The 1989âÂÂ90 Orlando Magic season was the first season for the Orlando Magic in the National Basketball Association. Several years after local developer and banker Jim Hewitt began promoting the idea of an NBA franchise in Florida, he was awarded the "Orlando Magic". The Magic, along with the Minnesota Timberwolves, joined the NBA as expansion teams in 1989. Hewitt's first move was to hire Philadelphia 76ers General Manager Pat Williams; together, the two convinced the NBA to give Orlando, Florida a franchise after local fans made $100 deposits on season-ticket reservations.
The Magic revealed a new primary logo, which showed a silver star as the letter "A" in the team name "Magic", along with a blue basketball with silver shooting stars. The team also added new pinstripe uniforms, adding blue, black and silver to their color scheme. The team played their home games at the Orlando Arena. In the 1989 NBA expansion draft, the Magic selected veteran players like Reggie Theus, Terry Catledge, Otis Smith, Jerry Reynolds, Sam Vincent, Sidney Green, Scott Skiles and Mark Acres. During the off-season, the team signed free agent Jeff Turner. The Magic received the eleventh overall pick in the 1989 NBA draft, and selected shooting guard Nick Anderson from the University of Illinois, and also hired Matt Guokas as their first ever head coach.
The Magic made their NBA regular season debut on November 4, 1989, in which the team lost to the New Jersey Nets by a score of 111âÂÂ106 at the Orlando Arena, in front of a sellout crowd of 15,077 fans in attendance; Catledge posted a double-double of 25 points and 16 rebounds, while Theus finished with 21 points and 8 rebounds. On November 6, the Magic won their first ever game in franchise history, defeating the New York Knicks by a score of 118âÂÂ110 at the Orlando Arena; Theus led the team with 24 points, while Catledge posted a double-double of 19 points and 11 rebounds, and Reynolds finished with a double-double of 19 points and 12 rebounds.
The Magic got off to a surprising start to the regular season, reaching .500 in winning percentage by posting a 7âÂÂ7 record in November. However, the team struggled posting an eight-game losing streak between December and January, and later on held a 14âÂÂ33 record at the All-Star break. The team posted a seven-game losing streak in February, posted a nine-game losing streak in March, and then posted a 15-game losing streak between March and April, losing 30 of their final 33 games of the season. The Magic finished their inaugural season in last place in the Central Division with a record of 18 wins and 64 losses.
Catledge led the Magic in scoring, averaging 19.4 points and 7.6 rebounds per game, while Theus averaged 18.9 points and 5.4 assists per game, and Smith provided the team with 13.5 points per game. In addition, Reynolds contributed 12.8 points per game, while Anderson contributed 11.5 points per game off the bench, Vincent provided with 11.2 points and 5.6 assists per game, and Green averaged 10.4 points and 8.1 rebounds per game. Meanwhile, rookie small forward, and second-round draft pick Michael Ansley averaged 8.7 points and 5.0 rebounds per game, Skiles contributed 7.7 points and 4.8 assists per game, Turner provided with 5.1 points and 3.8 rebounds per game, and Acres averaged 4.5 points and 5.4 rebounds per game.
One notable highlight of the inaugural season occurred on February 14, 1990, in a home game against the Chicago Bulls. Before the game, All-Star guard Michael Jordan's number 23 jersey was stolen from the Bulls' locker room at the Orlando Arena; Jordan had to wear a number 12 jersey, and scored 49 points as the Magic defeated the Bulls in overtime, 135âÂÂ129 in front of 15,077 fans in attendance. Catledge posted a double-double of 34 points and 11 rebounds, while Theus scored 28 points along with 8 assists, and Green finished with a double-double of 16 points and 19 rebounds. Meanwhile, Smith contributed 18 points, and Skiles added 16 points and 8 assists, and made all four of his three-point field-goal attempts off the bench.
The Magic finished twelfth in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 617,468 at the Orlando Arena during the regular season. Following the season, Theus was traded to the New Jersey Nets after only one season with the Magic. The team's new primary logo would remain in use until 2000, while the new pinstriped uniforms would last until 1998; the black pinstriped road jerseys would be used as the team's primary road uniforms until 1994, where they added blue pinstriped uniforms, and the black pinstriped jerseys became their alternate.
Prior to the 1989 NBA draft, the NBA held a coin toss between the Magic and the other new expansion team, the Minnesota Timberwolves, to determine their order for the NBA draft and the expansion draft. The Magic won the coin toss and chose to have the first pick in the expansion draft and pick 11th in the NBA draft, while the Timberwolves picked second in the expansion draft and 10th in the NBA draft.
The previous season's expansion teams, the Charlotte Hornets and Miami Heat, were not involved in this year's expansion draft and did not lose any player.
|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 1 | November 4 | New Jersey | L 106âÂÂ111 | Terry Catledge (25) | Terry Catledge (16) | Scott Skiles (7) | Orlando Arena<br>15,077 | 0âÂÂ1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 2 | November 6 | New York | W 118âÂÂ110 | Reggie Theus (24) | Jerry Reynolds (12) | Scott Skiles, (8) | Orlando Arena<br />15,077 | 1âÂÂ1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 3 | November 8 | @ Cleveland | W 117âÂÂ110 | Reggie Theus (26) | Terry Catledge (12) | Sam Vincent (11) | Richfield Coliseum<br />14,110 | 2âÂÂ1 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 4 | November 10 | Detroit | L 121âÂÂ125 | Terry Catledge (27) | Sidney Green (10) | Sam Vincent (10) | Orlando Arena<br />15,077 | 2âÂÂ2 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 5 | November 11 | @ Atlanta | L 109âÂÂ148 | Reggie Theus (25) | Terry Catledge (11) | Scott Skiles (7) | Omni Coliseum<br />12,505 | 2âÂÂ3 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 6 | November 13 | Atlanta | L 112âÂÂ104 | Jerry Reynolds, Terry Catledge (18) | Terry Catledge (11) | Jerry Reynolds (4) | Orlando Arena<br />15,077 | 2âÂÂ4 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 7 | November 14 | @ Charlotte | L 116âÂÂ130 | Jerry Reynolds (22) | Nick Anderson (8) | Reggie Theus (8) | Charlotte Coliseum<br />23,901 | 2âÂÂ5 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 8 | November 16 | @ Milwaukee | L 113âÂÂ132 | Reggie Theus (33) | Mark Acres (13) | Nick Anderson, Reggie Theus (4) | Bradley Center<br />13,298 | 2âÂÂ6 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 9 | November 18 | Philadelphia | W 116âÂÂ103 | Reggie Theus (30) | Terry Catledge (14) | Sam Vincent (16) | Orlando Arena<br />15,077 | 3âÂÂ6 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 10 | November 21 | @ Sacramento | W 115âÂÂ113 | Jerry Reynolds (28) | Mark Acres (10) | Sam Vincent (6) | ARCO Arena<br />17,014 | 4âÂÂ6 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 11 | November 22 | @ Utah | W 119âÂÂ97 | Reynolds, Green, Vincent (22) | Sidney Green (13) | Reggie Theus (13) | Salt Palace<br />12,616 | 5âÂÂ6 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 12 | November 24 | @ Phoenix | L 94âÂÂ121 | Michael Ansley (20) | Michael Ansley (13) | Sam Vincent, Morlon Wiley (4) | Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum<br />13,173 | 5âÂÂ7 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 13 | November 28 | Miami | W 104âÂÂ99 | Terry Catledge (26) | Sidney Green (13) | Sam Vincent (10) | Orlando Arena<br />15,077 | 6âÂÂ7 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 14 | November 30 | Minnesota | W 103âÂÂ96 | Terry Catledge (25) | Terry Catledge (12) | Reggie Theus (8) | Orlando Arena<br />15,077 | 7âÂÂ7
|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 15 | December 1 | @ Indiana |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 16 | December 4 | Portland |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 17 | December 6 | Atlanta |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 18 | December 8 | @ Miami | L 114âÂÂ122 (OT) | | | | Miami Arena | 7âÂÂ11 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 19 | December 10 | L.A. Lakers |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 20 | December 12 | @ Milwaukee |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 21 | December 14 | @ Chicago |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 22 | December 16 | @ San Antonio |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 23 | December 17 | @ Houston |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 24 | December 20 | Chicago |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 25 | December 22 | Denver |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 26 | December 23 | @ Detroit |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 27 | December 26 | @ Indiana |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 28 | December 27 | Indiana |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 29 | December 30 | @ New York
|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 30 | January 2 | Detroit |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 31 | January 5 | @ Chicago |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 32 | January 6 | Cleveland |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 33 | January 8 | San Antonio |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 34 | January 10 | @ L.A. Lakers |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 35 | January 11 | @ Denver |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 36 | January 13 | @ Golden State |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 37 | January 17 | Boston |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 38 | January 19 | New Jersey |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 39 | January 22 | Phoenix |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 40 | January 24 | @ Philadelphia |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 41 | January 25 | @ New Jersey |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 42 | January 27 | Atlanta |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 43 | January 30 | Indiana
|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 44 | February 1 | @ Milwaukee |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 45 | February 3 | L.A. Clippers |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 46 | February 6 | New York |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 47 | February 8 | Philadelphia |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 48 | February 14 | Chicago |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 49 | February 15 | @ Atlanta |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 50 | February 17 | @ Dallas |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 51 | February 20 | Seattle |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 52 | February 21 | @ Detroit |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 53 | February 23 | @ Cleveland |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 54 | February 24 | @ Washington |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 55 | February 26 | @ Philadelphia |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 56 | February 27 | Charlotte | W 115âÂÂ109 | | | | Orlando Arena | 16âÂÂ40
|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 57 | March 1 | Sacramento |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 58 | March 3 | Washington |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 59 | March 6 | Utah |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 60 | March 7 | @ Miami | L 105âÂÂ122 | | | | Miami Arena | 16âÂÂ44 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 61 | March 10 | @ L.A. Clippers |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 62 | March 12 | @ Seattle |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 63 | March 13 | @ Portland |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 64 | March 16 | Boston |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 65 | March 18 | Cleveland |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 66 | March 20 | @ New York |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 67 | March 22 | Dallas |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 68 | March 24 | Milwaukee |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 69 | March 28 | Miami | L 104âÂÂ109 | | | | Orlando Arena | 17âÂÂ52 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 70 | March 30 | @ Washington
|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 71 | April 1 | @ Boston |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 72 | April 3 | Golden State |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 73 | April 5 | @ Chicago |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 74 | April 6 | @ Indiana |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 75 | April 8 | Houston |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 76 | April 10 | Milwaukee |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 77 | April 13 | @ Minnesota | L 102âÂÂ117 | | | | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 17âÂÂ60 |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 78 | April 14 | @ Detroit |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 79 | April 17 | Washington |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 80 | April 18 | @ Boston |- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 81 | April 20 | Cleveland |- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc" | 82 | April 22 | @ New Jersey