Magic still not a road draw

So I got a chance to check out the Magic on the road recently. A nice showing of blue in the building for sure -- especially against a division rival. But otherwise, I was underwhelmed by how many total people were at the stadium.

Orlando is not going to ever travel well. It is not the biggest city. It is not the biggest team. It doesn't have the star power of most other teams.

But with one of the best records in the league entering the game, and the team I was visiting playing so well, I figured it would draw a little better. It was a Saturday night for crying out loud.

The stadium was pretty full. But not to capacity. I expected a little more people to show up for one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference, that is for sure.

No complaints. Respect from the ticket-buying public has to be earned. And Orlando is not quite there yet.

They will be soon.

Making Magic at the halfway point

Orlando decided to start the second half of its season the same way it started the beginning of the season -- with a two-game losing streak.

But it really is no matter. What the Magic have done in 41 games is truly astounding. They have become relevant again and are giving fans real hope that a title is within grasp.

Just take a second to digest what Orlando has accomplished in 41-plus games. The team tied the best start in franchise history at 33-8. It swept San Antonio and the Los Angeles Lakers, teams that have been to nine of the past 10 NBA Finals, for the first time in 20 seasons.

For the first time since the Tracy McGrady-Grant Hill pairing, the Magic might have two NBA All Stars and for the first time every could realistically get three.

It has been an incredible ride.

Dwight Howard has shown some maturity and gotten better in the post. More importantly, he has decreased his turnovers substantially and become a better passer. This has given Orlando more open looks from beyond the arc and made Stan Van Gundy's offense a reality.

Jameer Nelson has transformed from a fringe starting point guard to a true leader on the court. Howard has needed someone on the perimeter to take over and give him the space to operate. Nelson's maturation has helped do that.

He has proven me wrong, among others, and become one of the top point guards in the Eastern Conference. He SHOULD be an All Star for the way he has played this season. He seems to have complete control of the offense, knowing when to score and when to pass.

Rashard Lewis has also become more comfortable with the team and that has led to a more aggressive game from him. Lewis is a great 3-point shooter and has played well from beyond the arc. But he is attacking the basket with renewed fervor and aggression. Lewis has been a big difference in this year's team.

Orlando has gotten a rare thing from a young team -- everyone has improved. The next step is to deal with the pressure that comes with being a top team. It comes from the media, from the fans and from within. It is a pressure the team has not faced.

But to this point, this season has been a dream come true for longtime Magic fans. It has been 12 years since Magic fans could even realistically talk championship.

Orlando is in a good spot right now. In a much better spot than it has been in a long time. I do not think it is relevant whether the team wins a title this season. The perception of the Magic has changed. And that is half the battle.

Miami Heat 103, Orlando Magic 97

10 games. That's how many times in a row Orlando had defeated Miami. A sign of the pure domination the Magic have had over the Heat the last two or three seasons as the two teams have flipped their roles -- Miami winning the title just three season ago.

After a poor effort at home against Boston, it seemed like the perfect way for Orlando to bounce back.

They didn't.

The Heat got superb efforts from surrounding players and their bench, taking a big lead in the third quarter. The Magic were good enough to erase the deficit and tie the game with two minutes left. But they were not good enough when it counted.

Doubling Dwyane Wade every time he touched the ball, the superstar found Udonis Haslem twice for layups and Orlando chirped at the referees after the Heat cleanly swiped the ball.

It was a poor effort throughout from Orlando until they made a big run to close the gap and make it a game. There was not much positive in the game besides the Magic's will to win a game against mediocre opponents when it wants to.

The first half was all about offense. Both teams shot well over 50 percent and the Heat led 56-52 at the break.

Wade was getting to the basket and Miami's shooters were making shots from the outside. That makes them a tough team to defend, but the Magic were not getting down to play defense at all. To Orlando's credit, neither was Miami.

The Heat had no way to stop Dwight Howard. When the Magic got him the ball, he had his way in the paint. Howard finished with 22 points and 10 rebounds. He made some nice post moves and scored in a variety of ways. He looked like he was coming out with a purpose to score after his poor game against Boston.

That fire though was used in the wrong way late in the game. Howard picked up a technical foul in the fourth quarter for arguing a call -- he was being bumped and pushed, but not any more than he usually is. It was an odd loss of composure for Howard.

Miami was frustrating the big guy. The Heat forced the Magic to beat them from the outside in by denying Howard the ball in the post. He was fronted and swarmed by players at all point of the game. Even though Orlando was emphasizing him in its offense, it struggled to get him the ball. It helped slow the team's offense in the third quarter for sure.

Fouls were a big issue throughout the game and lend itself to the larger defensive issue. Miami had 32 free throws in a game. A top defensive team does not give up that many free throws. It was a frustrating game on the defensive end.

Howard did not feel it was being reciprocated and continued complaining about a late no-call (a good no-call) with the Magic trailing by three and was thrown out on his second technical foul with one second left. An odd loss of poise, indeed.

Orlando seemed to be wearing the after effects of that Boston loss still. I think (and Doug Collins made this point Thursday night on the TNT telecast) that the team is a little high on itself after getting four days off after its 4-0 road trip.

These two losses should bring the team back down to earth. It is the first time Orlando has lost two in a row since the beginning of the season.

This does make Tuesday's game against Indiana very important. The Magic have to come out with renewed focus and a lot of energy to get a win.

The Celtics went through the same kind of lull (it is well documented). This was bound to happen in such a long season. You cannot keep up the way the Magic were playing for the entire season. It is a marathon, not a spring.

Magic Wands: January 23, 2009

-All Star voting has closed by now. But Kobe Bryant (THE Kobe Bryant) believes Jameer Nelson is playing at an All Star level. He certainly has and he should be playing in Phoenix in February with Dwight Howard and maybe Rashard Lewis. The Magic will be well represented at the All Star game.

-Marc Stein talks to advance scouts around the NBA. While the national media is not willing to fall in love with the Magic and their title chances, the people who matter are. One scout calls Orlando the best team in the NBA right now.

-It is no secret that a lot of athletes voted for and are inspired by Barack Obama, who was inaugurated as President of the United States on Tuesday. It should be no surprise that so many athletes were going -- sometimes to extreme lengths -- to attend the inauguration. Among those in attendance? Tiger Woods and Dwight Howard.

-Feel like your middle school basketball player has college-level skills? So does the NCAA. It now can regulate coach's interactions with seventh graders, deciding that players as young as 11 or 12 are now prospects.

-Jerry Sloan agreed to a one-year extension with the Jazz. Think about that for a moment. He has coached the same team for 22 years and will coach them for one more. You get the feeling though that with only a one-year extension, Sloan sees his retirement coming.

-Jason Quick of The Oregonian reports that Rudy Fernandez will be joining Dwight Howard, Nate Robinson and Rudy Gay in the Slam Dunk Contest. Click here for the official release.

-They say when you are a Playmaker, you can bend the rules. At least that is what ESPN wanted you to believe until the NFL shut them up. Then again, when the President-Elect calls you for inauguration, coach changes practice for his superstar player.

-Brian Schmitz has a solid breakdown of the Magic season so far in Wednesday's Orlando Sentinel now that we have officially hit the midway point.

-Good new Orlando fans. ClearChannel may be returning 740 AM to sports radio. That would give the 20th largest media market two local sports radio stations. Bad news about the job cuts though.

-Stan Van Gundy sure is glad he is not coaching in college football, Mike Bianchi reports.

Boston Celtics 90, Orlando Magic 80

It was billed as a matchup of the top two teams in the Eastern Conference (Cleveland you are 1a or 1b or 1c... I do not think there is much of a difference right now). It turned out to be a growing moment for a young and inexperienced Orlando team.

With the pressure squarely on the Magic to perform and prove they belonged in the conversation of title contenders after a 4-0 junket out West, the Celtics took the game away from them and told the world they are still the world champs.

Orlando has a long way to go.

It was a struggle all night for Orlando. The Celtics struggled to collect rebounds in the first quarter, allowing the Magic to hang around and cling to a lead. But once they fixed that problem, they were in complete control despite never pulling away.

The game never seemed to have a playoff-intensity on Orlando's side (I watched it on TV so I did not have the comfort of Amway Arena to tell me otherwise). Part of that can be attributed to the Celtics' dominating defense.

Few teams can cover Dwight Howard one-on-one. Boston is one of those teams. When no one doubles Howard, it makes things very difficult for Orlando to get open jump shooters.

With Howard bottled up in the paint, it looked like he became uninterested at times and was more or less a ghost -- on a night he was named a starter for the All Star Game with a league-high vote total of more than 3 million votes.

The perimeter players could not get into the paint and draw Celtic players off their man. There were no holes for the Magic to create offense and it suffered in probably the worst offensive performance of the season.

Orlando played very well defensively. Despite shooting just more than 30 percent all game, it never got out of hand. But when Boston needed a shot, the team went to Paul Pierce or Kevin Garnett and got a good shot.

That is why they are the champs and Orlando is not.

This game was an aberration. The Magic clearly showed that at the end of the game when they started penetrating and getting into the paint and getting the space to make the extra pass.

I think (and this point was made by Doug Collins on the broadcast) that the four-day break hurt Orlando immensely. Sitting around after such a productive trip can make any team lose its rhythm -- especially against a great team like Boston. But doing that while hearing everyone talk about how great you are can be disconcerting for a young and relatively inexperienced team like Orlando.

The real test is going to be in Miami on Saturday. The Magic have to have a good effort to keep this from becoming a trend.

After beating the Celtics 2-1 last year, it appears they have the Magic's number. Let's hope Orlando does not see them in the postseason.

Magic No. 1 in ESPN Power Rankings

As of Monday, January 19, 2009, the Orlando Magic are thought to be the best team in the NBA. Marc Stein in his weekly power rankings puts Orlando No. 1 after the team's 4-0 road trip that included a sweep of the Western Conference's division leaders.

John Hollinger too has the Magic at the top spot creating an unprecedented hole in the universe. I feel reality collapsing upon itself as I type this.

This is an incredible accomplishment for Orlando. Not only is the national media finally recognizing Orlando and all its greatness.

The past week has been one of the best in Magic history. And this is its just reward.

But now the question becomes: can Orlando maintain it? Can the Magic keep it up into June and actually compete for a title.

We have already seen Boston (Thursday's opponent) get off to a hot start and hit a swoon, although I think they are pacing themselves a little bit. The Magic undoubtedly are going to cool off and lose some games. The question will become can Orlando bounce back.

The Magic have secured themselves a spot in the elite of the NBA. Now can they maintain it with all the pressures and expectations squarely on them?

This is something no one on the roster (except Stan Van Gundy) has had to deal with.

In Search Of: Ain't No Stopping the Magic

From time to time, I remember certain minutia about the Magic or Magic history. But I cannot quite remember the details. Through exhaustive searches of Google, OrlandoMagic.com and the entire Internet, my quest for this locked away knowledge or forgotten memory hits a dead end. Forever will I be In Search Of...

Ain't no stopping the Magic.

No I am not talking about our general feelings after Orlando completed a four-game sweep out West. Although that trip partially inspired me to remember this secondary Magic theme song.

Often confused with the glorious tune of the late 1980s that led the Magic onto the court for pregame warmups at the Orlando Arena for nine years, this was a rap ballad dedicated to the 1994-95 team.

The team that said, "Why not us? Why not now?" The team that featured the youthful exuberance of Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway with the calm composure of veterans like Horace Grant, Anthony Bowie, Nick Anderson (he wasn't that old) and Donald Royal.

It was a song that glorified a team taking the NBA by storm and not caring who it left in its path.

"Whoomp, there ain't no stopping the Magic. Whoomp, there ain't no stopping us." It went as it proclaimed Orlando's greatness to the world.

Sure, that team might have been too young to win a title and yes, the 1995-96 edition that fell to the Chicago Bulls juggernaut was a much better squad. But like the song, it was a team that did not think about its future, but only thought about what it could accomplish now.

As Orlando is waltzing toward what appears to be another run toward a title (hard to say another, the first title run barely got its legs under it), I wonder what happened to this song. I long to listen to it and find a way to replace the name of Shaquille O'Neal with Dwight Howard or replace Penny Hardaway with Rashard Lewis or Nick Anderson with Jameer Nelson.

So many parallels between this team and that (even to the playing style), and yet no song to glorify either of them anywhere.

Where have you gone "Ain't No Stopping the Magic"?

Basketball Book Review: The Punch by John Feinstein

So I realized a while back that I only read basketball books. So I figured I might share the good ones with you.

The first one is my favorite: The Punch by John Feinstein.

This book recounts a horrific night in 1977 when Rudy Tomjanovich (the same one who coached the Rockets to two titles) was seriously injured by a punch from Kermit Washington in a game at the Great Western Forum. It was a moment that transformed the NBA in ways that people probably do not even think about.

Feinstein does a fantastic job re-telling what led up to this event, the characters involved and what happened afterward to the league and to those involved.

It is often thought that Washington was the "thug" in this incident and he did blindly throw that fateful punch. But Feinstein does a great job painting him as the person he was off the court not the guy he was on it.

Washington's role on the Lakers was to protect Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and that sometimes meant laying down the law. The initial scrum that ensued that night was because Kevin Kunnert and Abdul-Jabbar were jostling with each other running down the court.

This is a book for the basketball history enthusiast. You learn that this event led to a bigger crackdown on fighting in the league -- something prevalent in the 70s -- and the introduction of the third referee to trail the play.

It changed two men's lives in immeasurable ways and it changed basketball too.

This is a fantastic read. Feinstein is very conversational and does a good job fleshing out the impact it had on Tomjanovich, Washington and the NBA. He works really well to change your pre-conceived perceptions of those involved in the incident and really delves into its impact.

It was a bigger event than you think and every basketball fan should be aware of what happened that night and its consequences. This book is how you do it.

Orlando Magic 101, Denver Nuggets 86

I just finished listening to this one and all I can say is: wow.

Orlando swept a four-game trip out West that featured wins at the three division leaders for the Western Conference. That includes the team's first win in Denver in five years and the completion of season sweeps of San Antonio and Los Angeles (Lakers) for the first time in franchise history.

This game was all about Jameer Nelson.

He was once again the facilitator and generator of offense. Nelson had 23 points and five assists. More importantly it was against his nemesis Chauncey Billups. Billups was held scoreless in the first half before he finished with 18 points.

The starters were on fire even coming off a back-to-back. The Magic had just two points off their bench.

Not ideal, but impressive.

This was a big road trip for Orlando and the team has to be feeling pretty good coming home. It does not get any easier with Boston coming to town Thursday. But this team looks up to the challenge after a gritty and seemingly easy trip out West.

Orlando Magic 109, Los Angeles Lakers 103

It was billed as a battle of MVPs. And neither one disappointed.

Dwight Howard and Kobe Bryant each put in MVP-worthy performances pacing their teams to the very end. Fortunately for Orlando, its supporting cast carried the team to the finish and gutted out the win.

It was the could-be (should-be) All Star that delivered.

Jameer Nelson continues to make a name for himself as the closer for this team with a 3-pointer with 30 seconds left that gave Orlando a one-point lead. Bryant tried to will the Lakers to a win, but his 3-pointer rimmed out with his team down three and his team fell short to the Magic once again.

It was a solid effort from the Magic. They got down early but rallied back in the third quarter with a very opportunistic defense. Orlando was getting after the ball and forcing turnovers, shooting into the gaps for steals and starting the fast break.

It was clear that once Howard was out of foul trouble at the beginning of the second half, that the Lakers had no way to defend him. Howard was getting what he wanted in the paint and when he was agressive, he was scoring.

But at the end, the defense was a liability. Orlando could not keep guys in front and could not stop anyone from getting to the basket. But the offense was on.

The Magic have learned to do one thing really well that has turned them into one of the top teams in the league. That is pass the ball.

Every possession, Orlando was making the extra pass to find open players for good looks at the basket. The offense was really flowing and even though the defense was giving away opportunities, it did enough earn the win.

This is a big win for the Magic. They have never swept the Lakers in a season series (let alone win two games in a row against them). Bryant was once again fantastic, getting a triple double through three quarters.

But Bryant could not will a victory against Orlando. That is something he is going to have to learn. What worked for the Lakers was him getting others involved and creating for others. The Magic were not playing him as physically as they were in the first matchup but when it came to crunch time, Orlando forced him to take jumpers and kept him from getting others involved.