While acknowledging that every day in the offseason is technically an off-day, let's proceed with our first off-day open thread of the summer: will either Brandon Bass or Marcin Gortat become the Orlando Magic's enforcer this season? I ask the question because Austin Burton said either of those two players could join the ranks of the league's best goons, because Burton really likes the idea of the Magic pairing franchise center Dwight Howard with a hardass at power forward.
Here's what Burton says qualifies a player as a goon:
The guy brought in to play rough, to be an a-hole, to use his fouls (smartly) and try to get in the opponent’s head. It’s part Dennis Rodman, part Shane Battier, part Alvin Mack in The Program.
And here's what he says about Bass and Gortat:
Another pick for the future. Now that the Magic have first-round pick Daniel Orton to develop as a legit backup for Dwight Howard, Bass and Gortat can become the NBA’s Acolyte Protection Agency. They should even go all-out and wear black gloves when they check into a game. Dwight has needed an enforcer (or two) for a while now.
Setting aside the tenuous idea that Orton, who hardly stood out in summer-league play, is a rotation-caliber player at this point, and the iffy notion that Howard needs help inside, I now ask you to consider if either Bass or Gortat will step up to be Orlando's "goon" in 2010/11. You can vote in the poll attached to this post. RSS readers, please visit OrlandoPinstripedPost.com to participate in the poll. Voting ends tonight at 11:55 PM Eastern.