Orlando Magic Fans: Real Fans or Lazy Fans?

Anyone that has been to Orlando, Florida knows how beautiful, sunny, and exciting this place can be, but one thing that is not exciting about Orlando is the sports arena. Of all of the cities in the U.S. that host professional sports teams, Orlando is one of the weakest as far as fan support and loyalty goes. Actually, one could say that the entire state lacks loyalty and support. Have you ever seen some of those Florida Marlin baseball games in which they've had a mere 500 people in the whole stadium? Yes, some of those summer days in Miami can be unbearably hot and humid and not make you want to leave you're A/C, and there may be several snowbirds out of state during baseball season, but nevertheless, who would believe that this team has won two World Series championships in the past 20 years with such a lousy fan base?

But enough about Miami . . . lets get back to Orlando. As all NBA fans know, the Orlando Magic are having one of their best seasons since the Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway days. The Magic locked up the number three seed in the playoffs and overcame thrilling buzzer beater defeats to eliminate the Philadelphia 76ers and Boston Celtics in the first two playoff rounds. Then, they took on mighty Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the eastern conference finals. What a matchup, right? Lebron vs. Dwight Howard in the eastern finals? They can't get much better than that! After playing five hard fought games, the Magic held a 3-2 series lead (best of 7 series) and were to host the vital game 6 in Orlando on a Saturday night. Yes, a Saturday night! A Saturday night game with a series clinching game against the most popular athlete on the planet right now (Lebron) and a chance to return to the NBA finals after waiting what for what seemed like an eternity. This was one of those games that even your non-sports friends would go crazy to partake in.

Ok, so now some of you may be confused. You may be thinking to yourself . . . this guy is complaining about fan spirit about a game that was sold out in literally minutes and didn't have an empty seat in the whole house? Not to mention, this game was extremely loud from tipoff to the final buzzer. So what's the problem, you ask? Ok, here's my beef. The game was scheduled to tip off at 8:30 PM. This was sure to be a crazy atmosphere, so my friend and I departed for the game two and a half hours early. We arrived at the arena shortly before 6:30 PM, expecting to already see several parking spaces filled. To our surprise, the parking lots were nearly empty! Seriously? Yes, I realize NBA games are not known for their crazy tailgating and pre-game activities, but come on folks, it's game six against Lebron James on a Saturday night! You should already be there!

An hour goes by. At 7:00 PM, the parking lots weren't much different. Obviously, there were more cars by this time, but it was still much emptier than it should have been. I've been to several Orlando Predators arena football games that weren't even this empty an hour before game-time! You mean to tell me that a regular season arena football game can attract more pre-game fans than a game six in the NBA eastern conference finals??

At around 7:45 PM, the area FINALLY started to pick up. The Howl at the Moon performers/singers had some people dancing near the front of the arena and the fans were finally showing up from all corners and caves. This was a relief to see, but still disappointing that it took that long.

And it's not just the fans that were disappointing-it was the event coordinators, as well. Other than the Howl at the Moon singers, the pre-game set-up was pretty dull. There was a lame car that some people spray painted "I love Cleveland" on, and they were letting us Magic fans bash the car with hammers. Yes, hammers! No, not sledge hammers! Just regular hammers! Oh, and the restroom situation was hilarious. We have ourselves a SOLD OUT game six and they only provide TWO port-a-potties outside?? Just TWO? Sorry to say, I had to relieve myself at around 8:10 PM from some of my pre-game beverages. Apparently, all of these late arrivals forgot to go pee before they left their house, because the line was ridiculous. After SEVERAL minutes of waiting, I was able to take care of business and enter the arena, about 5 minutes before tipoff. True, I would've been better off just using the facilities inside the arena, but it's Orlando, people . . . I like to stay outside as long as possible! The weather is nice!

I don't mean to sound bitter. Truth to be told, I had a hell of a time and was honored to witness the Magic defeat the Cavaliers! It was a great atmosphere throughout the entire game and everybody in the house was pumped! I just wish people would show a little more excitement about showing up early. Yes, being inside for the game is the important thing, but showing up an hour or two early can make the experience even MORE enjoyable . . . and it shows others that you are serious fans! Come on, Orlando! Don't become like Laker fans and wait until halftime to show up for games! Lets show the world some more spirit! Maybe that spirit will carry over to the Magic players as they BEAT L.A. and Kobe Bryant in the NBA finals!

GO MAGIC!!