The scoreboard at Kia Center said it clearly: Orlando 125, Miami 121. But the real message of Wednesday night’s season opener went far deeper than the final numbers.
For the first time in a long time, the Orlando Magic are clearly the state’s superior basketball franchise. Not for a week, not for a season, not for a couple of seasons — but for the foreseeable future.
This wasn’t just a win to start a season. It was the latest proof that the Magic’s patient rebuild — the years of development, the draft nights that required faith, the seasons of growth and frustration — is finally turning potential into production.
And the opponent made it that much sweeter.
For decades, the Miami Heat have been Florida’s basketball big brother, lording their banners, their titles and their swagger over the Magic. From Alonzo Mourning and Tim Hardaway to the Heatles — LeBron, D-Wade and Chris Bosh — Miami built an identity that made “Heat Culture” a household phrase. The Magic, meanwhile, have cycled through false hope and forgotten seasons for the better part of their history.
That dynamic certainly has changed.
Orlando’s victory Wednesday night displayed a team with structure, youth, depth and purpose beating a franchise that is still defiantly proud but is desperately and maybe hopelessly trying to hang on to what it once had.
Magic fans saw everything they could have hoped for Wednesday night. Jalen Suggs, sidelined since January, finally returned to the lineup — and wasted no time reminding everyone about what they’d missed. He set the emotional tone from the opening tip, energizing the crowd with his relentless hustle — taking charges, diving for loose balls and knocking down 6 of his 7 shots from the field.
They saw the Magic’s newest addition, sharpshooter Desmond Bane, pour in 23 points and knock down three of his seven attempts from deep. They saw Wendell Carter Jr. flex his strength in the paint, fighting for pivotal offensive rebounds and calmly sinking clutch free throws in the closing minutes. And, of course, they saw the Magic’s two co-stars — Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner — each deliver 24 points to seal the win.
The Magic won the game despite not playing their usually shut-down defense. In fact, the Heat led 39-38 after the first quarter, the highest-scoring quarter in the 143-game history of the intrastate series.
This is what the best organizations look like: teams that don’t have to play perfectly to win because their foundation is strong enough to absorb mistakes.
As for the Heat, I’m not ready to bury them just yet. They’ve come back from the dead before. And to be fair, they are playing the opening weeks of the season without Tyler Herro — last year’s leading scorer — who underwent surgery on his left ankle last month.
Still, the Heat just don’t seem like the Heat anymore. Pat Riley’s front office hasn’t landed a big fish in years. Jimmy Butler is gone after forcing a trade. The Heat’s veterans — players who once embodied the toughness of the organization — are now trying to hold off the inevitable slide toward mediocrity.
In past years, the Magic were the team searching for identity. Now, they have one. The Heat are the ones trying to rediscover theirs.
This is the beauty of doing it the right way
This Orlando team didn’t skip steps.
The Magic didn’t mortgage the future for a short-term splash. They didn’t panic when the wins didn’t come right away. They stayed patient and believed that growth takes time.
Banchero became an All-Star before turning 23. Wagner has evolved into the perfect co-star — unselfish, efficient and consistent. Bane and Suggs are also legitimate scoring options. Those four core players are under contract for the next four or five years.
That’s what makes this rise feel different from past Magic runs. When Shaq and Penny arrived, the success was electric but fleeting. When Dwight Howard took Orlando to the Finals, the window was short and heavily dependent on one player. This time, the core isn’t built on a single personality or fleeting window. It’s built to evolve together.
Now the organization is viewed as stable, well-run and forward-thinking. Ownership is invested, the front office is aligned and the coaching staff has buy-in from the players.
In a league where dysfunction can torpedo even the most talented rosters, that kind of unity matters.
Meanwhile, in Miami, the cracks are obvious.
Coach Erik Spoelstra’s brilliance can only take you so far and there’s only so much that coaching can do when the talent pipeline starts to dry up. Riley’s old formula — lure stars, win titles, retool on the fly — doesn’t work as well in today’s NBA.
That’s what made Wednesday’s game so symbolic. The Heat are living in the past; the Magic are built for the future.
And for longtime Magic fans, the turn of events couldn’t be sweeter. After all, Orlando always has been overshadowed by Miami. It was bad enough that Shaq left Orlando for L.A., but it was even worse that he eventually landed in Miami and helped the Heat win their first title. The window of opportunity on the Magic’s Howard era was quickly slammed shut when LeBron and the Heatles joined forces in South Florida.
But now, the tables have turned. The Magic have won the Southeast Division two straight years while Miami has flirted with the Play-In. The balance of power in Florida basketball — and maybe in the East — has shifted.
None of this means Orlando is a finished product. The Magic are still young, still learning how to handle prosperity, still figuring out how to translate potential into postseason success. But the pieces are in place, and Wednesday night was another reminder of that progress.
The win wasn’t dramatic. It wasn’t flashy. It was gutsy — which makes it even more encouraging.
Because for years, the Magic were the team hoping to surprise people. Now they’re the team expected to win.
For the first time in franchise history, it feels like is building something that can last.
And maybe that’s what makes this season-opening victory over Miami so much more meaningful.
It’s not just that the Magic were better on this one night, it’s that they’re built to be better for years to come.
Email me at mbianchi@orlandosentinel.com. Hit me up on social media @BianchiWrites and listen to my new radio show “Game On” every weekday from 3 to 6 p.m. on FM 96.9, AM 740 and 969TheGame.com/listen
Originally Published: October 22, 2025 at 11:33 PM EDT