The Neighborhood Bully 266 Report post Posted January 21, 2015 A UBURN HILLS, Mich. — Orlando Magic forward Tobias Harris and coach Jacque Vaughn said Harris’availability for tonight’s game against the Detroit Pistons will be determined close to tipoff. Harris, who has missed five consecutive games because of a sprained left ankle, participated in a portion of the Magic’spractice Tuesday, and he expected to participate in the Magic’s shootaround this morning at The Palace of AuburnHills. “I went though a good practice,” Harris said. “It felt all right. We’re still just going to see how it feels today. It’s prettymuch a gametime decision tonight.” The Magic (15-29) expect a physical challenge from the Pistons (16-26). On Dec. 30 in Orlando, Pistons big men Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe dominated them on the offensive boards,and the Pistons consistently ran pick-and-rolls that opened space for swingman Jodie Meeks on the perimeter. The Pistons routed the Magic that night 109-86. Rookie forward Aaron Gordon will be available for the Magic tonight and could help the Magic with their rebounding. On Sunday, Gordon played in his first game since Nov. 15, when a fracture was discovered in one of the bones of hisleft foot. Gordon played 12 minutes in his return, and Vaughn said he’s disinclined right now to ramp up Gordon’sminutes. “He hasn’t played basketball for a long time — I think over two months,” Vaughn said. “So more than likely theminutes that I played him his first night back will be similar going forward until I feel his conditioning is better andthat he has a better rhythm throughout the course of the game.” The Magic have changed their playing style since their last game against the Pistons. Orlando now employs a much faster, up-tempo pace. “They look a lot different in terms of their pace,” Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said. “They ran anyway, but now they are really running. They’re running fewer sets. They’re running on makes as well as misses. They’re just getting theball inbounds and going. Both [Victor] Oladipo and [Elfrid] Payton in particular are just pushing the ball, and gettingyour defense set is a major challenge, and it’s one that we’ve had a lot of problems with at times. “So we made that as a huge point to [our players] today. Obviously, the hard part is you can’t do that in a walkthrough.You’re not walking through at a fast pace. So it’s not easy to prepare for, but we know what’s coming.” WHERE: The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Mich. WHEN: 7:30 p.m. BROADCAST: TV — Fox Sports Florida. RADIO — 580 AM (WDBO). SPANISH BROADCAST — 1440 AM (WPRD). THE BUZZ: The Pistons have won 11 of the 14 games they’ve played since they waived Josh Smith on Dec. 22. Two ofthe losses have been to the Eastern Conference-leading Atlanta Hawks. . . They notched one of those victories on Dec.30 in Orlando, beating the Magic 109-86. Meeks scored 34 points that night, and the Magic couldn’t stop the Pistons’pick-and-rolls in which Drummond rolled to the hoop. http://www.orlandose...50121-post.html Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fultz4thewin 2,464 Report post Posted January 21, 2015 @JoshuaBRobbins: If Tobias Harris returns tonight, the Magic will be at full strength for the 1st time since early in training camp. That's crazy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fultz4thewin 2,464 Report post Posted January 21, 2015 @JohnDenton555: . @OrlandoMagic F @tobias31 WILL play tonight vs. @DetroitPistons He could be used off bench instead of being in his usual starting spot. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jay Magic 1,244 Report post Posted January 21, 2015 Magic will de-activate Maurice Harkless and Andrew Nicholson tonight to make room for return of Tobias Harris. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
~O~ 565 Report post Posted January 21, 2015 My head hurts just thinking about how much we're going to get out rebounded by. Crash boards Magic! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Voodoo Man 99 Report post Posted January 21, 2015 Magic will de-activate Maurice Harkless and Andrew Nicholson tonight to make room for return of Tobias Harris. I really don't care if I ever see either one of those guys play again, but why would we de-activate both of them to make room for one player? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jay Magic 1,244 Report post Posted January 21, 2015 15 man roster 13 game roster Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
~O~ 565 Report post Posted January 22, 2015 To be positive, the Magic should be capable of winning against this team. Their backcourt can't compare to ours. Our major weakness is going to be on the inside. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JJZFL 619 Report post Posted January 22, 2015 To be positive, the Magic should be capable of winning against this team. Their backcourt can't compare to ours. Our major weakness is going to be on the inside. I think the fact that we should have a good chance is what makes tonight's game interesting. Will the Magic come out with the fire we were seeing a few games ago, or will getting clobbered so badly in the last game affect them tonight? Pistons are 7-3 last 10 and Magic 2-8, so superficially the teams are moving in opposite directions, but no one would have thought that prior to the Magic's last couple of games. Will be interesting to see how it plays out. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fultz4thewin 2,464 Report post Posted January 22, 2015 Payton is a totally different player Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jay Magic 1,244 Report post Posted January 22, 2015 LETS GO BOYS Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fultz4thewin 2,464 Report post Posted January 22, 2015 Just need to up our defense Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
