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07-08 Magic Season Preview; Realgm article
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Topic Started: Oct 3 2007, 09:55 PM (687 Views)
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MAGICMANEVAN
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Oct 3 2007, 09:55 PM
Post #1
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#1 Magic Fan
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http://realgm.com/src_twoplusthefoul/165/2...heast_division/
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- Orlando Magic -
Last year’s Magic team was able to survive in the East and land the final playoff spot. However, they made some huge waves in the off-season and have a newfound plan of attack. They brought in a new coach and a big name free agent. But will that be enough to offset the losses that this team faced in free agency? Will mortgaging the future on two players pay off? Let’s take a closer look.
NBA Draft Picks: Marcin Gortat (2005 second rounder – contract purchased)
Key Additions: Rashard Lewis (trade – Seattle), Adonal Foyle (FA – Golden State), Milovan Rakovic (trade – Dallas)
Key Losses: Grant Hill (FA – Phoenix), Darko Milicic (FA – Memphis), Travis Diener (FA – Indiana), Reyshawn Terry (trade – Dallas), Bo Outlaw (FA – unsigned)
Who isn’t excited about seeing the inside-outside combo of Dwight Howard and Rashard Lewis for the next six years? Okay, maybe Orlando’s upper management when they realize they’ll be paying over $40M for the two players in 2012. Despite the fact that, on paper, this seems like an explosive duo that reminds Magic fans of Shaq and Penny, let’s take a step back and realize that Dwight is a freakish athlete, but is extremely limited in his offensive repertoire. He is basically a glorified David Lee with springs on his shoes. He scores the majority of his points on the offensive glass and on vicious dunks. Fine, but in order for Stan Van Gundy to get the most of this combo, he is going to have to get Dwight Howard to be able to control the paint and score off the dribble, which will give Rashard Lewis (and hopefully J.J. Redick) the open looks that he needs to be successful. This is why the best move of the Magic off-season was bringing in Patrick Ewing to coach the man-child’s offensive game.
The thing I don’t like about the Magic off-season is that they gave up four solid players for one. I include Reyshawn Terry because he has the potential to be a valuable backup off the bench, and a second round steal. His gritty UNC upbringing was needed on this team and I don’t have much faith in Marcin Gortat or Milovan Rakovic. The loss of Darko Milicic to Memphis and Tony Battie to a torn rotator cuff leaves them extremely weak in the paint, and Adonal Foyle is not the answer. Foyle will be good for six fouls on Shaq and not much else. One of the primary reasons for the resurgence of the Magic last season was the leadership and solid play of veteran Grant Hill. His loss will go under the radar now, but will loom large when the only players taking his spot will be the underachieving J.J. Redick and career sparkplug Keyon Dooling. That, and if Redick continues to be a bust, then the most consistent three-point threats that will draw double teams off of Dwight will be Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard, two 6-10 forwards. That doesn’t normally translate too many offensive rebounds.
Burning Questions
- Will J.J. Redick be able to win the starting two guard spot? - Will Dwight and Rashard become the best duo in the East? - Will Jameer Nelson get his extension? - Will Stan Van Gundy make this a better team than last year? - Will Dwight Howard learn how to play off the dribble? - Will Trevor Ariza ever learn to hit the outside jumper? - Who will provide reliable three-point shooting outside of Lewis? - Who will man the paint now that Darko is gone and Battie is out?
Person on the Hot Seat: Rashard Lewis
The acquisition of Rashard Lewis puts the Magic in a hole financially for a long time. He must prove his worth immediately; otherwise this Magic team could struggle to reach the playoffs. With a much improved Eastern Conference, the Magic will have trouble competing with one of the thinnest front lines in the league. Rashard Lewis must step up and account for the lack of depth up front.
Team Outlook
The Magic have plenty of offensive weapons and one of the best defensive big men in the league. They looked poised to turn the corner toward being an elite team, until they decided not to resign Darko Milicic and they woke up to find out that Tony Battie was likely lost for most of, if not all of, the season. Stan Van Gundy has turned nothing into something before, and with this many weapons, he should be able to lead this team toward the brink of the postseason.
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gomagic33
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Oct 3 2007, 11:57 PM
Post #2
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Mr. Anderson
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"the brink of the postseason"? Yeah right. This team will do more than that.
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iceveins333
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Oct 4 2007, 01:14 AM
Post #3
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Rocks blocking shots on guys with dreadlocks
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- gomagic33
- Oct. 3 2007 10:57 PM
"the brink of the postseason"? Yeah right. This team will do more than that.
its realgm, its a bunch of retards w/ nothing better to do so they write up b.s articles trying to act like they know everything about every team in the league
seriously, dwight howard is a "glorified david lee" , yeah his post game might not be that great but he sure as hell isnt a glorified david lee
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Ben Q Rock
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Oct 4 2007, 11:10 AM
Post #4
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3QC
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It's David Lee whose nickname is DaWhite Howard, not the other way around.
Their per-40 minute numbers from last season are similar, but Dwight has a decisive advantage in points (19.1to 14.4) and blocks (2.1 to 0.9); whereas Lee holds a slight advantage in assists (2.4 to 2.1) and steals (1.1 to 0.9). Their field-goal percentages are nearly identical (Dwight .603, Lee .600), but the real disparity is in free throw percentage: Dwight at .586, Lee at .815.
Yeah, David Lee is a good player, but Dwight Howard is better in two key categories (points and blocks) while having comparable rebounding numbers. He holds the edge.
Think of it this way: Suppose Shaq wins the All-Star balloting (again) and starts in that game. The coaches vote on the reserves. Even if Lee were considered a center, do you think they would choose him over Howard if they had only one roster spot left?
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