Magic Wands: May 22, 2009

-Relive the greatest play in Magic history. Amazing how things came into place so perfectly in this game. Thanks to 3rd Quarter Collapse for the find.

-X's & O's of Basketball says Malcolm Gladwell's theory about pressing as a way for David to defeat Goliath is actually incorrect. In youth basketball, full-court press stunts growth and the way this article sounds makes it seem like an easy way out. Good thing to teach the kids. The Gladwell article is a good read though.

-Sports targets a very specific audience, so whenever it wins TV ratings it is a big deal. As Hal Boedeker of The Orlando Sentinel reports, the Magic's Game Seven win over the Celtics was the highest rated TV show Sunday night in Orlando.

-When you forget to look at your schedule this happens. Now the NBA has to throw down with the WWE for the Pepsi Center on Monday. Looks like the NBA wins.

-So where did the 1995-96 team go? Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel tracked them all down... or found them at least.

-Someone has pointed out what a bad year it has been for the NBA. First Kevin Duckworth died before the season. Then Norm Van Lier and Johnny "Red" Kerr passed away. Wayman Tisdale passed away last week. Of course, Chuck Daly two weeks ago. And now news that Jerry West has been dealing with a heart ailment in secret throughout his life. Hope for the best for the NBA logo.

-Shaquille O'Neal is taking broadcasting lessons at Syracuse. Maybe he should go to a real journalism school like Northwestern next time. Full disclosure: Go 'Cats!

-Tim Povtak of NBA FanHouse finally gets Stan Van Gundy to explain his attire.

-How the NBA Draft Lottery actually works.

-Welcome to new Orlando Sentinel columnist Shannon J. Owens. It appears the Sentinel is finally re-arranging their staff and have found some pretty good replacements for David Whitley and Jerry Greene. Her first column proclaims Orlando as a legitimate sports town!

-Dwight Howard's new Adidas commercial. Very sweet. And also very Free Darko'ish.

-The 2012 Olympic team in London might look familiar. Many of the stars from the 2008 team in Beijing appear to be on board for a two-year commitment. That is assuming they win the World Championships next summer in Turkey.

-Puppet LeBron James learns about the un-stoppable.

-A kind of old video, but still very true. Dwight Howard is a beast.

Magic Wands: May 15, 2009

-The wonderful story of The Polish Hammer.

-The Magic have a new song to commemorate their playoff run this year. Sadly, it is not "Ain't No Stopping the Magic." Anyone find that yet?

-A moment of silence for former Magic coach and Hall of Famer Chuck Daly, who passed away last Saturday.

-Introducing NBA Europe. But wouldn't it be a better idea to try and create a league of the already established superpowers and try to bring them into the NBA fold. I know that is David Stern's master plan.

-TNT continues to get solid ratings for the Playoffs.

-Don't usually like Bill Simmons, especially after his tweet that complained about Dwight Howard stepping over the free throw line on his intentional miss in Game Five... again, Bill, really? You are complaining about a missed call in that game? But I digress. Simmons sat down with Malcolm Gladwell to talk about sports and some random network stuff. I am taking a class on this and while Simmons litters (read: dominates) the conversation with too much sport and pop culture references, Gladwell's brilliance hopefully shines through.

-Magic fan photo gallery!

Magic Wands: March 13, 2009

-Very sad news for the Magic family. Former coach Chuck Daly has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I know everyone associated with basketball wishes the two-time NBA championship coach a speedy and complete recovery.

-Interesting thought from Henry Abbott. Next time you are at Amway Arena, give the person behind you a high five after a Dwight Howard dunk.

-Orlando is getting ready for the playoffs and you can really tell as Stan Van Gundy has experimented with Dwight Howard and Marcin Gortat in the same lineup. It worked Sunday. It did not work Monday. Expect to see it for the postseason. But Dwight, instead of the Polish Prince and Superman, can we call them Superman and Thor (he uses a hammer, just like the Polish Hammer).

-Magic games become more about the, well games.

-I wonder if players think about this kind of stuff. The Jazz won their 12th straight game on Wednesday and have a trip to Orlando planned pretty soon. The streak was snapped Wednesday in Atlanta, but if they had kept winning they would have gone for a franchise best-tying 15th straight win at Amway Arena on Sunday. This has to be the quietest 12-game winning streak in the history. But I am curious what the locker room in Orlando will be like if the Jazz escape Atlanta and Miami this week.

-Never take this for granted guys. But there was little fanfare for the Magic clinching a playoff berth Tuesday night. Sure it is better to do it and celebrate after a win (especially the way they beat down Chicago). But one thing I learned in Orlando's three-year absence from the postseason from 2004-2007 is not to take it for granted. So congratulations on officially making the playoffs. Still more work to do.

-I thought Dwight Howard wanted to go to Georgia Tech. Then again, Georgia Tech is not going to the dance this year.

-So what WOULD happen if Grant Hill were healthy? Glad you asked. Someone took the time to project the Magic's season (including draft picks) from the time Hill and Tracy McGrady signed on until McGrady was supposed to be traded. It is an interesting little study. Interestingly enough, Orlando does well... but not that well. More of a testament of how poor Doc Rivers and John Gabriel did selecting players to surround McGrady with. Then again, having Hill's salary off the books or on the court would have helped.