Orlando Magic Tickets : The Magic Has Also Been In The Playoff For More Than Half Of Their Existence

The Orlando Magic is a professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. They play in the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and are currently coached by Stan Van Gundy.

The franchise was founded in 1989 as an expansion franchise and has had such notable NBA stars such as Shaquille O'Neal, Penny Hardaway, Grant Hill, Tracy McGrady, Steve Francis, Dwight Howard, Vince Carter, Nick Anderson, Gilbert Arenas and Rashard Lewis throughout its young history.

The franchise has also been in the playoffs for more than half of their existence (12 playoff appearances in 21 years). Orlando has been the most successful of the four expansion teams brought into the league in 1988 and 1989 in terms of winning percentage. As of 2010, they are the only team in the "big four" sports leagues to play in the city of Orlando.

In the 2009 offseason, Orlando traded Rafer Alston, Tony Battie, and Courtney Lee to the New Jersey Nets in exchange for eight-time All-Star Vince Carter and Ryan Anderson.Hedo Turkoglu, as part of a sign-and-trade, was sent to the Toronto Raptors. They then made several free agent signings.

On July 10, former Dallas Mavericks power forward Brandon Bass was given a 4-year deal.On July 21, the Magic signed former Phoenix Suns Forward Matt Barnes.On August 19, they signed former Miami Heat point guard Jason Williams.

The Magic were without Rashard Lewis for the first 10 games of the 2009/10 season. Lewis tested positive for an elevated testosterone level that was caused by an over-the-counter supplement containing a substance banned by the league.

To make matters worse, Vince Carter suffered a left ankle injury in just the second game of the season. Carter's injury turned out to be not too serious, but caused him to miss the next five games. Another setback came in mid-November, when Jameer Nelson injured his left knee, which required arthroscopic surgery to repair. Nelson would be out for five weeks. Despite all of this, the Magic had a 23/8 record at the end of December.

Orlando lost seven of their first ten games in January, but recovered well enough to post a winning record for the month by winning six of their next seven. Following the All-Star break, the Magic went on a roll, winning 23 of their 28 remaining games, clinching their fourth consecutive playoff berth and winning their third consecutive division championship in the process.

The Magic finished the regular season with a 59/23 record, matching their record from the 2008/09 season, and finishing with not only the second-best record in the Eastern Conference, but the second-best record in the entire league.

The Magic swept the Charlotte Bobcats and the Atlanta Hawks in the first two rounds of the playoffs, respectively. They then faced the Boston Celtics in the conference finals. After losing the first three games of the series, Orlando managed to win the next two games, but lost on the road in Game 6, ending their season.

In anticipation of the team's move to Amway Center, the Magic updated its logo. They retained the streaking ball logo, but changed the wordmark taken from their current uniforms. The Magic are scheduled to host the NBA All-Star Game in 2012. The Magic have also unveiled black alternate uniforms.

In the summer of 2010 the Orlando Magic signed Chris Duhon, formerly of the New York Knicks,and Quentin Richardson, formerly of the Miami Heat.On December 18, 2010, having lost five of their last six games, the Magic made a blockbuster trade deal with the Phoenix Suns and the Washington Wizards.

They traded Vince Carter, Marcin Gortat and Mickael Pietrus to Phoenix for Hedo Turkoglu who led them into the 2009 NBA Finals when they lost 4-1 against the Los Angeles Lakers, Jason Richardson and Earl Clark. Rashard Lewis was traded to Washington for the 3 time All-Star Gilbert Arenas.