Orlando Magic 100, Charlotte Bobcats 79
by Evan Dunlap on Dec 31, 2011 2:41 AM EST
in 2011/2012 Recaps
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PrintDwight Howard dominated the Charlotte Bobcats on Friday night, ending the Orlando Magic's 2011 calendar year on a high note in his team's 100-79 win. Though he struggled from a scoring, needing 16 shots and 14 free throw attempts for his 20 points, Howard's fingerprints were all over this game, Orlando's third consecutive win and second in as many nights. The reigning Defensive Player of the Year grabbed 24 boards (six offensive) for the second straight game. He added four assists, a steal, and four blocks to his total as well. And the numbers simply cannot account for the open looks his very presence created for his teammates; just ask Ryan Anderson, who led all scorers with 23 points--including five three-pointers--largely as a result of the extra attention Charlotte needed to pay Howard.
Howard's drawn double-teams, or at least extra attention, from help defenders for the last several seasons. That's not new. But the way in which he attacks them early in the 2011/12 campaign is different. He's more patient and surehanded, for one thing, and he's made demonstrable progress when it comes to reading opposing defenses and making the right pass. His four assists ranked him second on the team Friday, and if the NBA counted hockey assists, he might well have paced the Magic.
Former Magic player Corey Maggette led the Bobcats with 20 points, but he and maybe D.J. Augustin were the only Bobcats to distinguish themselves at either end of the floor, though Byron Mullens' 12-point effort in 15 minutes off Charlotte's bench is bound to turn heads.
| Team | Pace | Efficiency | eFG% | FT Rate | OReb% | TO Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bobcats | 88.5 | 89.3 | 39.2% | 16.9 | 25.5 | 13.6 |
| Magic | 88.5 | 113.0 | 51.2% | 16.7 | 32.6 | 13.6 |
| Green denotes a stat better than the team's 2010/11 average; red denotes a stat worse than the team's 2010/11 average. | ||||||
Howard and Anderson weren't the only bright spots. Hedo Turkoglu scored a quiet, efficient 15 points in 30 minutes, while Jason Richardson continued his recent trend of getting involved in the offense early, scoring 13 of his 16 points in the first half.
One could best describe Augustin as slippery. He's small, quick, and has a lethal crossover dribble that enables him to scramble defenses on his drives to the rim, setting up a shot for himself or a kickout to a teammate. He succeeded with this approach for a bit, but Howard's presence prevented Augustin from doing much damage anywhere near the basket. And Maggette got nine of his 20 from three-point range; though known for putting his head down and driving into defenders to draw fouls, Maggette spent much of Friday night running off screens and firing away from midrange and beyond.
In short, Howard disrupted nearly everything Charlotte did on both ends of the floor. And he did this playing 40 minutes, including the entire second half, on the back end of a back-to-back set. 48 rebounds in his last 78 minutes on the court. I don't even know how to process that.
When the entire team makes a commitment to moving the ball and playing unselfishly, Orlando can succeed even without starting point guard Jameer Nelson, as it did Friday. Nelson sat out with a neck stinger suffered on Thursday, leaving Chris Duhon to start in his place. Duhon played an unspectacular 32 minutes--two points on 1-of-1 shooting, two rebounds, six assists, three turnovers--but Orlando didn't ask him to do a helluva lot. He and backup Larry Hughes sometimes struggled with the backcourt pressure the Bobcats applied, coming close to eight-second violations on several occasions. And Hughes' handle is far from sharp, though his line-drive of a jumper is in midseason form.
Apart from Redick, the Magic's bench is a mess, but they managed to get the win regardless. Since losing on opening night to the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Magic haven't faced a playoff-caliber team, so it's hard to know exactly what to make of them yet. Regardless of the opponent, the improvements Howard and Redick have made, coupled with Turkoglu's resurgence, give reason for cautious optimism moving forward.
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Gotta love that Magic D
For the third consecutive game, the Magic did not allow their opponent to shoot 50% or over in any quarter. Charlotte’s best shooting quarter was the first at 8 of 17 (47.1%). The remaining three quarters, the Bobcats shot an awful 22 of 66 (33.3%) from the field.
Even though the Magic’s offense failed to shoot 50% or better in any quarter, their very good three point shooting of 12 of 28 (42.9%) helped take their eFG% over 50% for the game.
This game was the tenth time in Dwight Howard’s career that he has scored at least 20 points in a game along with at least 20 rebounds and four blocks, and the first time in more than two years.
In an unusual stat, Chris Duhon became the second Magic guard in franchise history to play at least 30 minutes in a game and attempt no more than one field goal.
Also, Duhon’s six assists were the third most he has had in a game in a Magic uniform.
Howard is now 14 of 36 (38.9%) on free throws this season, while Glen Davis, who is providing energy and defense coming off the bench, is shooting just 10 of 28 (35.7%) from the field. Those percentages have nowhere to go but up, fortunately.
The Magic have now beaten the Bobcats for the ninth straight time, including the ’10 playoffs.
The Magic won handily over a Bobcat team that barely lost by just a point to the Miami Heat in their previous game.
Chicago Blackhawks... 2010 Stanley Cup Champions
Chicago Bears... 2010 NFC North Champion
Orlando Magic... 1995 and 2009 Eastern Conference Champions
by Mike from Illinois on Dec 31, 2011 3:38 AM EST reply actions
Great work, as always, Mike!
"We just want to chill" - Chris Bosh.
Proud Jameer and Rashard apologist since '07
while Glen Davis, who is providing energy and defense coming off the bench, is shooting just 10 of 28 (35.7%) from the field.
Davis shot selection HAS to get better. He will shoot that 15 ft. jumper even if there is a man in his face. That crap is not gonna fly here. Your not that good
I probably know Judo! How many of you can make the same boast?
by Souwantmyname on Dec 31, 2011 9:11 PM EST up reply actions
The bench will come around
Thanks for the stats Mike, always interesting and informative.
If Dwight stays out of foul trouble, he can play 40-44 minutes a game, 6 games a week. Davis as our backup big man is enough (but I still think Clark will find some minutes) for an abbreviated season.
If Duhon played like he did yesterday, don’t make too many mistakes is all we ask-I’d almost believe that Jameer could come off the bench with JJ and be a dynamite combo.
Turk is the main ball handler anyways, so Duhon only needs to hang out on the wing and play a little D.
The story of the season for me so far has been Rhino. He knows he’s the starter and he’s playing with such confidence. He’s very sneaky around the rim, his defense will never be outstanding but his positioning is better, he’s capable of hitting 4 or 5 in a row. He’s got a scorer’s mentality and I think I see more trust in Rhino from Dwight.
Of course I also agree that we still have to see how we stack up against better teams. But when Dwight’s at the top of his game, I feel we have a legitimate shot in any 7 game series-as long as two other outside players are hitting a few shots…
When you arrive at a fork in the road, take it. (Otis took it!)
Yogi Berra
I hope
Dwight doesn’t have to play anywhere near 40 minutes a game in this season. Duhon is
Improving but shouldn’t be a starter so Jameer can come off the bench.
{ ZuKeO}
by BobInBlue on Dec 31, 2011 11:20 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
We've needed Nelson off the bench for years now ...smh
Especially since he is so fragile
I probably know Judo! How many of you can make the same boast?
by Souwantmyname on Jan 1, 2012 12:46 PM EST up reply actions
It's too early to judge.
And especially since, as Evan pointed out, we had a pretty easy schedule so far, but yeah, so far so good. Most importantly, Dwight seems happy again.
i think von wafer should be gettin more playing time
but i guess its hard to get playing time when J Rich and Redick are playing so well. Hughes didnt look as thought as I he would be. Davis needs to stop shooting the ball so much if hes gonna miss so much..but he looks better defensively than Bass, but I don’t trust his jump shot at all right now. On the bright side, Ryan Anderson is finally looking like hes is emerging into the player we thought he could be. I hope he can do this against the harder teams in the league, but we’ll see. Dwight is a beast and his passing has improved…that pass to Anderson was real dope! I’d like to see Justin Harper get more minutes too as the backup PF when Davis is at C and Anderson is on the bench. I still think Earl Clark is too raw to play mins, as well as Orton and Liggins.
Don't be a follower homie, be a leader! And if I lose you on twitter, then so be it
by supermantotherescue on Dec 31, 2011 7:56 AM EST reply actions
Sorry but that was an easy pass by Dwight to Ryan
it is good that he saw him though
I probably know Judo! How many of you can make the same boast?
by Souwantmyname on Dec 31, 2011 9:14 PM EST up reply actions
yea
it seems like Dwight’s vision is better this year. Also SVG demeanor is a lot better this year…i hope he keeps this up because i always thought his temper tantrums were a distraction for this team..
On another note, I find it interesting that nobody has signed Arenas yet. I was an Arenas supporter last season cuz I think he still think he can be a good player, and he can pass the ball to Dwight better than Nelson. If we somehow keep Dwight this year, I hope we re-sign him at a proper value
Don't be a follower homie, be a leader! And if I lose you on twitter, then so be it
by supermantotherescue on Jan 1, 2012 2:01 AM EST up reply actions
Pretty sure the Magic can't sign him until his amnestied contract is up in 3 years.
Can we just start playing games on the court already?!
I don't think that is true.
Salary cap guru Larry Coon says it’s the length of the contract.
The team that waives the player cannot re-sign or re-acquire the player for the length of his contract.
Can we just start playing games on the court already?!
wowww
thats ridiculous…i thought it was just for this season
Don't be a follower homie, be a leader! And if I lose you on twitter, then so be it
by supermantotherescue on Jan 1, 2012 2:53 PM EST up reply actions
I am thinking someone in the FO had a sit down with SVG about his tirades on the bench
those were counter productive to the team and former Magic players have stated as much
I probably know Judo! How many of you can make the same boast?
by Souwantmyname on Jan 1, 2012 12:49 PM EST up reply actions
yea
that or Dwight demanded it
Don't be a follower homie, be a leader! And if I lose you on twitter, then so be it
by supermantotherescue on Jan 1, 2012 2:53 PM EST up reply actions
Let's hope we can....
Carry the winning streak all the way through the next bulls game. That should be a good measure.
Anderson is now averaging 21.8 points per 36 minutes
The last players other than Dwight Howard to be a full-time player and average over 20 PPG were Grant Hill and Steve Francis in 2004-05, with 20.3 and 20.1 per 36 respectively. (For those wondering why I said full-time player, both Von Wafer this year and Bo Outlaw a few years back had freakishly high numbers in 2-game samples)
How good has Anderson been to start the season? He’s currently #3 in Win Shares, behind LeBron and Kevin Durant. James Harden and Kobe round out the top five. He’s also #3 in turnover percentage. Dorell Wright and Arron Afflalo are the only players who turn the ball over less than Anderson.
Anderson may cool off a bit, though – he’s currently shooting career bests from the floor overall, from three-point range, and from the charity stripe.
For other Magic players doing good things:
Dwight is #1 in defensive rebounding percentage, at 38.9%. That’s mildly ridiculous. Roughly 2 out of every 5 missed shots wind up in his hands. Channing Frye is at 37.4%, and nobody else is over 35%. For total rebound rate, about 1 out of every 4 missed shots belongs to Dwight. He’s now averaging 17.5 rebounds per game. Kevin Love is at 14.7.
J. J. Redick is #2 in offensive rating. When he’s on the floor, the Magic average 1.414 points per possession. Marvin Williams is the only player ahead of him.
Bob.
I absolutely love this team!
And I have to believe that Dwight is impressed with the effort he’s seeing. If we keep this up, it’s going to be hard for him to leave.
by McD5 on Dec 31, 2011 11:44 AM EST reply actions 1 recs
I am so glad that Duhon has started this season pretty solid so far
I was an admitted Duhon apologist last year, and it just got embarrassing. I wasn’t understanding why he was playing so badly because the guy seems like he would be the perfect backup for Jameer.
If the Magic must trade Dwight to the Lakers, it better be for Gasol & Bynum and 2 picks, and the Lakers better take Duhon & Turkoglu (I'll miss you, Hedo!!!)l.
How is 2 points 6 assists and 3 turnovers good? For a starting PG
He has been so awful for us so when he is terrible and not utterly dreadful people think its progress… smh
I probably know Judo! How many of you can make the same boast?
by Souwantmyname on Dec 31, 2011 9:17 PM EST up reply actions
He's not a starter though (permanent one anyway), he's a back up who so far has gone from just dreadfully terrible to contributing, I'd say that's a pretty solid start.
So far this year (and yes I know it’s only 4 games) his numbers are almost identical to Nelson’s.
Please leave a message, I'm busy hiding my cat from TGS.
On top of that your pointin out only this game
You forget that he hit 3-3 on the longball vs the Nets, he hit a total of 13 last year, also he has had a very good assist to turnover ratio so far, dont hate just to hate
by Magical-OverHauL on Dec 31, 2011 11:00 PM EST up reply actions
Credit where it's due
Duhon hasn’t been a liability so far this year, which is a huge step up for him. His shooting will regress but if he can hit the league average %s or so, get his assists and not turn over the ball, whilst not hurting the Magic defensively, he’ll do.
by eltharion_doa on Jan 1, 2012 2:41 AM EST up reply actions
Don't say it out loud
Otis may extend his contract
Playing and beating garbage isn't too impressive
But you have to get the job done in the NBA and that’s what the Magic are doing.
Chicago on Friday will give a much better idea of where this team is at. No reason the Magic can’t be 6-1 going into that game and make a statement.
The Heat barely beat the boocats while we blew them out.
Does that make them bad?
"I'm a little dysfunctional
You're the problem, Please don't awakin me
And I'm that way cause back in the day
Most have forsaken me"
by 4QB on Jan 1, 2012 3:15 AM EST via Android app up reply actions 2 recs
None of these games really matter
The NBA regular season is a farce in a regular year, let alone in an abbreviated one.
by eltharion_doa on Jan 5, 2012 9:14 AM EST via Android app up reply actions
I think Houston and Charlotte are decent teams that'll fight for the playoffs in their respective conferences
The Magic managed to maximise their strengths while advantage of the other sides’ weaknesses (which is often Dwight).
it wasnt just that we beat them,
its how we beat them, suffocatting defense, sound ball movement, low turnovers, high assist rate
by Magical-OverHauL on Jan 1, 2012 6:36 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
They didnt score 80 points.. thats some nasty D
I probably know Judo! How many of you can make the same boast?
by Souwantmyname on Jan 1, 2012 12:51 PM EST up reply actions
charlotte
is a d league team in my opinion… Henderson is nice, and their PGs are ok, but they aint a playoff team, even in the east
Don't be a follower homie, be a leader! And if I lose you on twitter, then so be it
by supermantotherescue on Jan 1, 2012 2:54 PM EST up reply actions
Their PG's are just ok??? Augustin would start for us
His ball handling has improved significantly. Plus he was already a deadly shooter. he’s got a chance for the MIP trophy. I was very impressed. I guess he got serious when Charlotte drafted Kemba Walker
I probably know Judo! How many of you can make the same boast?
by Souwantmyname on Jan 1, 2012 4:15 PM EST up reply actions
Early Stats
- Career highs in bold.
Dwight Howard – 17ppg 17.5rpg 2.5apg 3bpg
Hedo Turkoglu – 14.3ppg 4.2rpg 4.5apg 47% 3pt%
JJ Redick – 13.5ppg 2.5 rpg 2.0apg .545FG% .455Three% 4-to-1 ast-to
Ryan Anderson – 19.5ppg 6.5rpg .432%3pt
Jameer Nelson – 6.7ppg 2.7rpg 5.7apg 0.000%3pt
Jason Richardson – 11ppg 3rpg 2apg 15% 3pt%
Glen Davis – 7.8ppg 3.8rpg .8apg
Someone guard JJ Redick’s abs this year. TheGiantSquid I volunteer you.
RAWR! (╯°□°）╯︵ ƃuıuɹnqǝʞı˥ǝʇsɐ┴ɐ
by aTasteLikeBurning on Jan 1, 2012 10:02 AM EST reply actions
JJ Redick is making the J-Rich re-signing look worse and worse
Its early but he is looking like a solid starting SG for us. J-Rich is in the way
I probably know Judo! How many of you can make the same boast?
by Souwantmyname on Jan 1, 2012 12:53 PM EST up reply actions
Yeah.
On a team run with reason and sanity I would say that one of them was likely to be traded. I have no ability to project Otis’ moves however, so, who knows.
Also, the more I see Davis I do think that most of our early analysis was correct. He is a better team defender than Bass was. But his shot selection is very bad. He just shoots randomly whenever he feels like it. I think maybe he’s forcing it a little bit to try and keep up with Anderson… but he needs to stop.
RAWR! (╯°□°）╯︵ ƃuıuɹnqǝʞı˥ǝʇsɐ┴ɐ
by aTasteLikeBurning on Jan 1, 2012 1:05 PM EST up reply actions
I wouldn't say the signing was bad, just the years and salary is a little bit off.
How we have it right now is a great set-up though. He’s doing most of his scoring in the 1st half with more post-ups and better shot selection. While he’s doing that, JJ is chugging along putting up points. I think if J-Rich starts to look tired then put JJ as the starter, but until then the rotation is great and it’s working for us.
"If Dwight spent more time practicing and less time b!tching, then maybe he’d be playing a little better." -My Mom
by BigMac12111 on Jan 1, 2012 2:11 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
I do not volunteer
Fetch me a crocodile sandwich and make it snappy!
by TheGiantSquid on Jan 1, 2012 1:31 PM EST up reply actions
But Squiddy, you're the only one we can trust with this important mission.
RAWR! (╯°□°）╯︵ ƃuıuɹnqǝʞı˥ǝʇsɐ┴ɐ
by aTasteLikeBurning on Jan 1, 2012 1:39 PM EST up reply actions
i h8 u
Fetch me a crocodile sandwich and make it snappy!
by TheGiantSquid on Jan 1, 2012 1:49 PM EST up reply actions
:3
RAWR! (╯°□°）╯︵ ƃuıuɹnqǝʞı˥ǝʇsɐ┴ɐ
by aTasteLikeBurning on Jan 1, 2012 1:57 PM EST up reply actions
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