Kevin Garnett Crowns Celtics’ Rivals With “Kings of the East” Title as Playoffs Potential Comes to Light

During his time with the Boston Celtics, Kevin Garnett did not see eye-to-eye with the Orlando Magic. This was because the Magic, at the time, had Dwight Howard. Both Howard and Garnett were always brought up in debates as to who was the better big man. Although this memory is still fresh in Garnett’s mind, he recently expressed his belief in his former rival.

The Orlando Magic had struggled to achieve anything meaningful in recent years, but the team has turned a new leaf this season and is now a force to be reckoned with.

Kevin Garnett believes in the Orlando Magic

In a recent episode of KG Certified, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce talked about the meteoric rise of the Orlando Magic after spending years at the bottom of the NBA standings.

Although no one saw this coming, a similar story happened with the Sacramento Kings last year. The Kings took a sudden leap in the 2022–23 season and even gave the Golden State Warriors a run for their money in the playoffs.

Garnett said, “You know how the Kings came on and no one saw it coming? That’s how Orlando feels. Orlando feels like the Kings of the East.” So based on how they are playing, Garnett also believes that the Magic are guaranteed to make the playoffs.

Garnett can see that the Orlando Magic have taken their jump, and they would be a formidable opponent to face in the NBA playoffs. But what has changed within the franchise for this sudden shift?

The Orlando Magic have put the league on notice

Currently, the Orlando Magic have the 4th-best record in the East and are just 3 games below the number-one seed. While it might be surprising to see the Magic contending with the Celtics and Bucks, everything is slowly falling into place for Orlando to take another leap.

Paolo Banchero, who was the No. 1 pick in last year’s NBA draft, is ascending as a player and is currently averaging 20 PPG with significantly better shooting than his rookie year.

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Along with Banchero, Franz Wagner, who is currently in his third season in the NBA, is also averaging 20 PPG and is the engine for the team. To play alongside these two big men, Orlando also has a plethora of young guards like Cole Anthony and Jalen Suggs who are exceptional in their roles.

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With Jonathan Isaac, one of the best defenders in the league, slowly getting himself back into shape, the Magic will definitely be a challenging opponent to play against, as they have a combination of both young and veteran players.

How far do you think the Orlando Magic will go in the playoffs? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!