Orlando Magic 90, Charlotte Bobcats 86: the Afternoon After

John Krolik of ProBasketballTalk illustrates the extent to which Jameer Nelson carried the Orlando Magic in yesterday's win against the Charlotte Bobcats.

Jameer Nelson: 32 points, 12-21 shooting, 5-9 from 3, 3 assists, 4 steals, 0 turnovers

Rest of team: 58 points, 19-49 shooting, 4-21 from 3, 11 assists, 3 steals, 19 turnovers

Just to remind you, Orlando made it to the finals last year without this guy. Crazy.

"Mercy" is just about all Eddy can say about Nelson's night.

David Arnott of Rufus on Fire has drawn this conclusion about the Magic:

If we've learned anything this series, it's that the Magic are probably equal to the Cavaliers -- when Dwight Howard is in the game. Without Howard, and I'd be surprised if the +/- data didn't confirm this, they're essentially equal to the Bobcats, who aren't pushovers, but have never been title contenders this season. Howard's just that good, but it's also a testament to the Magic's depth that Marcin Gortat can step right in and keep the Magic competitive on the road in front of a frenzied crowd.

For what it's worth, the Magic post an efficiency differential of 1.27 with Howard off the floor. The Bobcats, as a team, had a 1.53 efficiency differential this season. So Arnott is about right about that, really. Thing is, Orlando's 10.82 efficiency differential with Howard on the floor trumps the Cavaliers' 7.31 efficiency differential.

Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel included this exciting item in his post-game blog entry.

I asked NBA Commish David Stern about Orlando hosting the 2012 NBA All-Star Game. He more or less inferred that he can’t make the announcement; that’s the big show for Orlando’s civic leaders and the Magic to make. "Be patient," he said.

Andrew Melnick of Howard the Dunk has this to say about the Bobcats' 5-point halftime lead.

[Y]ou got the feeling that the lead should have been much bigger and that failing to create a bigger lead was going to cost them the game.

John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com notes that Nelson has just 3 turnovers in 108 minutes in this series.

Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer says yesterday's game "was a microcosm of the Bobcats' season" because they were "[b]rilliant defensively but too often scatterbrained on offense."

Bonnell also reports that the Bobcats attempted to acquire an extra first-round pick in 2004 in order to draft Nelson, but failed.

Scott Fowler of the Charlotte Observer writes, "[t]he bottom line is that if this is a horse race, Orlando is a couple of lengths better than Charlotte, and nothing is going to close that gap." Then, he makes a joke about Magic coach Stan Van Gundy's weight.

Zach Harper of TalkHoops believes that Charlotte lost because its best player was Larry Hughes, which is "no way to properly win a playoff game."