Magic Wands: May 29, 2009

-LeBron James, Dwight Howard, Kobe Bryant and Carmelo Anthony have not tired from their busy summer in Beijing. In fact, as Sean Deveney of The Baseline, it has strengthened their resolve this postseason.

-Carlos Arroyo was named the MVP of the Israeli League for helping Macabbi Tel Aviv win the league title.

-At least Orlando beats Cleveland in tourism. LOL.

-Florida guard Nick Calathes will not be entering the NBA Draft and has apparently signed a contract with Panathanaiokas.

-What Dwight Howard should have done to win Game Two against the Cavaliers.

-Dwight Howard is apparently not a huge fan of those mildly entertaining LeBron James-Kobe Bryant puppet commercials Nike has put out. It is no secret the whole world wants the dream matchup of Lakers and Cavaliers in the Finals.

-ESPN is opening a research and development lab at Disney.

-ESPN Outside the Lines has a nice story about former Magic player Cuttino Mobley and his fight with a congenital heart defect.

-Memphis and maybe Derrick Rose might be in trouble for recruiting violations and improper payments.

-Bill Simmons laments a change in the NBA. And demands better officiating. This should be a golden age for the NBA.

-Chris Broussard on the impossibility of life after Michael Jordan.

-NBA referee Violet Palmer is going to be an adviser for NCAA officials.

-Orlando has a night life problem that needs to be fixed if the team is to host the All Star Game... and maybe even the Finals.

Magic Wands: December 12, 2008

-Supersonicsoul has an interesting look at NBATV ratings. Orlando is not doing so hot (sorry, I have not been home to eat up NBATV in the odd hours of the afternoon). But the league is still as popular as ever.

-According to one scout who talked to Marc Stein on the Weekend Dime:

"I think Orlando is the best team in the NBA that's not being talked about. Everyone loves Portland right now, so everyone talks about them. Orlando is racking up the road wins again, and they're going to be a legit player in the Eastern Conference if they can get that No. 3 or [No.] 2 seed and avoid Boston in the second round. I know people say they have no bench, but once you get to the playoffs you only play seven or eight guys anyway.

"Look at what they do have: Rashard [Lewis] and Hedo [Turkoglu] to spread the floor and one of the few legit big guys out there [in Dwight Howard], even though he's not a great scorer. And Jameer Nelson … his problem is that he's making $8 million instead of $6 million. If he was making $6 million, everyone would think he's a bargain. In the playoffs, I thought the kid was pretty good."

Tell me something I don't know.

-Darko Milicic makes his run for Superman after picking up a foul against Houston on Monday. Better video here.

-Remember when I complained about Tuesday's basketball lineup on ESPN. Marc Stein calms me down in the Daily Dime. Plus, Stan Van Gundy deserves all the credit for the win at Portland (scroll to the bottom).

-Avid Trail Blazer fan Henry Abbott tries to explain why Brandon Roy made the wrong decisions down the stretch Tuesday. Here's a hint: Keith Bogans is good at defense.

-Chicago Bulls assistant coach Pete Myers gets the first crack at playing President-Elect Barack Obama, the Chicago Tribune reports.

-According to a Truehoop reader, residents of Shanghai want resident Yao Ming to play more like Dwight Howard. We will take that as a compliment and a vote for Howard as the best center in the league.

-Early returns from All Star ballotting have Dwight Howard leading the way. Not for centers, but for EVERYONE.

-Former Magic man Cuttino Mobley is going to officially retire because of a heart condition.

-Dwight Howard tells Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel that he will be competing in the slam dunk contest this year. And he has something BIG planned for it.

Cuttino Mobley, a heart condition?

J.A. Adande of ESPN.com is reporting that the recent trade between the Knicks and the Clippers is being held up because former Magic guard Cuttino Mobley has an apparent heard condition.

The report is saying that the Knicks raised concerns over his heart condition and are sending him to a specialist. It goes on to say that Mobley had the heart condition his entire career but it was never seen as a major issue. With Eddy Curry on their team though, don't blame the Knicks for double checking.

Mobley had a good half season in Orlando in 2004-05 season before he was traded to Sacramento for Doug Christie (trading an apparent heart case for a head case... I kid, I kid). He was a great 3-point shooter and a solid defender, making the trade somewhat of a head-scratcher.

In any case, it had a huge affect on superstar Steve Francis (writing those words , seems hilarious to me now). Francis and Mobley were good friends and Francis' play suffered significantly since the trade.

All the best to Mobley. I hope to see him in a Knicks (or Clippers) uniform later this season.

UPDATE: today the trade went through. Mobley and Tim Thomas were traded to New York for Zach Randolph and Mardy Collins.