Jesus, I hope this is a joke. If Maggette signs with the Spurs it may completly change my view of Otis Smith. How could he let him go to the Spurs???

... I wouldn’t put all the blame on Otis. This is where Dwight, ‘Shard, and Turk need to become avid recruiters and go after guys like Maggette.

If we somehow sign Maggette, it won’t mean losing Hedo. The Clippers can’t afford to bring Maggette back now that they’ve agreed to sign Baron Davis, and are expected to re-sign Elton Brand. So we’ll either get Maggette outright or we’ll lose him to one of the league’s elite teams… or, if he cares more about money, to Memphis or to Philadelphia.

If Otis doesn’t sign Maggette and another title contender signs him for the MLE, this offseason will be considered a failure in my opinion. I’ll be stunned.

I still think he’s gonna make a deal for more money in Philly.

I never really expected Maggette to come to play for the Magic anyhow. Just because the Magic won’t be signing him, it’s too early yet to call this off-season a failure for Otis Smith.

Smith says that he wants to split the MLE between two players. Let’s hope he has a definite plan in mind of who to go after.

The Spurs are a much better fit. Still, the Magic need to go into full sales mode and give it their best shot.

first, i think everyone needs to chill. even though a lineup of jameer, maggette, hedo, rashard and dwight is enough to make us all salivate at the mouth, let’s review for a bit.

1 – otis has already said that he eants to split the MLE between two players. Given this teams many needs, you really can’t fault this logic.

1. 2 – and more importantly – maggette’s greatest asset is his ability to get to the free throw line (9.7 per game – Dwight was 2nd in the league I think at 10.9). this means he needs the ball to be effective. With Dwight getting the ball in the post (more often then last year hopefully), hedo and rashard popping/driving, and jameer doing his thing, where are the shots going to come from?

3 – it is absolutely crucial that the Magic keep salary cap flexibility in the future to keep Dwight happy. We already have it bad enough with Rashard and Jameer. Signing Maggette to a 4-5 year deal at the MLE would do a lot to tie us up even more for when we need to re-sign Hedo.

all that being said, if maggette were to want to come for the MLE for 3-4 years, I do it in a heart beat. i just think that the idea that this would be a failed summer without signing maggette is a bit extreme.

-Dooling has been contacted by 7 teams, I assume one of them can offer him the starting job that he has desired for years
-8 teams have contacted Pietrus, but sources say the Magic aren’t one of them
-There is a strong possibility that Chris Duhon could end up getting a good chunk of the MLE and end up being our 2nd string pg.

So yeah, I know it’s only the 2nd of July but I don’t like what I’m seeing so far.

If Maggette signs for the MLE for another team, I would be left wondering. I never thought he would sign for less then what he was already making. I think Golden State and Philly are the 2 teams to watch for in all this.