For 36 years, Orlando Magic fans have heard the in-arena announcements from public address announcer Paul Porter. However, change is in the wind in O-Town. According to a team release, Porter will be working his final games for the Magic this season, as the team is slated to honor him at the April 9 game against the Boston Celtics.
Currently, Porter shares his time between the Magic and the Tampa Bay Lightning of the NHL. At the age of 71, he lives in the Tampa Bay region and travels for Magic games. Additionally, per a release by the team, Porter stated he was thankful for his 36 years with the organization.
However, Porter later clarified that the decision to leave was indeed the organization’s, not his, according to a post on his personal Facebook.
“Some career news,” Porter posted over the weekend on Facebook. “The Orlando Magic today announced that this will be my final season with the team. This was a decision by the team and not mine, but I am grateful for the 36 seasons I have had with them.”
Furthermore, Porter, speaking with the Orlando Sentinel this weekend, confirmed that he has known this would be his final season since last June, when he was informed by the team of the change.
“About February or so, I contacted the Magic and said, ‘I’d really like to retire on my own terms,’ and in my mind I was thinking I was going to do the Magic for a year or two. I’m 71 years old,” Porter told Jason Beede of the Sentinel. “And I just said, ‘Would you consider allowing me to do one more season or maybe two, and then just announce that I’m retiring?’ And they said, ‘No, the decision has already been made. We are going in a different chapter and this will be your final year.’”
Since then, the Magic have not commented beyond their initial release about honoring Porter with the game against the Celtics.
“Paul has certainly left an indelible mark on our franchise,” said Orlando Magic CEO Alex Martins in the team statement Friday. “Simply, he will be missed, but never forgotten. His iconic calls will certainly live on.”
Looking ahead, the team has announced they will be in search of a new public address announcer.
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