60 free Orlando Magic trivia questions with answers — sports quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
This Orlando Magic trivia quiz runs from the 1986 naming contest that beat out 'Juice' and 'Tropics' to the Paolo Banchero era: the O-Rena expansion years, Scott Skiles's 30-assist night, back-to-back lottery wins that delivered Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway, the 1995 Finals, the Heart and Hustle team, Tracy McGrady's scoring titles, Dwight Howard's 2009 Finals run and the Dwightmare that ended it. You will find easy questions on the arena, the mascot and the jersey sponsor, plenty of mid-range history, and some genuinely hard ones about the expansion fee, the durene pinstripes and Stan Van Gundy's exact record. Uniforms, the Heat rivalry and front-office drama all get a turn. Every answer was checked against primary and encyclopaedic sources before it went in, so when you miss one you can trust the explanation. Play it solo or use it as a round at your next watch party. For the wider league, our NBA trivia page is the natural next stop.
30 of 60 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01In which year did the Orlando Magic begin play as an NBA expansion team?
1989
They joined a year after Charlotte and Miami, alongside fellow expansion team Minnesota.
Q 02Which two NBA Finals did the Magic reach, losing both?
1995 and 2009
Houston swept them in 1995 and the Lakers won in five in 2009.
Q 03Which former 76ers general manager fronted the investment group that brought the NBA to Orlando?
Pat Williams
Businessman Jim Hewitt pitched him the idea in Texas in 1985; Williams later became the team's first GM.
Q 04Which of these was NOT one of the four finalists in the 1986 name-the-team contest that produced 'Magic'?
Sharks
'Heat' of course went to Miami; 'Magic' had been submitted by 11 entrants out of 4,296.
Q 05The 'Magic' name is a nod to which local institution?
Walt Disney World
Pat Williams's seven-year-old daughter Karyn helped tip the choice after a visit to Orlando.
Q 06Roughly how many million dollars was the expansion fee Orlando reportedly paid to join the NBA?
32.5
The Magic became the first major-league franchise in the Orlando area.
Q 07Who was the Magic's first head coach?
Matt Guokas
He ran the 1989 expansion draft and stepped down before the 1993 draft; Brian Hill was promoted to replace him.
Q 08Which Illinois guard was the Magic's first-ever draft pick and their leading scorer for a decade?
Nick Anderson
He later missed four straight free throws late in Game 1 of the 1995 Finals, a moment that haunted the series.
Q 09Which Magic point guard set the NBA single-game record with 30 assists against Denver in December 1990?
Scott Skiles
He broke Kevin Porter's mark of 29 and was named Most Improved Player that season; he later returned as head coach in 2015.
Q 10The family that founded which company bought the Magic in 1991 for $85 million?
Amway
Patriarch Rich DeVos owned the team until his death in 2018 at age 92.
Q 11Whom did the Magic select first overall after winning the 1992 draft lottery?
Shaquille O'Neal
He was the first rookie voted an All-Star starter since Michael Jordan and improved the team by 20 wins.
Q 12The Magic won the 1993 lottery again despite having how many balls in the drum?
One
They then drafted Chris Webber first overall and flipped him to Golden State for Penny Hardaway and three first-round picks.
Q 13Whom did the Magic draft first overall in 1993, then trade for Penny Hardaway that night?
Chris Webber
Golden State also sent three future first-round picks to Orlando in the deal.
Q 21How many points per game did the Magic's scoring champion average in 2002–03 to lead the NBA?
32.1
He led the league again the next year at 28.0 despite the Magic going 21–61.
Q 22How many consecutive games did the Magic lose in 2003–04 to set a franchise record?
19
Doc Rivers was fired in the middle of the streak and the team finished a league-worst 21–61.
Q 23Which guard headlined the package the Magic received from Houston for their disgruntled superstar in 2004?
Steve Francis
Francis was later suspended three games for kicking a photographer and was traded to the Knicks in 2006.
Q 14Which All-Star forward left the Chicago Bulls to sign with the Magic before the 1994–95 season?
Horace Grant
Orlando then went 57–25 and beat his old team on the way to the Finals.
Q 15Which team swept the Magic in the 1995 NBA Finals?
Houston Rockets
Hakeem Olajuwon's Rockets were completing back-to-back titles; Orlando reached the Finals in only its sixth season.
Q 16How many games did the Magic win in 1995–96, still a franchise record?
60
They were still only the second seed, behind the 72–10 Bulls who swept them in the East finals.
Q 17The Magic's superstar centre left as a free agent in 1996 to join which team?
Los Angeles Lakers
He won three straight titles there from 2000 to 2002.
Q 18Which two-time NBA champion coach with the Pistons was hired by the Magic for the 1997–98 season?
Chuck Daly
Julius Erving joined the front office at the same time, but Penny Hardaway's injuries wrecked the season.
Q 19Which rookie head coach won Coach of the Year for the 1999–2000 'Heart and Hustle' Magic team?
Doc Rivers
With a roster of virtual unknowns including a young Ben Wallace, the team went 41–41.
Q 20Which two star free agents did the Magic land in the summer of 2000 after also chasing Tim Duncan?
Grant Hill and Tracy McGrady
Hill's ankle limited him to four games in his first season, while McGrady became a scoring champion.
Q 24Which high-school phenom did the Magic take first overall in the 2004 draft?
Dwight Howard
He became the first rookie to start all 82 games and left in 2012 as the franchise leader in points, rebounds and blocks.
Q 25Which 2005 first-round pick stunned the Magic by staying in Spain, reportedly at his girlfriend's urging?
Fran Vázquez
Taken 11th overall, he never played an NBA game.
Q 26Which college coach signed a five-year Magic deal in June 2007, then asked out the very next day?
Billy Donovan
The Magic let him return to Florida and hired Stan Van Gundy a few days later.
Q 27Which forward did the Magic sign from Seattle in 2007 to a six-year maximum deal worth over $110 million?
Rashard Lewis
He later served a 10-game suspension for an elevated testosterone level from an over-the-counter supplement.
Q 28Which Magic assistant coach guaranteed a Game 7 win over the champion Celtics in the 2009 East semifinals?
Patrick Ewing
Orlando won the game and went on to beat LeBron James's Cavaliers to reach the Finals.
Q 29Which team did the Magic beat in the 2009 Eastern Conference finals to reach the NBA Finals?
Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland was led by that season's MVP, LeBron James; Orlando then lost the Finals in five to the Lakers.
Q 30Which eight-time All-Star did the Magic acquire from New Jersey in the 2009 off-season?
Vince Carter
He was shipped to Phoenix in the December 2010 trade that brought Hedo Türkoğlu back to Orlando.