Dwight Howard Trade: Coming to Terms with It from the Viewpoint of a Little Kid

The majority of people who get involved in sports media start as huge sports fans, usually at a young age.

That statement holds true for me as well.

So when I flipped on SportsCenter and watched a snippet of Dwight Howard speaking at his press conference following his trade to the Los Angeles Lakers the fan in me couldn’t help but come out, specifically the little kid in me.

Now, Dwight Howard has done nothing to me personally. He seems like a nice guy, even if he does have a little trouble making up his mind. He gives back to the community. The adult and objectionable journalist in me understands that this man made a decision on what he wanted to do with his life that was perfectly legal.

The biased little kid in me, however, felt betrayed. That little kid thought back to the last time he felt so strongly against a player: when the Phillies traded third baseman Scott Rolen.

When Scott Rolen made his Major League debut with the Phillies, the team that drafted him, I was in first grade. It was the first year I started paying attention to professional sports and the Phillies were my team. I listened to the game broadcasts on the radio on the beach in afternoon games and watched the games on television by night.

The next year was his official rookie season and it was the first time I saw a baseball game live. It was 1997, the first year there was Interleague play. It was the Phillies against the New York Yankees at Veterans Stadium. Curt Schilling against Hideki Irabu. Scott Rolen was playing third base and it was an incredibly hot day out. The Phillies won. It’s a day I’ll always remember, and Rolen played a part in it.


He won the National League Rookie of the Year award in 1997 and I couldn’t be happier that my guy on my team was getting recognized; and this was when the Phillies were the cellar-dwellars of Major League Baseball.

Over the years I would watch Rolen come up with big hits, make incredible diving stops and showcase his arm and throw a runner out. One year for Halloween I even wore a Phillies hat and jersey and taped “Rolen” and “17” on my back as my costume.

Then in 2002 he was traded. He had made it clear he was unhappy in Philadelphia, that he didn’t think the management was making the right moves in order to win, told everyone he would leave the team via free agency and rejected a huge contract offer.

Not wanting to lose him for nothing, the Phillies traded him to the St. Louis Cardinals. And just like that he was no longer my guy. He was a traitor.

I felt jilted, rejected. What my thirteen-year-old self thought was that by Rolen refusing to play for the Phillies it meant that he was refusing to play for me, in front of me. All those memories we “shared” of me watching him, growing up with him, rooting for him were for nothing. He threw them away by forcing his way out.

I booed him when the Phillies played against him. When I would play baseball video games and Rolen would come up to bat I would bean him in the head. It was how I treated someone that betrayed me.

Now over time my feelings have softened. The Phillies moved on without him, brought up a bunch of other guys that they drafted that I could grow up with (Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Pat Burrell and Cole Hamels) and won a World Series. Now when I see Rolen make his patented diving stop and throw across the diamond I forget the hate, smile and think back to the good times I had watching him do it in a Phillies uniform.

Now back to Dwight Howard. I have been an Orlando Magic fan since the first grade as well (I marveled at Shaq’s skill and fell in love with his fun-loving ways). Shaq was one of my favorites and Dwight Howard was just as special.

He played the game with so much power but always had a smile on his face. There were the Superman moments at the Slam Dunk contest. I defended him to my friends about how he should be the league MVP. Just all his sillyness, impromptu dance competitions and thunderous slam dunks. I went to an Orlando Magic-New Jersey Nets game in New Jersey with my girlfriend in January 2011. We watched Dwight come out of the game—an Orlando blowout—and hang out on the end of the Magic bench with Jameer Nelson and secretly eat a hot dog. When the game ended he walked past our section and threw his shoe into the stands and it landed a seat over from our seats (what a mob it was of people fighting for that!).

But then there was last season. The trade rumors. The refusal to sign an extension. The famous smile was gone. It didn’t look like Howard was having fun anymore. There was the bickering with Stan van Gundy. And then there was the back injury that sidelined him for the end of the season and the Magic crashed and burned out of the playoffs.

The end was coming and I had come to terms with that as a fan. Maybe it was the fact that he was gone for the end of the season and playoffs and that you hadn’t heard from him himself in the media that I just got used to him being around.

But then he popped up in this press conference. He was smiling. He was making jokes. “Hey,” I thought to myself, “he wasn’t doing this last year.”

And then he said, “I’m happy to be a Laker. I’m so excited.”


The little kid in me perked up. “You’re happy? You found someone better? Was me rooting for you not enough?”

Silly, yes, but sometimes we can’t hide those moments when sports bring out the little kid in us: all the joy in winning, the disappointment in losing, and the childish response to grown men making perfectly normal decisions on choosing where to work and what organization will make them happiest—really the same decision I am attempting to make in my professional career.

Just like anything in pop culture—movies, television, music—we invest time in sports, we invest interest in sports, we allow ourselves and our emotions to escape and run free in sports and what we invest in are the memories: the moments that put us in awe, where we were and who we experienced them with.

All summer in my house my family has asked me where Dwight was going. When he was traded my mom and one of my brothers texted me. We talked about the memories we had watching him play or his interviews and we laughed.

Memories and shared experiences that were brought on by sports and in this case, Dwight Howard. So in this case I’ll allow the kid in me to come out a little and tell him it’s ok to feel a bit spurned. I’ll let myself feel that strongly because it means that there are some strong emotions and memories tied to Dwight being in Orlando.

And creating those memories in the first place is the great thing about sports in general.

Photo Credits.
Dwight Howard:  AP Photo/Reed Saxon
Scott Rolen: AP Photo/Chris Gardner

Dwight Howard Trade: Magic Fail Again at Getting Fair Value for Franchise Player

Since the start of the new millennium the Orlando Magic have been lucky enough to have, at different times, two franchise players: Tracy McGrady and Dwight Howard.

Both players were All-Stars with unbelievable talents that the team attempted to build around. Both led the team to the playoffs—in 12 seasons since the 2000-01 season the Magic have made the playoffs nine times—and Howard even led the team to the NBA Finals in 2009. Both were MVP-worthy players that the fans adored.

Both McGrady and Howard also grew very unhappy in Orlando and demanded to be traded. Those wishes were granted now that Dwight Howard has been traded to the Lakers in a four-team deal.

The Magic look to recoup just as they did when they dealt McGrady and lost Shaquille O’Neal in free agency before him. Trading away franchise players is never a fun task for any organization, but how have the deals worked out for Orlando?

Magic trade Tracy McGrady, Juwan Howard, Tyronn Lue and Reece Gaines to Rockets for Steve Francis, Cuttino Mobley and Kelvin Cato

At the time this deal was completed it was often viewed as a fair trade. In retrospect, Orlando was the clear loser in this deal.

Francis was the centerpiece the Magic received in this deal. In his first game with Orlando he hit a layup at the buzzer to lead the team past the Milwaukee Bucks. But after 23 games with the Magic, Francis also grew upset because the team dealt Mobley, who Francis had played each of the previous six seasons with.

“I can't put it into words,” he said at the time. “Playing with a guy, living with a guy, just knowing that every day when I wake up that's something I can count on, that I'm going to be in practice or in a game with Cuttino. Him not being here is going to be tough for me. I don't know what I'm going to wake up for.”

Mobley was a talented offensive player who was sent to Sacramento with Michael Bradley for the defensive-minded Doug Christie—another failed move.

Francis finished the season with 21.3 points per game, a shade under his career high, then was traded to the New York Knicks at next season’s trade deadline for Trevor Ariza and Penny Hardaway’s expiring contract.

Cato was also traded in February of that second season after the deal to Detroit for Darko Milicic and Carlos Arroyo.

The Magic got three players for Tracy McGrady—who was named to four more All-Star games in six seasons with Houston—and all were gone within two years. None brought in draft picks or franchise altering players. The Magic didn’t make the playoffs either season. Also, Howard would be Houston’s starting power forward the next three seasons, a solid addition to the lineup.

Magic trade Dwight Howard, Chris Duhon and Earl Clark to Lakers and Jason Richardson to 76ers. Magic receive Arron Afflalo and Al Harrington from Denver, Nikola Vucevic and Moe Harkless from Philadelphia, Josh McRoberts and Christian Eyenga from the Lakers and a lottery protected first-round draft pick from the Lakers, 76ers and Nuggets.

The Magic trade away the league’s best center and multiple Defensive Player of the Year award-winner. Howard wanted out and things were getting ugly. The Magic also relieve themselves of expensive contracts given to Richardson and Duhon.

What they get in return is a bit uncertain, however. The Magic didn’t land the second or third-best player in the deal (Andrew Bynum or Andre Iguodala in whatever order you like). They didn’t get an All-Star in return. They didn’t wind up getting Pau Gasol, like some earlier versions of the deal suggested. They also couldn’t shed Hedo Turkoglu’s awful contract, one that they originally refused to give him when he left after the 2009 NBA Finals trip before Orlando traded back for him.
 

They got Arron Afflalo, a nice defender who was also Denver’s second-leading scorer last season with 15.2 points per game last season.  His points per game totals have risen the past few years. But will Orlando be balanced enough for him to succeed, or will he be the key guy that team’s focus on and he struggles?

Since the 2001-02 season Al Harrington has never averaged fewer than 10.5 points per game. He’s another solid scorer who is a good secondary option for a contending team. But it’s hard to imagine the Magic contending this year and some in the media are already saying he could be moved by the February trade deadline for an expiring contract. He’s 32-years-old and has three years left on his deal.

Eyenga is 23 and only played in seven games last year. Harkless is a first-round rookie with a lot of athleticism. Vucevic and McRoberts are average low-post players that will compete in a crowded frontcourt with Glen Davis, Gustavo Ayon, Justin Harper, Andrew Nicholson and Kyle O’Quinn for playing time. Vucevic seems to have more upside than McRoberts.

  

The first-round draft picks are nice, but will be spread out over the next few years, will most likely be later in the first-round and are lottery-protected (for the best center in the league the Magic couldn’t even get unprotected picks?) There are also talks that the picks could also be traded in the future. Without knowing who will be available or what future trade packages they can get for them, the value is really up for debate.

It’s obviously easy to rate the McGrady deal in hindsight and who knows if any of the young players (mainly Harkless, Afflalo and Eyenga) could blossom into bigger roles than with their previous teams.

But with the way the McGrady trade panned out and with the initial reaction towards the Howard deal, it’s apparent that Orlando has struggled in getting fair value in return for their franchise players.

Photo Credits.
Dwight Howard:  AP Photo/John Raoux, File
Tracy McGrady:  AP Photo/Ed Betz
Arron Afflalo:  AP Photo/ Jack Dempsey, File

Orlando Magic: Is Mike D'Antoni the Best Fit for the Head Coaching Job?

The Orlando Magic firing general manager Otis Smith made sense. The team rid itself of a person who made questionable moves regarding the roster and ultimately did not get the job done.

The writing was also on the wall for head coach Stan Van Gundy. The team terminating him signifies that priority number one is to keep Dwight Howard on the team. While the franchise center may not have asked Magic CEO Alex Martins to fire Van Gundy, as both have claimed, the poor relationship from the start had obviously deteriorated.

A choice needed to be made—Van Gundy or Howard—and ownership, right or wrong, went with the player.

The Magic are invested in winning with Howard. The front office makes personnel moves centered around who he will work best with, both on the bench and on the court.

With Howard on the court, the team thrives on teams doubling the center and the ball getting kicked out to a bevy of shooters on the wings. They made the NBA Finals with a similar approach only three seasons ago and even last season had the third-best record in the conference for most of the season.

Without him the team struggles to find that space, evident in the playoffs against Indiana. Individually the talent is mediocre. There are a few solid supporting players but without Howard the roster is not good enough to contend for a playoff spot, let alone a championship.

The bigger issue is that the team is full of bad contracts that would be extremely difficult to maneuver. Hedo Turkoglu, Jason Richardson and Glen Davis are locked in to contracts that are not friendly to trade. So improving the roster will be very hard, with the 19th pick in the first-round and the mid-level exception the best options to add some much needed firepower to the offense.

So if it will be difficult to improve on the individual talent on the roster why not put in a system that will work to get the most out of them?

That’s where Mike D’Antoni steps in.

The 61-year old coach is known as being an offensive-minded coach who loves to push the ball in transition and shoot from outside frequently.

The Magic is a team that, while Dwight Howard is the centerpiece, actually relies more on its outside shooting.

Putting D’Antoni in charge of the offense really would only tweak the way they got those shots off.

Things with the Phoenix Suns didn’t end up in a championship mainly because there just was not enough size or emphasis put on defense. But when Howard is healthy—which is most of the time—Orlando has the best center in the league who is the only player to win three consecutive Defensive Player of the Year awards in league history. From the ’07-’08 season to the ’10-’11 season the team was always a top 10 team in defensive efficiency.

New York didn’t end well for D’Antoni but there were certainly some strenuous circumstances that ultimately cost him his job. In the beginning there just wasn’t a lot of talent and the salaries that were acquired in the previous regime would take some time to correct those mistakes.

There were a lot of injuries this past season, which always hurts a team.

The Knicks acquired Carmelo Anthony, who is a talented offensive player. But the system that works best for Anthony is an isolation offense as opposed to D’Antoni’s ball movement and shooting offense. Then when Anthony, Amar’e Stoudemire and Jeremy Lin were all on the court together there were struggles in sharing the ball and not enough practice time for them to gel as teammates.

With Orlando it is obvious that the team is at its best when it’s moving the ball and shooting three-pointers. They have a star player in Howard, but he isn’t necessarily the focal point of the scoring.

Bringing in D’Antoni would keep the Magic a shoot-first team. Howard would get open for more looks running the pick-and-roll. And if Howard misses games due to suspension or injury then Orlando would still be able to find open looks from beyond the arc—unlike in the playoffs—because the offense would push the ball in transition resulting in fast breaks and more space.

Also if the team were to bring in D’Antoni there is an increased chance they could sign Steve Nash with the mid-level exception to run their offense at least for a year.

After Jameer Nelson’s struggle of a season the Magic organization was rumored to be looking to upgrade the point guard position. Nash was a name often linked to the team. He’s still playing at a high level despite his advancing age and if he flourished under D’Antoni’s system, winning two MVP awards.

He’s also done pretty well in Phoenix the past few years with a roster arguably less talented than the one Orlando has. And with Nelson rumored to be interested in declining his player option and becoming a free agent, point guard could be an even bigger concern for the Magic.

A Nash and D’Antoni reunion in Orlando would be interesting, but D’Antoni also has experience coaching a number of Orlando’s players. He worked with Quentin Richardson, Jason Richardson and Earl Clark in Phoenix, Chris Duhon in New York and Howard himself as an assistant on the USA team that won gold in the 2008 summer Olympics.

There’s no guarantee that D’Antoni is the best coach available or that it will work out in Orlando, but there’s no guarantee with any of the other coaches on the market either.

There’s no guarantee that Howard will stay (and if he doesn’t then maybe the team should look into a different option for a coach), but he is on the team right now and all signs point to the Magic committing themselves to retaining him.

So with little flexibility the best way for this team to contend may be to let D’Antoni run his offense with one that already is loaded with sharpshooters and finally give him a defensive presence to rely on.
 

Photo Credits.

Mike D’Antoni: AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez

Dwight Howard (left): AP Photo/John Raoux

Steve Nash (right): AP Photo/Matt York

What Would've Happened if Tim Duncan Signed With the Orlando Magic?

Dwight Howard’s numbers this season have been very good. He’s averaged 20.6 points per game, 14.5 rebounds per game (a career high) and 2.1 blocks per game.

The drama he has brought to the organization however has been a huge distraction and looks like it is crippling the team and the franchise.

Will he stay in Orlando when his contract expires? Who can the team trade him to in order to avoid losing him for nothing? Does he want his coach fired?

His reputation and legacy look tarnished right now, the fans are starting to murmur that he may not be worth the drama and the Magic have slid from third in the Eastern Conference to sixth.

The situation is eerily similar to the one that happened in Orlando with Shaquille O’Neal. Both were No. 1 draft picks, both go by the “Superman” moniker and both were the best center in the league. Both struggle with free throws, both feuded with their coach and both are upset with the media in Orlando.

O’Neal bolted to Los Angeles. Many believe Howard will also move on to greener pastures.

While Howard causes a raucous in Orlando, it’s hard not to imagine what might have been if the Magic were successful in signing another previous No. 1 draft pick: Tim Duncan.

Prior to the 2000-01 season, Orlando saved up a lot of cap space and went after Tim Duncan (who had just won the NBA championship), Grant Hill (at the time a player many considered to be the next Michael Jordan, however lofty those expectations were) and Tracy McGrady (who was just coming into his own as an elite talent).

Duncan was close to signing with the Magic. The team offered him a six-year $67.5 million deal.

“It was probably a lot closer decision than people even think or even know,” Duncan told reporters during the 2007 NBA.

Close, but Duncan wound up returning to the San Antonio where he has since won three more NBA Championships and has a realistic chance for another this season.

So what would the Magic Kingdom look like now if the NBA’s most fundamentally sound player and nicest superstar changed addresses that summer?



First thing is the Magic never would’ve bottomed out in the 2003-04 season, won only 21 games and landed the No. 1 pick that the team used on Dwight Howard.

But with McGrady, Hill and Duncan, Howard wouldn’t have been needed. Much like what the great three-somes the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat have secured the past few years, championships would’ve been expected.

“It would have been a great combination,” McGrady said in an interview with the New York Daily News in 2010. When asked how many championships the team could have won his response was, “Enough to where I would have been satisfied with my career.”

Things would have been especially different in the 2004-2005 season. For one, it’s hard to imagine the Spurs winning that year without Duncan. It was the year Hill finally came back from injury and contributed to Orlando and McGrady would’ve been happy with the Magic and not been traded to Houston.

With those three on the roster and with complimentary pieces like Jameer Nelson and Pat Garrity surely they would have been a top tier team. They most likely would have made the playoffs and would’ve been a strong contender against the Miami Heat and Detroit Pistons.

Even had the team been unable to afford Duncan, Hill and McGrady, what kind of damage could a team with Duncan—and without McGrady-- have done?

The Eastern Conference, especially early in the new millennium, was not full of big-time centers. The majority of the great big men played in the West; Shaquille O’Neal, Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki, David Robinson, Karl Malone, Chris Webber and Yao Ming all played in the West.

The All-Stars in the East? Dikembe Mutombo, Jermaine O’Neal and a mostly-injured Alonzo Mourning. Surely a team with such a dominant big-man as Duncan could’ve done some damage in the Eastern Conference.

Think of some of the personnel moves the team could’ve made as well. Andrew DeClerq, Michael Doleac or John Amaechi could’ve been flipped for a more competent scoring forward to play alongside Mike Miller, or instead of drafting Steven Hunter in 2001 (because they needed a center) the team could’ve grabbed Zach Randolph, Gerald Wallace or Tony Parker—and we’ve seen what Parker has done with Duncan.



And while the knock on McGrady’s career was the he couldn’t get out of the first round of the playoffs, Duncan, on the contrary, is known as one of the best winners in the NBA history. A team-led by Duncan and his personality very well could’ve gone deeper into the playoffs than one led by McGrady, despite a cast not as good as the one in San Antonio.

What Duncan would not have brought, for sure, was the drama that McGrady and now Howard brought. Duncan—like Nash in Phoenix currently—would not have asked to be traded. He would’ve fought with whoever was by his side. He also wouldn’t have been a coach killer.

In fact, if Duncan had gone to Orlando he might’ve been able to save Doc Rivers’ job, and instead of winning a title with a veteran Celtics team, Rivers could’ve done it with an Orlando team built around Duncan.

McGrady and Howard created some unforgettable memories for the Magic in their times. And it’s still possible Howard, signed through next season, could sort things out and get this team back on track. But most assuredly with Duncan, the consummate professional, things in Orlando would have been drastically different over the past 12 years.

In the end, it worked out extremely well for Duncan and there is no regretting his decision.

Whatever Howard chooses to do, one can only hope he starts handling the situation more like Duncan—in a private manner—than O’Neal or LeBron James or Carmelo Anthony have in recent years.

Photo Credits.
Tim Duncan: AP Photo/Eric Gay
Tracy McGrady and Grant Hill: AP Photo/Peter Cosgrove
Dwight Howard: AP Photo/John Raoux

Will Anyone Root for the 2012 USA Men's Basketball Team?

NBA players have been allowed to participate in the Summer Olympics five times now, starting with the original Dream Team in 1992.

The goal was not only to raise the quality of play but to increase the NBA’s brand around the globe using its most talented and likable stars.

The first team in 1992 went to Spain as rock stars. Jordan. Bird. Magic. Barkley. Fans fawned over them everywhere they went and opposing players were in awe of them.
It doesn’t hurt, either, that they played for the USA and there’s nationalistic pride at stake in the Olympics.

USA Basketball has put together a pool of 20 players that this summer’s team will be comprised of. The talent level is extremely high, with some analysts even thinking they could beat the original Dream Team.

A different question to ask, however, is if anybody will actually root for this squad?

The players will be wearing red, white and blue but they could be hearing plenty of boos. While the team has yet to be finalized it seems as if there are some players as close to locks to make the team as possible.



LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard should all make the team and while the point guard position is a crowded one it’s very possible Deron Williams could make the team as well. They haven’t been making too many NBA fans happy lately though.

Nielsen and E-Poll Market Research conducted a survey of the NBA’s most disliked players that was released in December. James (No. 2), Wade (9), Bosh (6), Bryant (3) and Anthony (7) were all featured on the list (Lamar Odom, who was No. 10 on the list, is also a finalist for the USA Olympic team). The free-agency situations and coaching drama that has surrounded Howard and Williams the past two seasons could also put them on an updated version of that list.

Some of the hatred is jealousy; The Heat and Lakers are good teams, so those compilations of talent forming together creates a lot of attention that other fans wish they had on their team. That doesn’t mean that these players haven’t done things to turn fans away.

The Heat trio came together in a strong show of arrogance, with their rockstar like pep-rally. The constant moaning about how everyone hates them and they are blamed for everything is annoying. The mocking of Dirk Nowitzki and how he was sick in last summer’s NBA Finals was childish.

Mostly though, the dislike goes to LeBron James, whose “Decision” was an ill-advised promotion that seemed self-centered and upset many fans, especially the fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers, who without being mentioned felt that their loyalty meant nothing.

Bryant has frequently been viewed as a bad teammate and one of the biggest complainers to referees in the league. His cockiness also irritates fans.

Anthony made some enemies last year when he forced his way out of Denver. Anthony always seemed to be distant from his team, looked uninterested during the games and talked about his desire to be traded, especially to the New York Knicks. Then with the Knicks, he came out of the lockout out of shape, got hurt and Knicks fans believed that he would ruin the excitement and team chemistry generated by the arrival of Jeremy Lin.

While most fans dislike the first four mentioned because of character issues, Anthony’s style of play is widely criticized as well as his persona. His slow-the-ball down isolation play seems selfish and his lack of defensive abilities makes him look like he is not a team player.

Williams has made a number of enemies in the likes of Utah Jazz fans. He reportedly got into an argument with long-time Jazz coach Jerry Sloan. When Sloan resigned days later, many placed the blame on Williams, who hasn’t really shed his coach-killer reputation.



When he was traded to the Nets he complained about the deal. He’s been noncommittal about his future there, but with comments about how he dislikes the arena they play in (although it is the final year there before the Nets move to Brooklyn) and his recent “Nineteen days” countdown, he can’t be charming too many people.

Howard has held the Magic hostage this year. He’s flip-flopped on his desire to stay with Orlando past his contract and has recently reportedly asked the Magic to fire coach Stan Van Gundy. Howard has sparked a media circus around Orlando this season that has directly affected the play of the team and will only continue into next season.

Add his penchant to get technical fouls called from referees and the times he loses his cool to elbow an opponent and get suspended and it leaves fans to wonder if all the histrionics and drama are worth the incredible talent.

A player has a right to act any way he wants to on the court. He also has the right to play for whatever team he wants once his contract expires. All fans want to see is effort and some acknowledgment that they are appreciated.

When a star bad mouths his team, the city or a successful coach the fans get fed up, which leads to certain names going onto the list of the most disliked players in the league.

So if these guys, collectively, make so many fans groan in disgust, will there be anything beyond nationalism that propels fans to root for them as a group this summer?

Photo Credits.
James, Wade and Bosh (top): AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee
Carmelo Anthony (right): AP Photo/Frank Franklin II
Deron Williams (left): AP Photo/Alex Gallardo

Dwight Howard's Indecision Directly Affects the Play of the Orlando Magic

Dwight Howard has been the face of the Orlando Magic since he was drafted by the franchise with the first overall selection in the 2004 NBA Draft.

It’s Howard’s talent the team has been built around and it’s his personality that they take after.

The big man usually commands a double team in the post, so a lot of the players Orlando management has filled its roster with have been wing players that can hang around the outside, catch the kick-out and shoot three-pointers. They include guys like Hedo Turkoglu, Rashard Lewis, Ryan Anderson, J.J. Redick, Vince Carter and Jason Richardson.

And just like Howard has always seemed like the smiling, fun-loving center the Magic have been a fun team to watch. They are a team that loves to get out on the fast break and they score a lot of points because they hit a lot of three-pointers.

So it should be obvious that Howard’s indecision and overall change in attitude have become disastrous distractions to the team and have manifested themselves in the club’s play.

The questions and contradictions have been prevalent since the lockout was lifted.

All offseason the debate was whether the Magic would keep him or trade him. There was rumor and refute that Howard had asked for a trade. There was question as to which teams Howard had or had not said he would sign an extension with, or if any such list even existed. There was even tampering accusations that of course were downplayed by Howard himself.

There was the disaster around the trade deadline where it seemed like Howard had changed his mind every other hour about whether he would sign his option to stay with the team through next season or not.

And now there is the incident with head coach Stan Van Gundy. There was a report that Howard had asked the Magic to fire Van Gundy. The ever-quotable coach even admitted that people in the team’s management had told him the rumor was true. Yet Howard strolled over and vehemently denied it.

Someone is lying.

Amidst all the rumors, all the questions, the whole circus of the ordeal Howard and Van Gundy have insisted nothing changes about the way the team goes about its business, that the game at hand is what they are focused on, no matter how much they have to answer those questions.



But really, have the Magic been an example of an efficient, consistent team?

The explanation is in the results. The flip-flopping of the reported Howard situation is parallel to the inconsistency of the Magic games this season.

The team can go from a five-game winning streak (from January 8th to January 17th) to losing four in a row nine days later.

They can look downright pathetic in losses to the Celtics and Bulls, where they score less than 60 points in a game (56 and 59 points respectively) to scoring over one hundred points in victories the following night (102 and 103).

They can have, at one point, the third best record in the Eastern Conference, but lose to cellar dwellers like the New Orleans Hornets and Charlotte Bobcats.

Nothing about this team’s season has made much sense; not the way in which the pieces were put together, the inconsistencies the team shows, or how despite the media debacle the Howard situation has become that the team was a top-three team in the East for most of the season.

None of it makes sense until you realize that Howard is the face of the franchise. Really, the organization has taken after him and his lack of conviction of staying or going or being a good team or a bad one.

Since he has picked up his player option for next year, it doesn’t seem like calmer tides are in store in the near future either.

SVG says management admits Howard asked for a trade. Howard comes in to refute it. Awkward. Video From YouTube.



Photo Credits.
Dwight Howard: AP Photo/Frank Franklin II
Stan Van Gundy: AP Photo/John Raoux

Dwight Howard Needs to Grow Up For Orlando to Win it All

AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack

The Orlando Magic is the first team in the NBA Playoffs to advance to the second round and was the only team to sweep.

However, if Dwight Howard continues to go down the same path he has been the Orlando Magic may be eliminated sooner than the team expected to be.

It isn’t his skills that could let the team down. He recently won the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year for a second consecutive season. He led the league in both blocks and rebounds, the only player in the history of the NBA to lead in both categories in two different years.

His offensive game is also improving as Dwight works on his post moves, footwork, and shooting touch to complement his thunderous dunks.

What needs to change is his fouling problems and his attitude and maturity. The two go hand-in-hand really.

This season Howard set a career-high in personal fouls, amassing 287 over the 82-game season as well as a career-high in fouls per game with 3.5. In a much related stat, Howard also registered the lowest minutes per game average, 34.7, since his rookie year.

In the playoff series against Charlotte Howard was whistled for five fouls the first two games and fouled out the final two. He failed to play 30 minutes in any of the four games and his scoring average was, for him, an awful 9.8 points per game, well below his season average (18.3).

Orlando is a deep team this year and Howard’s teammates were able to step up and finish off the Bobcats with ease, but this will not and cannot be the case as the playoffs continue. The Magic need Dwight Howard on the floor to win the championship.

The Magic’s backup post players are Marcin Gortat, Brandon Bass, and Ryan Anderson. All do some nice things: Gortat is a good rebounder, Bass is a physical banger with a good mid-range jumper, and Anderson is a good shooter.

None of them make the same impact Howard does, especially on defense.

Howard has proven to be a master shot-blocker. If he isn’t actually deflecting shots he’s altering them with his long arms and strong presence in the paint. He has the ability to also force players to think twice about even attempting to come down the middle of the lane while he is patrolling it.

He’s also a weapon on offense for the Magic to use.

He’s very difficult to guard for opposing post players. He’s either too big and strong for the smaller guys he gets matched up against or he’s too agile for the big brutes. The alley-oop has become a staple play for him and point guard Jameer Nelson, allowing for quick and easy points. Not to mention his thunderous dunks not only give the Magic points but it energizes the entire stadium and gets the fans into it.

However, when Howard is not on the floor his replacements do even worse offensively. They do not pose the same matchup problems that Howard does. They aren’t athletic enough to pull off the alley-oop like he does. They also rarely give the crowd that same reason to stand and cheer that Howard is able to.

Also without Howard the Magic are forced to become more one-dimensional. They rely heavily on the three pointer. If the team has a streaky night they could be in trouble without Howard on the floor. Howard provides another option, a player they can get the ball to in order to get points. Also, without him on the floor, the team doesn’t have the league’s best rebounder to corral the loose ball.

Further adding to Howard’s problems are attitude and maturity issues, more specifically to the game officials.

Howard feels that he isn’t being treated fairly. “There's a lot of things I feel don't go my way or our team's way,” he said after game four.

Howard now does a lot of complaining about the calls officials are making, which in turn is getting him into trouble. He was called for a career-high 17 technical fouls.

Howard gets frustrated. Sure, sometimes the calls are bad, but it’s part of the game. Howard cannot let it get to him. He allows the fouls and calls to get in his head, throwing him off his game. The more he gets frustrated, the more prone he is to doing something stupid, like throwing an elbow at Samuel Dalembert in the playoffs last season that got him a one-game suspension.

Howard needs to stop being immature. He needs to keep a level-head rather than letting his emotions get the best of him and he loses his cool.

If Orlando were to face Cleveland in the Eastern Conference finals you can guarantee Shaquille O’Neal will play physical with him and will do whatever he can to get into Howard’s head and render him ineffective.

If Howard can harness all that energy and put it into blocking more shots and throwing down more tremendous slam dunks, then Orlando will be just fine.

But they need him to be on the floor. Otherwise the magic will run out.

Who Will Shaq Be Rooting For in the NBA Finals?

AP Photo/ Paul Beaty

After 82 regular season games and three playoff rounds, the 2009 NBA Finals matchup is set. The Los Angeles Lakers will face off against the Orlando Magic. This series brings a ton of questions to the table.

Will the Lakers avenge their loss in the Finals to the Celtics last season?

Will Orlando win its first championship in franchise history?

Can Kobe finally win a championship without Shaq?

Will Jameer Nelson, originally thought to be out with injury for the entire season, make a Willis Reed-like return to the court?

Disneyland or Disneyworld?

All of these questions could provide their own corresponding blog post. However, another question begs consideration; who will Shaquille O’Neal be rooting for?

Shaq has played for both teams in the past and has been a fixture in the NBA Finals. In his 17 year career he made the playoffs 15 times, reached the finals six times, and won four titles. In his four wins he was named NBA Finals MVP three times.
Being so familiar with both clubs as well as the finals, it’s only natural to wonder what his thoughts are on the current situation. He has reasons, in favor of and against, both teams.

Orlando was Shaq’s first team. They made him the number one overall draft pick in 1992. It’s where people first became familiar with the big man who revolutionized the center position. His combination of size, strength, and athleticism made him one of the best post players in the history of the game. He went to his first NBA Finals with the Magic, even though they were swept by the Houston Rockets. Shaq’s home is in Orlando, and there has been talk about him wanting to buy the team when he retires.

However, Shaq has lashed out against the current Magic organization this year.
After a game against his former team, Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy—who coached Shaq in his first season with the Miami Heat— accused Shaq of flopping on a play against Dwight Howard. Shaq didn’t take too kindly to Van Gundy’s criticism and called him a “master of panic”. Now that SVG has helped the Magic get into the finals, if Orlando won, the “master of panic” would be a champion and Shaq might have to eat his words.

There is also the matter of Orlando’s new “Superman”, Dwight Howard.

Shaq has always been linked to the Man of Steel, proof being his Superman tattoo as well as Superman paraphernalia that adorned his house that was featured on MTV’s Cribs. Now, however, Howard has also been given the Superman moniker. Howard even donned the cape not once, but twice in dunk competitions. The Superman theme music is played at Amway Arena when Howard scores. Shaq has taken offense to this. He was quoted, “He's a good player, but everything he's done, I've invented. So I'm not impressed.”

Although Shaq does like Howard, he has always been protective of his legacy as one of, if not the best, big man ever to play. How would he feel if Howard, the man who “copied” his Superman identity, won Orlando’s first Finals game, let alone championship, something the “Big Cactus” never could do himself?

L.A. is the place where Shaq won his first and the majority of his championships. However, after they lost to the Pistons in 2004, Shaq demanded a trade. Friction between Shaq and star teammate Kobe Bryant existed prior to the loss, each trying to be the alpha male, the top dog, but losing to the Pistons in the championship was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

The relationship between Shaq and Kobe grew personal. The two traded barbs about their interactions with females on the road. Shaq was shown doing a freestyle rap about Kobe, including the line, “Kobe couldn’t do it without me.” Shaq would also refuse to acknowledge Kobe during interviews.

However, this season, it looked like the feud is over. The two shared All-Star MVP honors and laughed and embraced each other on the court. Shaq has praised Kobe in the media and on his twitter page.

Still, again looking to Shaq’s perception of his legacy, Shaq has won a championship without Kobe (although one could argue that he, in fact, played second fiddle to Dwayne Wade). If Kobe to win without Shaq, how would Shaq really take it?
Shaq has had his ups and downs with both teams. This matter look like it will be settled due to timeliness.

Hours after the Magic beat Cleveland to advance to the finals, Shaq’s twitter featured a reply to a user that said, “I'm a go wit the lake show” (sic).

Shaq has made up with Kobe this year while conversely, his feud with Van Gundy happened just recently, in March. When one feud ends, another begins, and it looks like Van Gundy and Orlando get the short end of the deal this time around, at least in Shaq’s world.

Problems in the Paint

Photo from orlandomagic.com. Credit NBAE/Getty Images.

The NBA playoffs are approaching and one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference is the Orlando Magic. However, they are not yet suited for playoff basketball and are sure to struggle if they are matched up with either Detroit or Boston.

Dwight Howard is the face of the Orlando Magic, but he is not the focal point of their offense. There is no argument that he is a physical force in the NBA but his shortcomings, coupled with the team’s deficiencies, can hinder the team in a long series against tough, lock down defenses.

The Magic are a shooting team. Howard is the team leader in scoring, but as a unit, they rely on their shooters. They are second in the league in both 3-point shots attempted and 3-point shots made. The problem is that shooters can have bad nights. There are times when nothing is falling. Howard can pick up some of the slack, but cannot carry the offense. When the shooters are off, the defense can then focus on stopping Howard in the paint. If it’s close, Howard struggles at the free-throw line, which makes the team resistant to give him the ball in clutch situations. The Magic also have a very limited post game, with Howard being the only real presence in the paint. That leaves the Magic with no other options if the shooters are cold or Howard is struggling.

Boston and Detroit recognize the flaws in Orlando’s game and use their own strengths to exploit them. Orlando does not match-up well with either squad.

Both Boston and Detroit are clubs with a winning attitude and great veteran leadership. What both teams do extremely well is play tough, physical team defense. They also have very deep frontcourts. The first thing those teams can do is throw a number of big bodies at Howard. Boston can trot out Kevin Garnett, Glen Davis, Kendrick Perkins and Mikki Moore. Detroit has Rasheed Wallace, Antonio McDyess, Amir Johnson, and Jason Maxiel. Without an effective low-post partner for Howard, the Celtics and Pistons can rotate their big men guarding Howard and allow each to rough him up, without fear of collecting a lot of fouls on one single player. For one, fouling Howard is like deploying the old “Hack-a-Shaq” tactic; Howard leads the league in free-throw attempts, yet shoots only 60% from the line. Letting him shoot free-throws is better than letting him dunk. The physical play also tires Howard so he cannot get up and down the court as quickly, and plays into Boston and Detroit’s half-court, slow down strategies. Howard gets visibly upset when teams play him as physical as these two.

With Howard locked off, the defense can now focus on the Orlando perimeter. Shooters get hot when they get into a rhythm. These physical defenses ensure that that does not happen. The teams lock off on the perimeter and the physical play disrupts the shooter’s rhythm. Without a rhythm, the shooters fail to get off the shot they want and start forcing bad shots.

Orlando has no answer to these teams. Against these types of defenses, Howard is locked down by physical play in the post and the perimeter shooters have been knocked out of sync and go cold. Where does the team go to get its points? There are no other post players that are productive offensively for Orlando, so the space on the court opened up by the shooters goes for naught. Orlando also doesn’t have a slasher-type player on offense. They struggle to dribble, penetrate, and get their own shot off. Guys like Hedo Turkoglu, Rashard Lewis, Courtney Lee, and J.J. Redick do better moving off ball and receiving open looks off of screens. So players begin to force things in order to get some sort of offense moving. They play beyond what they are capable of. This causes turnovers, and adversely, easy lay-ups and more possessions for the other team, and it’s a snowball effect. The more the offense stalls, the higher the frustration level is, the more the team tries to force something that isn’t there, and more turnovers or bad shots are created.

The Magic have a decent shot of avoiding the Pistons in the first round of the playoffs this year. If the season ended today, Orlando would be matched up against the Philadelphia 76ers, another young team that likes to run, but doesn’t have the size to deter Howard. However, they will most likely not be so lucky if they reach the second round, with a potential square off with Boston looming. By then, Boston also anticipates to have a healthy Garnett, which wasn’t the case the last time the teams played on March 25 and Orlando won by two points.

Orlando is a young, developing team with a lot of promise for the future, but they are still an inside partner for Howard, a playmaker, and an improved free-throw shooting Howard away from seriously contending from the NBA title.