Still looking for premier win

Thanksgiving has past and Orlando has stuffed its face to a 13-4 record so far this season. But have these wins been nice turkey, or that fatty dark meat?

So far, you have to say it has not been the healthy part of the turkey -- the kind that builds a nice playoff resume and cements your team as one of the contenders in the NBA. Blame the schedule makers partly for this perceived problem. But Orlando, the team that has the fourth best overall record in the NBA, still lacks a defining early season win.

The road success of last season has continued and the Magic have recovered nicely from an 0-2 start. Throw some injuries to key players on top of that (the team is 3-0 since Jameer Nelson went down with an injury), and Orlando should still feel pretty fortunate with its fantastic start.

But with a trip to the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston on the horizon (try Monday) and a west coast trip looming that features games at Portland, Phoenix and Utah, and Orlando is going to need to do a little more than take advantage of games against bad teams.

No, to prove you can win in the playoffs, a team must win games against playoff-caliber opponents in the regular season.

I am sure many of the teams Orlando has played and beaten will be in the playoffs. The team won for the first time in Dallas since 1997, when the team still played at Reunion Arena. That is a sign of progress.

The Magic are a good team. You have to be a good team to be as successful against the small teams as they have been.

But consider this:

The four teams Orlando has lost to have a combined .531 win percentage (which includes a bad loss at Memphis). The 13 teams the Magic have beaten have a combined 71-138 (.340 win percentage), and only one is against a team with an above .500 record -- Toronto at 8-7.

See my point.

Yes, it is very good Orlando is feasting on the bad teams. And the schedule has not afforded Orlando many opportunities.

But that is what makes Monday's game so important. Win at Boston, and everyone knows the Magic are a real threat to an Eastern Conference title. Lose, and they are still a team that can beat those worse than them, but not a premier team.