NBA 2K18 All-Time Orlando Magic roster revealed

One of the most anticipated features in the forthcoming NBA 2K18, 2K Sports’ latest entry in the popular hoops-simulation franchise, is the All-Time Team. Each NBA club will have a roster of 15 of its greatest players, and the software firm announced those rosters Thursday.

The Orlando Magic’s squad is stacked, as one might imagine. The highest-rated player, at a 95 overall, is the immortal Tracy McGrady, the versatile swingman who defined Orlando hoops for a generation of fans in the City Beautiful and around the globe.

T-Mac joins Penny Hardaway (93 overall), Grant Hill (86), Dwight Howard (93), and Shaquille O’Neal (93) in the starting five of the Magic’s All-Time Team. Coming off the bench are Nick Anderson (85), Darrell Armstrong (82), Steve Francis (83), Aaron Gordon (80), Horace Grant (84), Jameer Nelson (85), Bo Outlaw (80), Dennis Scott (84), Brian Shaw (81), and Nikola Vucevic (82).

Okay, so the team isn’t as great as it could be. Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis didn’t make the cut somehow. Having Shaw over Vince Carter ought to be a felony. Where the hell is Pat Garrity? But these quibbles are minor in the grand scheme of things. In 2017, you can play as Magic-era Bo Outlaw in a video game. That’s pretty spectacular.

What do you make of the Magic’s All-Time Team, as 2K Sports created it? What changes would you have made?

I, for one, would be tempted to bench Howard in favor of Grant. Having Howard and O’Neal in the same frontcourt creates a mass of defenders in the paint ready to swarm Hill, McGrady, and Hardaway on their drives to the basket. And let’s remember that each of those players was most effective on the drive. One could even make a case for swapping Scott for Hill, just to get a three-point threat and safety valve on the weak side of the floor.

Let’s hash it out in the comments.