I want the Magic to take it to all of our Eastern conference foes, and I've been a fan through the good and the bad. However, I am not optimistic about this year. Let's be honest-we have the advantage at the center position. Beyond that: we lose at PF - Bosh or Boozer trumps Lewis; we lose at SF - James or Pierce trumps Richardson; we lose at SG - Wade trumps Carter; and at best we tie at PG - Nelson matches Rondo.

My thinking is that even if "inside-out" beats opponents during the regular season, match-up problems doom us in the playoffs. Add that to our salary issues for the next two years, and you end up with a rather bleak picture. It's really too bad, because we had a few years that really were encouraging.

Am I reading this incorrectly? I mean, I know that it is a team-game, but the individual prospects do not seem to be encouraging.