When Doc Rivers ruined Tim Duncan teaming up with Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill for a petty reason

Tracy McGrady could have teamed up with Tim Duncan on the Orlando Magic [Photo Courtesy: The Jump ESPN]
Tracy McGrady could have teamed up with Tim Duncan on the Orlando Magic [Photo Courtesy: The Jump ESPN]

Tracy McGrady joined forces with Grant Hill in the early 2000's to form one of the most lethal duos in the NBA. Although the Orlando Magic looked like the team to beat on paper, they had the potential to be even better at one point in time.

The Orlando Magic of the 90's and 00's were a team to look out for. Featuring exciting young players such as Shaquille O'Neal and Anfernee Hardaway in the 90's, the Magic entered a new era with McGrady and Hill coming on board.

The two wings posed to be one of the most lethal duos of all time. TMac, on his day, was one of the best offensive players in the league. Meanwhile, Hill was capable of going toe-to-toe with the best. The duo were set to put the league on notice.

Unfortunately, injuries got in the way and the Magic's dream never came to fruition. To add to the pain, Orlando had the chance to form a superteam as well.

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Tim Duncan had apparently shown an interest in coming over to the Orlando Magic back in the day. However, Doc Rivers reportedly fumbled the deal over Duncan's family being on the flight.

Hill recalled the story as he was there at the dinner with Rivers and Duncan. He said:

"I was at the dinner when someone in Tim's entourage asked Doc can significant others travel on the plane and Doc said no."

TMac was beside himself with disappointment at this point. However, Paul Pierce, who played under Rivers at Boston, felt it necessary to bring up how the coach changed his policy later. He also added that this helped them land Kevin Garnett.

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Duncan eventually remained with the Spurs. Meanwhile, Tracy McGrady continued to dominate as an offensive force. However, this didn't yield much success in the playoffs.

Read: Tracy McGrady enshrined into the Orlando Magic Hall of Fame


Tracy McGrady did eventually team up with Tim Duncan

In the later stages of their careers, Tracy McGrady finally had the chance to play with Tim Duncan at the San Antonio Spurs. TMac was a shadow of himself by this point, as he had been playing pro ball in China.

Duncan and the Spurs were making another title run against the Miami Heat in 2013. McGrady was brought on board for the playoffs, although didn't receive much playing time. However, with the Spurs, TMac got his first playoff series win and even played a few minutes at the end of games to top it off.

The Spurs lost to Miami and McGrady capped off his career without an NBA title to his name.

Orlando Magic Nation! You can check out the latest Orlando Magic Schedule and dive into the Magic Depth Chart for NBA Season 2024-25.

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Edited by Shamik Banerjee
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