2010-2011 Orlando Magic

The Magic decided to pretty much stand pat even though last year's watered down version of the Celtics pushed them straight into a 3-0 deficit in the Eastern Conference Finals. I guess they're banking on Dwight Howard continuing to meteorically improve and the hope that Year 2 of Vince Carter is a little more ... good. They did add a little more firepower in basically swapping Anthony Johnson and Matt Barnes for Chris Duhon and Quentin Richardson, but with an ever-improving Eastern Conference full of high-profile maneuvering, will it be enough?

2010-2011 Orlando Magic

Point Guard: Jameer Nelson/Chris Duhon/Jason Williams
Shooting Guard: Vince Carter/J.J. Redick
Small Forward: Mickael Pietrus/Quentin Richardson/Stanley Robinson
Power Forward: Rashard Lewis/Ryan Anderson/Brandon Bass/Malik Allen
Center: Dwight Howard/Marcin Gortat/Daniel Orton

Though he had his post-retirement moments, Chris Duhon is a big upgrade over Jason Williams as the back-up point. He regressed last season as a sometimes-starter for the Knicks, but his bounce-back is inevitable under a Stan Van Gundy-led system. And while Quentin Richardson has always been a natural 3-point threat and a solid defensive plug-in, I think they'll miss Matt Barnes' general craziness that he brought in certain situations. A Mickael Pietrus/Q-Rich combo isn't exactly a feared defensive tandem on the perimeter. That's one of the reasons that I see them having a slight drop-off this season. They'll still be a premier team bound to get top-4 home court seeding in the East, but all of their competitors made tangible improvements while Orlando went lateral.

Where they could make up that ground on their competitors is simple: Dwight. He shot a career high 61.2% from the floor last season, but he needs to get his scoring back over 20 points every game. As sick as it is to say, it would also be nice for him to up his 13.2 boards he pulled last season. He has the size and unheard-of physique to do it. As a matter of fact, he's already done it with 14.2 rebounds in '08. Basically, he just has to figure out a way to overcome Vince's presence and over-dribbling tendency to make himself a consistent force. I don't care how good the rest of his teammates chuck three-pointers, they're not gonna be anywhere close to a championship squad until Dwight puts at least 25 points on the scoreboard every night. 2004 aside, there needs to be a number one option on any great team, and Dwight needs to be that. You can't have Carter as 1A, Howard as 1B, Rashard Lewis as 1C, and Jameer Nelson as 2. It might go great for the majority of the year, but not when it really means anything.

There's not much of anything else to say about the Magic that isn't redundant of last year's squad. The guy with a surprising new contract, J.J. Redick, will be looking to prove he's valuable enough to possibly shake up the starting line-up at some point this year. He, Pietrus, Richardson, and Lewis will all be firmly planted at the 3-point line awaiting their 17 alloted chucks per game. Ryan Anderson will see if he can still naturally be such a valuable contributor that it's impossible to keep him on the bench. Marcin Gortat will probably force a trade at some point this season because there's honestly no room for him with how Van Gundy wants his team to play 48 minutes a night. Literally, his only usage would come if Dwight went down with a serious injury. And considering the fact that he's played in 489 of a possible 492 career games, that's not gonna happen. All-in-all, I think they wind up getting bitten again by the Celtics. I don't trust Howard or his back-ups enough to be able to overcome Kendrick Perkins, Kevin Garnett, Shaquille O'Neal, and Jermaine O'Neal being thrown at him. You gotta hit the free throws from those 24 fouls being dedicated to taking you out of the game, and that's something Howard hasn't proven he can do yet. Shaq got away with it in his prime because he was already putting in over 27 points and had Kobe to clean up the rest. And that's my motto for the Orlando Magic in 2011: Vince Carter is not Kobe Bryant.

Prediction
Regular Season: 56-26
Playoffs: Eliminated in Eastern Conference Semi-Finals

... and do the John Wall.

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Orton Expectations

Daniel Orton - 6'10", 255 lb.
2009-2010 with Kentucky Wildcats
13.2 minutes, 3.4 points (52.7% FG, 52.4% FT), 3.3 rebounds, .4 assists, 1.4 blocks, .6 steals, 1.0 TO

Sucky stats, I know. But Daniel still managed to get selected in the first round based on potential. And I'll now put value to that potential.

Pluses for Daniel: shot blocking, unknown shooting ability, and a high level of athleticism when healthy. Forget every preconception you have about the guy coming off back-up duty as a college freshman and all the anger you have towards him for leaving for the pros early. Orton's career will not be defined by the completion of his rookie contract. He's simply not ready or currently healthy enough for that to be the case. I see him as having an eerily similar career path as Jermaine O'Neal. While under his rookie contract with the Portland Trailblazers, O'Neal struggled to stay on the floor for double-digit minutes for four entire seasons. A year later, he was able to escape Rasheed Wallace's daunting shadow (and influence) and earns 32 minutes a game with the Indiana Pacers. He then proceeds to spend the next 6 years in his playing prime as a premier All-Star post player and noted defensive swatter. Not bad for a guy who still averaged less than 4 points during the year that hypothetically could have been his senior season in college. When given the opportunity after an extended tutoring allotment, Jermaine flipped the switch. That's the best case scenario I see for Daniel Orton.

Jermaine O'Neal - 6'11", 255 lb.
2002-2003 with Indiana Pacers
37.2 minutes, 20.8 points (48.4% FG, 73.1% FT), 10.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 2.3 blocks, .9 steals, 2.3 TO

Much like O'Neal, Orton has a sick jump shot extending out to around 20 feet. He never once got to show it at UK, but I swear to you it's there. People close to the Wildcat ball club last year would tell you that Daniel was easily one of the squad's top 3 practice shooters. He has a feathery touch, just not the confidence yet to prove it in game action. Hence the disgustingly painful free throw percentage. He also has a few legitimate post moves that were only seen in literally about three play sequences in the entirety of his abbreviated college career. The majority of his adjustments, as dismissive as it is for me to say, rely exclusively in getting healthy, building his body, and getting used to NBA-sized contact. The talent and knowledge of the game are there; every player who played against Daniel daily in practice would tell you the same thing. He's a quality human being with the right combination of height and an understanding of the game, but he's been caught as the proverbial deer in the headlights over the course of the last calendar year. That's why I have such confidence in his potential ability to succeed at the highest level.

Worst case scenario is quite a bit more grim, though. While I hope Daniel finds a team where he can carve his niche and his extensive (and, as of yet, unseen) skill set can be utilized, nothing in the league is guaranteed. His knee may not heal as perfect as he (and the Orlando Magic) may hope. Or he may simply never regain the confidence to explode effectively off his knee, neutralizing his natural level of athleticism for the rest of his career. Maybe because of all the things going on in Daniel's life (the death of his mother, the lack of control shown by his father in the media, the outpouring hatred of a portion of UK fans, his plunge in NBA draft boards), he isn't able to put it all together at the right time and loses his chance at professional basketball prominence. In that case, his career ceiling falls to the disappointing level of a Keon Clark replication. Clark came out of UNLV in 1998 and was drafted by the Magic with the 13th pick. He was a highly talented big who couldn't ever seem to focus all of his attention on the court, resulting in him being relegated to a simple defender who couldn't even manage staying in the league for six seasons. His best outing came in 2002 when he put down the bong long enough to start 31 games for the Vince Carter-lead Raptors.

Keon Clark - 6'11", 221 lb.
2001-2002 with Toronto Raptors
27.0 minutes, 11.3 points (49.0% FG, 67.4% FT), 7.4 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 1.5 blocks, .7 steals, 1.7 TO

Besides health and conditioning issues, the biggest obstacle in Daniel's path to early floor time is his own teammates. The Magic probably have more front court depth than any NBA team should. Dwight Howard is the main cog with the rest of the power forward and back-up center minutes taken up by Rashard Lewis, Marcin Gortat, Ryan Anderson, and Brandon Bass. On top of that there's even fellow rookie Stanley Robinson as 12th man competition. Unless the roster is purged for Carmelo Anthony or Chris Paul in some massive trade, I don't see how Daniel manages any clock in the early going. Though that's probably not a bad thing since he definitely isn't ready at this point. On a brighter note, Patrick Ewing will definitely be a pivotal piece in getting the right habits going for Daniel's future opportunities.

Here's hoping Daniel manages to steer his way closer to Jermaine territory as an eventual franchise-type player for a regularly competing team as opposed to a journeyman plagued by off court issues ousted out of the pro ranks before his 30th birthday. Make Oklahoma and Kentucky proud, Daniel. I don't know about everyone else, but I'm willing to give you a little extra leeway in your window to accomplish that.

... and do the John Wall.

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He Ain't That Nice

In case you don't know, I quite enjoy taking random pot shots at LeBron James. The sports world's most beloved child is quite the grating figure for me. Just so y'all could say I actually have a reason, I'll explain.

I'm one of the people on the planet who isn't an advocate of giving people free passes. Like, if you are a person who wants respect, adulation, and to be the face of a generation, I feel like you maybe should do something to earn those things. But that's just me. That's never been the case in the relationship between LeBron James and the majority of the general public. It hasn't. Ever since the day in high school that he put up triple double numbers, he's had a bazillion dollar Nike contract in the wings and an entire line of merchandise and nicknames and awards set aside for him. All this long before the day his NBA career even began. And it pisses me off.

Now this isn't a jealousy type thing like you might accuse it of being on a preteen internet message board. This is something about realism in a world that wants to avoid it. This is something about the eyes of accountability in which society nervously never makes contact with. This is something about big metaphors that make things seem much more serious and important in the grand scheme of things than they actually are ...

A random quandary I have is why do stats only matter when you like the guy putting them up? Cuz as far as I remember, when Kobe was out there putting up a season scoring at a clip of 35.4 points per game he was labeled as selfish. But when LeBron puts up big scoring numbers then it's somehow relevant. Like how LeBron gunned for 35.3 over 14 games this postseason and somehow he's this heavenly hero, even though he was a lucky 3-point jumper away from getting swept out of the Eastern Conference finals. And then people want to put asterisks on hard stats to sway them a certain way, like to try and make LeBron's Madison Square Garden performance this season stand out as superior to Bryant's before him. But straight from a points-on-the board aspect, #23 can't even touch #24's low top signature shoes. Kobe's got single game point notches of 81 (coming back from an 18-point deficit for a win), 65 (including the shot to send the game into overtime in a winning effort), 62 (while only playing 3 quarters and outscoring the opposing team in that time), 61 (in the aforementioned MSG win), and 60 (in a regulation win). That's 5 games of 60 or more, all in winning efforts, while the rest of the current players in the entire league have 2 between them. And LeBron James isn't one of them. If that doesn't describe a near-unattainable plateau that separates the greatest scorer period from other great scorers, then I don't know what is.

But then we're to be told that triple doubles alone outweigh epic scoring nights in winning efforts. But in that vain, why don't you compare the team role according to different positions on the floor and the individual offensive attacks that the two dynamic players run in accordance with their coaches philosophies? But no one wants to compare that. It's no fun, because then you'd unbelievably find that somehow LeBron James might just have the ball in his hands a far greater percentage of the time than Kobe Bryant, the oft-labeled selfish ball hog. It's something that no one wants to concede. LeBron, a ball dominator? Noooo. Everyone wants to spew out assist numbers to claim concrete selfishness versus team-oriented play. But when LeBron has the ball in his hands literally every time down the floor and he's asked to create an offense out of utter stagnancy, then that's what he will do and he will put up concurrent numbers accordingly. And in turn, when Kobe is asked to assume his position in the triangle offense as mainly an attacking wing scorer who will get the ball later in the shot clock in a prime scoring opportunity, then that's what he'll do and he will put up concurrent numbers accordingly. I prolly should delve further into specific intricacies, tendencies, and exceptions in each players' team offense, but that's just more into the inexplicable variations of the game that are skewed and thrown to the side in favor of "intangibles", which every so-called expert just wants you to blindly accept as being in LeBron's favor. Whether it's true or not.

One aspect of it that kills me is the notion of "making your teammates better". Which we're also led to believe is something LBJ does and KB doesn't. Case closed, right? But then how come everyone also says that LeBron has never had any teammates to work with? I don't understand. If he makes them better ... then why do they still suck? Larry Hughes used to be a high-scoring, fastbreak-initializing All-Star swingman. Ben Wallace used to be a high energy, scrappy post man All-Star, as well. Damon Jones used to be the one of the best 3-point marksmen in the league. Wally World used to actually look like he was somewhat of a contributor on the floor at any given venture. Why do these guys not get better under the King's watch? Better yet, why do they cease to even maintain their level of play under LeBron's tutelage and intangible "better-making" abilities? Yeah, he makes fancy passes and has a spotless on-court reputation, but where's the actual evidence that he makes anyone better? Please tell me ... I have yet to come across it and would really like to be proven wrong.

And then there's the fact of LBJ simply not being a winner. His first two years in the league he missed the playoffs entirely when the Eastern conference was at an all-time historically weak period. In his rookie season, the lowly Celtics were the 8th seed with a record of 36-46. In his sophomore campaign, he put up a better fight yet still missed the after-party due to a tiebreaker with the Nets at a record of 42-40. After that he finally drug the Cavs up to being a shoe-in annual playoff team. He even surprisingly took them to the Finals in 2007, only to be put away without a single win against the Spurs. And then came his publicly ordained 2009 season where he was practically guaranteed to come out with a ring. He took care of the season alright, sneaking out a game ahead of the Lakers for the overall best record, yet lost in the Conference Finals to extensive underdogs, the 3rd seed Orlando Magic. Whom, as everyone knows, the Lakers disposed of in 5 games for the crown.

Lastly, there's the hard truth which no one wants to admit. LeBron James is good for absolutely nothing on the defense end of the court besides rundown blocks in fast break situations. Somehow his ESPN highlight reel, made up singularly of those very things, has led to him having a reputation as a premier NBA defender. And that, my good friend, is bull ish. I have never seen him give a full game where he digs into a defensive stance on the perimeter or holds his ground in the post against a big man. Scratch that; I haven't seen him do either for a full quarter of any given game. He is blessed with an unbelievable NBA physique and literally has no physical limitations. So why is there not a single NBA wing who's afraid of being contained by LeBron? Did he cover Hedo or Rashard Lewis effectively in his latest playoff series? As a matter of fact, those are the very exact standout performers who hit all the shots in the clutch. But James was content to take whole games off by covering Rafer Alston whenever he was on the court (and even he went off for a 26 point game against the King). What happened to the best player on the floor stepping up in dire situations and demanding a matchup against the biggest threat on the opposing team? It doesn't happen regularly or in any important instances with LeBron.

Here's my last claim. I know, like every other person in the world, that LeBron is maybe the most gifted athlete ever, in that he can jump out of the building (almost literally) and run faster than anyone his height and mass should ever legally be allowed to. But that alone is not enough to give anyone the right to claim that LeBron is the best basketball player in the world right now. I even read a column on ESPN just this week that mentioned in passing that LBJ is already one of the top 5 greatest players in basketball history. Yet others would argue in separate instances that Kobe hasn't even cracked the top 10 yet. This sickens me. Until LeBron James actually does something to set himself apart in the National Basketball Association, I will still be sickened by it. I understand that he gets lots of triple doubles. That's really cool. But until he develops some semblance of a legitimate jump shot, actually executes a post move capitalizing off his physical stature, shows that he cares about and is dedicated to mastering every microcosm of the game, wins a championship, or steps the hell up and becomes a man on defense, then he's just another freakish superstar with a career in the vain of a post-2000 era Dominique Wilkins or Pete Maravich. That's all. Oh, and he's never allowed to miss another 5 games in a row because of a non-shooting hand fingernail injury ever again. I swear, though, that I will continue to be open and perceptive for the rest of his career. If he becomes an actual complete player (like everyone pretends he is now) and a winner, then he's inherently in the all-time conversation. But not yet, people.

Meanwhile, Kobe's running the entire league under his completely disfigured fingers (on his shooting hand, mind you) and is still somehow less appreciated by the viewing public and reporting media than David Stern's predestined poster boy. All because Kobe doesn't smile as pretty. And as a major P.S., you can weigh the sins yourself if open judgements of personal life contribute to your view of either star ... committing adultery versus having multiple children out of wedlock, open admittance of frequent marijuana usage, claiming nothing is wrong in your actions after being pulled over speeding by 36 mph, and simply being a pouty sore loser. Whichever way.

Closing question: Whose model of a standard are you holding LeBron James to? That is, if you're holding him accountable for anything at all.

... but do take my word for it.

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