Orlando Magic News for August 11th: Keeping an Eye on Boston and Cleveland; Debating the Merits of Owning the #1 Pick in the NBA Draft

by erivera7 on Aug 11, 2009 6:22 PM EDT in News Comment 7 comments

Ten Thousand Strong at Least
Rob Mahoney of Hardwood Paroxysm elaborates on how the Boston Celtics have been able to improve and what that means for the Orlando Magic.

I’m not ignoring the possibility that Garnett could and may miss some time. I just don’t think it’s fair to him or this team to assume it’s destined to happen.

Of course, the Celtics have added enough to still pose a real threat without KG. The Magic and the Cavs have made some tremendous moves this off-season, but the Boston army still looms. The C’s are absolutely stacked inside, and they’ve complemented Kendrick Perkins (who may be the best solo defender of Dwight Howard in the game) nicely by adding Rasheed Wallace, re-signing Glen Davis, and digging Shelden Williams out from under the porch. That’s a set of bigs to be proud of, even if the rest of the world eyes your team with bitter jealousy; Wallace and Davis can both space the floor on offense, while Perk and Williams are more prototypical defenders and rebounders inside. That’s depth without Kevin Garnett, and adding one of the best power forwards in the game back into that mix only makes it that much more potent. It’s nightmare fuel for every Eastern Conference coach nursing rebounding advantage dreams.
Detroit Pistons hire veteran NBA coach Brian Hill as assistant
Former Orlando head coach Brian Hill lands a coaching gig with the Detroit Pistons after spending two years as an assistant with the New Jersey Nets.
Tim Povtak and Matt Steinmetz, writers of NBA FanHouse, debate whether or not it's better to have the #1 pick in the NBA Draft or cap space.
In other news relevant to the Magic, the Boston Celtics have re-signed Glen Davis and the Cleveland Cavaliers have signed Leon Powe.
Video From My Father Son Basketball Camp in Atlanta
UPDATE: Dwight Howard reveals a video of his basketball camp in Atlanta.

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man

Top 3 in East really re-tooled. Going to be a dog fight. Losing Shard seems bigger and bigger every day..

"No matter where you go, you are what you are playa"-Jay Z
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by Wmillion on Aug 12, 2009 1:38 AM EDT via mobile reply actions 0 recs

I really have to criticize HP

for thinking that KG has much more left in his tank. “One of the best power forwards in the game…” I just don’t buy it.

I would put Duncan, Gasol, Jefferson, Bosh ahead with Aldridge and Lee or Boozer close to KG’s level. The man is plain old for a big man.

by fwedo on Aug 12, 2009 3:00 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Jury is out on KG (he's not injury-prone, but have to wonder about wear & tear).

But he’s certainly still one of the best power forwards in the game.

I'm the other guy at Third Quarter Collapse, with a Twitter account.

"Never hate your enemies. It affects your judgement." - Michael Corleone

by erivera7 on Aug 12, 2009 3:06 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Statistically, he’s not going to beat out the likes of Boozer. But Boozer is a poor defender, Lee is a worse one, and Aldridge can’t rebound. I’d rather get 16 and 9 from Garnett than 20 and 10 from a Bosh or a Jefferson — Garnett passes, he’s still one of the league’s best defenders, he has more intangibles than anyone you mentioned except maybe Duncan.

I’m not saying he’s the best PF in the league… but he does more than just about any of them, except maybe Gasol, and even Gasol is a mediocre defender. (Duncan is a center. I don’t care what they call him, the man plays center.) Garnett doesn’t have flaws. Her doesn’t do anything GREAT any more (except probably still defense), but he’s really good at everything — including things PFs don’t even normally do.

(Then again, I know I underrate Bosh. I’m going to KEEP underrating Bosh, too. The kid is just so lukewarm… he’s like Jermaine O’Neal in his prime, minus the shot-blocking. Bleh — I just look at him, and it’s like, “okay, he’s a star, I guess.” I don’t care how old KG is, he still beats that guy when it comes down to it.)

He's currently two-thirds man, one-third amazing. Which, let's face it, is still a pretty good ratio.

by 3.3seconds on Aug 12, 2009 3:42 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

+1

You are 100 pct right.

by Dzogi on Aug 12, 2009 9:59 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Boston is stacked for the next 2 years.

Things are pretty plain on the paper:
1. Boston. 2. Orlando. 3 . Cleveland. That’s on the East,of course. Anything can happen,but this is likely to be outcome of the season.
On the West,I believe Lakers are still far ahead of the others. Spurs got better,and I would love to see them beat LA,but I doubt it.

by Dzogi on Aug 12, 2009 10:03 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs