ORLANDO - If you go back in NBA history and review every championship-contending team’s journey, you’ll find that most of them made a transaction that initially seemed marginal, but ultimately proved substantial.
Take, for example, last year’s Denver Nuggets. On back-to-back days in July 2022, 11 months before capturing their first NBA title, they acquired Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in a trade and signed Bruce Brown in free agency. Both those players made a big impact in Denver’s championship run. Months before that, the Miami Heat, Denver’s 2023 Finals opponent, made a subtle move that turned out to be a game-changer. In September 2021, they signed Caleb Martin to a two-way contract. Martin, who was given a regular contract half a season later, would go on to be the Heat’s X-factor in their 2023 playoff run.
In those cases, it was supporting cast members that helped raise the bar. Much rarer is when one of those low-key transactions involves a player that ends up becoming one of the faces of a championship-contending team.
That is, however, what transpired in the 2000s in Orlando. In the summer of 2004, the Magic signed Hedo Turkoglu, a 6-foot-10 forward from Turkey, to a free agent contract. Many knew of Turkoglu, as he had been in the league for a few years already. He played three seasons with the Sacramento Kings and one with the San Antonio Spurs before joining the Magic.
But few, if any, predicted that he would become one of the best players on a team that would ultimately reach the NBA Finals.
Early Magic Years
The summer of 2004 was a time of change for the Magic. They were coming off an abysmal 2003-04 campaign, going 21-61.
A couple weeks before the Turkoglu signing, they selected Dwight Howard with the first overall pick in the draft, and also acquired the draft rights to Jameer Nelson, the 20th pick.
Just five days later, in a move that rocked the entire league, Orlando traded perennial All-Star Tracy McGrady to the Houston Rockets. Steve Francis, along with Cuttino Mobley and Kelvin Cato, came to the Magic in that deal.
Turkoglu had been one of the youngest players on the teams he played for in both Sacramento and San Antonio. Being 25 years old in 2004, he felt like based on where he was at in his career, the Magic offered the right blend of opportunities.
“That time as a player you are also looking for opportunities for your playing time as well,” Turkoglu said. “When my agent and I had the conversation, they were building a young core, and they said I could be a good piece of that core, so that’s why it got me excited to be a part of it.”
As you’d expect from any team that was “starting over,” the Magic experienced a lot of ups and downs in Turkoglu’s first three years in Orlando. They went 36-46 in 2004-05, 36-46 again in 2005-06, and 40-42 in 2006-07.
But Turkoglu himself had emerged as one of the league’s better rotation players in that time. Although not a star yet, he was one of Orlando’s most reliable players. More important to him, though, was that he felt good about the direction of the team.
“Things started shaping up,” he said. “In the beginning, they were trying to put pieces together. At the time, we had some experienced guys, and some good players as well. But when you have a young core building around Dwight and Jameer, adding different pieces together every year, you can see that things were starting to go in the right direction. We had coaching changes as well in that period.”
From Good to Great
Arguably, the most significant offseason in Magic history was in 2007. Orlando had just come off losing in a sweep in the first round of the playoffs to the Detroit Pistons, and they knew that in order to take the next step, they had to make a big splash in the summer.
The first order of business was finding the right head coach. Billy Donovan accepted the job on June 1, 2007. But several days later, he decided to return to the University of Florida. Right away, the Magic pivoted to Stan Van Gundy, who had previously been the Heat’s head coach.
This hire did wonders for Turkoglu’s career. Van Gundy saw something in the then 28-year-old that hadn’t been unlocked yet, which was his ultra-smooth playmaking abilities.
Very few players 6-foot-10 or above had ever possessed elite-level vision and instincts like Turkoglu at the time. He had a unique ability to read the game on the fly and find teammates while skying over most defenders.
“It will be hard to describe in words (what Van Gundy meant to him and his career),” he said. “If you remember, they had signed Rashard (Lewis), too, that summer. We had a conversation with Stan. We were on the phone because I was in Turkey at that time. We had a conversation about how he was trying to structure the team and what my role was going to be. I had a good confidence and a good speech with him. All I have to do is come out there and just show what I can do.”
Right away in that first season under Van Gundy, the narrative surrounding Turkoglu started shifting. No longer was he just an ancillary piece who can provide a spark here and there. Now, he was turning heads with his combination of size, shooting, and playmaking.
In Orlando’s very first game of the 2007-08 season, he scored 24 points in a win over the Milwaukee Bucks. Two games later, in a victory over the Washington Wizards, he posted 25 points and eight assists. That year, he would record his first two triple-doubles of his career.
The entire league noticed his progression, which led to him being named the 2007-08 NBA Most Improved Player.
“I was really happy about it because as a player, even in those ages, you can prove that every year no matter what age you are, if the opportunity comes with a good group of guys and the coaching understands your talent and your skills (you can accomplish big things),” he said. “Being able to win that respect and that belief from your coach and your teammates, I think it was the most honorable award as a player that you can ask for.”
The Finals Run
Entering the 2008-09 season, the Magic were a bit of a mystery. Were they just a very good team that can be a nuisance to championship contenders, or could they themselves be one of those championship contenders?
Throughout that regular season, it became clear that the answer was the latter. Orlando went 59-23 and ranked No. 1 in the league in defense. On that journey, they beat all the league’s other elite teams more than once, including the Lakers twice, the Cavs twice and the Celtics twice.
Unmistakable about Turkoglu, specifically, was that he had ice in his veins. Very few players, if any, were more clutch than him that season.
His most memorable single shot came in the first round of the playoffs that year against the Philadelphia 76ers. In Game 4, with the Magic trailing the series 2-1, he buried a game-winning 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds remaining.
The next round against the Celtics, although a last-second shot wasn’t needed, Turkoglu delivered a performance for the ages in Game 7 in Boston. He finished with 25 points and 12 assists in the Magic’s blowout victory.
“As you remember, everybody was like, well, it’s over for the Magic and it’s not easy to win Game 7 with all those players over there,” he recalls. “It turned out it wasn’t what people were thinking. We had so much confidence…All of us really stepped up and did our part individually.”
Once again underdogs, the Magic squared off against the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals. Not only did Orlando upset Cleveland in six games, but a few of the most memorable playoff shots over the last 15 years occurred during that series.
In Game 1, Lewis made a go-ahead 3-pointer with 14.1 seconds remaining, as the Magic overcame a 15-point deficit to steal the opener on the road. Lewis also made a clutch triple in the final seconds of regulation in Game 4. Orlando would go on to win that contest in overtime.
Even though the Cavs lost the series, many still say that LeBron James’ most astonishing game winner was his 3-pointer at the buzzer in Game 2. What many forget, though, is that right before that shot, it was Turkoglu who played the hero role.
The game tied at 93, Turkoglu went one-on-one against Sasha Pavlovic and pulled up right above the free throw line to knock down a go-ahead jumper with one second left.
“It could have been 2-0 in that series,” he said. “As you remember, Cleveland was the hottest team in the league at that time. They won 60-something games and they were really unstoppable. But we built so much confidence throughout the quarterfinals and semifinals. Coming into the game, we knew it wasn’t going to be easy because we were playing against a really, really good team…Those moments were really shocking everybody because we didn’t panic and we just played our roles and everybody had been ready.”
Although the Magic came up short in the Finals against the Lakers, losing in five games, Turkoglu had a fantastic series. He scored over 20 points in two of those contests, including in Game 2 in Los Angeles and Game 4 in Orlando. He also had a memorable block in Game 2 on Kobe Bryant in the closing moments of regulation.
Second Magic Stint
In the summer of 2009, Turkoglu signed a free agent contract with the Toronto Raptors. After a year there, he would get traded to the Phoenix Suns. But after just a year-and-a-half away from Orlando, the Magic decided to bring him back.
On Dec. 18, 2010, the Magic reacquired Turkoglu from the Suns in a blockbuster multi-player trade. Orlando also landed Jason Richardson and Earl Clark in that deal, while Vince Carter, Marcin Gortat and Mickael Pietrus were sent to Phoenix.
Shortly after his return, the Magic would tie their franchise record for most wins in a row with nine consecutive victories from Dec. 23, 2010 through Jan. 8, 2011. In one of those wins, which came against the Golden State Warriors, Turkoglu notched a triple-double with 10 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists. In all, he had four triple-doubles in his NBA career – three with the Magic.
Following the 2013-14 season, Turkoglu signed with the L.A. Clippers. He announced his retirement from the NBA on Nov. 13, 2015.
Where Are They Now
Turkoglu has been the president of the Turkish Basketball Federation since October 2016.
His kids are in Orlando, so he’s in town quite frequently.
Coaching is something that he’s interested in potentially doing in the future.
“I really like helping the kids and the players, and trying to be the guy in those moments when they have ups and downs,” he said. “In the future, coaching might be something that I will really get into more and more.”