Last time I blogged in about the Magic, slowly they were getting things together on the defensive end. Well like they got down to business, I shall follow. The win in Boston was a very good game and big win. Both teams were in a defensive battle which went down to the final minute. Vince Carter shot a sizzling 10-29 and clocked in 26 points. Dwight had one of his more quiet games this year with only 9 points but a huge block on Pierce with under a minute. After the Boston massacre the Magic would then take the show on the road to Toronto. This would be Vince's first time in a Magic uniform that he's playing against his former team. As Stan puts it "they [Toronto's crowd] don't even know why they are booing him anymore", as he justifies most of the fans are just doing it for a traditional more than a reason. I thought the Magic played very well, a little loose on the defensive end but they got the job done. Bosh had what I call a quiet night against us and Amir Johnson had a good game which was sad to see as a Magic fan.
Now for the horrible game of the week. Miami comes to town as the Magic have won five straight. I thought this game was well played for the most part only in the 3rd and parts of the 4th quarter on the Magic's end. The defense on Wade (excluding the 4th quarter) was very good. Pietrus showed why he's an underrated defender. However I'm never fooled by Wade, as he went off in the 4th quarter. The offensive rebounding for this Heat team is above average, they killed the Magic all game in that division and ironically that's how they won the game: A last second put back by Michael Beasley on a D-Wade airball. Now this game has it's frustrations for a Magic fan as they blew a 12 point lead, missed key free throws and failed to grab rebounds in the final moments. As always, the Magic look to rebound after losses like that so they would get the Hotlanta Hawks the very next night. Now this is the game I though the Magic would have some trouble winning, and it looked very much so in the 1st half. It was frustrating and a bit annoying to watch the horrible defense they played. The 2nd half however, was very delightful. Dwight scored 10 points and grabbed 6 rebounds alone in the 3rd. This would spark the Magic as well as Anthony Johnson who scored 17 points in the 4th quarter! The Magic defense some how transformed and only allowed 25 points from the Hawks in the 2nd half. I loved the effort they gave in that 2nd half and I wish they continue to build on that for the rest of the year.
The Point Guard Play:
Well I can't say I expected them to be this great. Jason Williams has been solid and had a great game against Miami, excluding the final minute. Anthony Johnson came off the bench and provided big help against Atlanta, which is good to see since he's been buried on the bench most of the season. Like I said in my last blog I don't think is necessary for Otis to looking into another point guard, Jameer is only expected to be out a month or so and these two veterans can get the job done.
Odd Man Out:
Brandon Bass hasn't played since his mop up minutes against the Thunder. This leaves to speculation of injury, flu or simply the doghouse of SVG. The rumors are truly rumors as Stan himself has said he's found his rotation that he's getting consistency out of. I can't blame him much but I feel bad for Bass who I really like. He's a great player with a lot of potential but at the same time hard to really fit him in on the team at the moment. I think against certain teams he's a great fit and the Magic would benefit but to make the offense work, he can't be in there to spread the floor, which the Magic strive on. Could he be a trade deadline stuffer? Or traded for someone else before to benefit the Magic? I think the possibility is there however Bass was signed here for a reason and he'll stay to fit in.
Next up:
The Magic will face rookie phenom Brandon Jennings and the Bucks tonight, play in MSG aginst the Knicks tomorrow and finally Wednesday night against the same Knicks before heading out to a 4 game 7 day West Cost trip.
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