A new Orlando Magic D-League team will play either at Kissimmee’s Silver Spurs Arena or Lakeland’s Lakeland Center, as the team narrows the list of contenders for 2017-2018 play to two.
The two were part of a four-arena initial round that also included Disney World’s Wide World of Sports HP Field House and Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena.
The Magic are currently affiliated with the Erie BayHawks, but this coming season is the final year of the three-year deal. Like many other NBA teams, the Magic are seeking to bring their D-League affiliate closer to home: developing players can be watched and coached more easily with a closer team, and a veteran can more easily sent on a rehab assignment.
“We’re very much on track in terms of our timeline, and that is to have a decision made by the time the preseason begins,” [Magic CEO Alex] Martins told the Orlando Sentinel.
Silver Spurs Arena, which seats 8,300, is part of Osceola Heritage Park and formerly hosted professional minor-league hockey and arena football. It’s part of a complex on Hwy. 192 that also includes Osceola County Stadium, which formerly hosted Houston Astros baseball and will host Class A Florida State League baseball beginning in 2017. The Lakeland Center, which seats 8,178, formerly hosted professional minor-league hockey, indoor soccer and arena football.
