Magic Wands: March 20, 2009

-Ben Q Rock of Third Quarter Collapse examined Rafer Alston's impact on the Magic both on offense and on defense on Saturday. The returns are interesting. But I still have the feeling this team is better with Jameer Nelson.

-Erivera7 of Third Quarter Collapse tries to make the argument that Orlando's bench is not as bad as the "experts" think. He has some pretty decent stats to make this argument. But the fact that Stan Van Gundy has had to rely on his starters so much tells you that the Magic do not really trust their second unit. It is serviceable, no doubt. But I do not let them play for more than 3-4 minutes without parental (read: starter) supervision.

-The bench is getting a lot of love lately. Kevin Arnovitz for TrueHoop looks at hte benches of the current playoff teams. Orlando gets a solid grade. But as noted, Stan Van Gundy plays his starters pretty heavy minutes. So excuse me if I do not panic about bench production. It is serviceable for what we need and has filled in (almost) every gap injuries have caused this season.

-It's March! That can only mean one thing. NBA.com Dancer Brackets! Go Magic Dancers!

-Hey Dwight Howard has a new Web site. Wonder if he will start Tweeting again. But either way, he blogs and has a video channel for our enjoyment.

-I guess there is a first time for everything. Still an odd time to call a three second violation, considering referees bury their whistles throughout much of the game when it actually should be called. Howard is still having trouble accepting that big men are officiated differently whether it is fair or not.

-If you cannot read my Twitter (or it has been filled to the brim), I am now Facebook friends with Dwight Howard. Pretty sweet, I have to say.

-Tyler Hansbrough of North Carolina passed JJ Redick for the all-time scoring record in the ACC with 22 points in the Tar Heels' first round win over Radford on Thursday. Records were meant to be broken, I guess.

Meet the people of Amway Arena

If you have been to Magic games at all in the last 20 years, you probably have seen all of the people described in this Orlando Sentinel article by Josh Robbins. They are as much a part of the game experience as the game itself.

I have been to plenty of games (and at one time could have probably made this list... still might, now that I think about it even though I have moved away to college) and have seen all of these people. I do not know them personally and this article was great to learn more about the people of Amway Arena.

I have some guys I would like to add to this list. Hopefully they write a second edition in the near future because the Magic have a lot of great and devoted fans.

The Fat Guy

This is a guy I do know pretty well. Sitting near the top of Section 102, he is the quintessential Magic fan. Dressing up completely in what looks like a home-designed shirts. He is great at pumping the fans up, taking laps around the stadium late in games to rile up the crowd. He is probably the one fan that would be allowed on teh court at any time (during a timeout) and no one would ever bat an eye.

The Sign Lady

Way up in the 200 sections, she waits for a point late in the game. A fourth quarter timeout is showtime for her. She displays her homemade signs of encouragement from the railing at the end of the upper bowl were a staple of the teams of the 90s. If I remember her uniform correctly she has some googly-eared head band to go with her Magic getup. I think she is back in the arena now after a short absence, but her signs have been a staple of Magic games and what one fan can do to inspire a team.

Got fan stories? I would love to add to this list, but it has been a while since I have been to a game. There are plenty of great fans at Amway Arena and they are certainly some of the best in the league.

Magic Wands: November 14, 2008

-The world famous Dunking Dancers took their show to Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kan., for the national champions' Midnight Madness. I have always found the Dunking Dancers hit or miss. Something about launching yourself off a trampoline to dunk the ball seems a whole lot of fun though.

-Courtney Lee is apparently not doing too bad, according to David Thorpe. He is slowly climbing his Rookie Rankings. Hopefully it means he will get to see the court.

-Trevor Ariza is playing well. He certainly is no Maurice Evans and Brian Cook. Ariza of course is averaging 9.4 points per game and 5.0 rebounds per game. Evans is not on Orlando any more and Cook is buried on the bench.

-Power Rankings Watch: I know these come out at the beginning of the week. But the Magic climbed in both the ESPN and NBA.com power rankings. And Dwight Howard is holding steady at No. 6 on ESPN NBA Awards Watch. He also leads their tally for Defensive Player of the Year. Now if only, the Magic could play defense as a team. And there is finally enough data for John Hollinger to rev up his Power Ranking machine. The Magic premier at 17.

-A really good look at Josh Childress' life in Greece from Mark Schwarz. Looks like it might not be a viable option for NBA players. Not until entire leagues become financially viable, at least.

-The economy is tough. Let the New Jersey Nets help you. Anyway you can get the butts in the seats. Actually Northwestern University is throwing a similar promotion for college students in December. They will have several businesses in the arena to meet with students and others around the area in a Networking Night.