Emory889

So, you really believe that those players wouldn't have had similar success if they had been drafted - or signed as a free agent in McGrady's case - by a different team? Dennis Scott would have forgotten how to shoot 3s? Penny wouldn't have been a super athletic 6'7 point guard if he had remained with Golden State? Nick wouldn't have been a valuable roleplayer for 8 to 10 seasons? If you really believe that, you are delusional. There's not even a common connection between those different Magic eras. There isn't a single person that was employed by the Magic for the Shaq era, then the McGrady era, and the Dwight era. The guy that came closest is Brian Hill and if you are giving him the credit for Dwight and Shaq developing, then you are whatever the next worse thing is from delusional. So who developed them? Disney employees? Also, to debunk a couple of your theories.....the reason Dwight didn't put up the numbers in LA that he did in Orlando was because his back was jacked. Have you ever tried to do anything with a bad back? You wouldn't do well at it. Shaq went from a player that the Chicago Bulls, and primarily Dennis Rodman, shut down guarding him one on one to a player that was the most dominant player in the NBA. He clearly improved from his time in Orlando. Also, if you are going to suggest that he received better coaching in LA - which he obviously did - then you also have to come to the conclusion that LA did more to develop him than Orlando did. Who would you rather have develop a young center: Phil Jackson or Brian Hill? Then again, it appears your idea of developing talent is to let them come in and simply be the focal point of the offense. By that logic, the 76ers are currently developing Michael Carter Williams.

Your only response to his very valid points is a condescending one-liner? I don't know if I should congratulate you for you internet debate skills or roll my eyes.

I have to give Junkie credit for one thing. He can spark up a conversation.

I'm a fan of this simply for the unintentional comedy. He's going to be booed. Mercilessly. And he's probably delusional enough to think he going to be cheered. So, they are going to play the video, fans will boo, and then the camera is going to flash to his face for his reaction. It will be amazing.

I think Indiana can definitely beat him but your overall point is well taken.

The Thunder won 23 games the season they drafted Westbrook. It took a couple of seasons before they hit the 50 win mark. Even if we are lucky enough to draft the right players, it still takes a couple of seasons for young players to start putting it together enough to win 50 games. Your timetable is completely unrealistic. I'll ask you again, even though you won't answer, what is the alternative? How would you proceed if you were the Magic GM. You clearly don't like what is currently being done so you must have a solution. Otherwise, you are just complaining to complain.

I felt like I was watching a summer league game at the end of the 1st quarter.

Soul, perhaps you can ask Junkie these questions, since you are the only one on this forum that he actually responds to. What exactly does he expect from Hennigan? Specifically. I want to know what moves he wanted to see him make. Who would he have had Hennigan draft? Who did he want to get in return for Howard? Who did he want for Redick? If he is disillusioned with what Hennigan has done up unto this point then there must be things that he would have done differently.

It's not that serious. Deng can play.

I would say for players that can no longer play but JJ is still a pretty darn good player.

I doubt we will be big players in free agency this summer anyways. I could see us being willing to take back some salary if it landed us the Kings pick.

Also, dismissing the Spurs championships because they have Duncan is absurd. There's been exactly one team in the last 30 years that won a championship without a great player. That's called a trend.

The answer to the question is easy. The Magic making the finals twice in their history suggests the Magic COULD win a championship. Glad I could help.

They are going to be tough to beat in the playoffs. The only questions I had about them last season was wondering if they had enough scoring and bench depth. They have plenty of both now.

I'm trying to think what Philly could do to ensure that their roster is even more awful than it already is and the only thing I can come up with is starting me at center.

This can mean only one thing. We are finally trading for Chris Paul baby!!!!!

They probably don't need to give up a first round pick to acquire a backup power forward. Particularly when they would only need him to play 15 to 20 minutes a game.

And then disqualify every team in the league for the next 3 seasons except for Milwaukee.

I really haven't been that impressed with him but that is besides the point. My initial reaction was based off the assumption that he was going to get a much harsher suspension than he actually received. I still think it's something that will hurt his stock but probably not as much as I initially thought.

I agree with you. I don't think Smart falls out of the first round. But as early as a week or two ago, there were members on this forum that were concerned that Hennigan might like Smart so much that he might be tempted to take him with our first pick. Our second pick is probably right around the time when he should come off the board....which is likely going to be a pick that is right at the end of the lottery. And for the record, I'm positive that the dude who got shoved said something to Smart that he wouldn't have dared say to him on the street. 50 year old men should not be trying to provoke 20 year old kids into a fight.

I don't have to look that hard to find examples of perceived character problems hurting a players draft stock. If his draft stock is already slipping, this incident could be the deciding factor for a lot of GMs to pass on him. There have been lots of rumors that Hennigan loves Smart. Do you think there is a chance that he is re-evaluating that opinion right now?

Wow, I wonder how many games the NCAA suspend him for that shove. Even if the guy said the most heinous thing imaginable to Smart, he still has to control himself in that setting. He can't go all mini-Artest on a fan during a game. I think he falls out of the lottery for sure.

That finish reminded me of Dwight's lob winner against the Spurs. So much fun. I particularly enjoyed watching the team's reaction to the end of the game. They reacted like a bunch of college kids during March Madness.

You are out of your mind. A couple of teams might go a different direction. 30 teams will not. The San Antonio Spurs, for instance, are already winning and would have absolutely no problem drafting Parker with the understanding that he wouldn't play for a season or two. Hell, it's really not any different than taking an overseas player that isn't going to come to the States to play immediately.

On the contrary, a flood of Redlions might be just the thing to perk this forum back up.