ball junkie

Some quotes about Mr. March Madness himself J.J. Redick from an article in this morning's Floida Today written by John Denton: quote: "It's definitely been difficult," admitted Redick, who will be looking for playing time today when the Magic (29-34) face the Rockets in Houston. "Accepted is not the word, but I guess I've come to terms with how this year has gone for me. Somewhere right after Christmas I just told myself that I was going to do what I could do, and even though I probably wouldn't jump ahead of this guy or that guy, I was going to work really hard on my game. "The last couple of months have been easier mentally. Those first couple of months were the toughest I've been through since I wasn't playing and wasn't even dressing out for a lot of the games." quote: Being behind resulted in not playing for long stretches of games as he either rode the bench or was left on the inactive list. Six times he's gone at least three consecutive games without playing, including a 13-game stretch early in the season. He heads into today's game having played just 25 games, averaging 5.9 points in 15.5 minutes a night. "It's one of the most difficult things to do, playing catch up like he's had to do," Magic coach Brian Hill said of Redick. "It starts with his physical conditioning and then it moves out to all of the stuff on the floor. He was getting used to the size and strength of all the guys in the NBA. And before he could contend with that, he had to get right physically. That made the process much harder than normal for him." quote: But slowly, Redick has pushed his way into the rotation, playing spot minutes off the bench for a Magic team overloaded at the wing positions. Playing time in a blowout might not mean much to some, but to Redick those minutes are as valuable as gold. And the coaching staff has taken notice of his progress, especially performances like the one last week against Milwaukee when Redick buried a 3-pointer without hesitation and had a no-look, touch-pass assist to Trevor Ariza for a dunk. Said Hill: "He's earned our trust and we have no reservations about getting him on the floor." quote: Added Redick: "Early on in December and January when I was getting those spotty minutes here and there, I was just trying to fit in and blend. But now I'm trying to score, trying to put the ball in the basketball and be really aggressive. "Those five or six games where I played 20 minutes helped me and I was out there a few times at crunch time. I feel a lot more comfortable as to how the game is played now. This is a totally different game than what I was used to, but I'm getting there." quote: He said he plans to return to Duke to play pick-up ball early in the summer. He'll most certainly play with the Magic's entry in the summer league in early July. He'll participate in Team USA's training camp in Las Vegas in hopes of making the roster for the 2008 Olympics. And if that weren't enough, he also might spend some time in Los Angeles or New York this summer in hopes of drilling against other NBA players. "I'm playing summer league and I'm playing as much as I can this summer," Redick stressed. "I didn't get to play last summer, so I want to play as much as I can this summer. I won't be taking any time off. Everything that's happened this season will just make me better in the long run." Nice article on the kid. And honestly, it's very much the truth. I know some of you guys think very highly of him and so do I. I think everyone realizes when he's on the floor it helps spread the floor for Dwight. But let's face it, he's got some work to do on his game. Rumblings from down under say Otis privately thinks of J.J. as a "shooter" ala a Steve Kerr whom Mr. Smith has compared him too publicly. I'm assuming you guys understand the underlying meaning there. Kerr wasn't known for his defensive prowess. Quite frankly I think most of us here figured the same thing when he was drafted. We knew he could score but it was the other side of the floor people wondered about. The sooner he gets more adept at playing defense look for him to see more and more minutes. Anyway, it was nice to see that the coaching staff now has no reservations about putting him into games and that he has "earned" it. I love the part wher he said he now is trying to score when playing and be aggressive. I think that is what all Magic fans want to see. The Redick who was Mr. Agressive at Duke. Finally, you gotta love the guys dedication to get better. No summer break, just working on his game. Next year he'll be hard to hold down. And the summer league, I can't wait! I've got conections that allows me to get into the league games(don't ask) here and if Redick is playing that will make it even better bordering on great. I'm still holding out hope J.J. can be a big contributor to push us into the playoffs this season. http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/...03110334/1002/SPORTS

quote: Originally posted by FanSince1990: quote: Originally posted by Knappy: Ball Junkie - you know what the problem is - you just don't want to jump on the fire Brian Hill bandwagon - if Brian was not our coach this year and we had a decent coach - this team with the exact same players wins 50 games. Right on Knappy. It's amazing when it should be obvious by now, some people still have doubts. A less than knowledgeable fan from the street saying he still have doubts ok but someone who reads and participates inthis boards? Shame, not too proud of my fellow fans I have to say. Many fans in this city act like they're brainwashed by Mickey Mouse. No wonder the city gets no respect nationally in sports. I mean we have the worst coach in the league, a guy the players already kicked out once.. and here the owners of this team rehire this a*hole loser again and most of the fans act like no big deal, instead they've been fooled by the media to think the team is too young, not good enough and hasn't been healthy enough, all of which is total BS. It has taken losing 30 out of 45 for most fans to warm up to the idea that Brian Hill sucks! Duh! You two guys are bound and determined to keep pumping me until you've got another poster recruited for your cause.(lol) Seriously, if you check all my recent posts you will see that I am in agreement with the majority of the Brian Hill criticism's. I just don't go around the boards like you two flooding every thread with anything negative I can about the coach. I also don't think he is the only problem as I expressed in my opening post. I do have a question though. I'm a season ticket holder like Knappy. I actually met him awhile back at a game. He was sitting about 10 rows behind me and as I took my young son to the bathroom I noticed Knappy's now famous Brian Hill T-shirt. Then when I saw the body I knew who it was. Just kidding Knappy! Anyway, back to the question. I pay lots of money to support the Magic. Because of that I have a vested interest in the team both emotionally and financially. Since the team hasn't been to the playoffs for awhile I am dying for some post-season excitement. Even if it means getting swept in the first round. I'm tired of not being able to hardly give my tickets away ala the year T=Mac quit on the team. If we fire Brian Hill now our chances become even slimmer. I WANT THE PLAYOFFS IN SPITE OF BRIAN HILL!!!! If you read any of my recent posts you will see that I "garunteed" I would lead the picket line to the RDV sportsplex or to Amway Arena for a new coach if we don't make the playoffs. Am I the only poster supporting the Magic greatly financially who feels like this?

When I first read this I thought, that's funny. Then after reading it again I thought poor guy, he's played so little and hardly had a chance I started feeling sorry for him. Anyway, you decide: quote: When nobody knows your name When you don't play much, people can forget who you are. Just ask Travis Diener, the Magic's second-year guard who was on the inactive list and dressed in street clothes on the bench. During the second quarter, when Hedo Turkoglu got smacked in his eye, left the game and went into the locker room, Diener tried to follow him. The security staff outside the Magic locker room didn't recognize him and asked for identification, which he didn't have. A few moments later, a Magic staffer came to the rescue. I figured nobody would want to talk about last night's game so I tried to find something else to discuss.

An interesting update and thoughts on the Magic's situation from Mr. NBA himself, Marc Stein. Here it is: quote: The Magic have been scoffing at suggestions that Brian Hill's job is in jeopardy, even though they've lost 30 of 46 games in a slide that threatens to drop them all the way out of the East's playoff picture after that 13-4 start. I've been advised that it's not an empty vote of confidence, either. Orlando management, according to NBA front-office sources, is apparently giving Hill some "extra rope" this time given the circumstances surrounding the end of his first stint as Magic coach in 1997, when he was essentially ousted by player revolt. It's rope he might end up needing, too, if the Magic keep sliding amid rumblings that players are tuning Hill out and/or chafing from his rigid style. Yet no matter where Hill's approval rating sits or whether he can survive this prolonged slump, it's clear that the Magic are also suffering from a leadership shortage. It'd be asking an awful lot of young Dwight Howard to expect him to galvanize a group clinging to its playoff hopes since Howard himself has yet to play in the postseason. Injuries, meanwhile, have prevented the venerable Grant Hill from having the locker-room sway you'd expect. In-house confidence that they can hang onto a top-eight spot, as a result, is clearly crumbling. The only solace for the Magic comes from the team right above them in the standings, now that Indiana has been plunged into its own playoffs-in-jeopardy funk, as well as the inability of New Jersey and New York to punish Orlando with a sustained run of their own. Guys, you have no idea how much I have recently been beating myself up trying to figure out what is wrong with our team. Is it Coaching style and or their inability to motivate players? Did we as fans over-estimate our talent(excluding Dwight Howard)? Is our roster flawed with no wing player to break down defenses one-on-one? Additionally, we have so many guards(not enough playing time for everyone) and not enough big men. What, if any effect does Grant Hill's situation have on the team? He's in and out of the line-up and as we have discussed many times on the boards how does his presence hinder the performance of other key performers? I have seen a few beat writer's recently mention the word that is extremely important for success of a team, "leadership". Marc Stein mentions it in his above posted blog. Could this be the big factor that is holding us down? Unfortunately I'm still beating myself up mentally(no answer yet) and until we either get into the playoffs or start winning consistently again I guess I'm doomed for it to continue. http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/dailydime?page=dailydime-070310-11

From today's Sentinel: quote: Hill had a rough outing against the Bulls in his return after a three-game absence because of a left-foot injury. He came off the bench, finishing with just seven points on 0-for-5 shooting in nearly 28 minutes. "I'd thought we'd get more of an impact [from Hill], but that's a tough one to evaluate when a guy's coming off a foot injury like that," Coach Brian Hill said. "You never know what to expect when he has to move and push off and everything else." Grant Hill said he felt "fine physically," but indicated this might not be his last time coming off the bench after making 45 starts this season, depending on Turkoglu's situation. "I'll get better at this [coming in as a reserve],'' he said. "I'll be better the next time. I thought I moved OK, and I felt good. It's still basketball, and once you're out there, it's the same."

From today's Sentinel: quote: PF Tony Battie, who recently started practicing lightly with a splint protecting his fractured right thumb, could play Sunday against the Rockets. He has missed the past 14 games since sustaining the injury Feb. 6 at Milwaukee against the Bucks.

I'm sorry to be the one to report this even if it is from a smaller website. Evidently at last night's game it got ugly at the end with fans harrassing players and coaches. Check this out: quote: The Magic did win the season series against the Bulls, but while getting destroyed on March 8th the Magic may have finally lost the faith of their loyal fans. With most of the crowd, including Tiger Woods, heading for the exit well before the end of the third quarter those in attendance didn

Guys, I am oficially starting to get worried. Look what ESPN's Daily Dime said about the East playoff contenders: quote: Orlando Magic (29-34) The 100-76 loss to the Bulls on Thursday was not a big morale booster. Looks more and more like it will be a four-way scrum among the Pacers, Magic, Nets and Knicks for the final two spots in the East. The Magic went 3-9 over February. Don't blame Dwight Howard for the skid -- his numbers for the month were his best of the season, making 70.7 percent of his shots, averaging 22.8 points and 12.5 rebounds. Darko Milicic was better too, going 11.7 ppg, 6.9 rpg while shooting 50.4 percent from the field. But it probably doesn't help that Grant Hill has missed 10 of his last 17 games before Thursday. And Jameer Nelson did not shoot over 50 percent from the field in any of the nine February losses. Howard's got an NBA worst 236 turnovers (3.8 per game). That's a lot of turnovers, but even D-Ho won't approach the season mark of 366 set by Artis Gilmore in 1978. At least they've got two games with Boston and one with Memphis left to go. Predicted finish: 36-46. Ninth, "out" of playoffs in East. http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/dailydime?page=dailydime-070309

When I first read this I thought, that's funny. Then after reading it again I thought poor guy, he's played so little and hardly had a chance I started feeling sorry for him. Anyway, you decide: quote: When nobody knows your name When you don't play much, people can forget who you are. Just ask Travis Diener, the Magic's second-year guard who was on the inactive list and dressed in street clothes on the bench. During the second quarter, when Hedo Turkoglu got smacked in his eye, left the game and went into the locker room, Diener tried to follow him. The security staff outside the Magic locker room didn't recognize him and asked for identification, which he didn't have. A few moments later, a Magic staffer came to the rescue. I figured nobody would want to talk about last night's game so I tried to find something else to discuss.

Man, is this thread ever true or what? As soon as anyone knows anything about him let us all know. We need you Tony!

Yeah Knappy, my sources are telling me the same thing. The New York papers can print all they want about Vince and Ratner offering to open up the bank to re-sign Carter but the writing is on the wall. I Vince's case "silence is deadly"! He still hasn't said anything about re-negotiating his contract. He wants to test the waters. You guys can say anything you want about Allen(who's hurt now with bone spurs and is planning surgery this summer) or Michael Pietrus or the guy from Charlotte(Gerald Wallace) who's a Trevor Ariza clone. Of all the free agents left on the board the only one ranked higher than Vince is Chaucy Billups. Crticize Vince however much you want but after last night's showing and our offensive output, man! The summertime and Vince can't get here soon enough for me. Vince is the surest thing in free agency. You know what your getting with him. SCORING! Any doubt we could use that after last night?

You guys are gonna laugh at this but I've been wondering about this one. His writing style reminds me of our own fan blogger for the website, Live or Die Magic. What do you guys think?

Trust me on this guys, Brian Schmitz is "not" a Magic Insider. I can promise you that when Otis and company make decisions it is done totally in house. Schmitz can make suggestions all he wants and in this case I'm glad Otis, Brian and company took it. But honestly, management could care less what he thinks. You can bet Otis has been in Brian Hill's ear. As most of you know Otis is a very hands on GM. He accompanies the team on roadtrips cause he likes to keep his hand on the pulse of the team.

This is my first and only Brian Hill thread until the season is over. At that time I'll make a complete judgment. Anyway, thought you guys would be interested in Mr. Smith's comments. I found this in the Florida Today in an article written by John Denton: quote: Support for coach. Magic president Bob Vander Weide laughed off a report by ESPN's Stephen A. Smith Monday on ESPN 1060-AM that Orlando head coach Brian Hill will be fired if the team misses the playoffs. Vander Weide said there was no truth to the report. He said that while he's frustrated with the Magic's swoon during the past three months he has faith in Hill as the Magic's head coach. Orlando started the season 13-4, but entered Monday's game just 15-29 during the past three months. He said he refused to believe that Hill's intensity and attention to detail were negatives, as Smith pointed out on the radio. "After starting the season 13-4, I know Brian is feeling the pressure of turning the team around. But we think he's doing a fine job." I don't want this to be a bash Brian Hill thread but at the same time I realize he is not perfect. Trust me, if we don't make the playoffs I am going to be one "disappointed" young man on top of going into a severe depression.(lol) I haven't taken part in most of the Coach bashing even though I definitely agree with a lot of the stuff that is posted on this board about Hill's shortcomings, strategy, substitutions (etc). I don't think it's ever right to insult a man's intelligence. Even if he doesn't know about it. Now I understand everybody has a right to express their opinion. True that. Which is why I want to express mine. I think we should give the Magic team and Coaches our full support for these last 20 games or so. I think it is "extremely" important for us to make the playoffs. There's a lot at stake. 1.) We need a new arena. 2.) Our young guys need playoff experience. 3.) How are we gonna atrract "bigtime" free agents when we're a lottery team? 4.) Management stated before the season if we did not make the post-season it would be considered a "failure". To finish, I'm asking to do your best in supporting the team and coaches on this board or wherever possible. If we don't make the playoffs I'll be the first person to sign a petition or wear Knappy's "Fire Brian Hill" t-shirt or lead a protest march through the RDV sportsplex or to the Amway Arena. http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/...03060340/1002/SPORTS

quote: Originally posted by FanSince1990: quote: Yes. I'm a christian just like Dwight Howard. Everyone is a christian these days out of convenience unfortunately, not singling out anyone just trying to make a point. Brian Hill is a christian, sort of.. I mean he's catholic. Yet his negative demeanor, curse words and deflecting the blame for his poor coaching doesn't make me believe he's a christian at all. It's so refreshing to see a cool, young, popular athlete like Howard remain humble and not afraid to say God is his first priority. That's exactly what I'm trying to say. Howard is a breath of fresh air. I guess I should have put this in my orignal post and maybe everyone would have understood better. I don't think there's a person on these boards that doesn't think Brian Hill has shortcomings and is deficient in his coaching. I've seen him admit it in public and confess he's trying to control it. The guy is just a high-strung dude. What Bhnole, Fendi, Magic28, myself and others are trying to say is try to focus on the team and getting them into the playoffs instead of the inadaquacies of the coaching which at this time we can do nothing about. I garuntee you Dwight, Trevor, Jameer and all the guys are itching to make the playoffs. It would only further enhance Dwight and his christian values to a bigger stage as a professional ball player and "role model". I still trip out when I go to the Magic games and Dwight is on the big screen professing "Finding Nemo" as his favorite movie! He's a breath of fresh air, what else can you say.

From this morning's Daytona News Journal: quote: Whether Hill will play against the Bulls isn't in question as much as whether he will start. Although he has started in all 45 games he has been healthy enough for this season, Hill said his "reincorporating" into the Magic's rotation might require him to come off the bench. "I haven't decided yet whether to keep the lineup the way it is for continuity's sake or to change back and forth," coach Brian Hill said. Taking either Hedo Turkoglu or Keith Bogans out of the starting lineup might seem unfair after how well both of them played in a 99-81 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. Turkoglu scored 25 points, all in the first three quarters, while Bogans was largely responsible for Michael Redd's uncharacteristic 3-for-16 shooting performance.

What would you guys do if Grant came off the bench tommorrow doing what Schmitz is suggesting and we have been saying all year? You never know. Coach Hill could shock us all and actually take one of our suggestions.

quote: Originally posted by Erik:Bj,are you a realigous man? Yes. I'm a christian just like Dwight Howard. Isn't it kind of nice when your star player stands for integrity? I wish I would have had half the maturity Dwight has when I was 21 years old. In today's society, and I work with the public, it's almost un-believable that our star player would participate in a dunk contest, seen by millions of people and do a dunk with a sticker quoting a bible verse on it for the whole world to see. Kind of makes you want to pull for a team that has a star player with that kind of values. The Lord works in mysterious ways. I'll stop preaching now.(lol)

This guy must have been reading our boards. He swears and even created another blog stating that we cannot sign the both of them. I felt after reading the opinions of the board on his first blog that Brian just didn't know what he was talking about. Is that still the case? As I have stated I'm not great with the business stuff. Click the link: http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/sports_magic/2007/03/repeat_after_me.html

quote: Originally posted by SmackDaddy:Sorry Junkie, I couldn't disagree more. Will I support the team wholeheartedly? Absolutely! Will I continue to be critical of B Hill and his assinine coaching decisions? Absolutely! Some of you guys seem to equate being critical of one of the worst coaches in the associaton as somehow being less of a fan. I couldn't disagree more. Smack, crticizing and critiquing is fine. It in fact creates good conversation when discussing the team. I don't doubt for a second where your loyalties lie. And I certainly don't think of you or anybody else that crticizes Brian Hill as less of a fan. As I said in my initial post, I agree with most of the criticisms. My objection is when posters insult the man's intelligence by name calling or cursing him out. Do I agree with everything he does? Certainly not. Do I like the position our team is in when I expected better results? Certainly not. Does that mean I'm gonna rant and rave and call Coach Hill every name in the book? Certainly not. I don't look at others as better than me. And I don't think I'm better than anybody else. I try to respect what others do even when I don't agree with it. Cursing someone out or insulting their intelligence when you don't agree with them is a form of disrespect. I hope you understand where I'm coming from.

This is my first and only Brian Hill thread until the season is over. At that time I'll make a complete judgment. Anyway, thought you guys would be interested in Mr. Smith's comments. I found this in the Florida Today in an article written by John Denton: quote: Support for coach. Magic president Bob Vander Weide laughed off a report by ESPN's Stephen A. Smith Monday on ESPN 1060-AM that Orlando head coach Brian Hill will be fired if the team misses the playoffs. Vander Weide said there was no truth to the report. He said that while he's frustrated with the Magic's swoon during the past three months he has faith in Hill as the Magic's head coach. Orlando started the season 13-4, but entered Monday's game just 15-29 during the past three months. He said he refused to believe that Hill's intensity and attention to detail were negatives, as Smith pointed out on the radio. "After starting the season 13-4, I know Brian is feeling the pressure of turning the team around. But we think he's doing a fine job." I don't want this to be a bash Brian Hill thread but at the same time I realize he is not perfect. Trust me, if we don't make the playoffs I am going to be one "disappointed" young man on top of going into a severe depression.(lol) I haven't taken part in most of the Coach bashing even though I definitely agree with a lot of the stuff that is posted on this board about Hill's shortcomings, strategy, substitutions (etc). I don't think it's ever right to insult a man's intelligence. Even if he doesn't know about it. Now I understand everybody has a right to express their opinion. True that. Which is why I want to express mine. I think we should give the Magic team and Coaches our full support for these last 20 games or so. I think it is "extremely" important for us to make the playoffs. There's a lot at stake. 1.) We need a new arena. 2.) Our young guys need playoff experience. 3.) How are we gonna atrract "bigtime" free agents when we're a lottery team? 4.) Management stated before the season if we did not make the post-season it would be considered a "failure". To finish, I'm asking to do your best in supporting the team and coaches on this board or wherever possible. If we don't make the playoffs I'll be the first person to sign a petition or wear Knappy's "Fire Brian Hill" t-shirt or lead a protest march through the RDV sportsplex or to the Amway Arena. http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/...03060340/1002/SPORTS

From Brian Schmitz in this morning's Sentinel: quote: Look for the Magic to extend center Dwight Howard this summer for five years. The contract, beginning in 2008, likely will total about $87.5 million. It could start around $14.5 million and finish at $20.5 million. Also, don't be surprised if the Magic and Milicic end up signing a short-term deal -- say, $21 million over three years. If we sign Milicic for about 7 million a year is that about what you cap experts thought? Also, if Darko and Dwight get that won't that be conducive to having more money this summer for free agents? Does Dwight's extension effect our cap space? Thanks, I'll hang up and listen.

Tonight's the night the Bucks go down, Dwight will stuff Redd and watch him frown. The Mavs game helped our confidence you'll see, If we lose you can throw things at me. Redick might sit or he might get to play, Grant got hurt, that's what they say. J.J. comes in just looking to shoot, He made so many three's it caused us all to "poot".

quote: Originally posted by emory889:Grant Hill gets alot of blame when he's on the court for the offense stalling but everyone should look at Dooling as well. He has the exact same deficiencies that Grant does. Teams don't honor his jumpshot and sag into the lane. He's a slightly above average penetrator but he cancels alot of that out by over dribbling. He's a decent defender but probably overrated on this board. Anytime he's been assigned a good scorer they have torched him. I know that good offense beats good defense but I can't think of one player that he's held to a subpar game. I like his heart and hustle but he is expendable. I want to see JJ play more and Dooling and Grant are eating up all the minutes. I don't think Grant will come back next year and Dooling will probably opt out so why won't they play the rookie? Emory, I'm not a huge Dooling fan but thought you should know in our 3rd game of the season we beat the Wizards. Arenas scored 24 points but 11 of them came from the foul line. He shot 6-20 from the field which for him is obviously an off night. Mostly due to Keyon Dooling who guarded him and logged about 27 minutes that night.

Good job Nyce and thanks for the update! Especially when it's good news for the Magic. I like this thread and I'll be contributing to it frequently.