Missing Rashard Lewis

Stan Van Gundy spent much of his postgame press conference last night in Oklahoma City questioning the mental makeup of his team. Where was the commitment to defense that helped push the Magic to the NBA Finals last year? Where was the aggressive offensive mentality that made jacking up 20-plus 3-pointers a game acceptable because the offense would continue to produce even if they did not fall?

Where, in other words, was the Orlando Magic? Where have they been this entire season?

Just take a look at the first seven games of this season and it has become clear Orlando is riding its offense to a 5-2 record and not its defense.

There is no single cure to fixing this problem. But bet that the return of Vince Carter from injury will help immensely.

So will the return of Rashard Lewis from his suspension one week from today.

And it is the return of Lewis that I think will put the Magic back over the top and where they need to be for the rest of the season.

The extended absences Orlando has had to deal with this season have had a pretty big effect on how the team plays. Since Vince Carter's injury against the Nets a few weeks ago, Orlando has been stretched very thin by injuries and it is clear that the new players are still trying to figure out Stan Van Gundy's scheme.

But with Carter, Lewis and now Ryan Anderson out of the lineup, defensive worries have taken a backseat to making sure the offense still works.

Maybe that opening night blowout of the 76ers was a bad thing. Maybe scoring 125 points against Toronto and masking a defense that gave up 115 was a bad thing.

Maybe this Orlando squad needs more games where they struggle like in Detroit or like last night in Oklahoma City.

Maybe the Magic just need Rashard Lewis back and some order and stability.

Lewis' presence has been sorely missed these first seven games even if the Magic's record does not show it. With Lewis and Carter out, Orlando is a very young team, lacking the veteran poise needed to integrate and teach the team's newcomers.

Sure Ryan Anderson has been able to adequately replace Lewis beyond the arc. But has he been able to provide the versatile defense Lewis has or the understanding of Stan Van Gundy's defensive schemes? Not quite.

Has he been there to set the example for Carter and what Orlando Magic deefense means?

It seems clear to me that with all these players out with injuries that Orlando's bench is trying to do too much. Anderson is making his 3-pointers and taking shots when he gets them, but he is nowhere near the driver or shooter that Lewis is.

Lewis' return will be a stabilizing force for this team for sure. It will allow players like Anderson and JJ Redick to play more within their roles and not have to worry about the scoring load and making up for those player's production so much.

If you ask me, the reason Orlando got thumped by Oklahoma City was that Orlando's players psychologically felt they had to make up for load of lost offensive production. That will be different the second game without those three players.

With Lewis back, Redick and Anderson can focus more on their true roles for the team. They can provide the shooting that they are known for, but also the effort defensively.

This Magic team, despite the acquisition of Carter, is not a team that needs someone scoring 25-30 points a night. They need three or four guys around 20 points a game, so that the players can focus its energy more on defense.

More than anything, Lewis' return will take a strain off the offense and allow the players to refocus their efforts on defense. I am afraid that until next Monday, the team will continue to rely on its shot-making ability to win games and forsake defense.

Hopefully that bad habit will not carry over once Lewis and Carter return.

Oklahoma City Thunder 102, Orlando Magic 74

Circle November 18 on the schedule and get ready for Charlotte on Tuesday. That is about all Orlando can take out of tonight's crushing loss to Oklahoma City at the Ford Center. The Thunder took a close game in the second quarter and turned it into a rout, running and shooting circles around a short-handed Magic team for a 102-74 win.

The score, for once, is as bad as the game indicated.

Oklahoma City abused Orlando on offense, playing much the same way Orlando is accustomed to playing offensively. The Thunder hit a barrage of 3-pointers behind Russell Westbrook and Thabo Sefolosha before Kevin Durant took over in taking to the basket.

That formula persisted throughout the rest of the game as the Magic could not figure out how to make any baskets. And I mean ANY baskets.

Orlando had a 25-23 lead after one quarter and were outscored 79-49 in the next 36 minutes, failing to score 20 points in the final three quarters. This was a close game at one point, but the Magic just could not get into a flow offensively and the they continued to struggle defensively.

Clearly their offense cannot carry them all the way to victories on every night. The defense has to show up and play well on nights when shots do not fall.

Orlando was without Ryan Anderson and Vince Carter. And for the first time all season it certainly mattered. The Magic sorely missed their outside shooting ability as it was on Dwight Howard's shoulders to carry the team. He did fine in the first half, scoring 15, but he had only five points the rest of the way when fouls and frustration caught up with him.

No one else could really score as JJ Redick went cold going 2 for 11 from the field and Jameer Nelson, trying as hard as he could, only managed 10 points on 4-for-10 shooting. Orlando shot just 3 for 16 from beyond the arc.

On the other side, Oklahoma City had four players in double figures, led by Kevin Durant's 28, and hit 9 of its 16 3-point attempts after coming into the game shooting near 35 percent from beyond the arc. The defense struggled throughout the night containing Durant and the shooters and part of that can be attributed to a lack of perimeter depth. Part of it to something else.

This is the kind of game where everything went wrong and it affected every aspect of the game.

The bottom line though, is the defense has to improve. The Magic are not the same defensive team as they were last year. Part of that is fact Carter is not 100 percent. Part of it is something else. Tough for me to figure out since my free NBA League Pass ran out last week.

I do not want to be Charlotte on Tuesday night because Orlando tends to have very good games after performances like these. But it has been a long time since the Magic have been outplayed like this, and it has been a long time since they have given up on a game like they did tonight.

Either way, Stan Van Gundy will be recanting his statements from Tuesday night after the loss to the Pistons... this is the worst game the Magic have played since the 2003-04 21-61 season. Something needs to change.

What They're Saying: Magic vs. Thunder 11/8

-Dwight Howard is getting really tired of the hard fouls he has to suffer through this (early) season. Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel tries to get to the bottom of what the team -- including Howard, Otis Smith, Patrick Ewing and Stan Van Gundy -- are trying to do to fix this problem or at least survive it.

-Looks like Orlando is going to be short-handed once again. Ryan Anderson has been ruled out for tonight's game against the Thunder and Vince Carter is doubtful. The Magic recognize they have depth and are looking to have their horses completely ready for the stretch run.

-Tania Ganguli of The Orlando Sentinel gives you five reasons to follow the Oklahoma City Thunder (aka the Zombies).

-More on Stan Van Gundy's breakdown of Orlando's defensive numbers. Either way they need to get to where the top teams are if the Magic are serious about winning a title.

-Etan Thomas of the Oklahoma City Thunder is more than just a basketball player.

-Mike Baldwin of the Oklahoman explains youth is no longer an excuse for Oklahoma City.

-Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel reports Matt Barnes will play tonight despite having flu-like symptoms and Vince Carter will participate in shootaround but will not play either.

-Shaun Livingston and D.J. White are still trying to break Scott Brooks' nine-man rotation and despite playing in the Thunder's last game, may not make the court tonight against the Magic.

-Thunder coach Scott Brooks does not like mixing up his lineup a whole lot, but the Magic could see Etan Thomas in the starting lineup instead of Nenad Krstic because of Thomas' strong play so far this season.

Orlando Magic 110, Detroit Pistons 103

Orlando was determined to make better on its effort from a disappointing loss Tuesday night in Detroit. Its fast start helped the team build a large lead that seemed to let the team coast to the finish. Things seemed right in the world.

Then Charlie Villanueva, the free agent acquisition who did not do much Tuesday night, decided to show up and prove why he is worth the money he earned this summer.

Villanueva scored 22 of his 28 points in the final quarter, helping Detroit finally get over the hump and close in on Orlando. His run got the Pistons to within six, but Jameer Nelson and Matt Barnes had the big shots the Magic needed for a 110-103 win.

Orlando got anything and everything it wanted early to build up a 19-point lead. The Magic got out to a 13-2 start and played with the type of energy they lacked Tuesday night in Detroit. More importantly, Dwight Howard was aggressive but not reckless early and set himself and his teammates up for success.

Howard finished the evening with 22 points and 12 rebounds, but more importantly three assists. He has gotten a lot more patient in the post and when he works as a distributor and a scorer, the Magic are simply unstoppable on offense.

The problems for Orlando, of course, came in the third and fourth quarter. The Magic had a 15-point lead at the half and 14 -point lead at the end of three after surviving a few mini-runs. The final onslaught came in the fourth behind Villanueva's strong play.

But that confidence could arguably be built by what the Pistons were able to do to Howard. Howard got into foul trouble again in the third quarter after largely staying out of that column of the box score in the first half.

Howard has not had this many issues with foul trouble in his career and it is something concerning. I was unable to watch this game (listened to it on the radio), but it seems like the perimeter defense is just not where it was last year and the team is relying even more on Howard as a last line of defense. He fouled out again tonight in the waning seconds of the game.

The defensive efficiency is not anywhere near last season's level and that is very concerning. While Orlando is able to seemingly score at well, we have also seen the offense grounded to a halt. With Ryan Anderson day-to-day after spraining his ankle in the third quarter tonight, the offense is reliable but not the crux of a championship team.

Howard is still a great deterrent, but the perimeter defense has to improve. Detroit's guards are faster than most backcourts, but Orlando had problems with them again -- Ben Gordon and Rodney Stuckey combined for 39 points.

Luckily for the Magic, Jameer Nelson was able to rally the troops with a six-point lead and help the Magic stave off the Pistons and get the win.

Vince Carter's absence is probably hurting a little bit at this point, but this team is still settling in. We have seen them be an offensive juggernaut, but I am still curious how the team responds defensively when the shots stop falling like they did tonight.

They scratched and clawed their way to a win, but the Magic had plenty of opportunities to really put the Pistons away and failed to do so.

What They're Saying: Pistons vs. Magic 11/6

-Stan Van Gundy tells Mike Bianchi of The Orlando Sentinel that he does not expect Vince Carter to play in tonight's game.

-Rookie Austin Daye had played only five minutes of playing time entering Wednesday's game. He then earned some run and got 16 against Toronto on Wednesday. The rookie is still adjusting to his playing time and the role he is going to play, but that is part of the growing experience, writes Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press.

-Ted Kulfan of the Detroit News has more on Austin Daye.

-The countdown to Rashard Lewis' return is slowly coming to an end. And Stan Van Gundy says it will bring a change to the lineup despite Ryan Anderson's strong play. Lewis will be back in the starting lineup when he returns to the lineup against Charlotte on November 16.

-A large free throw deficit doomed the Pistons in Wednesday's loss to the Raptors. Orlando did not take advantage of the free throw line in Tuesday's loss, that is something the team will look to correct this time around.

-Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press reports that even though it seems like Tayshaun Prince, who will miss his third straight game tonight, is expendable that he is not on the trade block.

-Zach McCann of Orlando Magic Daily explains why Ryan Anderson has no need for the mid-range jumper.

Magic Wands: November 6, 2009

-Here are the excerpts to the Tim Donaghy book (via Deadspin). I post this because its contents DO matter to everyone who is an NBA fan. I think you will find that the accusations seem a little over the top, but do sometimes ring true and kind of make sense (in a non-cheating way too). Some of the accusations are also hard to believe considering the source. I will say that it is painfully obvious why the book is not going to be published. Donaghy's writing is very poor.

-Oh free NBA League Pass, we hardly knew ye.

-Love him or hate him, Bill Walton will be missed from the airwaves. One last time: "Throw it down, big man!"

-The line attached to the Magic in this Ball Don't Lie power rankings is too funny not to post. Speaking of which, I never saw "Zombieland."

-It took a week for the national media to get attached to Stan Van Gundy's introductions at opening night. Us, well, it's just Stan.

-Details of Disney's transformation of Wide World of Sports using the ESPN brand.

-The Basketball Jones takes a look at NBA costumes from this past Halloween.

-Happy Topping off Amway Center!

-Vince Carter, hall of famer?

-An incredibly addictive game involving Stan Van Gundy eating the Detroit Pistons. You will never be happier to hear "Deeetroit Bassssketball"

What They're Saying: Suns vs. Magic 11/4

-Orlando continues to be bedeviled at the Palace of Auburn Hills after earning its first loss of the season last night in Detroit.

-Dwight Howard was caught on FSFlorida cursing after he fouled out of last night's game. Don't blame the guy. Through four games, he is getting beat up worse than usual and generally having to suffer it. Hopefully he can keep his composure and calmly express his complaints during the game, but he does need to make people afraid to foul him. Making free throws, which he has been doing the last two games, is a good start.

-Don't expect Mickael Pietrus to suit up for Orlando, writes Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel, even though the team has returned home. Pietrus has been feeling better and has been shooting at RDV SportsPlex. Vince Carter is still questoinable.

-Phoenix has a new friend -- the zone defense. It helped the Suns erase a double-digit deficit and hold off the Heat down in Miami. Steve Nash's 25 point, six assist second half did not hurt either.

-Leandro Barbosa sat out last night's game in Miami with a sprained right wrist. Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic reports that it has been bothering Barbosa and he was struggling to catch and shoot the ball before the game last night. He will be re-evaluated before tonight's game.

-Paul Coro of The Arizona Republic says Dwight Howard might be "ornery" after last night's performance, but Amare Stoudemire will ask him and the Magic defense to pick their poison in covering him in the pick and roll.

-Orlando is not in "sky is falling mode" yet, Ben Q Rock of 3rd Quarter Collapse writes, but the Magic could be heading for a rut after an extremely lackluster performance last night in Detroit.

-PhoenixStan of Bright Side of the Sun takes a look at the other big matchup of the game tonight. While the media might be focusing on Dwight Howard's battle with Amare Stoudemire, it is actually Jameer Nelson and Stave Nash we should be watching.

-Tyler Lockman of The Valley of the Suns is still pretty impressed with Phoenix's defensive performance last night and says the fact Howard's shoulder is still sore is something working in Stoudemire's and Phoenix's favor tonight in Orlando.

-Dwight Howard is still not feeling great about his shoulder... or the refs.

-Phoenix took advantage of an odd Miami lineup to improve to 4-0 and erase a double-digit deficit last night in South Florida, writes Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

-Zone defense and a strong fourth quarter were enough for Phoenix to improve to 4-0 for the first time in five years.

-Detroit's quick lineup and attack on Dwight Howard was enough to get them a big win last night at the Palace of Auburn Hills.

-Zach McCann of Orlando Magic Daily further breaks down Orlando's crushing loss to Detroit last night.

-Deep Purple grades the Suns on last night's win. The defense was a surprising B+, the offense a steady B.

Detroit Pistons 85, Orlando Magic 80

There may have been some new faces in the lineup in that familiar red, white and blue. There may have been some familiar faces sitting on the bench with injuries, providing Orlando some hope of stealing a victory. But, oh that result just remained the same.

Frustration. Floundering. Flustering.

Just another game with the Detroit Pistons.

Orlando and Detroit were in a real defensive slugfest tied at 77 late in the fourth quarter. But the speedy Pistons got to Dwight Howard and Marcin Gortat and outscored the Magic 8-3 in the final moments to take an 85-80 win at the Palace of Auburn Hills on Tuesday night.

The familiar frustrating Pistons defense bottled up Dwight Howard, who fouled out in 17 minutes after scoring eight points and grabbing five rebounds. Detroit just knows how to defend Howard, it does not matter who is in uniform for them.

With Howard on the bench in foul trouble for most of the game -- and on the bench for parts of the third quarter after re-aggravating the shoulder he strained in Sunday's win over Toronto -- Detroit proceeded to attack the tired and undermanned Orlando defense.

Stan Van Gundy admitted as much after the game that Vince Carter could not keep anyone in front of him and that is probably why Carter was sitting on the bench for the entire fourth quarter.

Carter, in his defense, was returning from a one-game absence after spraining his ankle Friday night in New Jersey. Vince finished with 15 points in 30 minutes.

With those two players struggling throughout the night, the offense stagnated for the first time all season. Orlando shot 10 of 35 from beyond the arc and were reluctant to get to the basket. The team had just 16 free throw attempts.

Detroit, on the other hand, used its unconventional three-guard backcourt of Will Bynum, Rodney Stuckey and Ben Gordon to speed its way past Orlando. The Pistons hit on 31 of their 38 free throw attempts. Bynum especially found himself in the paint for much of the night and especially late on his way to 20 points for the game.

The only good news is that the Magic held the Pistons under 40 percent shooting for the night. Not sure how much of it was their defense (I was only able to watch the second half), but the rotations generally looked better. It was hard to tell since Orlando was not making anyone pay tonight, missing open shots and settling for jumpers. That is the simple way to shoot 36.7 percent (29 for 79) from the floor.

That is not beating anybody, even on this night.

Kudos to the Magic for hanging in there tonight and sticking with the defensive gameplan. They kept fighting and scratching even with Howard out and Carter clearly not at 100 percent. The agression was not there and it was clear the team was still a little gassed after playing only nine players in Sunday's game (even after taking Monday off).

They clearly were not ready for the speed the Pistons had and looked, well, a little old at times.

You cannot win all 82 games and I was kind of hoping the Magic would get served some humble pie and mortality. They certainly learned they are not going to shoot 50 percent every game and will have to rely on their defense. Offensively, this was a freak game where shots would not fall and with Howard out, no one could create near the basket -- especially with Ben Wallace becoming Ben Wallace again.

A quick turnaround to play undefeated Phoenix will be another stiff challenge tomorrow. I am more interested to see how this team responds to the defeat in tomorrow night's game.

What They're Saying: Magic vs. Pistons 11/3

-Ryan Anderson has stepped up in Rashard Lewis' absence, being the second-leading scorer on the team. But even he knows that the will have to step down when Lewis returns.

-Dwight Howard's free throws made the Raptors pay Sunday and will become important as the season progresses. Also Vince Carter worked out on his own to test his sprained left ankle.

-Both Dwight's speed and quickness should make the Pistons cry for help, Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News writes. Also, Richard Hamilton will be out with a sprained right ankle.

-Ben Wallace seriously thought about retirement after Phoenix bought out the last year of his contract. But Wallace, writes Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press, has been a revelation in Detroit and is finding his second wind.

-The Puns are Starting to Bore Me took the time to break down the raw defensive numbers (not advanced numbers) for Orlando's defense. The number are not encouraging for a team that has prided itself on defense the last few years. But the question the blog asks: "Should we be worried three games into the season?"

-Detroit BadBoys has some reaction to the news that Richard Hamilton will miss tonight's game. It certainly hurts the PIstons overall depth and what they can do offensively with a small lineup.

-PistonPowered scouts everyone's favorite Evans High School alum, Chucky Atkins.

-Vince Carter will start tonight for the Magic while the Pistons will be without Tayshaun Prince tonight and Friday night, John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com reports.

Orlando Magic 125, Toronto Raptors 116

The offensive juggernaut known as the Orlando Magic rolled into Toronto minus three starters. The 3-pointers were falling and even Dwight Howard was making his free throws.

The defense? Still stuck in customs.

The Magic have certainly proved that they are an incredibly deep, offensive team, topping the Raptors 125-116 with Vince Carter out with an ankle injury and Mickael Pietrus on a plane back to Orlando with flu-like symptoms and a high fever. But the defense continued to be a source of concern as the Magic improved to 3-0.

A win is a win and you can take that for whatever it's worth. And the Magic did still manage to outscore the Raptors with Carter and Pietrus not in uniform and only nine guys available. But Toronto is not exactly known for its defensive prowess.

Orlando jumped out early, gaining a 22-point lead at one point in the second quarter. JJ Redick and Ryan Anderson were letting the 3-pointers fly and everything seemed to be rolling, even as Toronto shot nearly 60 percent in the first half.

The Raptors closed to within 11 by the end of the first half and kept the game within striking range for much of the contest. They never could close much closer than six, but the threat of Toronto loomed large throughout.

The team is much-improved on offense because of the addition of Hedo Turkoglu (19 points), but moreso because of the improvement of Andrea Bargnani. Bargnani torched the Magic with 26 points on four-of-five 3-point shooting. Bargnani was having a field day working switched between Howard and Anderson or the slow rotation to the top of the key of either Anderson or Brandon Bass.

Orlando really had no answer for any pick and roll involving him as the team just hoped he would cool down.

Fortunately for the Magic, the Raptors had no answer for them on the defensive end. Jameer Nelson played like an All Star, leading the team with 30 points and five assists. He hit a bunch of big shots with the Raptors closing in and had the ball in his hands late in the game with the decision still up in the air. Nelson attacked the hoop tenaciously and had his first really good game of the year.

No talk of the offense would be complete without mention sir Jeremy Clay Redick. JJ had 27 points and hit five of his eight 3-point attempts to help Orlando build its lead in the first half and maintain it throughout the second. He did a good job with shot fakes and drawing fouls (six of seven from the line on the day) and even attacked the basket.

This was a breakout performance for Redick and by far his best in a Magic uniform. He outplayed Matt Barnes throughout the night and even made some big steals late.

To be fair, Barnes is still the better defender and his size was more of a nuisance to Turkoglu than Redick was. Barnes also had six steal to go along with 12 points and nine rebounds. He did a good job poking at the ball and got his hands dirty on defense to come up with a few nice steals.

But the defense is still bothersome and makes this win bittersweet. As I explained to a friend, Orlando did score 125 points, but what happens when Boston holds the team to 93. Can the Magic hold the Celtics to 92?

At this point the answer is no.

It just looks like the team is not on the same page defensively yet. At least not for a full game. There were a lot of unusual combinations out on the floor tonight, but it looked like everyone was playing a little too overagressive -- especially Howard showing on the pick and roll. Rotations were late and players were left open for threes or given pretty open lanes to attack the basket.

Howard was not quite the deterrant he usually was as he was often pulled away from the basket to defend Chris Bosh or Bargnani. Howard was also clearly frustrated with the Raptors' physical play on him throughout the contest. He finished with a struggling 24 points, but only on five of 13 shooting. Luckily he hit on 14 of his 16 free throw attempts. No clue where the Magic would have been without that performance.

Bosh took advantage of Howard's frustrations and Toronto's versatility with 35 points.

Toronto is certainly a pesky team for Orlando and it always has been in the Bosh era. Bosh gives the Magic a lot of matchup problems and the lack of depth from missing Carter and Pietrus definitely hurt as Orlando tried to hang onto the lead.

The defense is still very concerning, but a win is a win at this point of hte season and there is plenty of time to get everything on the right page. The offense is clicking and that is enough to keep Orlando more than afloat at this point.