Orlando Magic co-founder Jimmy Hewitt died early Sunday Morning at 79. The Magic announced Hewitt’s death in a tweet Sunday saying he was quote “the architect for the Magic - he dreamed it, believed it, conceived it, and nurtured it into a reality.”
The idea to bring professional sports to Orlando began in 1985, when Hewitt met Magic Senior VP Pat Williams, then-Philadelphia 76ers general manager.
Hewitt was an Orlando Native who played basketball for Edgewater High School before receiving a finance degree from Florida State University. He is one of nine members of The Magic’s Hall Of Fame.
Hewitt had been suffering from advanced stages of dementia and recently contracted COVID-19.
