Magic have tough road ahead
By Terry Brown
NBA Insider
Wednesday, November 19
Updated: November 19
9:00 AM ET
Maybe the Orlando Magic should have beaten the New York Knicks on Nov. 3.
Even with Grant Hill going through four ankle operations and unable to play this season, even with players like Ben Wallace and Troy Hudson having been let go due to Hill's burdening salary, even with eight new players on this year's team, five of them rookies, even with injuries to Gordan Giricek and Pat Garrity, maybe the Magic should have beaten the Chicago Bulls on Nov. 5.
After all, those were two games against non-playoff teams taking place at home.
But even so, maybe the Magic should have beaten either the Nuggets in Denver on Friday, or the Clippers in Los Angeles on Saturday or the Jazz in Salt Lake on Monday.
Because after finishing last season by losing their final three playoff games, the Magic went on to win only one of eight preseason games and are now 1-10 during the regular season with possibly the worst yet to come one day after firing head coach Doc Rivers.
"First and foremost, this was a 1-10 team," John Weisbrod, the Magic's chief operating officer, said in the New York Times. "We don't have any illusions about our status, or believe we should be lapping the field, but we're not a 1-10 team."
Well, Mr. Weisbrod maybe right. This isn't going to be a 1-10 team for long. The Magic could, with rejuvenated spirits by the promoting of assistant Johnny Davis, quickly go to 2-10. Or, if they were to simply look at the schedule with their current 2-20 mindset, they could be 1-20 before this thing is all over because their next 10 opponents have a combined record of 62-43.
Magic fans shouldn't expect a quick turnaround from Tracy McGrady and the Magic.
"We have some work to do, but we're not out of it by any stretch of the imagination. The season is still early," said Johnny Davis in the Orlando Sentinel. "There certainly is enough time to get this thing going. Let's start with tomorrow, and let's start winning."
Well, their next game is against the Phoenix Suns as their fourth consecutive road game followed immediately the next night by the Kings in Sacramento. Both of those teams plan on going to the playoffs even if they do play in the much tougher Western Conference.
And it doesn't get any easier after that.
They play the Indiana Pacers, the team with the best record in the entire Eastern Conference, in their first home game under their new head coach on Monday. Then comes the Boston Celtics, the team with the best record in the Atlantic Division. Next are the Toronto Raptors, who have the same record as the Celtics.
"You have to take it one step at a time," Davis said. "We are going to do things that I deem best for the team now. I'm thrilled about this opportunity, and I want to make basketball fun again for everyone. And you do that by winning."
Sure, Boston and Toronto can be beaten and the Magic better hope so because directly following those games are a home-and-home swap with the New Orleans Hornets, who have the second-best record in the entire Eastern Conference.
"I think when you get into a losing streak like we did, a lot of it is more mental than physical," Davis said. "I just want to create an atmosphere that is more conducive to winning, to put our players in position to be successful, and forget about what happened previously."
Well, that isn't going to be too easy because right after that, the World Champion San Antonio Spurs come into town followed by a road trip to Dallas to play the Mavericks, who had the best record in the league last season, and then another game against the Suns.
"Yes, that's right," Weisbrod said. "You've got a team of a mind-set that thinks it's not going to win, and that becomes contagious. We were hoping we'd break out of it, but we didn't. It was a difficult thing to do, but it's best for the team. They needed to hear a new voice."
Magic fans may be circling Wednesday, Dec. 10 on their calenders because that's when their team faces the Washington Wizards, the first team that, on paper, they are possibly superior to.
"Hopefully, we'll come out with more energy, have more fun and can look like professionals out there," Tracy McGrady said in Florida Today. "At times, we've been out there just running around like chickens with their heads cut off, not knowing our spots on the court and looking lost. Hopefully, we can move forward and finally get on the same page."
Of course, the law of averages says the Magic will win at least one of those games. But, then again, no one expected this team to start 1-10 in the first place. But will 2-18 do it? Is 3-17 good enough? Can Davis be satisfied if his team is 4-16? Is 5-15 really as bad as it sounds, though that might be the coaching feat of the season considering these circumstances.
"I always felt like I was coaching with one arm tied behind my back," Rivers said. "We were set up bad. . . . eight new guys; it's tough. I felt this was an inevitability . . . There was a lot of pressure on these guys but I wish they would have looked at four years instead of 11 games."
And maybe, just maybe, the Magic should have looked at the next 10 games on the schedule instead of just the last 11.
"When you have eight new faces like we do this season, it's like starting all over again," McGrady said in Florida Today. "He was in such a tough situation. When you make that many changes, it's either going to go really good or really bad for you."
Or, with one more familiar face as the new head coach, really, really bad.
Laker cheaters?
As far as we know, Los Angeles Laker general manager Mitch Kupchak isn't paying officials to change their calls in favor of the Lakers. To the best of our knowledge, no Laker players has tested positive for THG. We have yet to hear that Phil Jackson has once placed a bet for or against his team from the locker room. Karl Malone
Power Forward
Los Angeles Lakers
Profile
2003-2004 SEASON STATISTICS
GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%
11 14.7 9.5 4.0 .459 .685
But even so, Rob Parker in the Detroit News is claiming these very same Lakers are cheating.
"That's because the Lakers, who had won three straight titles before the San Antonio Spurs won last season, let players sign contracts below their market value in order to put together a squad that the NBA has never seen," he wrote in today's edition. "In the end, it circumvents the salary cap."
Of course, he's talking about the offseason signings of Karl Malone and Gary Payton. And he didn't have to look far to get support.
"It's won't be real," said Pistons broadcaster Rick Mahorn, who won a title with the Bad Boys in 1989, in the same article. "They're paying for it. It's like getting a championship on somebody's back."
Gary Payton
Point Guard
Los Angeles Lakers
Profile
2003-2004 SEASON STATISTICS
GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%
11 14.8 4.3 7.0 .486 .700
Parker continued: "In essence, they are paying big dollars in order to buy a ring. Malone, who earned $19 million last season and will be paid $1.5 million this season, is paying $17.5 million for his ring. Payton, who earned $12.5 million last season and is getting $4.9 million this season, is forking over $8.6 million . . . In the case of the Lakers, NBA Commissioner David Stern let down the rest of NBA America by not blocking these out-of-whack deals."
Parker notes that in 1976, MLB commissioner Bowie Kuhn blocked a deal that would have dealt star players for reasons other than competition stating that it wasn't in the best interest of baseball.
"The cap is still an experimental thing," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. "I imagine if we are fortunate enough to win, there would be some discussion in the vein of players purposely circumventing to get a ring."
-----------------------------
Peep Show
By Terry Brown
NBA Insider
Wednesday, November 19
Updated: November 19
9:38 AM ET
IversonPhiladelphia 76ers: All of the Sixers making the road trip to Toronto to play the Raptors please take one step forward. Not so fast Derrick Coleman, Glenn Robinson and, yes, Allen Iverson. Coach Randy Ayers is officially down to nine players for tonight's game after Iverson's bruised right knee continued to trouble him. "I guess guys are kind of worn down...it's just tough on us right now, knowing we're going into games without guys," Iverson said in the Philadelphia Daily News. "It's always going to be a problem when I'm the leader in rebounding, or second...It just doesn't sit well with me. That really lets me know we're shorthanded."
Seattle SuperSonics: Dec. 7 can't come fast enough for head coach Nate McMillan. That's when Ray Allen will supposedly return to the team after ankle surgery has kept him sidelined so far this season. "It has crossed my mind once," McMillan said in the Tacoma News Tribune, "but it is so far from now, I can't even really think about that. My main thing right now is to continue to figure a way for these guys to play, develop and get opportunities. It will only be a better team when Ray comes back. Then it will work itself out."
New York Knicks: The Knicks won't have Keith Van Horn to kick around anymore. At least not for the next game or so after the forward popped his ankle in Tuesday's practice. "I think he just came down on someone's foot, I'm not too sure," Kurt Thomas said in the N.Y. Post. "It looked bad and it sounded bad." He listed as questionable for tonight's game against the Clippers.
San Antonio Spurs: The San Antonio Express News is reporting that both Anthony Carter and Ron Mercer may soon be able to rejoin the team after each finishes healing up. Carter was experiencing tendinitis in his left knee while Mercer had tendon problems in his left foot. Mercer should return on two games while Carter is on day to day basis. "Not only do we want to see what he can give us," Popovich said, "we need to know whether he can depend on that knee."
MaloneLos Angeles Lakers: Rain, snow, sleet and even dead of night. Now, they can add left hamstring pull to the Mailman's list after the forward re-injured it Tuesday night but continued to play. "He's got to go back in simply because he can't sit and tighten up," coach Phil Jackson said in the L.A. Daily News. "It's a matter of staying warm when you're loose and dealing with the injury after the fact, after the game. ... We needed some help." Karl Malone does not plan on missing any games due to the injury.
Detroit Pistons: Zeljko Rebraca was placed on the injured reserve list for back spasms, but ask anyone in Detroit and they'll tell you it has more to do with the irregular heartbeat that sidelined him last season. The center has been slowly coming off medication to treat the problem and the team is taking precautionary measures at the time. "Hopefully it's just a five-game deal," coach Larry Brown said in the Detroit Free Press. "I was feeling more and more confident that he would be able to get back and make a contribution, but that's the way things are in this league."
By Terry Brown
NBA Insider
Wednesday, November 19
Updated: November 19
9:00 AM ET
Maybe the Orlando Magic should have beaten the New York Knicks on Nov. 3.
Even with Grant Hill going through four ankle operations and unable to play this season, even with players like Ben Wallace and Troy Hudson having been let go due to Hill's burdening salary, even with eight new players on this year's team, five of them rookies, even with injuries to Gordan Giricek and Pat Garrity, maybe the Magic should have beaten the Chicago Bulls on Nov. 5.
After all, those were two games against non-playoff teams taking place at home.
But even so, maybe the Magic should have beaten either the Nuggets in Denver on Friday, or the Clippers in Los Angeles on Saturday or the Jazz in Salt Lake on Monday.
Because after finishing last season by losing their final three playoff games, the Magic went on to win only one of eight preseason games and are now 1-10 during the regular season with possibly the worst yet to come one day after firing head coach Doc Rivers.
"First and foremost, this was a 1-10 team," John Weisbrod, the Magic's chief operating officer, said in the New York Times. "We don't have any illusions about our status, or believe we should be lapping the field, but we're not a 1-10 team."
Well, Mr. Weisbrod maybe right. This isn't going to be a 1-10 team for long. The Magic could, with rejuvenated spirits by the promoting of assistant Johnny Davis, quickly go to 2-10. Or, if they were to simply look at the schedule with their current 2-20 mindset, they could be 1-20 before this thing is all over because their next 10 opponents have a combined record of 62-43.
Magic fans shouldn't expect a quick turnaround from Tracy McGrady and the Magic.
"We have some work to do, but we're not out of it by any stretch of the imagination. The season is still early," said Johnny Davis in the Orlando Sentinel. "There certainly is enough time to get this thing going. Let's start with tomorrow, and let's start winning."
Well, their next game is against the Phoenix Suns as their fourth consecutive road game followed immediately the next night by the Kings in Sacramento. Both of those teams plan on going to the playoffs even if they do play in the much tougher Western Conference.
And it doesn't get any easier after that.
They play the Indiana Pacers, the team with the best record in the entire Eastern Conference, in their first home game under their new head coach on Monday. Then comes the Boston Celtics, the team with the best record in the Atlantic Division. Next are the Toronto Raptors, who have the same record as the Celtics.
"You have to take it one step at a time," Davis said. "We are going to do things that I deem best for the team now. I'm thrilled about this opportunity, and I want to make basketball fun again for everyone. And you do that by winning."
Sure, Boston and Toronto can be beaten and the Magic better hope so because directly following those games are a home-and-home swap with the New Orleans Hornets, who have the second-best record in the entire Eastern Conference.
"I think when you get into a losing streak like we did, a lot of it is more mental than physical," Davis said. "I just want to create an atmosphere that is more conducive to winning, to put our players in position to be successful, and forget about what happened previously."
Well, that isn't going to be too easy because right after that, the World Champion San Antonio Spurs come into town followed by a road trip to Dallas to play the Mavericks, who had the best record in the league last season, and then another game against the Suns.
"Yes, that's right," Weisbrod said. "You've got a team of a mind-set that thinks it's not going to win, and that becomes contagious. We were hoping we'd break out of it, but we didn't. It was a difficult thing to do, but it's best for the team. They needed to hear a new voice."
Magic fans may be circling Wednesday, Dec. 10 on their calenders because that's when their team faces the Washington Wizards, the first team that, on paper, they are possibly superior to.
"Hopefully, we'll come out with more energy, have more fun and can look like professionals out there," Tracy McGrady said in Florida Today. "At times, we've been out there just running around like chickens with their heads cut off, not knowing our spots on the court and looking lost. Hopefully, we can move forward and finally get on the same page."
Of course, the law of averages says the Magic will win at least one of those games. But, then again, no one expected this team to start 1-10 in the first place. But will 2-18 do it? Is 3-17 good enough? Can Davis be satisfied if his team is 4-16? Is 5-15 really as bad as it sounds, though that might be the coaching feat of the season considering these circumstances.
"I always felt like I was coaching with one arm tied behind my back," Rivers said. "We were set up bad. . . . eight new guys; it's tough. I felt this was an inevitability . . . There was a lot of pressure on these guys but I wish they would have looked at four years instead of 11 games."
And maybe, just maybe, the Magic should have looked at the next 10 games on the schedule instead of just the last 11.
"When you have eight new faces like we do this season, it's like starting all over again," McGrady said in Florida Today. "He was in such a tough situation. When you make that many changes, it's either going to go really good or really bad for you."
Or, with one more familiar face as the new head coach, really, really bad.
Laker cheaters?
As far as we know, Los Angeles Laker general manager Mitch Kupchak isn't paying officials to change their calls in favor of the Lakers. To the best of our knowledge, no Laker players has tested positive for THG. We have yet to hear that Phil Jackson has once placed a bet for or against his team from the locker room. Karl Malone
Power Forward
Los Angeles Lakers
Profile
2003-2004 SEASON STATISTICS
GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%
11 14.7 9.5 4.0 .459 .685
But even so, Rob Parker in the Detroit News is claiming these very same Lakers are cheating.
"That's because the Lakers, who had won three straight titles before the San Antonio Spurs won last season, let players sign contracts below their market value in order to put together a squad that the NBA has never seen," he wrote in today's edition. "In the end, it circumvents the salary cap."
Of course, he's talking about the offseason signings of Karl Malone and Gary Payton. And he didn't have to look far to get support.
"It's won't be real," said Pistons broadcaster Rick Mahorn, who won a title with the Bad Boys in 1989, in the same article. "They're paying for it. It's like getting a championship on somebody's back."
Gary Payton
Point Guard
Los Angeles Lakers
Profile
2003-2004 SEASON STATISTICS
GM PPG RPG APG FG% FT%
11 14.8 4.3 7.0 .486 .700
Parker continued: "In essence, they are paying big dollars in order to buy a ring. Malone, who earned $19 million last season and will be paid $1.5 million this season, is paying $17.5 million for his ring. Payton, who earned $12.5 million last season and is getting $4.9 million this season, is forking over $8.6 million . . . In the case of the Lakers, NBA Commissioner David Stern let down the rest of NBA America by not blocking these out-of-whack deals."
Parker notes that in 1976, MLB commissioner Bowie Kuhn blocked a deal that would have dealt star players for reasons other than competition stating that it wasn't in the best interest of baseball.
"The cap is still an experimental thing," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. "I imagine if we are fortunate enough to win, there would be some discussion in the vein of players purposely circumventing to get a ring."
-----------------------------
Peep Show
By Terry Brown
NBA Insider
Wednesday, November 19
Updated: November 19
9:38 AM ET
IversonPhiladelphia 76ers: All of the Sixers making the road trip to Toronto to play the Raptors please take one step forward. Not so fast Derrick Coleman, Glenn Robinson and, yes, Allen Iverson. Coach Randy Ayers is officially down to nine players for tonight's game after Iverson's bruised right knee continued to trouble him. "I guess guys are kind of worn down...it's just tough on us right now, knowing we're going into games without guys," Iverson said in the Philadelphia Daily News. "It's always going to be a problem when I'm the leader in rebounding, or second...It just doesn't sit well with me. That really lets me know we're shorthanded."
Seattle SuperSonics: Dec. 7 can't come fast enough for head coach Nate McMillan. That's when Ray Allen will supposedly return to the team after ankle surgery has kept him sidelined so far this season. "It has crossed my mind once," McMillan said in the Tacoma News Tribune, "but it is so far from now, I can't even really think about that. My main thing right now is to continue to figure a way for these guys to play, develop and get opportunities. It will only be a better team when Ray comes back. Then it will work itself out."
New York Knicks: The Knicks won't have Keith Van Horn to kick around anymore. At least not for the next game or so after the forward popped his ankle in Tuesday's practice. "I think he just came down on someone's foot, I'm not too sure," Kurt Thomas said in the N.Y. Post. "It looked bad and it sounded bad." He listed as questionable for tonight's game against the Clippers.
San Antonio Spurs: The San Antonio Express News is reporting that both Anthony Carter and Ron Mercer may soon be able to rejoin the team after each finishes healing up. Carter was experiencing tendinitis in his left knee while Mercer had tendon problems in his left foot. Mercer should return on two games while Carter is on day to day basis. "Not only do we want to see what he can give us," Popovich said, "we need to know whether he can depend on that knee."
MaloneLos Angeles Lakers: Rain, snow, sleet and even dead of night. Now, they can add left hamstring pull to the Mailman's list after the forward re-injured it Tuesday night but continued to play. "He's got to go back in simply because he can't sit and tighten up," coach Phil Jackson said in the L.A. Daily News. "It's a matter of staying warm when you're loose and dealing with the injury after the fact, after the game. ... We needed some help." Karl Malone does not plan on missing any games due to the injury.
Detroit Pistons: Zeljko Rebraca was placed on the injured reserve list for back spasms, but ask anyone in Detroit and they'll tell you it has more to do with the irregular heartbeat that sidelined him last season. The center has been slowly coming off medication to treat the problem and the team is taking precautionary measures at the time. "Hopefully it's just a five-game deal," coach Larry Brown said in the Detroit Free Press. "I was feeling more and more confident that he would be able to get back and make a contribution, but that's the way things are in this league."
