We talk about the big moments in sports a lot, the buzzer-beaters, the legendary comebacks. Those moments etch themselves into memory, solidify legacies, and give fans stories that echo forever. But what sticks with me, sometimes even more, are the almost moments. The plays that came within a hair’s breadth of changing everything but didn’t quite make it. One that does that to me, involves Hedo Turkoglu of the 2008-2009 Orlando Magic.
That Magic team, with Dwight Howard manning the middle and a cast of sharpshooters, had something special. They were fun, loose, and genuinely exciting to watch. Their run to the Finals felt like a breath of fresh air, and they legitimately scared the Lakers.
Game 2 in Los Angeles was everything I love about basketball…and everything I hate. Because basketball can be pain.
It was a tight, back-and-forth affair. With seconds ticking away, Kobe Bryant drove to the basket, and out of nowhere, Hedo Turkoglu rose up and blocked his shot.
Clean.
The Magic called timeout with 0.6 seconds left on the clock and Stan Van Gundy drew up a play for Courtney Lee. Turkoglu would inbound.
The alley-oop pass from Turkoglu was perfect, and Lee had a clean look at the basket, needing to just bank in the layup.
I can still see it.
The shot bounced off the front of the rim.
Overtime. Lakers win.
It’s easy to look back and say, “If Courtney Lee makes that layup, the series is tied, and everything changes.” Maybe the Magic win two out of three at home, and bring the series back to LA with a chance to clinch a title. Maybe they win the title. It is an extremely narrow possibility that almost did happen.
But that’s not what happened.
The Lakers won in overtime, went up 2-0, and ultimately won the series in five. But for Magic fans, that moment, Turkoglu’s block, the timeout, Lee’s missed layup, will forever linger.
It’s a reminder that sports, like life, is often decided by the slimmest of margins. Sometimes you’re the hero, sometimes you’re the goat. And sometimes, you’re just a team that came agonizingly close to immortality.