Tag: Orlando Magic (Page 15 of 22)

      Finals commentary, prior to Game 3

      June 9, 2009 /

      Ramona Shelburne of the LA Daily News: The plays are only noticeable in hindsight. On replays. In memory. And sometimes not even then. Little plays that could be pivotal if they don’t go the right way. Some call them “veteran plays.” Others use terms like “heady” and “mature” or “cerebral.” It sounds vague and arbitrary, but tell that to the team that doesn’t know how to make these kinds of plays. It’s even harder to explain how some players learn to make them and others don’t. Whether it’s instinct or experience, natural poise or acquired savvy. Only one thing is certain: Championship teams make them, everyone else watches them later in the film room. And right now, the Lakers are the team in these NBA Finals keeping the opposing video technician busy.

      Jeff Briggs of the RCS Blog: Tonight, Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals is on NBC at 8pm. A mere hour later, Game 3 of the NBA Finals airs on ABC. While there are clearly two separate sets of fans that follow the sports, the two leagues are still cannibalizing each other’s audience. Sports fans like to watch championship events. People shouldn’t be forced to choose between either the Stanley Cup or NBA finals. They should be able to watch both, hockey one day and basketball the next.

      Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel: The Lakers haven’t allowed the Magic to be the Magic much at all in taking a 2-0 lead. They’ve had them on the run since this whole thing started, creating chaos. The Magic have been scrambling to find other ways to play, and with other players playing different positions, causing realignment of X’s as well as O’s. Hard to play the NBA Finals on the fly, but it’s reality. Coach Stan Van Gundy pulled out everything imaginable from his bag of tricks on Sunday, and somehow the Magic almost turned the Finals on its ear before losing in overtime.

      George Diaz of the Orlando Sentinel: The Magic have scored just 171 points in consecutive losses. That 85.5 average has something to do with the Lakers’ defense, obviously. But it also has much to do with the inability of the Magic to get into any groove when the ball is bouncing in their hands. We’ll get to the point: Jameer Nelson coming back after a four-month layoff has mucked things up for the Magic in the NBA Finals. This is the dark side of the silver lining Magic fans saw in Nelson’s return after that prolonged absence because of his shoulder injury. Nelson’s unexpected availability has messed with the Magic mojo.

      NBA, NBA Finals

      Let’s not be too hard on Courtney Lee

      June 8, 2009 /

      Yes, Courtney Lee missed the game-winning alley-oop last night and the Magic went onto lose Game 2 and find themselves down, 0-2, heading back to Orlando.

      Here’s the video…

      I’m seeing some people describing it as his “Nick Anderson moment” while others are referring to the play as a layup. It wasn’t a layup. It was an alley-oop, and it was a difficult shot. If you see where Lee catches the ball — he actually catches it underneath the backboard as his body continues to rise. He has so much momentum going towards the baseline that his head is actually under the backboard when he attempts the layup. Complicating matters, seven-footer Pau Gasol came over to help, which made the shot that much more difficult.

      Impossible shot? No, it was definitely make-able, but on average I’d say that a player successfully converts the shot maybe 30% of the time. Had the pass not led him so much, it would have been a much easier shot. That’s not to say that it’s Hedo Turkoglu’s fault either. It is a tough play to convert with Lamar Odom’s length right in your face.

      It’s a shame, really, because the Magic didn’t get any calls down the stretch and still had a chance to tie the series and make things really interesting as both teams head back to Orlando. Now, barring three wins at home for the Magic, a Laker title looks inevitable.

      NBA, NBA Finals, Video

      Couch Potato Alert: 6/5

      June 5, 2009 /

      This could be a weekend of “firsts.” Calvin Borel could become the first jockey to record a Triple Crown on two separate horses. With “The King of Clay” Rafael Nadal out of the picture, Roger Federer could capture his first Grand Slam championship at the French Open. And Kobe Bryant could be halfway home to his first NBA title without Shaq.

      All times ET…

      NBA Finals
      Sun, 8 PM: Orlando Magic @ Los Angeles Lakers (ABC)

      Stanley Cup Finals
      Sat, 8 PM: Pittsburgh Penguins @ Detroit Red Wings (NBC)

      MLB
      Sat, 4:10 PM: Philadelphia Phillies @ Los Angeles Dodgers (FOX)
      Sun., 1:30 PM: Texas Rangers @ Boston Red Sox (TBS)
      Sun., 8 PM: Philadelphia Phillies @ Los Angeles Dodgers (ESPN)

      French Open
      Fri, 5 AM: Women’s Semifinals (Tennis Channel)
      Fri, 10 AM: Men’s Semifinals (NBC)
      Sat, 9 AM: Women’s Finals (NBC)
      Sun, 9 AM: Men’s Finals (NBC)

      Horse Racing
      Sat, 5 PM: The Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park (ABC)

      Couch Potato Alert, MLB, NBA, NBA Finals, NHL, Television, Tennis

      Lakers take Game 1 with conviction

      June 5, 2009 /

      The Lakers routed the Magic, 100-75, in Game 1 of the Finals. Kobe Bryant had a brilliant game, posting 40 points, eight rebounds, eight assists, two steals and two blocks. Pau Gasol chipped in with 16 points and eight rebounds, and Lamar Odom was the only other Laker to score in double digits with 11 points to go along with 14 boards.

      The game was still close (10 points) at halftime until a 29-15 third quarter put the Lakers firmly in control. The Magic shot just 30% from the field and the Orlando starters shot just 10 of 46 (22%) from the floor. The trio of Dwight Howard (12 points, 15 rebounds), Rashard Lewis (eight points) and Hedo Turkoglu (13 points) all had subpar games, and despite reports that he was not going to get any action, Jameer Nelson played 23 minutes, and went 3 of 9 from the field for six points.

      Marcia Smith of the Orange County Register writes that the Lakers can start thinking sweep.

      Given that nonchalance, is there any legitimate reason to expect that the Magic can conjure from thin air something as elaborate as an offensive game plan or an effective defense by Sunday’s Game 2 to make this series last longer than four games?

      Probably not. Lakers fans should buy more brooms.

      Mark Bresnahan of the LA Times writes that Kobe was the one who looked like Superman.

      Perhaps his best play started with a crossover dribble, then a few more dribbles as he measured up Mickael Pietrus, drove on him and delivered a double-pump nine-foot bank shot after being fouled. The made free throw gave the Lakers a 75-52 lead with 3:17 left in the third quarter.

      Bryant, who had 18 points in the third quarter, refused to claim any sort of victory.

      “We haven’t found anything,” he said. “It’s one game. No big deal.”

      Chris Sheridan of ESPN.com says that Orlando fans won’t be encouraged by Mickael Pietrus’s words after the game.

      As for the Magic’s defense, we advise anyone back in central Florida dressed in blue and white to skip ahead two paragraphs because the following quote from Pietrus — Orlando’s designated Kobe stopper — isn’t exactly going to inspire confidence (nor will it be pleasant to know that Pietrus was smiling as he said it).

      “I was trying to do my best, but everyone knows this guy is a legend. What can you do?”

      Are the Magic likely to bounce back from a 25-point defeat to win the series? No. They were outhustled, outplayed and looked outclassed. But it’s way too early to start talking sweep, and Smith’s article is just the kind of talk that Stan Van Gundy wants his team to hear over the next couple of days.

      As I was watching the game with a friend, I mentioned to him that the bigger the win in Game 1, the better the Magic’s chances of stealing Game 2. The Lakers have a tendency to lose focus, and this Orlando team isn’t going to roll over. They’ve been resilient all year and all playoffs, and they’re likely to play a lot better on Sunday.

      NBA, NBA Finals

      Jameer Nelson not expected to play tonight

      June 4, 2009 /

      According to the Orlando Sentinel, the Magic are expected to keep All-Star point guard Jameer Nelson sidelined for Game 1 tonight.

      Orlando Magic point guard Jameer Nelson isn’t likely to play tonight in Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the L.A. Lakers, but he is expected to be activated and dress out, the Sentinel has learned. The chance of him playing in the series is still remote.

      It’s interesting that the team is going to activate him and that he’s going to dress for the game. One of the most amazing things about Orlando’s run to the Finals is the fact that they’ve done it without Nelson, who is considered to be the team’s second-best player after Dwight Howard (or at least he was having the second-best season when he injured his shoulder). The Magic are still capable of upsetting the Lakers in the series, but it will be tougher without Nelson’s help.

      NBA, NBA Finals

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