Thoughts on the Magic-Suns-Wizards Blockbuster

I'm going to Orlando to play with Hedo? Ball.

The Magic made two trades today in the hopes of possibly re-invigorating their franchise's title hopes.  The first was with the Phoenix Suns in which they sent Vince Carter, Marcin Gortat, Mickael Pietrus, their 2011 first rounder and $3 million to bring back former Magic player Hedo Turkoglu, Jason Richardson and Earl Clark.  The 2nd trade was for much maligned star Gilbert Arenas, for which they swapped Rashard Lewis.

The Magic Are Struggling From Deep

The Orlando Magic have been one of the most efficient and fun to watch team's over the past couple of seasons because of the beautiful 1-in, 4-out scheme Stan Van Gundy has crafted using his all-world center Dwight Howard as an offensive focal point. When the system is working, it produces a lot of wide open looks for the Magic's perimeter players because the opposing wings often double down when Dwight has the ball in the post.

Though Dwight still hasn't established himself as a lethal offensive threat, teams constantly choose to have their guards and forwards try to strip him in the post. And as Howard has grown over the years, his passing may be his most improved skill, and his ability to pass out the post is a big reason Orlando has emerged as a top four team in the entire league over the past two seasons.

The Good, Bad and the Ugly: Oct. 28th, 2010

This tweet sums up this picture nicely.

The Good, Bad and the Ugly is the Pick and Scroll's way of looking at the previous nights games.  We take a look at some (but not all) of the good, the not-so-good, and the downright atrocious for each team.


Only two games tonight, but we saw the debut of John Wall and both Phoenix and Utah trying to get their first wins of the season.


Washington Wizards (0-1)

• The Good:  Perhaps the only bright spot in this whole game for the Wizards was Cartier Martin.  He was the only one who looked like he knew what he was doing out there, and he had a solid overall game, at least offensively.  The Wizards also did a pretty good job forcing turnovers, getting 10 steals, and forcing Orlando to commit 21 turnovers.
• The Bad:  John Wall's debut was terrible.  I tweeted this before the game, and it looks like I was right.  With Dwight at the rim, Wall was afraid to drive, and since he can't shoot, he was forced into a lot of bad jumpers.  14 points on 6-19 shooting, an inauspicious start for the rookie.  He did do a nice job distributing however with 9 assists, which looks even more impressive given the putrid quality of his teammates.
• The Ugly:  I could say just about everything, but I'm going to focus on the interior defense.  It was horrendous.  The Magic were able to get whatever they wanted inside (18-21 at the rim, 10-15 from within 10 feet), and none of the Wizards big men could do anything about it.  Hilton Armstrong was especially ineffective, playing 11 minutes, having two turnovers and five fouls.  

Orlando Magic (1-0)

• The Good:  The Magic ran their offense to perfection tonight, and their defense was excellent as well, thriving on the fact that Washington has hardly any shooters.  Vince Carter was spectacular, going for 18 points and only missing 4 shots in 25 minutes, Dwight Howard had 23 points and 10 boards with 3 blocks in 29 minutes on 7-9 shooting.  The rebounding battle was no battle at all either, as Orlando (53)more than doubled Washington's rebounds (25).
• The Bad:  Dwight Howard's FT shooting.  Dude needs to get better here.  He got to the line 19 times but only knocked down 9 of them.  He starts off with good form, but then ends up just doing a more pretty looking flick at the hoop than Shaq.  Extend that elbow, just like a jumper.  Use your legs.  I think with a new form at the line Dwight could hit 70%.
• The Ugly:  The Magic were a tad careless with the ball, getting 21 turnovers and only 20 assists.  That needs to tighten up.  As well as they played, they still have some work to do.

Utah and Phoenix after the jump.

2010-11 Season Previews: Orlando Magic

Ripping your shirt open like that seems like it could get expensive.

The NBA Season is fast upon us, so its time for the Pick and Scroll to begin previewing each team. We're going to go in order from worst previous record to best. Let's talk about Orlando, two seasons removed from the NBA Finals and looking to get back, and this time, win.

2009-10 Record: 59-23
Additions: Quentin Richardson (FA), Chris Duhon (FA), Malik Allen (FA), Daniel Orton (Draft)
Subtractions: Matt Barnes, Anthony Johnson, Adonal Foyle, Stan Van Gundy's Turtlenecks

Unsung Heroes: Southeast Division

This is like a Rorschach Test. What do you see?

Players are often described as being "overrated" or "underrated".  In the NBA, this often translates to overrated players being players that are good, but vastly overpaid for their abilities, or who get more media exposure than some other players, while underrated often means a player who is making a pittance for his current production (funnily enough, underrated players tend to become labeled overrated when they get new, bigger contracts).

I do think there are some underrated players though, players that aren't as widely known for their roles on their team, who don't often get mentioned for their contributions but are indeed integral parts of their team.

Over the next week or so, I'll be looking at each team to find one "underrated" player for each team in the league.  Tuesday, we looked at the Atlantic Divsion, and yesterday the Central.  After the jump, we travel to the Southeast to finish our Eastern Conference trip.