Orlando Magic News for December 22nd: Stan Van Gundy Praises Dwight Howard's Defense; More on J.J. Redick
by erivera7 on Dec 22, 2009 7:00 PM EST
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Orlando Magic notes: Stan Van Gundy calls Dwight Howard "anybody I've been around" defensively
Dwight Howard receives praise from his coach, particularly about his defense.Stan Van Gundy has coached some excellent interior defenders, including P.J. Brown and Alonzo Mourning.
But Van Gundy says Dwight Howard, the NBA's reigning defensive player of the year, is on a different level.
"He's a better pick-and-roll defender, probably, than Alonzo was and a better shot-blocker than P.J. was," Van Gundy said. "There's just not much he can't do defensively. I think as a big guy he's as good as anybody I've been around." -
The Orlando Magic, nine other teams will debut new shooting shirts on Christmas
Josh Robbins shares apparel news concerning the Orlando Magic.If you attend or turn in to the Orlando Magic-Boston Celtics game on Christmas Day, don’t be surprised if you see the Magic dressed just a bit different during warm-ups.
The Magic, the Celtics and the eight other teams playing on Christmas will debut new adidas shooting shirts. -
Carter Slides as Redick Rises in Orlando
Tim Povtak of NBA FanHouse talks about J.J. Redick's emergence.Van Gundy has rewarded Redick's improved play with more playing time recently. He has responded by scoring in double figures in five of his last seven games. His defense is better, too. His assists are up, and his understanding of the game is as good as anyone else on the team.
"He's playing with great confidence, and with good reason. Success breeds confidence,'' Van Gundy said. "He's so focused, so on top of everything. He's got great confidence in himself now, and we've got confidence in him.'' -
Hanging with my man C-Booz
Dwight Howard posts on his official blog today and states how he and Carlos Boozer were able to hang out while the Utah Jazz were in town.When Booz came to the house on Sunday, we hung out and watched a lot of the NFL games on TV. Of course, everybody was asking me if we talked about playing together since he’s going to be a free agent this summer. Of course, that would be a dream come true for both of us, but we’ll have to see what happens. Booz will have to make a decision on his own and do what’s best for him and his family. That has to come first in any decision.
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jj has really stepped his game up lately.
he had some moves to basket last night that looked like carter going to the rim.
by magicman775 on Dec 22, 2009 8:58 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
Tim Povtak is SUCH a hater
He was always pissing in the cornflakes of Magic fans when he was at the Sentinel and he continues to do so. Hey Tim, what’s it like being a douche bag?
by Vindibudd on Dec 22, 2009 10:25 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
Easy, easy, easy.
I write for Orlando Pinstriped Post and have a Twitter account.
"The second unit is kind of crazy because the second unit is only white guys." - Marcin Gortat
by erivera7 on Dec 22, 2009 11:05 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Carter's shooting under 40% from the field.
It’s not exactly a stretch to call that a legitimate concern.
It's a good thing Larry Bird's initials weren't MJ. '80s basketball was confusing enough -- Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Marles Jarkley, Mominique Jilkins... Makeem Jolajuwon...
by 3.3seconds on Dec 23, 2009 12:31 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I'm not worried about Vince.
As long as he can stay healthy, his late game, one possession abilities are legit and exactly what the Magic will need deep in the playoffs.
by CaliFlorida on Dec 23, 2009 2:11 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
"Late game, one possession abilities" are a myth.
Carter, like every other player in the history of the NBA, is the same shooter in the fourth quarter that he is in the other three quarters — and right now, the shooter he is is lousy.
(Anyway, if he made some shots in (say) the second quarter, wouldn’t we be several points ahead of the fourth-quarter situation you’re expecting him to bail us out of?)
It's a good thing Larry Bird's initials weren't MJ. '80s basketball was confusing enough -- Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Marles Jarkley, Mominique Jilkins... Makeem Jolajuwon...
by 3.3seconds on Dec 23, 2009 2:24 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Ok . . . I should remind myself that the word clutch has absolutely no meaning in this mythical world you speak of.
In any case, you missed the point. I don’t really care so much about Carter’s shooting as what he allows the offense to do in late game situations.
by CaliFlorida on Dec 23, 2009 2:31 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I'm talking about the "mythical" world the stats speak of.
All the statistical evidence suggests there’s no difference between what happens at the end of a basketball game and what happens in the rest of it.
If the Magic choose to run their offense differently in late game situations, that’s Van Gundy’s mistake — or Vince’s. And if it’s the former, I guess you can’t blame Vince, but a lot of the time, I get the sense it’s the latter.
It's a good thing Larry Bird's initials weren't MJ. '80s basketball was confusing enough -- Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Marles Jarkley, Mominique Jilkins... Makeem Jolajuwon...
by 3.3seconds on Dec 23, 2009 2:59 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
If the game is on the line, the ball will probably go to Carter.
The numbers I showed a few days ago reveal that Vince is the most effective player for the Orlando Magic with the game on the line, with Rashard Lewis a close second.
I write for Orlando Pinstriped Post and have a Twitter account.
"The second unit is kind of crazy because the second unit is only white guys." - Marcin Gortat
by erivera7 on Dec 23, 2009 3:06 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I don't know about that.
What I do know is that in the playoffs, especially late in games, the nature of possessions change. You will need a perimeter guy capable of creating his own shot or a good shot for someone else. On this Magic team, those guys are Carter and Jameer.
by CaliFlorida on Dec 23, 2009 3:09 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
And if healthy, those are two guys I have a lot of confidence in.
3.3, I take it you don’t feel the same about Carter. You should recognize though that there isn’t a player on the Magic more capable than Carter of matching someone like Paul Pierce play for play at the end of a playoff game. At some point, it will come down to that sort of situation.
by CaliFlorida on Dec 23, 2009 3:14 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
I think if we're talking about "matching" someone "play for play", we've already lost.
Whatever happened to finding the open man? We’ve seen a lot of 3-8 and 2-7 performances from Vince down the stretch. Is that better than any other Magic player could do with an unending series of isolations? Probably. But there’s a reason we don’t run an unending series of isolations at any point OTHER than near the end of the game — because it’s an inefficient way to play basketball. And it doesn’t miraculously become MORE efficient as the numbers on the clock change.
It's a good thing Larry Bird's initials weren't MJ. '80s basketball was confusing enough -- Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Marles Jarkley, Mominique Jilkins... Makeem Jolajuwon...
by 3.3seconds on Dec 23, 2009 3:55 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Pic Caption: The ball, fearing a Dwight Howard slap, jumps out of Paul Millsap's hands.
Dwight: “Boo!”
Ball: “Aaaaahhhhhhhh!”
Millsap: “Hey, come back here!”
by magicfaninTN on Dec 23, 2009 11:25 AM EST reply actions 0 recs
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