The Big Question for All Star Saturday Night

So with Jameer Nelson officially out of the All Star festivities, Dwight Howard has a big question to ask?

Who is going to be throwing him the ball for the obligatory teammate dunk?

Everyone around the Magic know Nelson and Howard are almost inseparable on the court. The past two seasons, the point guard has been a key to Howard's dunk performances.

Whether it is throwing the ball up to the big man to slap a sticker -- and then unveiling a poster he was carrying reading 12'6". Or throwing the ball over the hoop for Superman to fly.

The dunk is only as good as the pass that creates it, right?

The next clear answer is Hedo Turkoglu. The combination of Turkoglu and Howard has been the equation that has resulted in plenty of alley-oops. Turkoglu of course through the game-winner against the Spurs a few years ago.

But the obvious answer is going to be Rashard Lewis, and that is who I think will be teaming up with Howard tomorrow night. Lewis will be in uniform Saturday night as part of the 3-point shootout.

This might matter for Howard. His two most memorable dunk contest dunks were set up by Mighty Mouse. Nelson probably is not going to be pulling a Willis Reed and show up to throw a few passes -- it probably would not be good for his shoulder.

So it should be Lewis and Howard tomorrow night. Hopefully Lewis keeps Howard's good vibes going.

Follow the Magic players at the All Star Game on OrlandoMagic.com with their blog!

That Place You Cannot Win

Since it is still Friday the 13th, I decided to look up the place where Orlando has had the least luck winning. Denver just broke a 15-game losing streak at the Amway Arena on Wednesday night and it got me thinking, where have the Magic struggled recently?

Well, we all remember Orlando's struggles with Milwaukee. And the Magic have never done well with their trips to the great Northwest -- Portland and Seattle -- or Sacramento.

But right now, the Magic's longest road losing streak is to Phoenix. Orlando has lost seven straight to the Suns, including this year's last second defeat at U.S. Airways Arena, site of the All Star game this year ominously.

The last time Orlando won at Phoenix was a 93-92 win on Nov. 14, 2001. Assistant coach Patrick Ewing had 22 points and 15 rebounds for the Magic in the win. Don't think he will be suiting up when they visit the desert next year.

There were some long streaks recently snapped in Dallas, Sacramento and Detroit. But the road success in the last two seasons has made pretty much every stadium hospitable to the men in blue.

Overall, the worst record on the road is at San Antonio. Orlando, including the team's win this season, is 4-17 at AT&T Center and the Alamodome. Tells you how big the win was this year. The wins were this year's victory, April 2006, January 2001 and April 1992. Two of them were in overtime too.

The Magic are also pretty bad in Boston (even after closing the Boston Garden in 1995) and against the Lakers.

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.

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.

Orlando Magic 101, New Jersey Nets 84

Orlando took a big lead out of the first quarter and were never really threatened in a 101-84 win over New Jersey at Amway Arena on Sunday.

The Magic had a 32-18 lead after 12 minutes and the Nets fought back but could not muster enough to overtake the lead without star Vince Carter. They got as close as seven in the fourth quarter, but timely shooting from Orlando kept the game from getting interesting.

It was honestly a mundane middle of the season game. I listened to the second half and it did not seem like Orlando was really threatened even with New Jersey playing pretty hard. The Magic did enough to win comfortably.

When they got in trouble they threw it in to Dwight Howard, who had another big game with 30 points and 16 boards. He scored at will and had his way on the boards despite pestering from Robin Lopez, who also played well with 19 points and 12 rebounds.

Mickael Pietrus and Rashard Lewis were consistent and hit threes when they needed them. But even with the comfortable win, something feels off about this team right now.

The Magic are 5-4 since coming back from a 4-0 junket against the Western leaders -- and Sacramento -- and have not played with the same intensity. The upcoming All Star break might be on their minds at this point (only one game left until the trip to Phoenix) but the team needs to keep its focus.

Losing Jameer Nelson has hurt this team's intensity. Devin Harris had a nice game with 28 points and 12 assists, proving why he was selected to the All Star team. Recently (re-)acquired Tyronn Lue got about two minutes of playing time scoring two points. Clearly he just arrived and is not ready to run the team.

Anthony Johnson was OK -- again. He scored six points, grabbed eight board and had four assists. Hedo Turkoglu and Courtney Lee manned the point for the most part and the platoon seemed to work. It seems that is how things are going to work out even with Johnson and Lue in the fold. We will see how it works.

Overall, Orlando just got the job done tonight. It was not pretty by any stretch of the imagination but it counts the same as any other win. It is nice to know that Howard is starting to assert himself more offensively without Nelson and do what his team needs him to do without its All-Star point guard.

We will see if he keeps it up with Denver coming to town before the break.

Keith Bogans: we hardly knew ye

Well, Keith Bogans second stint with Orlando came to an unceremonious end Thursday with his trade to Milwaukee for Tyronn Lue. It was a trade of necessity with the injury to Jameer Nelson and a lack of depth at point guard.

Bogans was the clear choice to be traded. His skill set copied that of the recently drafted Courtney Lee. His playing time slowly decreased as Lee came into his own this season and appears to be a long-term solution at shooting guard.

Orlando drafted Bogans back in 2003 but sent him away for the first time in a trade to Charlotte for Brandon Hunter. A forgettable trade indeed.

But the Magic reacquired Bogans in 2005 and he became a pretty consistent player for the Magic. He became the starter more out of necessity than skill. But he played the part well.

He was never the long-term solution at the position but he was not a horrible short-term solution.

Bogans is a physical defender and a streaky shooter. He never really found his way under Brian Hill but he fit perfectly under Stan Van Gundy.

Even then though, he never really found his way. Consistent, but not spectacular. There was always a better player out there to replace him.

No one can argue that Bogans worked hard and performed his role. It was never quite good enough to hold down the more talented and more skilled players Orlando always signed to compete with him.

Bogans will certainly be missed in Orlando... until he comes back to the team.

Magic Wands: February 6, 2009

-I finally discovered Magic Overtime with Dante & Galante (and I know it is eight episodes in... I am not always in Orlando). And all I can say about this clip is: "I dunk from free throw line but the mascot move." What am I talking about? First watch this. Then go to about 1:08 to enjoy some Polish Hammer hilarity. (Sorry Marcin, we believe you can do it... and apparently so does Anthony Johnson and Mickael Pietrus... sorry for publishing that on the Internet so you cannot bet future new Magic players that you can do it)

-I don't care who you are. In these times this report from The Associated Press is a very good thing.

-A ringing endorsement (OK maybe not ringing) of Jameer Nelson as an All Star from CelticsBlog, no less.

-With Jameer Nelson out, Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel wonders who might be available through free agency or trade. Among the names he bandies about: Keyon Dooling, Carlos Arroyo and Jason Williams.

-This is quickly turning into the Jameer Nelson wands. I do these as the week goes on so you can notice how the week started out so cheery and then turned to this. But it is important that you read Kyle Hightower's transcript of Otis Smith's press conference.

-Monday was point guard injury day: Chris Paul is day-to-day with a groin injury and Chauncey Billups turned an ankle against the Spurs on Tuesday.

-Gregg Poppovich never ceases to amaze. He gave Spurs all stars Tim Duncan and Tony Parker the day off Tuesday against Denver as San Antonio embarks on its annual rodeo road trip.

-I will have more on this later, but the Magic made it official Thursday trading Keith Bogans for Tyronn Lue. Welcome Lue back Sunday night.

Weighing their options without Nelson

Only two days have passed since Jameer Nelson's injury and it is still unclear what path he will take to get back. But it is clear (even with a blowout win against the Clippers) that the Magic cannot stand pat and expect to still compete for an Eastern Conference title.

Anthony Johnson has been good this year. He has done everything that has been asked of him. But we all know he can not start nearly half the season and the playoffs. At least, if Orlando wants to be successful.

More than one site has conjectured how the Magic will try to replace Nelson. It is clear at the very least they need another body at the point.

You can read Brian Schmitz or Marc Stein's interesting takes on and solutions to the situation.

Johnson is playing quite well tonight (20 points in the first half), but he is not going to keep that up and the Magic do not face the Clippers anymore.

So where does Orlando go?

The first option is to try and find a free agent. But who is available?

Darrell Armstrong already took that coaching position with the Mavericks. Steve Francis cannot play anymore (and we do not want to go down that road again). Former Magic player Sidney Green's son, and Florida alum, Taurean Green is not doing anything. Edgewater alum Darius Washington has NBA experience and can at least imitate Nelson with his scoring ability.

These are all kind of far-fetched ideas. But what else is available in a trade?

Raymond Felton from Charlotte is definitely available and would be a long-term backup for Nelson (sorry Anthony). Plus he is still working on his rookie contract so that would make him a bargain. Felton is a guy that could really work.

Another guy on the block is Jamaal Tinsley. The maligned Pacers point guard has wanted out of Indianapolis for some time now. He is an experienced starter, which is probably the most important thing Orlando can get out of a replacement. His contract is no fun ($14.5 million over two years). But if the Magic are serious about contending, he is a pretty good option.

There are other options out there in the trade market, but the next question Otis Smith has to ask is: What is the cost?

It is no secret that Courtney Lee has rendered Keith Bogans pretty useless (or at best an older version of Lee). So he is on the table. But to get anyon really fantastic in the trade market, it may cost Hedo Turkoglu. I do not think they can trade him.

Orlando simply does not have a lot to offer other teams in a trade. The team does not have a whole lot of draft picks (although do not be surprised to see Fran Vazquez to be put on the table) and does not have a lot of young talent it can part with.

I think free agency is the route most likely taken then. Who the Magic bring in is anybody's guess. But it has to be someone who can take some of the scoring burden off of Johnson and the other key players.

But who they bring in and how they do it will be a sign of whether Otis Smith believes this is the year Orlando can win a title.

Jameer Nelson: A torn labrum

It is official, the Magic will be without All Star point guard Jameer Nelson.

This is a huge blow to Nelson and Orlando. Nelson was in the middle of a career season, finally getting full reign over the Magic's offense. And Orlando was in the middle of its best season since 1996.

Those visions of an NBA title dancing in your head should slowly dissipate with time.

So what exactly is Nelson out with?

Nelson tore his labrum. The labrum is the muscle around your shoulder that helps stabilize the joint that holds your arm into your shoulder (if you know anything about anatomy, you know that the shoulder joint is a junction of three different bones). Read more about it at WebMD.com (I do not know if Nelson has the specific tear mentioned in that article, but it has a good definition of what Nelson actually injured).

His options are to immediately go into surgery, causing him to miss the remainder of the season, or try to rehab it and play through the injury.

Either way, Nelson will need surgery.

There is a history of players rehabbing this injury and playing. They are well documented by writers covering the Magic. He can hope to recover from anywhere between 3-12 weeks if he decides to go the rehab option.

So even then it is uncertain if and when Nelson will be back. Even with offseason surgery, Nelson will probably miss the beginning of training camp as surgery typically takes four months to rehabilitate from, according to various reports.

Even if Nelson opts to go with rehab, the Magic will need to find a more permanent solution at point guard.

Orlando was not going to win a title this season. The team is missing something (what that is, I do not know. But look deep down in your heart and tell me this team can grind it out in the playoffs and win a title... I did not think so... unless they are really hot).

Losing one of your top three players does not help. But this is a solid team still and I would not expect Orlando to fade away and lose the division or fall out of the Eastern Conference title picture completely. This team has a very good starting lineup and can still score with the best of them.

We will see how Orlando moves forward from here.

Nelson injury tests the master plan

Orlando's season suffered another hiccup when Jameer Nelson went to the floor, hunched over to keep his shoulder from moving. The early diagnosis is a separated shoulder and he will be having an MRI today to learn the full extent of the injury.

But this is a big hit to the Magic's season.

Nelson was playing like an All Star and has been a steadying force for Orlando. His play has made the team transcend its solid, but not great status and become a team that can realistically win the title. How long he is out will have an impact on the NBA Playoff landscape.

Don't expect the Magic to fall out of the Southeast Division lead, but expect some slipping.

Orlando has played without Nelson before this season. Anthony Johnson did a serviceable job as the team went 3-1 (the loss to the Celtics and three to losing teams). But if Nelson is out for an extended period of time (the Orlando Sentinel says the injury could be out three to 12 weeks), then the Magic need to find a third point guard to help out.

Courtney Lee could do a serviceable job. But expect Orlando to get more active in the trade market or try to find a point guard in free agency.

Otis Smith made the decision to let Carlos Arroyo and Keyon Dooling walk. Nelson and the team lost their security blanket at the point. It turned out to be a good decision.

That is until Nelson, who has had a history of injuries, got hurt. Now Smith's decision-making is going to be tested. And I think Orlando needs to find a way to bring in someone to help out at the point in a more permanent manner.

We all knew Anthony Johnson was a good backup and spot starter. If he is starting for the next month, the Magic might struggle a little bit and fall behind in the race for home court in the Eastern Conference.