

1996–97 Orlando Magic roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From G/F 25 Nick Anderson 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1968–01–20 Illinois G 10 Darrell Armstrong 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1968–06–22 Fayetteville State G 5 Dell Demps 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1970–02–12 Pacific F 34 Brian Evans 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1970–09–13 Indiana F 54 Horace Grant 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1965–07–04 Clemson G 1 Penny Hardaway 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1971–07–18 Memphis C 00 Amal McCaskill 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1973–10–28 Marquette F 24 Danny Schayes 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1959–05–10 Syracuse G/F 3 Dennis Scott 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 229 lb (104 kg) 1968–09–05 Georgia Tech C 4 Rony Seikaly 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1965–05–10 Syracuse G 20 Brian Shaw 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1966–03–22 UC Santa Barbara F 33 Derek Strong 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1968–02–09 Xavier F 42 David Vaughn 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1973–03–23 Memphis G 21 Gerald Wilkins 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1963–09–11 Chattanooga

Head coach Brian Hill (fired) Richie Adubato (interim) Assistant(s) Tree Rollins Tom Sterner Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster Updated: February 18, 1997

Regular season

Season standings

Atlantic Division v t e	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-Miami Heat	61	21	.744	–	29–12	32–9	16–8
x-New York Knicks	57	25	.695	4	31–10	26–15	19–6
x-Orlando Magic	45	37	.549	16	26–15	19–22	13–11
x-Washington Bullets	44	38	.537	17	25–16	19–22	14–10
New Jersey Nets	26	56	.317	35	16–25	10–31	11–13
Philadelphia 76ers	22	60	.268	39	11–30	11–30	11–14
Boston Celtics	15	67	.183	46	11–30	4–37	1–23

1996–97 NBA East standings

#	Eastern Conference v t e
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	z-Chicago Bulls	69	13	.841	–
2	y-Miami Heat	61	21	.744	8
3	x-New York Knicks	57	25	.695	12
4	x-Atlanta Hawks	56	26	.683	13
5	x-Detroit Pistons	54	28	.659	15
6	x-Charlotte Hornets	54	28	.659	15
7	x-Orlando Magic	45	37	.549	24
8	x-Washington Bullets	44	38	.537	25
9	Cleveland Cavaliers	42	40	.512	27
10	Indiana Pacers	39	43	.476	30
11	Milwaukee Bucks	33	49	.402	36
12	Toronto Raptors	30	52	.366	39
13	New Jersey Nets	26	56	.317	43
14	Philadelphia 76ers	22	60	.268	47
15	Boston Celtics	15	67	.183	54

z – clinched division title

y – clinched division title

x – clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

1996-97 NBA Records
Team	ATL	BOS	CHA	CHI	CLE	DAL	DEN	DET	GSW	HOU	IND	LAC	LAL	MIA	MIL	MIN	NJN	NYK	ORL	PHI	PHO	POR	SAC	SAS	SEA	TOR	UTA	VAN	WAS
Atlanta	–	3–1	1–3	1–3	3–1	2–0	1–1	1–3	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	1–2	4–0	2–0	3–1	1–3	3–1	4–0	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	1–1	4–0	1–1	2–0	2–1
Boston	1–3	–	0–4	0–4	1–2	1–1	1–1	0–4	1–1	0–2	1–2	0–2	1–1	0–4	1–3	0–2	0–4	0–4	0–4	1–3	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	3–1	0–2	0–2	0–4
Charlotte	3–1	4–0	–	0–4	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–2	2–0	2–0	2–2	1–1	1–1	1–2	2–2	2–0	4–0	3–1	1–2	4–0	1–1	0–2	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–2	0–2	2–0	3–1
Chicago	3–1	4–0	4–0	–	3–1	2–0	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	4–0	2–0	1–1	2–2	4–0	2–0	3–1	2–2	3–0	4–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–1
Cleveland	1–3	2–1	1–3	1–3	–	2–0	1–1	2–2	1–1	0–2	3–1	2–0	1–1	0–4	2–2	2–0	4–0	1–3	2–2	3–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	0–2	3–1	1–1	2–0	1–3
Dallas	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	–	3–1	0–2	0–4	0–4	1–1	2–2	0–4	0–2	0–2	1–3	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–3	1–3	2–2	1–3	1–3	0–2	1–3	3–1	0–2
Denver	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–3	–	0–2	1–3	1–3	0–2	1–3	0–4	0–2	1–1	0–4	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	2–2	0–4	2–2	2–2	0–4	1–1	0–4	3–1	1–1
Detroit	3–1	4–0	2–2	1–3	2–2	2–0	2–0	–	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	0–4	3–1	2–0	4–0	1–2	2–2	2–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	3–1	1–1	2–0	4–0
Golden State	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	4–0	3–1	0–2	–	0–4	1–1	1–3	0–4	0–2	1–1	1–3	2–0	0–2	1–1	2–0	0–4	2–2	1–3	4–0	0–4	2–0	0–4	3–1	0–2
Houston	1–1	2–0	0–2	1–1	2–0	4–0	3–1	1–1	4–0	–	1–1	3–1	3–1	0–2	1–1	4–0	2–0	1–1	0–2	2–0	2–2	2–2	4–0	3–1	3–1	1–1	2–2	3–1	2–0
Indiana	1–3	2–1	2–2	0–4	1–3	1–1	2–0	1–3	1–1	1–1	–	2–0	1–1	1–3	2–2	2–0	2–2	1–3	1–3	3–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	0–2	2–0	1–3
L.A. Clippers	0–2	2–0	1–1	0–2	0–2	2–2	3–1	0–2	3–1	1–3	0–2	–	2–2	0–2	2–0	1–3	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–2	0–4	2–2	4–0	1–3	2–0	1–3	4–0	0–2
L.A. Lakers	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	4–0	1–1	4–0	1–3	1–1	2–2	–	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	4–0	1–3	4–0	2–2	3–1	1–1	1–3	4–0	2–0
Miami	2–1	4–0	2–1	2–2	4–0	2–0	2–0	4–0	2–0	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	–	4–0	1–1	3–1	1–3	2–2	3–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–0	0–2	3–1	0–2	2–0	3–1
Milwaukee	0–4	3–1	2–2	0–4	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–3	1–1	1–1	2–2	0–2	0–2	0–4	–	0–2	2–1	1–2	2–2	3–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	3–1	1–1	2–0	1–3
Minnesota	0–2	2–0	0–2	0–2	0–2	3–1	4–0	0–2	3–1	0–4	0–2	3–1	1–3	1–1	2–0	–	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–1	2–2	0–4	4–0	0–4	1–1	1–3	4–0	1–1
New Jersey	1–3	4–0	0–4	1–3	0–4	1–1	1–1	0–4	0–2	0–2	2–2	1–1	0–2	1–3	1–2	0–2	–	2–2	1–3	2–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	0–3	0–2	2–0	1–3
New York	3–1	4–0	1–3	2–2	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–1	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–1	1–1	2–2	–	3–1	3–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	0–2	3–0	1–1	2–0	4–0
Orlando	1–3	4–0	2–1	0–3	2–2	1–1	2–0	2–2	1–1	2–0	3–1	1–1	1–1	2–2	2–2	1–1	3–1	1–3	–	2–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	0–2	1–1	1–3
Philadelphia	0–4	3–1	0–4	0–4	0–3	0–2	1–1	1–2	0–2	0–2	0–3	1–1	0–2	1–3	1–3	1–1	2–2	2–3	2–2	–	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–3	0–2	2–0	1–3
Phoenix	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	2–2	2–0	4–0	2–2	1–1	2–2	0–4	0–2	1–1	1–3	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	–	1–3	4–0	3–1	2–2	0–2	1–3	2–2	1–1
Portland	0–2	1–1	2–0	0–2	1–1	3–1	4–0	1–1	2–2	2–2	1–1	4–0	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	–	2–2	4–0	1–3	0–2	2–2	4–0	0–2
Sacramento	0–2	2–0	0–2	0–2	0–2	2–2	2–2	1–1	3–1	0–4	1–1	2–2	0–4	0–2	2–0	4–0	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	0–4	2–2	–	3–1	1–3	1–1	0–4	4–0	0–2
San Antonio	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	2–0	3–1	2–2	0–2	0–4	1–3	1–1	0–4	2–2	0–2	1–1	0–4	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–3	0–4	1–3	–	0–4	1–1	1–3	1–3	0–2
Seattle	1–1	2–0	0–2	0–2	2–0	3–1	4–0	1–1	4–0	1–3	1–1	3–1	1–3	2–0	1–1	4–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–2	3–1	3–1	4–0	–	2–0	1–3	4–0	2–0
Toronto	0–4	1–3	2–2	1–3	1–3	2–0	1–1	1–3	0–2	1–1	0–4	0–2	1–1	1–3	1–3	1–1	3–0	0–3	0–4	3–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	0–2	–	1–1	1–1	2–2
Utah	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	3–1	4–0	1–1	4–0	2–2	2–0	3–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–0	3–1	2–2	4–0	3–1	3–1	1–1	–	4–0	2–0
Vancouver	0–2	2–0	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–3	1–3	0–2	1–3	1–3	0–2	0–4	0–4	0–2	0–2	0–4	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	2–2	0–4	0–4	3–1	0–4	1–1	0–4	–	1–1
Washington	1–2	4–0	1–3	1–2	3–1	2–0	1–1	0–4	2–0	0–2	3–1	2–0	0–2	1–3	3–1	1–1	3–1	0–4	3–1	3–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	0–2	2–2	0–2	1–1	—

Game log

Playoffs

1997 playoff game log
First round: 2–3 (home: 2–0; road: 0–3) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Series 1 April 24 @ Miami L 64–99 Derek Strong (15) Nick Anderson (12) Penny Hardaway (3) Miami Arena 15,200 0–1 2 April 27 @ Miami L 87–104 Penny Hardaway (26) Derek Strong (16) Brian Shaw (4) Miami Arena 15,200 0–2 3 April 29 Miami W 88–75 Penny Hardaway (42) Penny Hardaway (8) Darrell Armstrong (8) Orlando Arena 17,248 1–2 4 May 1 Miami W 99–91 Penny Hardaway (41) Darrell Armstrong (9) Penny Hardaway (4) Orlando Arena 16,555 2–2 5 May 4 @ Miami L 83–91 Penny Hardaway (33) Derek Strong (12) Penny Hardaway (6) Miami Arena 15,200 2–3
1997 schedule

Player statistics

Regular season

Player	POS	GP	GS	MP	REB	AST	STL	BLK	PTS	MPG	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Derek Strong	PF	82	21	2,004	519	73	47	20	699	24.4	6.3	.9	.6	.2	8.5
Gerald Wilkins	SG	80	26	2,202	173	173	54	12	848	27.5	2.2	2.2	.7	.2	10.6
Brian Shaw	PG	77	31	1,867	194	319	67	26	552	24.2	2.5	4.1	.9	.3	7.2
Rony Seikaly	C	74	68	2,615	701	92	49	107	1,277	35.3	9.5	1.2	.7	1.4	17.3
Horace Grant	PF	67	67	2,496	600	163	101	65	845	37.3	9.0	2.4	1.5	1.0	12.6
Darrell Armstrong	PG	67	0	1,010	76	175	61	9	411	15.1	1.1	2.6	.9	.1	6.1
Dennis Scott	SF	66	62	2,166	203	139	74	19	823	32.8	3.1	2.1	1.1	.3	12.5
Nick Anderson	SG	63	61	2,163	304	182	120	32	757	34.3	4.8	2.9	1.9	.5	12.0
Penny Hardaway	PG	59	59	2,221	263	332	93	35	1,210	37.6	4.5	5.6	1.6	.6	20.5
Danny Schayes	PF	45	6	540	125	14	15	16	133	12.0	2.8	.3	.3	.4	3.0
David Vaughn III	PF	35	6	298	95	7	8	15	81	8.5	2.7	.2	.2	.4	2.3
Amal McCaskill	C	17	1	109	22	7	3	5	28	6.4	1.3	.4	.2	.3	1.6
Brian Evans	SF	14	0	59	8	7	1	2	20	4.2	.6	.5	.1	.1	1.4
Kenny Smith†	PG	6	0	47	2	4	0	0	17	7.8	.3	.7	.0	.0	2.8
Dell Demps	SG	2	0	10	0	0	1	0	2	5.0	.0	.0	.5	.0	1.0
Donald Royal†	SF	1	1	29	1	1	0	0	12	29.0	1.0	1.0	.0	.0	12.0
Felton Spencer†	C	1	1	19	6	1	0	0	4	19.0	6.0	1.0	.0	.0	4.0

• ^† Denotes player spent time with another team in the season. Stats reflect time with the Magic only.

Playoffs

Player	POS	GP	GS	MP	REB	AST	STL	BLK	PTS	MPG	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Penny Hardaway	PG	5	5	220	30	17	12	7	155	44.0	6.0	3.4	2.4	1.4	31.0
Derek Strong	PF	5	5	195	50	4	2	2	61	39.0	10.0	.8	.4	.4	12.2
Nick Anderson	SG	5	5	130	29	3	3	9	28	26.0	5.8	.6	.6	1.8	5.6
Brian Shaw	PG	5	4	82	9	8	1	1	10	16.4	1.8	1.6	.2	.2	2.0
Danny Schayes	PF	5	2	92	12	5	2	1	22	18.4	2.4	1.0	.4	.2	4.4
Dennis Scott	SF	5	1	94	9	5	2	0	15	18.8	1.8	1.0	.4	.0	3.0
Gerald Wilkins	SG	5	0	144	9	4	0	2	47	28.8	1.8	.8	.0	.4	9.4
Darrell Armstrong	PG	5	0	143	21	17	8	1	57	28.6	4.2	3.4	1.6	.2	11.4
Rony Seikaly	C	3	3	86	16	0	1	3	19	28.7	5.3	.0	.3	1.0	6.3
Amal McCaskill	C	2	0	7	3	1	0	0	5	3.5	1.5	.5	.0	.0	2.5
Brian Evans	SF	2	0	7	0	2	1	0	2	3.5	.0	1.0	.5	.0	1.0

Awards and honors

• Penny Hardaway – All-NBA Third Team, All-Star

Transactions