I can't believe someone hasn't suggested this trade scenario yet, but I concocted it just now (like all great trade ideas) and believe it is the solution to our organization's many problems: namely huge contracts for terrible players and unbelievably long lines when I go get refills of Sprite during half-time. I think the following situation works best for Otis Smith. There is no room for error, because, simply, there is no error with this idea. None.

Here's how it would play out:

Transaction 1:  Orlando trades Dwight Howard to Los Angeles for Pau Gasol and a future first-round draft pick.

Seeing the need to trade Dwight before he leaves anyway, the Magic trade him to his preferred destination with the Lakers. General Manager Otis Smith sees Pau Gasol as his first piece in his grand scheme of rebuilding, or reconstruir. 

Transaction 2: Fran Vazquez signs with Orlando 

With the vacancy at center now that Dwight is gone, Fran sees this as the perfect opportunity to get the starting job; something Gortat could only dream of (or hope for a suspension). Fran eagerly signs a 7/year 40 jillion dollar contract and finds a local girlfriend via eHarmony.

Transaction 3: Orlando trades Jameer Nelson to Toronto for Jose Calderon

Smith trades away Jameer, no longer paired with his buddy Dwight, to Toronto. When asked what it came down to in trading for Calderon, Smith replies: "Free throw shooting. All about the free throw shooting." 

Transaction 4: Orlando trades Brandon Bass, Ryan Anderson, and Daniel Orton to Memphis in a sign-and-trade deal for Marc Gasol (free agent) and Greivis Vasquez

In, arguably, the biggest trade of the off season (in terms of total weight), Orlando trades away three promising young stars in exchange for Pau's brother Marc and Vasquez, a rookie Magic blogger Evan Dunlap once said the Magic should draft. The trade appears to be significantly lopsided at first, but one must remember we are dealing with Memphis general manager, Chris Wallace.

Transaction 5: Orlando trades J.J. Redick for J.J. Barea

This makes sense purely for name symmetry, though, at first, Barea appears unwilling to gell his hair. With this final transaction, Smith's scheme is complete.

On opening day, Smith unveils his new Magic team, which will henceforth be known simply as Los Cinco Grandes (aka The Big 5). Smith's dream of creating an all-Spanish team is realized.

Orlando's New Lineup:

C - Fran Vazquez
PF - Pau Gasol/Marc Gasol
SF - J.J. Barea
SG - Greivis Vasquez
PG - Jose Calderon

How could anyone criticize such a plan?

Can we compare the 1994-1995 Houston Rockets to the 2010-2011 Orlando Magic? Possibly, but it certainly can offer hope for our current situation.

First, what’s the significance? The Houston Rockets became the “worst” team to win an NBA championship, beating out three 50+ win teams en route to the trophy. This included, as many of us will remember, the Orlando Magic in a 4-0 sweep in the NBA Finals. With the win-loss record sputtering this year as compared to a typical SVG year, I looked into comparing the two teams for fun just to see if there were any commonalities between the two. Obviously, as a fan I live in world where the Magic, despite what the current atmosphere suggests, can still make a run for the Finals. Did anyone feel the same about the Houston Rockets in 1994-1995?

Unlike the Orlando Magic this year, the Rockets had that playoff experience most consider necessary for deep runs. The previous year the Rockets had won the NBA finals and were considered favorites the entire year. However, the same was not said of them the year after: these same Rockets finished in the 6th seed in the West only garnering 47 wins. Failing to make the most of their players, they traded starting PF Otis Thorpe to Portland for Clyde Drexler, a former teammate of Olajuwon’s. However, team troubles continued, as read from the Rocket’s official website: “As if that weren't enough, guard Vernon Maxwell became frustrated with playing a backup role to Drexler and took a leave of absence. All of this meant that the Rockets entered the playoffs missing three of their top seven players from the defending champions, and the club seemed especially vulnerable at power forward. Meanwhile, three players who were not even in the league when the season began-Chucky Brown, Charles Jones, and Pete Chilcutt-were signed and given vital roles in the late stretches.” Needless to say, these Rockets were able to put the seasonal drama behind them and won a championship.

Statistically the teams were different. The Magic had better defense but the Rockets had better offense, typical of a Tomjanovich coached team. Both teams were lead by an offense and defensive-minded center who would (soon) win the MVP. Both teams traded their starting power forward mid-season in hopes of bolstering their inside presence, though the Magic took what they already have had made the most of the least. Granted, Clyde Drexler’s play is the stuff of legends, so factoring him into the equation may be a bit unfair. But who is to say trading a player essentially trades the statistics? Trading for Jason Richardson could have gone either way, having been the leading scorer for the Phoenix Suns. Do we, as fans, expect the same caliber of performance in completely different circumstances? For Drexler it worked; he excelled with a former teammate and the system ran like clockwork. We consider it a success because they won a championship despite all odds against them. What is our measure of success, especially in context of the trades working out? Dwight has stated that nothing short of a championship is a success. In the past few months, though, the goal of success has become muddled and we grope to find more realistic goals as our fears become realized: the odds of winning the championship are against us.

But I say ‘So, what?’ Let's beat those odds.

Many have criticized that the Magic’s February trades have made the team worse. They claim that much of the momentum that helped the 2008-2009 Magic reach the NBA Finals is gone. However, we will never know what could have been and are faced with what will be. I still believe, even in my cynical few of our stagger to season’s end, that we can make the run. We will show true grit, and we will get through this.

Just found this out and wanted  to share with the rest of the community.

Which current Magic player once put up 22 points on 8/9 shooting (4/4 from 3-pt line) along with 15 assists and 2 steals and no turnovers? Only 78 players have had 15+ assists and 0 turnover games, and he did it. And the answer may not be as likely as it would seem- check out who holds the 16th spot here.

Also for another hat tip the Magic's way check out spots 33, 55, & 75.

Yet more reasons to be proud of the awesome team we have.

Props to Zac Lowe at "The Point Forward" to bringing this amazing feat to our attention.

Over the past three games, the anti-Vince, pro-JJ fans have seen an unusual boost in support. They claim that the slippery slope if-then logic of “Because J.J. has played in Vince’s position the last three games, AND we have won the last three games, J.J. must be a better player than Vince”. We look at past examples of Vince’s performance in the post-seasons, especially during Boston, and his constant minor to major injuries that offset his game as blatant signs of a “terrible” player who must be traded or, at the very least, benched. Benched in the favor of rising star, J.J.. Looking at the newspaper the day after the win over the Heat, Brian Schmitz included a quote from a fan stating that the “obvious” choice for Van Gundy is to make the temporary fix a permanent situation. It seems to be the feeling on most fans mind.

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I recently saw the results for the GM poll (with 28 of the 30 GM's polling, and I believe that the Clippers currently do not have an official GM) and noticed that not one GM picked the Orlando Magic to win the championship. No surprise there, I thought. Until I realized, again, that this was a GM poll. Otis Smith probably voted in this (unless he is the one other exclusion) and if that is the case did not vote for the Magic to win the championship. Granted, this poll is not a be-all-end-all, but can it be said that it refelects the "actuality" of the situation versus the "inspiration" of it? In other words, does Smith WANT us to win the championship (who doesn't?) but THINKS that Miami/Boston/Los Angeles (the only three teams to poll) will win?

Then I wondered about us- the Magic fans. Do we WANT the Magic to win, but realize deep down the Magic WONT? I wanted to get the general atmosphere of fellow fans.

I wanted to make a contribution to the OPP community, so here it is:

As we look forward to the new season and the draft prospects in both Daniel "Big Dog" Orton & Stanley "The Manley" Robinson (yes, I just made those up), I look back on the last ten years of draftees by the Magic and think 'What draft picks did we have at one point or another and how were they used?'. What I came to find out is that we passed up a lot of different players some better some worst than the picks we evetenually kept. But....hindsight is always 20/20. I noticed that basketball-reference, which offers a plethora of the information supplied below, does have a running list of Magic draft picks. What I wanted to see, however, was a list of everyone associated with the Magic come draft day. So, using various resources, I made one.

Each pick on this list has passed through the hands of Orlando Magic management. Granted, the players picked could have been different should the Magic have drafted them (e.g. higher or lower depending on their standings that year).

A few things worth noting:

1. It's interesting how many picks once held by the Magic ended up coming back. Vince Carter, Matt Barnes, and Keyon Dooling, to name a few, were all at one time Magic draft picks (though Dooling was the only one they actually drafted).

2. It's also interesting to note how many players I've never heard of, and I'm an avid fan. It just goes to show the reality that it is really hard to make it in the NBA.

3. How to read Pick/Draftee Transaction History - The history chronicles the 'origination' (where the pick started) to when the player was drafted. In cases where other teams draft a future Magic player traded on draft day, I have noted the transaction that sent him to our team.

I hope this satisfies your inner NBA nerd.

The draft breakdown since 2000:

1999-2000 was my first year as a real Magic fan, it was also the year of the original "heart and hustle" Magic team. Doc Rivers lead this rag-tag set of players to a 41-41 record, within one game of playoff berth. Everyone remembers the glorious "Big" Ben Wallace and the electrfying performances he has as our center, Corey "Uh-Oh Maggette-o" Maggette, Matt "The Musician" Harpring, and Chucky "Child's Play" Atkins (yes, I just made most of those nicknames up). What is an even more interesting takeaway is the spike in stats each of these players would experience, as all of them were traded the following year to make room for improvements (most notably, Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill). While it can be argued whether letting go of these players were worth trade, hinging on Grant Hill's inactivity because of his ankle, it is amusing to consider which player Magic fans would consider to be the most detrimental release. Or in other words, which player do you regret trading the most?

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Because I have nothing to say about either Chris Paul or Otis Smith, I'd like to ask my fellow Magic fans which diamond in the bench they enjoyed seeing during their respective tenures with the Magic. As my sig suggests I was huge fans of both Troy Hudson (T-Hud) and Keith Bogans (K-Bogz, and yes I just made that up). I used to say that they were my favorite players on the team and people would laugh at me thinking it a joke. However, there was something about the way the two played their heart out despite not being marquee players on a so-so basketball club. Though no one talks much of them it would be interesting to see which was the fan favorite amongst those who remember. For example, does anyone remember when Hudson had that killer game versus the Clippers scoring a career high many moons ago? I do.

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