The Magic pulled out a good victory with a strong defensive effort completely locking down the Celtics in the third period to the tune of 36-11 in the favor of the Magic. Read the rest of this entry >>
Two days in a row now, Byron Scott has made the statement on ESPN that the Magic made a big mistake in letting Hedo Turkoglu go. His short-sightedness tells you why he’s in a studio instead of on a bench or an executive suite with a team. Read the rest of this entry >>
Well, not quite, but seeing SVG’s quote right after the game, it might as well have been: Read the rest of this entry >>
The Magic were a much healthier team to watch when each win was a blessing instead of necessary. This one was extremely stressful at the end. The Magic did not get into this game until the fourth but they finished well while Boston, and specifically Kevin Garnett, didn’t. Rashard Lewis blew by Garnett (read that statement again, it’s that hard to believe) for the game-winning layup. Read the rest of this entry >>
and will continue to do so. Carter’s 21 points last night against Charlotte aren’t an indication that all is well and the suffocating defense the Magic laid on the Bobcats doesn’t mean the team is out of the slump. What both prove, however, is that the pieces are there, the talent is there and this team, when clicking, is as good as any. However, until they put a long stretch together with all those pieces clicking, we won’t know if they are ready to advance deep in the playoffs. Read the rest of this entry >>
It’s taken way too many games for Magic fans to be comfortable but the Magic finally delivered a wire-to-wire win without much in doubt. Although they only led by one after the first quarter, the Magic turned up the defensive heat and only allowed 27 points in the next two quarters and held a 77-49 lead after three. It even allowed SVG to empty the bench and get Brandon Bass and Anthony Johnson in. Of course, it only took AJ four minutes to pick up a technical for first attempting a kick and then a elbow to the face of Kings guard Sergio Rodriguez. AJ’s line for the night: no shots, one assist, two fouls, two turnovers and one technical foul. Not a great way to earn playing time, not that he would’ve earned any with a stellar line either. Read the rest of this entry >>
are the Atlanta Hawks. They are young, hungry and sneaking up on teams. It may be unfair to say they are sneaking up but with everyone’s focus in the East on Boston, Cleveland and Orlando, Atlanta doesn’t have as big a target when they play teams. With Orlando’s disgusting loss to Portland Friday, Atlanta took over the lead in the Southeast division. I doubt it will last all season but I don’t think the Hawks are going away. Read the rest of this entry >>
Ok, one is an exception, two is a trend. Dwight Howard tried a jumper on Saturday; it took a couple of laps around the rim before falling out and he attempted one last night. I don’t have a problem with him adding a jumper but he’s never going to become a great shooter. It’s a lower percentage shot than many of the others he takes. Any coach facing him would tell his guys to allow the jumper all day because it’s just a set up for a post move. Read the rest of this entry >>
The game against the Kings showed what happens when the Magic can’t hit their 3s; they struggle to score against even lower-rung teams. However, the Magic finally tightened down the clamps in the fourth quarter and held Sacramento to only 10 points. This was absolutely a case of the score not showing how close the game was. The Magic trailed by 2 going into the fourth but the suffocation of the Kings’ offense allowed them to pull away, even on 1-4 shooting from three in the quarter. They scored 33 points in the fourth with only one three-point shot. They had struggled throughout the game to score without the three but were able to turn it on in the fourth. To me, it appeared that the Kings felt they had given their best shot and started to come apart a bit on defense. Read the rest of this entry >>
This will be the headline for the Carter-haters. Just get Carter out of the starting lineup and the Magic will be fine. With Redick leading the Magic in scoring in Carter’s place, they have even more ammunition. Based on the shots Redick missed in the final minutes in the loss to Toronto, Redick is probably not a player to lean on. Carter can be a closer and has proven to be a positive influence on the starting lineup, posting a positive plus/minus when on the floor with the regular starters. I, for one, will be glad when Carter gets back on the floor so that the problems he’s having, which is likely a combination of fitting in and just a shooting slump, can be worked out. Read the rest of this entry >>
The happenings of the Orlando Magic.
Don VanDemark is an Associate Editor for Fanball.com, providing insight on college and pro fantasy football. He is also the Tampa Bay Bucs Correspondent (WhatTheBucs.com) for the Fanball Blog Network. His work has been seen in College & Pro Football Newsweekly and Sportsform Basketball. You can find Don on Facebook or Twitter (DonVanDemark).
