LJ Magic

Like the Redick draft everyone knows what Otis is thinking prior to it even starting. Well, if someone wants Lee they now know exactly what they need to do. Way to hold your cards until the last moment Otis. Orlando assistant general manager Dave Twardzik contacted Lee's representatives Wednesday night and informed them that he was the team's choice if still available at No. 22. The only factors that could change that would be if Stanford center Robin Lopez or Florida's Marreese Speights were still available -- something that is highly unlikely. Magic Promise to Pick Lee

I wouldn't say that. I would love to get Nicholas Batum. I would be upset if he drafts a guy that is readily available much later in the draft, someone that could be had by purchasing a second round pick from Portland or Seattle. Of the people slotted in our range I would not be happy with DeAndre Jordan or JaVale McGee. I think both of these guys possess outstanding size but little to no basketball knowledge or skill.

I just hope Otis isn't resting on the fact that we had a very good season last year. As teams like Toronto and Chicago can attest, it is much easier to sneak up on the competition when you aren't on the radar than when other teams know what to expect. Our strengths and weaknesses are now well documented. It will be tough to win 52 games again without some personnel improvements. This is especially true given the fact that both Detroit and Cleveland are looking to shake things up. If the rumors of Cleveland pursuing Michael Redd are true then we must act accordingly. If Lebron is given a legitimate second option then the Cavs should be much improved. Detroit is also leaving no stone un-turned. I am happy we exceeded expectations last year but more needs to be done than to just let Dwight mature. It concerns me that there haven't been any Orlando trade rumors despite the fact that we have assets not being utilized and duplicate talent. I realize Otis likes to keep things tight lipped but these things always leak out if there is activity between gm's. Just because Otis doesn't talk doesn't mean the other gm's don't or won't. The fact that nothing has been mentioned recently about moving up, down, or trading causes concern for me.

quote: Originally posted by BRich:I just read that Chase Budinger is going back to school. A lot of people had him projected being taken before we even picked. You have to wonder what kind of impact that'll have on who's on the board come pick 22. As did Ty Lawson. I know we weren't projected to take him but many draft experts predicted he would go to Denver at 20. That is another empty spot that will shift everyone forward.

I am really intrigued by Jason Thompson out of Rider. He is 6'11" and 250 pounds. I realize he played for a small school in Rider but his numbers of 20 ppg, 12 rpg, 1 spg, and nearly 3 bpg are gaudy. He even has outside range as he hit threes at a decent clip, at least for a big man. I looked up two of his games where he played against top level talent. The first was against NC State. In that game he had 24 pts, 15 reb, 3 ast, and 2 blocks. The game that really impressed me was against Kansas State when he was matched up with Michael Beasley. In that game he put up 24 pts, 7 reb, 3 ast, 2 stl, and 4 blk. The main thing is that he held Beasley way below his season averages. Beasley only tallied 13 pts and 10 rebs. That, to me, is very impressive. I know he was one of the five guys that worked out at RDV yesterday along with Dorsey, Anderson, and others. I wonder how he did.

Lets not forget about all the **** free-throws that we've missed. Detroit is doing everything in their power to give us this game. We just dont want it bad enough. You are absolutely right and it was evident from the get go. Most our guys are just hanging their heads and going through the motions. Show some energy, get pissed, do something.

I just do not buy it. I think Otis only wanted Thomas and that was it. I cannot possibly see the Magic making a trade now. This poster at RealGM is probably like all of us fans...just hoping and praying Otis gets something done. I hope you are wrong because I feel like this is the last time we will have any real flexibility for quite some time. The MLE will bring in a rotation player but our expiring contracts should bring in a real impact player. Get it done Otis.

I don't necessarily agree with the trade idea but I do agree with one part of his article. He is dead on when he says "They're the fourth-best team in the East, they have three really good players, and they have $17 million worth of expiring contracts. What are they waiting for?". Otis should go for a home run and set this team up as a contender for the next 4-5 years when we will have to re-evaluate due to Rashard aging.

It irritates the heck out of me when Otis sarcastically dismisses an idea because it doesn't make financial sense. Extending Jameer when he was going to be a restricted free agent and handing ~$20M to Lewis made sense?!?! We are now seeing the ripples of that Lewis signing. Ownership has stated that the Orlando market cannot support three near max players. That is the reasoning for not bringing in Miller. Because Otis spent max money on a good but not great player this team will be handcuffed for the foreseeable future. We will not make a move to put us over the top if it means approaching luxury tax. That is the reality. What happens when Turkoglu becomes a free agent and asks for a large contract? It appears, based on ownership comments, that we will let him walk or trade him for a lesser/cheaper talent. This trade deadline has opened my eyes. I expect a trade will be made but it will be for someone like Kurt Thomas that will help in the short term at a cheap price.

quote: Originally posted by CarlosDarwin:Stated by BRich: quote: 2. If you have that many expiring deals, and you're not at least exploring the idea of trades - you should be fired. You make it sound as if it were an imperative to explore the idea of trades when a team has expiring contracts. That is not always the case! There are other considerations that need to be addressed. The Magic are right now the leaders of their division and had won 4 of the last 5 games beating in that stretch two of the best teams of the east conference. Why would you like to mess with the chemistry of a team that is doing so well? Another consideration is that the team can use those expiring contracts to improve their cap space during the summer and try to get some pieces that are becoming free agents at the end of the season. I would say, keep the team as it is right now, get to the play-offs, make a good effort and a lot of free agents will be interested to sign with the Magic because they would like to play for a young play-off team that is on the rise with some attractive cap space due to it's expiring contracts. Even with the expirings coming off the books we won't have "attractive cap space". We are essentially cap strapped for the next five years. Aside from a trade and the MLE the expiring contracts are our only avenue to improve for the future. Well, that and the draft which is a long shot considering our draft history and where we will be picking.

I have a lot of reservations about this guy. If Minnesota, a team rebuilding around youth, can't find time and doesn't have interest in a 20-21 year old athletic shooting guard then there has to be something missing in his game. I recall Doc Rivers saying that Green could not get his head wrapped around any of the Celtic's defensive schemes and though he was a good scorer his lack of defense made if difficult to play him in key situations. That sounds an awful lot like another guy we know that can't get off the pine in Orlando. I'm not sure this is the right guy for us. It took many years for the league to figure out Darius Miles was a bust and I wonder if Green is headed down that same road.

quote: Originally posted by murphy13:we need another pf, a starting point guard...before we need another two. we are set at the two for now until we upgrade those positions first. Murphy, while I agree that we need a PF and probably a starting point, I don't necessarily agree that we need them first. If a situation presents itself where we can significantly improve a weakness for the long term I say we jump on it. If we do things in a certain order we could miss out on a great opportunity. We can always use the mid level this summer to get a PF or PG.

RealGM broke down some team's position as far as expiring contracts. Their belief is that we have to trade them for a starter preferably at shooting guard. Take a look it is a good read. Orlando

I think we need to use our expiring contracts to get another piece to the puzzle whether it be a power forward, shooting guard or point. We are playing great right now but I still think we need to build. The tough part is that Arroyo and Dooling are playing key roles and it would be tough to lose one or both of them but if the right player comes around then I hope Otis pulls the trigger.

RealGM broke down some team's position as far as expiring contracts. Their belief is that we have to trade them for a starter preferably at shooting guard. Take a look it is a good read. Orlando

quote: Originally posted by SauceMoney:Yea he did an excellent job defending Linas Kleiza last night. So good Kleiza dropped 41pts on him. I watched quite a bit of that game and AK was on Carmelo, not Kleiza. He can't guard the whole team.

If Utah would do it I wouldn't think twice. They would get a natural small forward that can space the floor and cap relief to re-sign Deron Williams. We would get a defensive star that can play power forward enabling Lewis to move back to his natural position. Kirilenko can shoot well enough to keep the defenses honest and thereby preventing Howard from getting swarmed. It sounds great and that is probably why it won't happen.

I can't stand the fact that we have to watch mediocre point guard play for the next five years. To give up 21 pts and 11 assists to Anthony Carter is disgusting.

I think we can put to rest any notion that we could swing a deal for Calderon since Colangelo is reportedly looking for another point guard. However, maybe it could be possible to trade someone like Dooling for a player like Kris Humphries. He is a 6-9, 235 lbs. player with good skill. He is also young which would fit with our team. Whenever this guy gets playing time he seems to put up good numbers. Here is his game log. Check the games with 20+ minutes. Humphries Game Log He may come cheap and is probably an upgrade from what we have.

I think we can put to rest any notion that we could swing a deal for Calderon since Colangelo is reportedly looking for another point guard. However, maybe it could be possible to trade someone like Dooling for a player like Kris Humphries. He is a 6-9, 235 lbs. player with good skill. He is also young which would fit with our team. Whenever this guy gets playing time he seems to put up good numbers. Here is his game log. Check the games with 20+ minutes. Humphries Game Log He may come cheap and is probably an upgrade from what we have.

According to today's Milwaukee papers Villanueva is definitely available along with Gadzuric, Simmons, and Bell. The article said that they wanted a defensive small forward in return a la Mickael Pietrus. I'm not sure we have anyone that fits the bill on that front. We could always swing a three way with Golden State and Milwaukee. Having said that I'm still not sure I would want Charlie Villanueva.

quote: Originally posted by richnba:The thing is we wouldnt be getting a big man out of the deal That is true but I think we would have better overall assets to trade for a big later. At least our SG situation would be taken care of. We could always use the MLE this summer to fill the big man spot.

quote: Originally posted by Tommaco:The only person i would trade either shard or turk for right now is S. Marrion (PHX) Thats the real guy we need. It would be outragouse if we could land him without letting one of our big 3 go...but uh.....oh yah the leage does have a salary cap...OUCH! Now you are talking. I would love to find a way to get Marion. I don't know if it is possible though. Maybe Hedo and expiring contracts would work since there is talk that Phoenix may have to part with Marion at the end of the year due to luxury tax issues. Rashard could then move back to the three.

I don't exactly know how or if we could get Marion but I would love to see the guy on our team. He is a great defensive player, plays with a lot of energy, and has a good enough shot to keep defenses honest. I know there are rumors that Phoenix wants to cut salary to avoid luxury tax so would Hedo and expiring contracts work? They could then rejuvenate Diaw's career by moving him into Marion's spot and moving Hedo to the three. I doubt they would bite but Marion would be a great fit and he would allow Lewis to return to his natural position.

quote: Originally posted by SmackDaddy: quote: Originally posted by LJ Magic:I have a feeling Rashard isn't going anywhere, even if the result would better our team, unless a new GM comes aboard. Don't tease me bro. That would be like Christmas all over again for me. Fire Otis and trade Shard all before the deadline??? Sweet Jesus that would be nice. I would like that as well but you might want to be careful what you wish for. Since the owners have hired a hockey guy and a guy with little to no experience what makes you think they would get it right next time? My guess is that they would go the cheap route and hire someone that looks good to the un-educated fan a la Nick Anderson rather than hire an experienced/successful GM.