Inside Enemy Territory with “Orlando Magic Blog”
Fresh off a great All-Star break where Dwight Howard had his official coming out party, the Magic are one of the few teams in the East that look to challenge the West with both an inside dominance and outside presence. The growth of Dwight Howard has been a steady progression, but perhaps the biggest addition has been the addition of Stan Van Gundy, my own Coach of the Year nomination so far.
We sat down with Mike from Orlando Magic Blog to discuss their season for the upcoming game against Toronto. Please check out our answers on their page.
Q: Was Stan van Gundy correct in making his displeasure public? How have the fans reacted to his tirade?
As it turned out, Stan Van Gundy made a great decision in making his displeasure with Dwight Howard known public, especially regarding Howard’s defense. Prior to last wednesday’s game against Denver, the last time Howard grabbed 20 or more rebounds in a game was 21 against Charlotte on January 16th. In the 12 games after that, Howard had grabbed “only” 141 rebounds, or an average of less than 12 a game. Against the Nuggets, he grabbed 24 rebounds to go along with 23 points and two blocked shots in leading the Magic to a win.
Van Gundy’s point was that Howard had been too worried about his offense and not focusing enough on his defense, which was hurting the Magic’s chances of winning. Now, hopefully, Howard will play that way the rest of the season by keeping focused on his defense, even if things aren’t going so well offensively. Another interesting stat – when Howard blocks 3 or more shots a game this season, the Magic are 22-2!
Q: What do you attribute Orlando’s low ticket prices to? Is this an indication of the lack of general interest in the Magic in Orlando, or something deeper?
I can’t really point to any one thing as to why Magic tickets are going for such a bargain at Stubhub.com. It’s interesting that the top five bargain NBA teams are all over .500, with four of the teams in solid playoff position. I can tell you that even though I don’t live in FL, the fan interest in the Magic is as high as it has been in several years, because of the continuing emergence of Dwight Howard, the high-profile signing of free agent Rashard Lewis, and the signing of new head coach Stan Van Gundy, along with the team’s record.
Maybe one of the reasons is because where the Magic play, Amway Arena, is so old and outdated. The Magic have played there since the team’s inception in 1989! However, the Magic finally got the go-ahead to build a brand new, state-of-the-art arena in downtown Orlando. The groundbreaking will be this summer, and is scheduled to be completed in time for the 2010 season. I can’t see those bargain tix lasting for long if the Magic can continue their improved play. They have a chance to win 50 games for the first time since the Shaq and Penny era!
Q: Raptors fans remember Carlos Arroyo for his brief stint with the Raptors. How is the little Puerto Rican doing?
Carlos Arroyo has had a lot to do with the Magic being 12 games over .500. Recently in a 10 game stretch where he was starting in place of usual starter Jameer Nelson, the Magic finished 8-2 in those games.
Arroyo is steady and solid as a point guard, at least offensively. He runs the team well, and generally does not turn the ball over. In 43 games this season, Arroyo is averaging 7.0 pts on 44.8% FG shooting in 20.8 minutes per game, along with 3.5 assists and 1.3 turnovers per game. He had a season high of 14 assists in just 24 minutes against Seattle in November.
That being said, Arroyo has received a DNP-CD in two of the last three games, and now seems to be relegated to the third point guard on the Magic. The reason is Nelson is back healthy, and since Nelson received a contract extension at the beginning of the season, he will remain the starter as long as he’s healthy. Additionally, Arroyo is not a good defensive player, whereas Keyon Dooling, the backup point guard, is stronger defensively. Dooling used to play shooting guard, but since the acquisition of Maurice Evans from the Lakers, Van Gundy prefers Dooling at the point. Stan Van Gundy will always favor the stronger defensive player in his rotation. It’s not necessarily fair to Arroyo, but as long as the Magic are winning, that’s the main thing.
This is also the last year of Arroyo’s contract. He has a really large Puerto Rican fan base in Orlando, so if the Magic trade him or don’t resign him, they will probably lose at least some of that Puerto Rican fan base.
HoopsAddict.com would like to once again thank Mike of Orlando Magic Blog for his time. Please don’t forget to visit his site!
Comments
By Mike on February 21st, 2008 at 2:11 am
Great game by the Raptors… they thoroughly outshot the Magic from the field, from 3 pt range, and FTs, in addition to having a superior AST/TO ratio. Bosh outplayed “Superman” (Dwight Howard).
Didn’t you guys lose at home to the Clippers a few weeks ago? How the heck did that happen? If the Raptors can play the way they played against the Magic the rest of the season, they will definitely be a factor in the playoffs. You guys have a solid starting five (even with Bargnani struggling), and good bench depth, which will be even better when T.J. Ford returns.
The next Raptors/Magic game is March 4th in Orlando; hope to have some more give-and-take with you guys then.