1998–99 Orlando Magic season

The 1998–99 Orlando Magic season was the tenth season for the Orlando Magic in the National Basketball Association.^[1] Due to a lockout, the regular season began on February 5, 1999, and was cut from 82 games to 50.^[2] The Magic had three first-round draft picks in the 1998 NBA draft, selecting center Michael Doleac from the University of Utah with the twelfth overall pick, power forward Keon Clark from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas with the 13th overall pick, and small forward Matt Harpring out of Georgia Tech University with the 15th overall pick.^[3][4][5] However, Clark never played for the Magic, and was later on traded to the Denver Nuggets.^[6][7][8] During the off-season, the Magic signed free agents Isaac Austin,^[9][10][11] and former All-Star forward Dominique Wilkins, who previously played overseas in Italy, and would become teammates with his younger brother Gerald Wilkins.^[12][13][14]

With the addition of Austin and Harpring, and with Penny Hardaway playing a full season after missing most of the previous season due to a knee injury, the Magic got off to a fast start by winning 14 of their first 18 games of the regular season. At mid-season, the team signed free agent B.J. Armstrong, who was previously released by the Los Angeles Lakers, who acquired him from the Charlotte Hornets in a mid-season trade.^[15][16] The Magic posted a six-game winning streak in April, but later on posted a five-game losing streak during that month, then won their final four games of the season. The Magic finished in second place in the Atlantic Division with a 33–17 record, earning the third seed in the Eastern Conference, and returning to the NBA playoffs after a one-year absence.^[17]

Hardaway averaged 15.8 points, 5.3 assists and 2.2 steals per game, while Nick Anderson averaged 14.9 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game, and led the Magic with 96 three-point field goals, and Darrell Armstrong provided the team with 13.8 points, 6.7 assists and 2.2 steals per game, and contributed 69 three-point field goals; Armstrong was named the NBA Sixth Man of the Year,^[18][19][20] and was also named the NBA Most Improved Player of the Year.^[21][22][23] In addition, Austin averaged 9.7 points and 4.8 rebounds per game, while Horace Grant provided with 8.9 points and 7.0 rebounds per game, Harpring contributed 8.2 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, and Bo Outlaw averaged 6.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.4 blocks per game, but only played 31 games due to a leg injury.^[24][25] Meanwhile, Doleac averaged 6.2 points and 3.0 rebounds per game, and Derek Strong provided with 5.1 points and 3.7 rebounds per game.^[26]

Harpring was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team, while Doleac was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team. Darrell Armstrong finished in 15th place in Most Valuable Player voting, while Hardaway finished tied in 16th place,^[27] and head coach Chuck Daly finished in fourth place in Coach of the Year voting.^[27]

In the Eastern Conference First Round of the 1999 NBA playoffs, the Magic faced off against the 6th–seeded Philadelphia 76ers, a team that featured the league's top scorer Allen Iverson, Matt Geiger, and defensive shot-blocker Theo Ratliff. The Magic lost Game 1 to the 76ers at home, 104–90 at the Orlando Arena, but managed to win Game 2 at home, 79–68 to even the series.^[28][29] However, the Magic lost the next two games on the road, which included a Game 4 loss to the 76ers at the First Union Center, 101–91, thus losing the series in four games.^[30][31][32]

The Magic finished 17th in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 411,091 at the Orlando Arena during the regular season.^[26][33] Following the season, head coach Chuck Daly retired,^[34][35][36] while Hardaway was traded to the Phoenix Suns after six seasons with the Magic,^[37][38][39] Anderson, the only member left from the team's inaugural season, was traded to the Sacramento Kings after ten seasons in Orlando,^[40][41][42] and Grant was dealt to the Seattle SuperSonics.^[43][44][45] Meanwhile, Austin was dealt to the Washington Wizards,^[46][47][48] B.J. Armstrong re-signed as a free agent with his former team, the Chicago Bulls,^[49][50] and both of the Wilkins' brothers, and veteran center Danny Schayes all retired.

For the season, the Magic changed their uniforms replacing the pinstripes with visible stars, and side panels on their jerseys and shorts, which would remain in use until 2003.^[51][52]