Doc, please meet Troy. Grant, welcome Andrew. Tracy, here's Dee. Fans of the Orlando Magic, meet your new team. And we mean new.

	Don't forget me! Armstrong returns and has weapons to pass to.

The world had been hearing about what the Magic were planning since before last season began. Give up on the 1999-2000 season, or at least don't make it easy for new coach Doc Rivers to win, and then spend all the money after the season. Go get Tim Duncan and Grant Hill and scrap the team as you know it.

Duncan didn't quite make it to Florida, but Hill, Tracy McGrady and a bunch of others did. So are the Magic contenders for the NBA title now? We ask and answer that question in this, our 19th offseason team spotlight, the Orlando Magic. As always, we have our opinions, which are below, but we also appreciate yours. Click on the user comments file on the right of the page to see what you were thinking.

Why the Magic were 41-41: We won't give you any more "Magic" analogies, but the fact is Rivers did an amazing job getting this team to win half its games and threaten to earn a playoff berth in the East. The Magic won seven straight games in late-March, then fell twice to Milwaukee in the final week and watched the Bucks slip in ahead of them. Still, it didn't hurt Rivers' rep, as he beat out Phil Jackson for well deserved Coach of the Year honors. Think about it: Plenty of people wondered if the Magic would win 10 games before the season.

So how did Doc pull it off? On a team without stars, Orlando hustled, passed, defended and showed that teamwork can win games. With Darrell Armstrong the team's only big scorer (at 16.9 points a game, and 6.1 assists), everyone chipped in. Doc's bench went 12 deep all season long. Englishman John Amaechi, undrafted and out of the league since 1995-96, suddenly became a dependable center. Chucky Atkins, brought in last summer to help work out the other point guards, and off of two seasons in Croatia, not only made the team, but was third on the team in scoring. Ben Wallace? Monty Williams? Pat Garrity? Are you kidding? Rivers is a magician (sorry, last one).

Basically, Armstrong and Atkins produced night in and night out and never stopped hustling. The two-guard was Tariq Abdul-Wahad, until he was traded to Denver for Ron Mercer. Corey Maggette did well as a young rookie, scoring and shooting better than many thought. Up front it was generally Amaechi, who started 53 games at center, Bo Outlaw, who started 55 games at small forward and Wallace, who started 81 times at power forward. Chris Gatling, who was in the Denver deal, also brought scoring. Williams (8.7 points), Garrity (8.2) and Michael Doleac (7.0) were all dependable.

If you haven't noticed, some of these guys are no longer with the team. Some that currently are won't be, since there are more players here than can be kept. But if Rivers could squeeze out 41 wins with this group, imagine what he can do next season.

	Current projected top 6
	PG	Darrell Armstrong
	SG	Tracy McGrady
	SF	Grant Hill
	PF	Bo Outlaw
	C	John Amaechi
	6th	Andrew DeClercq

Team MVP: Two guys get this award. Armstrong stepped up and exceeded expectations coming off his super sixth man season of 1998-99. And Rivers took an impossible situation and was the best coach in the league. Team LVP: None. Players came and went here, but Rivers found a way to make all of them, even Mercer, effective. Surprise! The biggest one was the fact the team was this competitive. Rivers would have had every excuse if this team was 15-67, like the Clippers. Instead, it was like watching the movie Major League. Players came from nowhere to excel. Up and comer: The Magic had a bunch of first-round picks in the draft, and kept only Mike Miller, so they could clear out cap room to sign the top available free agents. Still, there's no worry about getting old. McGrady is all of 21 and might outperform Hill. And Miller should fit in right away, though there's no pressure on him.

What they need: There's talent and depth at each position. The coach is top notch, and chemistry will not be a problem. There's no question that the Magic could have used Duncan instead of McGrady, but the Spurs kept their big free agent. And McGrady has a high ceiling. Is Amaechi as good as Duncan? Of course not, but he's not bad and he fits in well here. Plus, the Magic shouldn't lack scoring punch.

Amaechi, Outlaw and Hill will be the starters up front. Amaechi is a lunchpail center who could score better but isn't a good rebounder. That's OK, though, since Outlaw could care less about scoring and loves to do all the dirty work. He will rebound relentlessly, score on putbacks, defend any position and pile up the steals and rebounds. He might even get you another triple double, like he did in March. Hill shouldn't be scoring like he did last year, when his career high of 21.4 points a game in 1996-97 went all the way to 25.8. His shots will go down and you'll see more rebounds and assists. He's an unselfish player who doesn't want to shoot 20 times a game. Let Jerry Stackhouse do that.

As for McGrady, he can do anything. He was among the blocks leaders for awhile, he can go inside and rebound, he passes like a guard and his range is improving. And he's a high flier who is ready to become a star. Armstrong will likely score less and pile up more assists, while the new backup point is former Clipper Troy Hudson, who appears to be a good distributor and bad shooter. But then again, all we have to go on is his time with the Clips. He's probably better than that.

Already this offseason, the Magic have gone through more players than Heidi Fleiss. Hill, McGrady and Andrew DeClercq (from Cleveland for Matt Harpring) were acquired through trades. Hill and McGrady would have been free agent signings, but to be technical Wallace, Atkins (for Hill) and a future pick and cash (for McGrady) were dealt away. Maggette and Derek Strong were traded to the Clippers on draft day to clear cap room. Keyon Dooling (now a Clipper) and Courtney Alexander (now a Maverick) were selected on draft day and then given away to clear more room. Mercer wasn't invited back and now he's a Bull, while Chauncey Billups, who played 13 games for the Magic, signed with the Timberwolves.

Amaechi, Outlaw and Williams re-signed. Hudson is new, and Don Reid brings more hustle and rebounding from the Wizards. Then there's Dee Brown, who could have gone anywhere but decided on Orlando, probably because he saw a chance to win something. Brown can still light it up, as he now tends to be among the league leaders in three-pointers attempted per game, but he's not real accurate and has become pretty one-dimensional. Still, he can help.

The Magic did keep one of the three first-round picks. Florida's Mike Miller has legit outside range and seems to have a mature game, despite the fact he left after his sophomore season. He shouldn't be asked to do too much right away, but could certainly earn playing time since the team needs his outside shooting.

Bottom line: The talent is here, so what the Magic need is a good start. They need the chance to play and gel right away. This team shouldn't be .500 after a month, they should be much better.

What the plan is: See if you can follow with us here. It's going to get confusing. Amaechi starts at center, Outlaw at power forward. Reid and DeClercq, both who can get dirty and make the shots they take, are capable backups for either spot. Doleac is a finesse type who can score from the center position, while Garrity is more scorer and likes to take his game outside. Williams doesn't go inside or out, but can score. Then there's Hill and Miller. Those are the nine frontcourt players and if it stays this way, despite the fact Hill is the only star, it's about as deep a group you could ever assemble.

Armstrong and Hudson are the point guards, and McGrady and Brown are the two-guards. Point guard Anthony Johnson and 6-9 forward Johnny Taylor are free agents. You tell us, where do they fit in?

Anyway, without the free agents, we just named nine centers and forwards (a few could play shooting guard, if needed) and four guards. Somebody will obviously have to go, probably Garrity or Williams.

Either way, the plan here is simple: Rivers was a master at finding time for everyone last season, but now he has two superstars to appease. Will they play 40 minutes? And if they do, how do you get time for the 11th and 12th guys, each of whom are accomplished players.

Armstrong will run the offense and have two scorers to get the ball to. Last year he didn't, though Mercer and Gatling did fit into that category some nights. Hill has never had a defined point guard before, so he needs to adjust. The team still might not be very strong up front, despite having plenty of options. Outlaw averaged 6.6 rebounds a game, a figure which should go up, but Wallace was the unquestioned boardman and inside presence. Amaechi, DeClercq, Reid and Doleac are not. So when Alonzo Mourning comes to town, there still may be problems.

Rivers will have considerably more pressure to get this team past the 50-win mark and far in the playoffs. The Magic aren't playing for next season. This team is the future, and must win ballgames. They shouldn't be East favorites, but they could come close.

Direction heading: Is this the best team in the East? No. The veteran Pacers and the new look, Brian Grant-Eddie Jones led Heat are better. But both those teams could fall in the postseason.