Saw two great quotes this evening:

Re: Miami Heat's moaning and groaning - 

"I do chuckle a little bit when they complain about the scrutiny they get," Van Gundy, a former Heat coach, told reporters in Orlando. "My suggestion would be if you don't want the scrutiny, you don't hold a championship celebration before you've even practiced together. It's hard to go out yourself and invite that kind of crowd and celebration and attention, and then when things aren't going well, sort of bemoan the fact that you're getting that attention."

Source:  http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=6190784

Re: David Stern - 

"This is the system David Stern and his minions like it," Van Gundy said. "So that's the system you have ... I certainly can't have an opinion because David Stern, like a lot or leaders we've seen in this world lately, don't really tolerate other people's opinion or free speech or anything. So I'm not really allowed to have an opinion. So it's up to him. He decides and he likes the system he has."

Source:  http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=6191031

As we all know, the Magic typically run with a 1-in 4-out strategy.  One of the cornerstones of that plan last season was Rashard Lewis, who shot just over seven 3pt fg's per game last season, making almost 40% of them.  Obviously Lewis hasn't been available yet due to his suspension.  

In Lewis's absence, Ryan Anderson essentially proved himself to be Rashard-lite (at a minimum).  He's managed to do many of the same things that Lewis has done, at least on the offensive end.  The Magic's overall success has seemed to mirror the play of Anderson.  Take a look at the numbers.

Game 1:  Anderson 4-7 3pm-a, 16 points - Magic score 120 and win

Game 2:  Anderson 2-5 3pm-a, 16 points - Magic score 95 and win

Game 3:  Anderson 5-8 3pm-a, 20 points, Magic score 125 and win

Game 4:  Anderson 1-11 3pm-a, 7 points, Magic score 80 and lose

Game 5:  Anderson 3-3 3pm-a, 20 points, Magic score 122 and win

Game 6:  Anderson 2-5 3pm-a, 11 points, Magic score 110 and win (Anderson injured in 3rd quarter)

Game 7:  Anderson out w/ injury, Magic score 74 and lose (ugly loss)

Game 8:  Anderson out w/ injury, Magic score 93 and win (ugly win)

Game 9:  Anderson out w/ injury, Magic score 93 and lose (ugly loss)

 

There's a definite correlation between Anderson playing well, and the Magic putting lots of points on the board and winning.  The one game Anderson played poorly, the Magic's point total fell off significantly and the team lost.  Once Anderson went down with his injury, the team point total has dropped off noticeably, and we've seen two very ugly losses and one ugly win.

There would seem to be a definite trend.  The Magic seem to play much better overall with a long-range shooting PF in the game than they do without.  Certainly its a no-brainer that a team should play worse when without a player, but the difference between having Lewis and/or Anderson is very pronounced.  Thats not intended as a knock on Brandon Bass, as he's shown he's a good and hard working player.  This is more about Orlando's offensive system, and whats needed for it to be successful.  

Fortunately for the Magic, Lewis and Anderson will both be back very soon.

One has to wonder how everyone on the Magic's seemingly bottomless roster is going to find an adequate amount of playing time.  Many NBA teams use an 8 or 9 man rotation.  Once Lewis returns, the top 5 guys off the bench are Anderson, Barnes, Bass, Williams, and Gortat.  Johnson's all but guaranteed to be the odd man out at this point, but you still have Redick.  Is an 11 man rotation at all feasible long term?  Does a talented individual get sat at the end of the bench just in case someone gets injured down the road?  Neither seems to be a good answer at this point.

What are the other options?

It almost seems like its impossible to upgrade the Magic's roster from a talent perspective at this point.  The players that Orlando has all fit extremely well into the system.  It just doesn't seem very likely that the team could be made "better" by way of any trade right now.

Is it feasible to trade away some talent for financial reasons?  That seems counterproductive for a team with the goal of winning a championship.  It could also upset the chemistry of the team, as well as upset the fan base.  Still though, it could be argued that the team has extraneous players, and something could be gained by making a move that would ultimately extend the team's championship window, and open up the possibility of a dynasty scenario.  

While it may be premature to explore the idea, one has to wonder about scenarios surrounding Rashard Lewis.  Yes he's an all-star.  The Magic don't make the finals without him last year.  He's extremely versatile, as he showed in the playoffs last year by being effective as a shooter, a post-up player, and a slasher at times.  At the same time, he's earning the most money of any player on the team, with the ninth highest salary in the league.  Most experts contend that he's overpaid.  He's certainly proven that he's important to the team, but that doesn't change the fact that he's overpaid.  It may be extremely early in the season, but the Magic look like they won't miss Lewis in the lineup very much.  It certainly begs the question, could he be traded?  Would it be possible to parlay his contract, in conjunction with someone else's expiring contract (Redick, Johnson) into someone like Brandon Roy (6yrs, $3.9mill per year)?  Food for thought.

Then there's of course Gortat.  The Magic caught the rest of the league off guard when they chose to match Dallas's offer.  He's not eligible to be traded until mid-season, however he certainly has the talent to start for a good number of teams in the league.  There's no doubt that he will be a valuable trading chip, should Orlando choose to explore such an option.  The problem with Gortat is he's the only true backup center that the team has.  They'd be forced to get another center in return, or else they would have to play small with Bass playing that position while Howard's on the bench.  There are still certainly some possibilities out there though, such as a trade with Indiana for Danny Granger and 2nd year center Roy Hibbert.

Both Lewis and Gortat will both be important members of Van Gundy's rotation, unless something happens.  What would seem to be more likely is a trade involving only some of the expiring contracts, such as the afore mentioned Redick and Johnson.  The two of them together amount to $5mill in salary, so there may be some potential.

The question still goes back to whether or not being 11 deep is truly a bad thing or not.  Is it a blessing, or is it wasteful?  Will it win the Magic a title?  Do the Magic NEED it to win a title?  As with all things, only time will tell.

Will missing Rashard Lewis for the first 10 games hurt the Magic?  Sure.  But how much?

 

Over the first 10 games, Orlando faces (in order)

6th seed - Philly

non-playoff - New Jersey

non-playoff - Toronto

8th seed - Detroit

non-playoff - Phoenix

8th seed - Detroit

non-playoff - Oklahoma City

non-playoff - Charlotte

1st seed - Cleveland

non-playoff - New Jersey

Of the games against the playoff teams on that list, three of the four are at home, the lone exception being one game against 8th seeded Detroit.  This isnt exactly a murderer's row of opponents.  Orlando should be the favorite in every single one of these games even without Lewis, with the possible exception of the Cleveland game.

I'm by no means saying that the Magic will start off 9-1 (though I wouldn't be shocked if they do) but I only believe that the "favorite" has changed for one and only one of these games.  The media is out there saying that the Magic will probably lose their opportunity at the #1 and #2 seeds in the east because of Rashard's suspension.  I just don't see it - I really don't believe that the Magic's record after these 10 games will be more than 1 game different than what it would be if Lewis were playing.  

I apologize in advance as this probably isn't the place for this post...

 

So I canceled some plane tickets for a trip and drove down from Atlanta to South Florida instead, in the hopes that a friend could secure some game five tickets.  I was hoping to make a day long stop in Orlando on the way back, to catch the game and visit w/ some friends and relatives.  Unfortunately, my friend's connections failed to come through and as of now I have no way to get to the game. 

 

I figure this is a long shot, a real real long shot, but I wanted to post here in the hopes that maybe someone can come through on this. 

 

Does anyone have a way of getting ahold of two or three game five tickets that I could purchase for a reasonable price?  I really really hope that I didn't comit to driving 20 hours round trip as opposed to flying for nothing :(  Yeah I know, finals tickets, impossible to come by, in incredibly high demand... like I said, longshot.  I'm just hoping someone here might be able to do something really nice for a fellow fan, a true fan of the team :)

 

I'll be unable to access the internet from tomorrow (saturday) around noon until the following Saturday afternoon.  (going on a cruise)  I may have a friend check this site during that time period to see if anyone responds.  Otherwise, I'll try to get with whomever next Saturday. 

 

Thanks guys. 

As we're now seeing, there's a realistic chance of seeing Jameer Nelson suit up for the finals.  

 

The question is - what do you want to see happen, and why?  Is this a universally positive scenario?  Do the risks outweigh the rewards?  Are you of the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" philosophy?  What does everyone think?

 

Here's what Johns Hopkins has to say about Torn Labrum recovery:

The recovery depends upon many factors, such as where the tear was located, how severe it was and how good the surgical repair was. It is believed that it takes at least four to six weeks for the labrum to re-attach itself to the rim of the bone, and probably another four to six weeks to get strong. Once the labrum has healed to the rim of the bone, it should see stress very gradually so that it can gather strength. It is important not to re-injure it while it is healing.

 

The injury was February 2nd.  The twelve weeks of recovery they mention ended April 27th, five weeks ago.  He may well be ready.

Poll

Do you want to see Jameer Nelson play in the NBA Finals?

14%

Yes! We need our all-star PG back!

12 votes

52%

Yes, but only in a limited capacity.

43 votes

20%

No, as much as I'd like to see him play, its not worth the risk

17 votes

12%

No, the team has made it this far as is. No reason to change it now.

10 votes

82 votes | Poll has closed

Its time to Beat LA!

 

Hardly any fan outside of the greater Los Angeles area wants to see the Yankees of basketball win the title.  It even seems like most fans of Boston and Cleveland, bitter over losses to the Magic, want to see Orlando continue its run all the way to a title.  

 

This Magic team is a rare breed, one where the team truly comes before the individual.  The offense clicks because all five players on the court are involved.  The defense clicks for the same reason.  A comment from Bill Simmons, who has traditionally criticized the Magic, caught my eye.  He was discussing how the various remaining playoff teams play towards the end of games when he said this:

 

Only the Magic (God bless them) seem interested in playing a style that doesn't revolve around the same guy hoisting 3s or barrelling toward the basket again and again.

 

The Magic know how and when to change it up.  They adapt.  Quickly.  It was disconcerting to see 20+ point deficits to the Cavs in multiple games of that series, but both times the Magic rallied back to take leads at some point in those games.  They cannot, will not die.  The type of resilience we've seen is almost unheard of.  Its the type of trait found only in championship contenders.

 

I love the Howard vs Kobe matchup.  While we won't truly see them go head-to-head on the court, the icons of their respective teams will surely be measured against each other.  Its not the statistical contributions that interest me the most though, its the fact that Kobe and Dwight are polar opposites in almost every way possible.  Think about their personalities, think about how they regard their teammates.  Who do you think most NBA fans want to see come out on top? 

 

While the Orlando Magic in the finals may not have been every fan's ideal matchup (see: Kobe vs Lebron) the fact is, this is one of the best true five man teams we've seen in quite some time.  Its good for the game.  The Magic have become giant-slayers this post season.  There's only one giant left to slay - the universally hated Lakers.  Will the Magic pull it off?  Will they become one of the most universally well liked teams the process?  America's team?  Maybe that's a bit of a stretch, but then again, maybe it isn't.  :)

I know its early to have this conversation, but its something I cannot stop thinking about.  My specific question is this:  How does this deep playoff run affect our soon to be free agents?  

 

Are Turkoglu and Gortat motivated to stay, for less money, and be part of a perennial championship contender?  Or do they choose to cash in on the individual successes they've had, and sign the biggest possible contract now that their respective values are at an all-time high?  Turkoglu in particular has seen his value soar this postseason.

 

Will the Magic front office feel pressure from the fans to keep the team intact, after its success this year?  Will the jump in season ticket sales have any effect on their decision?

 

Will Turk and/or Gortat feel disrespected if the Magic don't offer as much as others - will they feel like this team doesn't value them enough?

 

So many questions... Any thoughts?

Waking up this morning, I feel like something was taken from me.

 

No, I'm not talking about Lebron's last second shot.  

 

I'm talking about being robbed of one of the best playoff games i've ever seen.  I want to say I saw one of the best.  But I can't.  The officials left an undeniable mark on the game.  It started early in the first quarter with an inexpicable no-call when Mo Williams threw the ball in anger at Howard, hitting him.  Replays showed at least two officials looking right at the play.  No technical.  Every basketball fan in their right mind, regardless of team affiliation, knows that should have been called a T.  Sadly, that was only the beginning of the evening.  Among the baffling calls were two blocking fouls called on Gortat in short succession that should've been charges.  There was an off the ball offensive foul called on Turk, as Lee ran for an uncontested basket.  There were more.

 

I could live with losing to Lebron.  I would have been happy with the game under other circumstances.   Even in a loss, to show the heart to come back from 23 points down was amazing.  For Turk to hit the shots he hit in the final minute was amazing.  Lebron's shot was beyond amazing.  The whole darned game should've been amazing.... but the officiating was amazing... amazingly bad.  The NBA... where amazing happens.

 

I wish we had lost to Lebron, but in truth, we lost to the whistle, and thats no way to lose.  Its not just the L that hurts though.  Its being robbed of what truly should have been one of the best games I've ever seen.  It was marred, tainted.  And I feel THAT loss far more right now than I feel the loss that tied the series up.

I can't help but think back to the Magic's amazing road trip earlier in the season.  The one where they went and beat the Spurs, Lakers, and Nuggets (all three western division leaders) on their home courts, fitting in an anihilation of the Kings inbetween.  That stretch of basketball was the best the Magic played all season, and maybe the best stretch in franchise history.  

 

Everything didn't click as well after that trip though, as the Magic suffered a home loss to Boston, and suffered a season ending injury to Nelson.  While Nelson's injury was indeed crippling, it never really felt to me like the team played up to its still high potential after that.  There was never really a time when it seemed like everyone was playing well at once.  Most everyone on the roster went through some sort of slump at one point or another.

 

These last two games feel so much like Orlando's fantastic January surge.  The team is finally playing up to its potential once again.  Everything is going right.  Even the ball is bouncing the right way... As silly as it may sound, I feel like a week ago William's last second heave after the jump ball would've gone in, much like Davis's shot at the end of game 4.  Not now though.

 

It feels so odd, so foreign, to hear the media refer to the Magic as a resilient, tough, playoff tested team.  At the same time, it feels so right.  Lets hope Orlando can ride this surge all the way to the finals, and maybe just maybe, to a championship!

We're just a little bit more than 24 hours away from game 7, Orlando's first since 1995.  Everything is on the line.  The big question is, how do the Magic look heading into the game?

 

The Magic have some momentum going into this game.  After starting out as the favored team in the series, the Magic weren't supposed to win game 6 after what ESPN's Mark Stein called "soul-crushing" losses in games 4 and 5.  For the first time in the series, the Magic showed some real toughness in game 6, not only battling back not only from those extremely tough losses, but from double digit deficits in the second and third quarters.  The Celtics had the series all but locked up with just a few minutes remaining in the fourth, but the Magic rallied back.  They weren't supposed to do that, they're the team thats been consistantly folding in the fourth.  

Both teams have room to improve off of game 6.  For Boston, Ray Allen has been a complete non-factor this series.  The extra day off may serve him well.  While its certainly likely Allen will improve from his 2-11 (0-7 3pt) performance, the same can be said about a couple Orlando players.  Turkoglu and Redick combined to go 3-20 (1-7 3pt) in the game.  They're both much much better shooters than that.  Redick though is 3 for his last 25.  Either he's going to come around, or SVG will have to give him the red light and/or bench him.  Whatever the case may be, we're not going to see Orlando shoot 36% from the field again.

The Magic shot 54.6% from the line in game 6.  Sure they're the worst FT shooting team in the league, but they're not THAT bad.  If they can get to the line 25+ times like they have most of the series, they'll surely produce more than they did in game 6 (knock on wood).  

The Magic really seemed to figure out Boston defensively in game 6.  Holding the defending champs to 75 was impressive.  Holding them to 29 in the second half was down right remarkable.  That was with Pierce knocking down a couple clutch shots too.  If the defensive mastery we saw can continue - and it should - then its all over for the Celtics.

One of the biggest questions to me is whether Dwight can be as much of a force in game 7 as he was in game 6.  His rebounding, especially on the offensive end, was nothing short of spectacular.  He was everywhere, gobbling up everything.  It seems like a tough act to follow.  If he can keep that mindset though - the mindset that rebounding other players' misses is the best way to make an impact on the game - then we're in good shape.  If his focus lapses... and/or he tries to put the offense on his own shoulders like he's done earlier in the series... then its going to be tough.

As things are now, the Magic face elimination from the playoffs for the first time this year.  There's a very real chance that the much anticipated deep post-season run will end early.  Here's my take on whats going wrong.

• Reacting instead of acting & the misuse of Lee

The best example of reacting that I can think of here is the fact that we haven't started Lee in the past two games.  One can certainly argue that he's not 100%, but he's primarily been used as a counter to House.  While Lee has done a fantastic job on House, he only played 23 minutes in game 4, and a mind boggling 11 minutes in game 5.  Lee is too important to our team to only play 11 minutes in a critical playoff game!  Why are we basing our decisions on what Boston is doing, rather than forcing them to base their decisions on what we're doing?
Look at Boston in game 4.  They had the lead with time running out.  They intentionally gave us the lead with 11s left so that they could have the last shot.  Rather than leaving the fate of the game with the Magic, they GAVE AWAY THE LEAD so that win-or-lose, it was in their hands.  We all know how that ended.  Thats the sort of thing a championship team does, and the type of thing that we're not doing.

• Howard's poor decision making in the post

I love Howard to death.  I really do.  He's the best big man in the game and will be for years to come.  But his post-up game has been awful.  He's repeatedly been forced to settle for his hook shot, which he has consistantly missed.  Give some credit to Perkins who's done a great job on the defensive end.  Howard simply has to quit taking those shots though.  Its not working.  Howard may be criticizing SVG and asking for the ball more, but the truth is he really needs it less, unless he passes it back out to the perimeter more once the other defenders start collapsing on him.  That short range shot is too predictable, he's missing it far more than he's making it, and he's in no position to rebound the miss.  We just need Howard worrying about setting up the rest of the offense, and rebounding misses on that end of the court.

• Failing to exploit Rashard's massive advantage

Everyone who's watched a single game of this series knows that the biggest mismatch on the court is Lewis vs whomever is defending him.  Davis can't guard him.  Scalabrine can't guard him.  Moore can't guard him.  Its great that Lewis is averaging almost 21 ppg this series.  He SHOULD be averaging around 30.  Thats how lopsided this mismatch is, yet we continuously fail to take advantage of it for more than a few short spurts.  

• Alston has been terrible

13 for 44.  29.5% shooting for the series.  3 for 18 from 3 pt range, for a frigid 16.7%.  Rafer, quit shooting the ball.  Better yet, SVG please bench him.  I had been pleasantly surprised with Alston's play since we acquired him.  I'm done with him now.  I can't help but remember some of the comments Houston fans made on the Rockets game thread before we played them in March... about how we'd come to know the Alston that they knew and hated.  Well, that time has come.  He's been THAT bad.  He's been so bad that Rondo doesn't even guard him anymore - theres no need.  That just makes life tougher on the other four Magic players on the court.  This can't continue.  Turkoglu may not be as effective if he's the main ball handler, but at least he keeps the defense honest.

• Gortat hasn't been utilized enough.

Here's Gortat's stats for the entire series:  52 minutes played, 10 for 11 from the field, 29 points, 12 boards.  All I have to say is "Wow."  How is he averaging only 10 minutes a game, with the level of production he's achieved?  How about we start by giving all of Battie's minutes to the Polish Hammer?  (27 min, 6 for 14, 13pts 3 boards)  Sure five minutes per game isn't much, but Battie's just not getting it done in there.  
How about this lineup on the floor - Howard, Gortat, Lewis, Lee, Turkoglu.  What does Boston do against that?
I fear Gortat is going to be the next Ben Wallace or Chauncy Billups - a talented player the Magic underutilized who's going to go on to another team and become a major factor.  

Anyways, I think that about covers everything that I've seen up to this point, at least as far as the problems go.  There are certainly some things going right for Orlando, but I'm not feeling optomistic to look too deeply at those right now :(

For the first time ever at Third Quarter Collapse, the showcased fanpost for this week is authored by the same person, 3QC member RussL, for a second consecutive week. It's widely known that the Magic, with their recent struggles this past week, have fallen to the #3 seed for good. So, now the question is? Who will be the #6 seed? Below are all the scenarios and tiebreakers for the teams in the hunt (Chicago, Detroit, and Philadelphia). Before I conclude, don't forget to check out Eyriq the Red's excellent write-up on the "go-to players" for Orlando. Enjoy. - ER

As we know, the Magic will finish 3rd, and will play the 6th seed, whomever that may be.

As of now, Philly and Chicago are tied for 6/7, with Detroit one game back.  Here are our scenarios:

• Detroit wins out, Philly loses out, Chicago finishes 1-1.  Detroit and Chicago are tied, and the season series is 2-2.  Both have the same division record.  Detroit has the better conference record, and wins the #6.
• Detroit wins out, Philly and Chicago finish 0-2.  Detroit wins outright.
• Philly finishes 1-1, Detroit finishes 2-0, Chicago finishes 1-1:  all three are tied.  The team with the best combined record against both the other two teams wins.  Philly is 4-3.  Detroit is 3-4.  Chicago is 4-4.  Philly wins.  This scenario implies Detroit won tonight's game.
• Philly finishes 0-2, Detroit finishes 1-1, Chicago finishes 0-2:  all three teams are tied.  Again, the team with the best combined record against both of the other two teams wins.  Philly remains 4-3.  Detroit is 3-4. Chicago is 4-4.  Philly wins.  This scenario implies Detroit beat Chicago in tonight's game.
• Detroit finishes 2-0, Philly finishes 1-1, and the Bulls finish 0-2.  Philly won the season series 2-1 against Detroit, and wins the tiebreaker between those two teams
• Chicago and Philly finish 2-0 each.  The teams split the season series.  The team with the best conference record wins, which will be Philadelphia.
• Chicago and Philly finish 1-1, Detroit finishes 1-1 or 0-2.  The same result as the scenario above, Philly wins the tiebreaker against Chicago and the #6 seed
• Detroit finishes 0-2, Chicago finishes 2-0, Philly loses at least once - Chicago wins.
• Detroit finishes 0-2, Chicago finishes 1-1, Philly finishes 0-2 - Chicago wins
• Detroit finishes 0-2, Philly finishes 2-0, Chicago loses at least once - Philly wins.

But wait, there's more!

• Miami finishes 0-2, Chicago and Philly finish 2-0.  All three teams are tied.  The team with the best record against the other two wins.  Miami is 5-3.  Chicago is 3-5.  Philly is 4-4.  Miami remains #5, and Philly the tiebreaker over Chicago.
• Miami finishes 0-2, Chicago finishes 2-0, and Philly loses at least one.  Chicago is 1-3 against Miami, so Miami remains #5, and the Bulls finish 6th.
• Miami finishes 0-2, Philly finishes 2-0, Chicago loses at least one.  Miami and Philly split the season series.  Miami has the better conference record and remains #5, and Philly finishes 6th.

So really Miami can't actually move down at this point.  But I figured I'd throw them in there since its possible they could tie for 5/6/7.  :)

I *think* that covers all the possibilties :)  Tonight's game between the Bulls and Pistons is critical as we knew it would be.  If Detroit loses tonight, they cannot possibly win the #6 seed. 

The only way Detroit can possibly win the #6 is by going 2-0 and Philly going 0-2.
Philly holds the inside track for #6 at the moment.

With all the talk about trying to re-sign Hedo and Gortat, and the salary limitations that the Magic have, I played around a little bit with ESPN's NBA Trade Machine.  A straight up trade between Orlando and Toronto involving Lewis and Bosh is actually feasible.  Now the question becomes, is it something either team would realistically look at?

If I'm Toronto, I'm worried about Bosh leaving as a free agent in 2010, and being left with nothing.  Toronto is not exactly a go-to destination for high profile NBA players.  Yes, the Raptors will have a great deal of money to throw around that same summer - with a high number of premium free agents available... but is anyone actually going to want to go to Toronto?  The better option for them may be to trade for someone already under a long-term contract that the team can build around.  Lewis, an all-star of course, could fit into that.  Totonto's lack of any real long-term high priced contracts gives them the flexibility to take on Lewis's contract without any fears of mortaging the team's future.  Only one player is on a contract longer than 3 years (Calderon @ 5).  With no real apparant long-term plan in place, Lewis could become the basis for one.

As far as the Magic are concerned, Bosh should fit in nicely beside Howard.  The Magic's front court would be unrivaled.  They already have enough perimeter players, they can afford to lose Lewis without really hurting themselves.  From a financial standpoint, it would immediately free up a little space to re-sign Turkoglu. Salary cap numbers aside, a Magic team with Bosh has to be the favorite to win a championship in '09-'10.  That's got to present a pretty attractive reason to stay for Hedo, even if it means not getting paid his full market value.  The big question would be what happens in the summer of 2010.  Would Bosh stay, or go?  Would he take a pay-cut?  Is there anyone out there to replace him if he were to leave?  I'd think with Battie and Alston coming off the books that summer (assuming they're still with the team at the time) there'd be enough flexibility to keep him with the team.  It also doesn't hurt that he's a good friend of Howard's.  Even if Bosh were to leave, the Magic would have a fair amount of money to throw at another free agent.  Playing alongside Howard on a championship calibur team in a place with no state income tax for big bucks has got to be a pretty ideal situation :)  It IS the summer of LeBron after all.... 

You know the drill .. new showcased fanpost. It's been nearly a week since the Magic plastered the Cavaliers in front of a nationally televised audience. There were a ton of highlights for Orlando during that game and 3QC member RussL was kind enough to composite a majority of them in a poll. So, if you saw the game last Friday, which sequence in the game was your favorite? Let's get the voting machine churning with activity. If you'd like, you can include some additional thoughts in the comments section about the game, a highlight you liked, etc. Enjoy. - ER

So the Magic beat Cleveland for the eight time in their last eleven meetings.  They didn't just win, they dismantled the league leading Cavaliers.  This was one of the best games the Orlando Magic have ever played, as a franchise.  They clicked on all cylinders from start to finish - playing championship caliber defense, while running the game at their pace and consistently finding the open man on offense with terrific ball movement.

There were many highlights in this game.  My question is, which was your favorite?  I know I didn't include them all, there was no way as there were so many :)  

Poll

Which highlight from Magic vs. Cavs was your favorite?

11%

Alston's behind-the-back dribble, spin around James for the layup

12 votes

8%

Rashard Lewis's back-to-back three's in front of the Cavs bench

9 votes

1%

Howard's flying switch-to-left-hand layup

2 votes

25%

Marcin Gortat.... for three!?!

27 votes

31%

Howard blocks LBJ

34 votes

0%

AJ's breakaway dunk

1 votes

0%

Dwight dives out of bounds to save the possession, then cleans up Lee's miss with a dunk

1 votes

19%

Magic go up by 41 briefly

21 votes

107 votes | Poll has closed

The Magic are currently one game behind Boston for the #2 seed.  Boston holds the tiebreaker, so the  Magic will need to pick up 2 games on Boston.  Both teams have five games remaining on their schedule.

The Magic really should win out their remaining games, even if they play their starters limited minutes.  None of the teams remaining should present much of a challenge, though two games (including tonight) will fall on the end of back-to-backs.  The Magic's remaining schedule:

Memphis, NY, @ NJ, @ Milwaulkee, Charlotte

Assuming nothing terrible happens, the Magic will finish at 62-20, the best in franchise history.

Boston has a tougher road than Orlando.  Their schedule looks like this:

NJ, Miami, @Cleveland, @Philly, Washington

The Nets should go down easy, but there's no reason Cleveland shouldn't beat the Celtics.  Miami and Philly are also jockeying for playoff position, and the Wizards have Arenas back, and just beat Cleveland last week. KG's going to sit for all of those games. 

The Magic are certainly going to need the help of one or more of these teams to move up to #2, but I think there's a pretty decent chance they're going to get it.

 

Detroit plays in Cleveland and should lose. Chicago plays at Indiana and should win. If both occur, Chicago will reclaim the 7th seed from Detroit (for now). If something goes wrong, things tilt drastically towards the Magic playing Detroit in the first round. Also worth noting, the Lakers play the Bobcats in Charlotte. The Bobcats have won 6 of their last 7 against the Lakers, including a double overtime win earlier this year. Also, Kobe Bryant is not at 100%, having been battling a stomache ailment. The Lakers currently hold a 3 game lead over Orlando for a potential NBA finals matchup (yeah i know, thats looking too damned far ahead, but hey why not!) The Lakers have a rough schedule remaining, against several western conference playoff teams jockeying for position. The Lakers themselves don't have much to lose, as they've got a strangle hold on the #1 seed. They may well rest up heading towards the playoffs, and could potentially fall below the Magic in the overall standings.

The Pistons lost a game they were expected to lose - the Lakers.  

The Bulls on the other hand beat the toughest team that had been left on their schedule - the Heat.  

That ties Chicago and Detroit, though Chicago is ahead by a few percentage points in the standings, pushing the Pistons down to 8th.

Chicago has an easy easy schedule remaining.  Their toughest opponent through their last 9 games is Philly, whom they play at home.  They have only one back-to-back, with Toronto being the opponent on the back end of that.

Detroit on the other hand has a more difficult schedule.  They play four back-to-backs, and must play Philly, @ Cleveland, and @ Miami.

The Pistons do get one chance to make a stand for #7 when they host the Bulls on the 13th, which could prove to be critical for both teams.

In any case... Ladies and Gentlemen, the Magic's 1st round opponent:  The Chicago Bulls.  Assuming Orlando holds onto #2 :)  Since beating the Magic on 2/24, the Bulls have gone 9-7, including an ugly loss @ Orlando.  Magic in 5, in my opinion, then on to Boston.

Has anyone noticed that the 2 through 7 positions in the western conference are separated by only 2.5 games? How crazy is that. 8 isn't that far away from the pack either, only 1.5 back of 7. There's probably going to be a lot of shuffling around during the last few games of the season with some great games and playoff intensity.

Apparently this cannot be posted unless its 75 words long... but now it is!