Magic have high expectations after upgrading strong roster with addition of Desmond Bane

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — There’s a new vibe and plenty of buzz surrounding the Orlando Magic after a splashy offseason.

It’s been a while since they were considered championship contenders.

The Magic are favorites to repeat as Southeast division champions, have the third-best odds to win the Eastern Conference and are eighth-best to capture an NBA title, according to BetMGM Sportsbook.

“There’s nobody outside of that locker room that should have higher expectations for ourselves than us,” fifth-year coach Jamahl Mosley said Monday. “There’s going to be a lot of people saying what we should or could do but our standard is high and what we know we’re capable of doing. It starts with our everyday work, getting better every single day. It’s the daily habits that we have to approach as a group and it’s the standard and accountability we have to hold each other to.”

After going 41-41 last season and getting eliminated by Boston in five games in the first round of the playoffs, the Magic made a major move to address scoring.

The team paid a hefty price to acquire Desmond Bane from Memphis, sending four first-round picks, a pick swap plus Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Cole Anthony to the Grizzlies.

Bane averaged 19.2 points last season and made 39% of his shots from 3-point range. He joins star forwards Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner to boost the offense.

The Magic also signed guard Tyus Jones in free agency. He averaged 10.2 points and shot 41.4% from 3-point range last season for Phoenix.

“The space they provide on the floor is tremendous but also their leadership, their experience, who they’ve been for each team they’ve been on provides mentorship for our young guys,” Mosley said.

The Magic were plagued by injuries last season, going without Banchero, Wagner and Jalen Suggs for long stretches. Suggs averaged 16.2 points, four rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.5 steals before he suffered a cartilage injury to his left knee in late January that required arthroscopic surgery. His goal is to return for opening night and he’s excited about teaming with Bane in the backcourt.

“I think when we get to mesh as time passes, as we continue to play, as the season evolves and goes on — I think the league, everyone that follows basketball will continue to see not only why that was one of the best acquisitions of the summer, but why me and Bane could be one of the best backcourts in the NBA because of how well versed we are,” Suggs said. “In every aspect, we either are elite or we cover for each other ... and so I’m very excited to get to hooping with him alongside everybody else.”

While offense was an issue last season, the Magic had the league’s No. 2 defensive ranking behind the NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder. The goal is to turn those opportunities the defense creates into points.

“It’s about converting in transition when you’ve gotten the steal, when you’ve gotten the stop, and our ability to finish possessions off the right way, putting pressure on their defense by attacking early in transition and finishing,” Mosley said.

With the defending Eastern Conference champion Indiana Pacers facing a season without star Tyrese Haliburton and the Boston Celtics expected to be without Jayson Tatum for a significant period, the door is open for the improved Magic to make a deep run. Only the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks have better odds to win the conference.

The Magic haven’t won a playoff series since 2009-10 when they advanced to the East finals. They are 0-2 in NBA Finals in their 36-year history.

“I’ve never been more excited since I’ve been here,” Magic president Jeff Weltman said. “I feel we have a team that’s capable of accomplishing big things.”

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Orlando Magic forward Tristan da Silva, left, poses for a photo during the NBA basketball team's media day, Monday, Sept. 29, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Orlando Magic forward Jonathan Isaac tosses a ball during the NBA basketball team's media day, Monday, Sept. 29, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Orlando Magic forward Franz Wagner answers questions from reporters during the NBA basketball team's media day, Monday, Sept. 29, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero poses for a photo during the NBA basketball team's Media Day, Monday, Sept. 29, 2025, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)

NEW YORK (AP) — Opening statements are set for Tuesday in Harvey Weinstein ’s New York rape retrial, offering a new jury its first look at a bellwether #MeToo case that remains unresolved nearly eight years after the former movie tycoon's arrest.

Since Weinstein became a major target of the #MeToo movement against sexual misconduct nearly a decade ago, he has been convicted of some sexual assault charges and acquitted of others in trials on two U.S. coasts. But the rape charge involving a 2013 encounter in a Manhattan hotel has lingered, due to an overturned conviction followed by a jury deadlock.

Weinstein has pleaded not guilty and denies ever having nonconsensual sex. He said in court in this winter that he had been unfaithful to his then-wife and “acted wrongly, but I never assaulted anyone.”

The jury — seven men and five women — was selected over several days last week. Weinstein's last New York jury was majority-female, but his first was mostly male.

The current jurors were questioned about, among other things, their familiarity with Weinstein and whether they could be fair and impartial regardless of what they might have heard.

Now a 73-year-old prison inmate, Weinstein was once one of the most powerful people in Hollywood. An Academy Award-winning producer and a studio boss, he helped bring such acclaimed films as “Pulp Fiction,” “Shakespeare in Love” and “Gangs of New York” to movie houses and the popular reality series “Project Runway” to TV. He also was a prominent Democratic donor.

His career collapsed in 2017, when decades of Hollywood whispers about his behavior toward women became public accusations in news and social media. Criminal charges followed in New York and Los Angeles.

His accuser in this trial, Jessica Mann, was a hairstylist hoping to break into big-time acting when she met Weinstein at a Los Angeles-area party in late 2012 or early 2013.

She has testified that she was looking for a professional connection but ended up, ambivalently, in a consensual relationship with the then-married Weinstein.

During a New York trip with a friend in March 2013, she arranged a breakfast for both of them with Weinstein, she said. According to Mann's prior testimony, Weinstein ultimately trapped her in a hotel room, ignored her protestation that “I don't want to do this,” demanded she undress and grabbed her arms, and she succumbed because she “just wanted to get out.”

Weinstein’s former lawyers emphasized that Mann kept seeing him, accepting invitations, asking him for career help and sending warm messages to him. He has switched legal teams for this retrial, and it remains to be seen how their approach may differ.

The trial is expected to take up to four weeks.

Harvey Weinstein's attorney Jacob Kaplan leaves during a mid-day break in criminal court, in New York, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Assistant District Attorney Nicole Blumberg, center, and Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Candace White, right, arrive for the first day of Harvey Weinstein's third trial, in criminal court in New York, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) ADDITION: adding Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Candace White

Harvey Weinstein appears in criminal court in New York, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, Pool)

Harvey Weinstein appears in criminal court in New York, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, Pool)

Harvey Weinstein appears in criminal court in New York, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, Pool)

Assistant District Attorney Nicole Blumberg, center, arrives for the first day of Harvey Weinstein's third trial, in criminal court in New York, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Harvey Weinstein's attorney Marc Agnifilo arrives in criminal court in New York, Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Harvey Weinstein appears in Manhattan criminal court on Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in New York. (Jeenah Moon/Pool Photo via AP)

Harvey Weinstein appears in Manhattan criminal court on Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in New York. (Jeenah Moon/Pool Photo via AP)

Harvey Weinstein appears in Manhattan criminal court on Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in New York. (Jeenah Moon/Pool Photo via AP)

Harvey Weinstein appears in Manhattan criminal court on Friday, April 17, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Eduardo Munoz Alvarez, Pool)

Harvey Weinstein appears in Manhattan criminal court on Friday, April 17, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Eduardo Munoz Alvarez, Pool)