OFFICIAL GAMETHREAD!! Magic vs Heat - Season Opener

[Mauro Pedrosa 1,032]

Harden with 14 assists

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the first half. Watch out Scott Skiles

[The Boss 129]

Was a frustrating game to watch, we showed glimpses in the first half but really struggled with interior D. This was one of the worst match-ups to have Bismack suspended, he would have helped a lot. We can't get too carried away with the loss, it's the first game for a new coach, we were in the match most of the game while missing one of our most important players for this kind of team match-up.

[magicjed23 12]

You would think we started 0-10 with these reactions. We just didn't make shots and gave up too many offensive rebounds. We did get crossed up several times, and it didn't hurt us early because they missed the 3's. When they started making them their confidence went soaring. Spoelstra has always gotten great effort with every Miami team, even the less talented ones. Vogel has plenty of job security even if we miss the playoffs, but Henny is done if we are not in contention the last 2 weeks of this season, whether it's fair or not.

 

The perimeter D showed that we will miss Oladipo. The front office should have stayed strong and refused to trade him. They are banking on the hope that Ibaka will return to form defensively and thrive offensively with more touches. He needs to replicate his preseason numbers and re-sign or we made a big mistake. I was starting to think we might have gotten a deal after preseason. Tonight I was astounded that he didn't go after some shots that he could have made difficult at least and hope he was just trying to avoid foul trouble without Biz. But, there were more bad calls on fouls when Ibaka played great clean D. Fouls the refs surely would have seen differently in OKC. After one such foul our team dropped their heads and we fell apart. This has been a recurring theme over the last 2 years, when we are clearly wronged by a call, we start to lose focus.

 

Our perimeter guys, even Gordon, got out of place on rotations way too much. Our guys cannot slack just because you have rim protectors. If we need rim protectors to assist more than 10% of the time we are in trouble. We should only rely on them when great plays are made, that is it. Our guards and everyone are being asked to run on makes and misses, but they must peel back for rebounds and only run after we secure the rebound. And we need to go get them and not expect favorable bounces. If the bigs rotate on defense or we crash the boards,, the guards will need to be sure that the ball doesn't get to your man before you take off. Another thing, Ibaka and especially Biyombo will chase blocks. We should expect it, but people need to keep contact with your man. The thing that makes both Ibaka and Biyombo attractive to us is the fact they can be effective away from the basket on switches and they recover quickly. It's not necessary to leave your man completely as the shot blockers typically get back. Proper recognition of when to leave your guy and when not to is part of the chemistry that we need to learn now that we have shot blockers.

 

Hezonja had his confidence destroyed by Skiles and it will take time for him to stop looking over his shoulder. Skiles always pulled Mario after each mistake and often pulled him after made shots. That is the wrong way to treat Hezonja who is a humble kid. He needs to be encouraged and not torn down. Look at Croatia's coach in the Olympics, Mario got minutes no matter what, and even if he made mistakes the coach went back to him late. When they got down, he called on Mario who then responded. Plays were called for him and he delivered.

 

People on this board seem to forget that he is an all-around player, every bit as capable as Gordon, even more than AG offensively. We need to give him a few plays that he can run every game until he perfects them a la Rip Hamilton and his confidence will build. He is not a volume scorer yet, but he has all the tools needed. Once he dials in his shot, he will explode. It's the staff's job, as well as his own responsibility, to mold him into the scorer he is capable of becoming. He has proven himself against D-League level competition in international tournaments. That is equal or better than D-League competition. His defense is much improved and he rarely gets beat like he use to early last year. Percentage wise, based on plays ran while that player is on the court, and I bet you'll see that he is out of position less than Gordon. The only difference is that Aaron has unshakable confidence, likely because years of sports psychology that he has undergone, something Mario may need after Skiles. And, I'm not joking about AG and his sports psychology.

 

Let's be real Hezonja is on a similar pace to Gordon despite being subject to breakdown by Skiles. Mario only learned to stifle his aggressiveness because you will get pulled if you make a defensive error and he did improve that defense. Sadly, it hurt his offensive, and the only way to be appreciated as the #5 pick is to score or power dunk with hyper athleticism nightly. I'd argue that preseason this year is his first real attempt at NBA offense. He is just starting his 2nd year and we all realize that Skiles was the worst coach for him possible. Gordon was not spectacular either, except in the dunk contest, and he was not a victim of Skiles abuse. Hezonja will average 10-3-3-1, with 45/38/90 this year, which is reasonable. We were told on Day 1 he needs 3 years at least to develop. Let's give him that. Remember how long JJ Redick took to do anything, but he became the shooter we hoped, a maximum effort slightly above average defender, and fan favorite when he finally got going. Nobody is this organization is close to giving up on Mario, he will be double what Redick became. Be patient, I know it seems like he has been here for the whole rebuild, but he hasn't. We need to see something concrete from Gordon and Payton this year. If he shows any improvement Mario gets a pass until next year at least. Nobody with that pure a stroke stuggles forever.

 

Vucevic is still our go to guy and will not be traded because we will never get decent value. Unless Paul George wants out and Larry Bird envisions Aaron Gordon and Vucevic running with Myles Turner, and 2 First round unprotected picks, Vooch stays. We have Meeks if Hezonja is garbage in the first month and if nothing else Meeks can shoot.

 

Let's back off the ledge and beat Detroit. Biyombo was our prized free agent, let's watch him earn that money. Payton is already showing something people thought we would never see after his late rookie year. He clearly shoots better. Despite a rough start Fournier showed his preseason form that was impressive. Our shooting was just terrible in the 2nd half tonight which allowed Whiteside to camp out in the lane, and by the time we got anything going we had no room for error. They were brimming with confidence and only needed 3 or 4 baskets to finish us. We made mistakes at the end, missed every opportunity , gave up offensive rebounds, and they made those couple shots they needed. It will take time growing before we can play a full 48 minutes with consistency on either end .

 

My final point: This is only game 2 with this 8-9 man rotation. We did not run this rotation every preseason game .

[Mack1085 57]

Disappointing but not unsurprising loss last night. I really think Biyombo is going to be the heart of this team and not having him around last night definitely hurt. There are some obvious concerns like interior defense and rebounding that Biyombo would have made a big impact on last night.

 

I will say that I was really encourage to see us take so many FTs. We have been near the bottom of the league in previous seasons in that area so let's hope we've turned the corner with Dipo gone and we can start getting to the line more often.

 

It was also great to see Gordon show some range with his shooting. His form looks more consistent this year.

 

I just hope we can pick up the first win of the season quickly so we can get on the right track.

[Ibn Battuta 127]

You would think we started 0-10 with these reactions.

 

Let's back off the ledge and beat Detroit.

 

Do you really think this squad can beat a playoff team? Detroit is better than us at every position in terms of talent and skill.

 

Nobody here is panicking; Reality is setting in, and it's very possible we start 0-3.

[Fultz4thewin 2,464]

Do you really think this squad can beat a playoff team? Detroit is better than us at every position in terms of talent and skill.

 

Nobody here is panicking; Reality is setting in, and it's very possible we start 0-3.

 

Payton is better than ish. kcp and Fournier is a toss up depending on the day. In theory ibaka is better than harris but we'll have to see on that one.

[fan for too long 2 531]

Payton is better than ish. kcp and Fournier is a toss up depending on the day. In theory ibaka is better than harris but we'll have to see on that one.

Not in theory, in realty.

[Ibn Battuta 127]

Payton is better than ish. kcp and Fournier is a toss up depending on the day. In theory ibaka is better than harris but we'll have to see on that one.

 

I'm especially worried about Drummond since Whiteside took us to lunch. If we can find a way to disrupt him or get him in foul trouble then yes I do think we have a chance. I'm also selling on their PG play since Jackson is out (Beno Udrih should NOT be a factor). But they also got Marcus Morris and Toby should take advantage of his speed against Ibaka.

[Franchero MVP 391]

It's tough for us to predict anything right now because just like last year, we don't know which team is going to be showing up to play.

 

We def have a chance to beat Detroit -- really their best piece is SVG.

[Soul Bro 1,419]

A couple of random positives:

 

- Gordon going 2 of 2 from three

- Payton going 8 of 8 from the line

 

A couple of random negatives:

 

- Still don't understand the signing of Green

- Still (yes, still) upset we chose Hezonja over Winslow

[Soul Bro 1,419]

One more thought: I can't imagine Vooch will be on the Magic by the end of year. He needs to be traded for a guard or wing

[Murphy13 185]

I was just pointing out the similarities from last season 4TW, not making any sweeping generalizations about where our guys will be this year.