What They're Saying: Cavaliers vs. Magic 11/11

-Fans in the cheap seats of the Amway Center, and in the Amway Center period, will get treated to the largest scoreboard in the NBA. As Alex Martins tells Mark Schlueb of The Orlando Sentinel, this scoreboard is a state-of-the-art HD television that makes the current jumbotron look like a fuzzy 19 inch television. Exciting.

-Vince Carter made a surprise return in last night's win over Charlotte and made an immediate impact with 15 points. He expects to start tonight against Cleveland.

-The NBA fined Dwight Howard $15, 000 for comments he made on his blog criticizing officials. Stan Van Gundy was cautious in talking about Cleveland's extended break before this game because of it.

-Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel compares Dwight Howard's numbers to Shaquille O'Neal's.

-George Diaz of The Orlando Sentinel declares war on the Cleveland media after the Cleveland Plain-Dealer fired the first shot in an article yesterday. And the Plain Dealer returned fire.

-The LeBron James drama will affect the Cavaliers, whether they like it or not writes Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel.

-Mike Bianchi of The Orlando Sentinel writes that Shaquille O'Neal's presence has made the LeBrons the Magic's biggest rival.

-JJ Hickson played very well according to coach Mike Brown and in Friday's win over New York, helping Hickson earn his second straight start for tonight's game in Orlando. That of course send Anderson "Flopsy" Varejao to the bench where the Cavaliers are suddenly looking a little deeper with Delonte West and Zydrunas Ilgauskas joining him there.

-The Starting Blocks of The Cleveland Plain-Dealer responds to a Michael Wilbon column that suggests the Cavaliers should acquire Allen Iverson. Surprisingly, the vote is 50-50. Look Cavs fans, there is only one ball and LeBron and Shaq will have enough trouble sharing it. You have already wrecked a good thing by acquiring Shaq, don't screw yourself by overthinking with the Answer.

-Orlando is still far from playing championship-caliber basketball, but no matter how you look at things the team played solid basketball last night in Charlotte, writes Ben Q Rock of 3rd Quarter Collapse.

-From the makers of Stan Van Pac-Man, it's Whack a Shaq!

-Tania Ganguli of the Magic BasketBlog on OrlandoSentinel.com digs through the Sentinel's archives to chronicle Shaquille O'Neal's time with the Magic.

-Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel talked with Hubie Brown, who will call tonight's game for ESPN, about the matchup between the two Eastern Conference finalists.

-Zach McCann of Orlando Magic Daily writes how the Magic were clicking on most cylinders in last night's win over the Bobcats.

-John Krolik of Cavs: The Blog says it is awfully tough to blame Cleveland's offensive struggles on John Kuester's departure.

-Brian Windhorst of the Cleveland Plain Dealer previews tonight's game and advises not to put too much stock into the result of tonight's game. But even though that is the case, be wary of the O'Neal-Howard matchup. It will provide something of a playoff preview.

-RockKing of Waiting for Next Year fears the worst as a Cavs fan both on the court and the highlights ESPN might show.

-Jacob Rosen of Waiting for Next Year polled a few sports writers to try and figure out what is wrong with the Cavs so far this season.

-Maxwell Effort of The Puns Are Starting to Bore Me writes an appreciation of Shaquille O'Neal now that he is entering the twilight of his career.

-John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com finds the Eastern Conference finalists in transition as they meet for the first time since that "lopsided" series.

What They're Saying: Magic vs. Hornets

The Magic took care of business last night in Memphis finally getting a solid defensive effort, at least statistically. The turnovers are still a little bit of an issue it seems, but you cannot complain with the results of these games. Tonight Orlando heads to Witchita, Kansas, to face the Hornets.

-Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins claimed the referees favored Dwight Howard in last night's game. Stan Van Gundy said, "Of course he said that," and then claimed Hasheem Thabeet was in fact grabbing Howard as his only defense against Superman. The truth is somewhere in between.

-Rashard Lewis will be riding a bicycle during the games of his 10-game suspension. Might be tough to cart a stationary bicycle into his hotel room on those road trips, but I hear those rooms are pretty big.

-New Orleans' top free agent acquisition, Ike Digou, finally returned from injury only to get injured again in his first scrimmage. Not good new for a team that is slowly bringing star trade acquisition Emeka Okafor back from injury too.

-Ben Q. Rock of Third Quarter Collapse gives us an instant look at some of the position battles in his breakdown of last night's win in Memphis.

-Marcus Thornton and the maturation of a second round pick, from John DeShazier of the New Orleans Times-Picayune.

-The Orlando Sentinel is reporting that Matt Barnes will get the night off tonight. Certainly well deserved after last night's performance. Tonight is also the lone back-to-back on the Magic's schedule. They do not play again until a trip to Chicago on Monday.

What They're Saying: Magic vs. Grizzlies

-Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel talks about the precautions the team is taking to prevent flue outbreaks.

-Vince Carter is struggling with his shot a little bit, but still plans to attack. Brandon Bass has not struggled with his shot, but Stan Van Gundy wants to see him play defense.

-The Grizzlies are going through their own transition as they try to get their young lineup ready for the regular season.

-Turnovers have been an unfortunate theme for the Grizzlies in three preseason games.

-Third Quarter Collapse solicits fans to help them figure out the Magic's rotations this season.

-Jameer Nelson and Vince Carter will get the night off so Mickael Pietrus and Jason Williams will step into the starting lineup tonight in Memphis.

-Marcin Gortat received a starring role with the Polish national basketball team. Now he feels ready to take a larger role in the Magic's offense, writes Zach McCann of Orlando Magic Daily.

-Grizzlies blog Straight Outta Vancouver takes a look at the storylines in tonight's exhibition game.

-Grizzlies guard Marcus Williams is watching his weight or else he will have to watch his checkbook, Ronald Tillery of the Memphis Commercial-Appeal writes.

-Matt Barnes told Tania Ganguli of The Orlando Sentinel that you have to like your teammates. That means the locker room will take center stage in Memphis with the additions of Zach Randolph and Allen Iverson to its young squad.

What They're Saying: Grizzlies vs. Magic 4/8

-Henry Abbot of TrueHoop tells you eight things you need to know about everyone's favorite Magic player. I am talking about Adonal Foyle of course. He was traded to Memphis in the Alston deal and then landed back with the Magic.

-After a few days off, the Magic laid an egg in Houston, the last playoff-bound team they will face this season. Brian Schmitz recaps the team's struggle from Houston. Ben Q Rock of 3rd Quarter Collapse goes more into detail about the team's struggles against the Rockets. And I even have a quick recap of what happened at the Toyota Center.

-Also from Houston, Dwight Howard injures Anthony Johnson during practice. And it was nice to see Tyronn Lue step in and support with Johnson out.

-I should have more on this later, but don't you just miss Tracy McGrady. Don't worry, Mike Bianchi of The Orlando Sentinel does not either.

-Ben Q Rock of Third Quarter Collapse asks in the preview for tonight's game: can the Grizzlies be playing their best basketball of the season right now? The answer is a surprising yes. So far, Detroit and Houston are the only teams to sweep Orlando. Memphis can join that list with a win tonight.

-Scott Anez of OrlandoMagic.com believes the No. 2 seed is there to be taken for the Magic. But they have to go undefeated.

-Joel Glass of OrlandoMagic.com has an interesting stat for you. Lewis has a +/- rating of +603 this season. That is fifth in the entire league.

-Chip Crain of Grizzlies blog 3 Shades of Blue is still reeling from last night's game against Portland. The Blazers were called for three total fouls in the second half as they topped the Grizzlies 96-93, erasing a 12-point halftime deficit. The Grizzlies are not playing like a 22-win team right now.

Magic acquire Rafer Alston

The biggest deal at the NBA's trade deadline? Orlando my have solved its point guard problem.

While Jameer Nelson underwent surgery on his shoulder by famed surgeon Dr. James Andrew of Birmingham, Ala., Orlando acquired point guard Rafer Alston from Houston in a three-team deal. The Magic gave up Brian Cook, Adonal Foyle, Mike Wilks and a first round pick.

But considering where it appeared this season was going, it all seems worth it for security at the point.

It has been clear since Nelson's injury that Anthony Johnson is just not meant to be a starting point guard. He does not have the ability to knife his way through defenses like Nelson could and he has been exposed. Not that he isa bad player, but his talents better suit him for a role off the bench.

Alston has been a reliable starter for a playoff team for the past two seasons.

More importantly, I really think he fits the Magic well. He is a great 3-point shooter and can attack the basket -- something he did often in his And1 days as "Skip to My Lou". Also not a horrible defender either.

This was a necessary deal for the Magic to reach their goals in the playoffs, namely get out of the first round.

I expect Alston to integrate into the team very quickly and be a key contributor down the stretch. This is not to say that Dwight Howard, Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu are not going to have to step up their games. Alston is not going to produce at the level Nelson was. But this trade insures the Magic have a starting point guard for the rest of this season.

The big topic of discussion this trade deadline has been how teams have cut costs. This was not a cost-cutting move for sure. Alston has another year left on his deal. But he should still figure to contribute next season.

I am beginning to think that Turkoglu will not opt out of his contract in fear that he cannot get as much as he would make. But this trade hampers Orlando's efforts to re-sign him. It will be interesting to see how this plays out this summer.

Magic Wands: February 13, 2009

-Lucky day today... use it wisely.

-Keyon Dooling made his first visit to Orlando since a somewhat testy summer between he and the Magic. But as Brian Schmitz reports, Dooling is still close to his Orlando teammates -- especially Jameer Nelson. The Florida native's father is also sick and his family will not be driving up from Fort Lauderdale for the game. I speak on behalf of all Magic fans when I wish his family the best and a speedy recovery for his father.

-A chronicle of The Curse from long-time Magic beat writer Brian Schmitz after Nelson's injury. He only hits the highlights, leaving out the countless poor draft picks, crippling contracts and questionable transactions in the years since Shaquille O'Neal left.

-Still great to see No. 10 around the Magic. Would have been nice to see him retire as a member of the Magic (experienced point guard... don't know if he can still play 20 minutes a game). Darrell Armstrong was on Magic Overtime with Dante & Galante. Watch the whole episode on their blog.

-In these times more franchises will probably be doing this and more. But The Orlando Sentinel reports that the price for season tickets will not be increasing in Amway Arena's final season.

-H-O-R-S-E makes its premier at All Star Weekend on Saturday night. Kevin Durant, O.J. Mayo and Joe Johnson will be you competitors on the outdoor court in Phoenix. Wish they got bigger names to be in it, but we will see how the inaugural event goes.

-Mike Bianchi received a letter from Denver that makes you love athletes again... or at least remember why having Adonal Foyle on the team is so good.

-With injuries to Jameer Nelson and Chris Bosh, Ray Allen and Mo Williams have been named to the All Star team. Williams was named Bosh's replacement Tuesday ending a lot of screams and shouts from Cleveland about his exclusion. Which brings up the question: who is going to back up Dwight Howard at center now?

-Elgin Baylor filed a suit against the Los Angeles Clippers claiming owner Donald Sterling treated him and players in a racist manner. My first thought was, no way could you be suing him when he stood by you for 20-plus years while the Clippers struggled on the court. Sterling is guilty of not caring about the product on the court if anything. Then I read the story and thought about it more and there might be something to this. It is always sticky with race in the NBA and the outcome of this case could be interesting.

Magic Wands: December 5, 2008

-Apparently Dwight Howard is not the only player thinking of skipping the Slam Dunk Contest in February. Rudy Gay is thinking of skipping the fun in Phoenix now.

-Era of impatience continues. Eddie Jordan and Sam Mitchell were both coach of the year candidates last year. Now they are both jobless. Jordan's Wizards got off to a bad start. But Mitchell's Raptors were a respectable 8-9 when he was fired. I don't know what Toronto expected when they acquired Jermaine O'Neal, but he is far from the healthy all star he was in Indiana three or four years ago. This one is on Bryan Colangelo, not Mitchell. 82 games is a long time.

-Sad stories about injuries to some 1990s NBA players. Wayman Tisdale's is an inspirational story. And everyone remembers Rodney Rodgers from his days with the Nets.

-Power Rankings Check: the Magic's injuries have slowed down the party train. They are up to six in ESPN.com, No. 9 by John Hollinger's count (does not know injuries exist). And NBA.com thinks Orlando is No. 4. Of course that was before the loss to Boston.

Magic Wands: November 28, 2008

-Chip Crain of the Memphis Grizzlies blog 3 Shades of Blue has a scary thought for Magic fans. He has noticed that those NBA players with player blogs have not done well. His example starts with Casey Jacobson's blog from last year (he ended up bench by December) and Mike Conley's blog (he is not doing so hot with the Grizzlies). Then, expanding the scope, he notices problem with NBA.com bloggers Gilbert Arenas (two knee surgeries since starting), Chris Kaman and Jerry Stackhouse (both trade bait at this point) and Kevin Love (sitting behind Jason Collins in Minnesota). This is all well and good... except Dwight Howard has a blog on NBA.com. Hope it is not related to the recent streak of play he has had recently.

-Power Rankings Update: the Magic are climbing the opinion polls. They are fifth now in the NBA.com Power Rankings, seventh in the Marc Stein Power Rankings. But John Hollinger and his computer poll still have the Magic 10th (at least Monday, they did). Which rankings do you follow?

-Basketball-Reference.com presents the players with the best and worst supporting casts in NBA history. Michael Cooper of the Showtime Lakers had the best offensive supporting cast, 1990s journeyman Charles Smith had the worst offensive supporting cast. Michael Jordan rose above his teammates' shortcomings the most (hurting my arguments for Bill Russell) and the Jazz's Mark Eaton did not live up to his teammates the most.

-Dwight Howard won't be dunking (as much) in Phoenix apparently. Although, I heard he still has not made a final decision.

-Happy Thanksgiving! Hope you have recovered from the enormous amounts of food you ate.