Who would have thought there would be a need for a post like this at such a random time? But after Memphis Grizzlies head coach Lionel Hollins accused the replacement refs of favoring Dwight Howard during a pre-season game, here we are:
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Magic shocked by favortism claims by Memphis coach
Brian Schmitz details what happened after the Orlando Magic defeated the Memphis Grizzlies in pre-season play last night.Memphis Grizzlies Coach Lionel Hollins intimated that the replacement referees favored Magic center Dwight Howard when the opening whistles blew.
Rookie Grizzlies center Hasheem Thabeet, 7 feet 3, picked up two quick fouls in the first few minutes, wrapping his arms around Howard in an attempt to stop him on the first play.
"Dwight Howard's a great player and Thabeet didn't get a fair share of the calls right from the start of the game," Hollins said. "It's not Dwight Howard against Thabeet --- it's us against the Orlando Magic."
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Grizzlies coach says replacement refs favored Dwight Howard
Head coach Stan Van Gundy notes the improved defensive effort in the game.The Magic improved their preseason record to 4-0, but struggled through 23 turnovers against the Grizzlies.
Every Magic starter had at least two miscues. PG Anthony Johnson had four and J.J. Redick and Howard each had three.
"Their pressure got to us. They sped us up and took us out of what we wanted to do," said Van Gundy, whose club committed nine turnovers in the third period. "We recovered [in the fourth]."
Van Gundy was pleased with the defensive effort as the young Grizzlies committed 23 turnovers, too. -
Pedal pusher: Magic's Rashard Lewis will spend suspension on bike
Here's an update on what Rashard Lewis plans on doing while serving his 10-game suspension, which begins on October 28th.Lewis plans on pedaling his bike from the comfort of his living room while watching the Orlando Magic play games on TV.
"I have a cycle bike and I'm going to prop it up and ride it at home while I watch us play," he said before the Magic defeated the Memphis Grizzlies 102-83 on Monday night at FedExForum. "I'll just do it for about a half or so. I don't know what I'm going to do when we're on the road.