MVN - Most Valuable Network

Magic put hurting on Toronto

One down, three to go. The Orlando Magic got off to a red hot start Sunday against the Toronto Raptors and used that momentum to propel them to a 114-100 victory and a 1-0 series lead. I was unsure whether or not the Magic could match up well against the Raptors, but after watching Orlando play nearly flawless basketball for most of the game, I am completely confident in Orlando’s ability to beat the Raptors.

Through the season, I have talked about Orlando playing total team basketball, and when they’ve done that, they’ve been successful. Well, Sunday was no different, as every player stepped up and played their role to a tee. Before I go into detail with individual detail, let me pledge my undying allegiance to Stan Van Gundy. He had his players prepared and every substitution he has made the entire season, every public statement he has had made, and every lessons he has tried to instill in his players has been for a reason and it has paid off. The team is ready for playoff basketball, they are well rested but they can obviously turn on the switch, something I haven’t seen in Orlando Magic team since I was 5 years old. In Van Gundy I trust…now let’s get to the players.

Let’s start with Dwight Howard. He has brought his “A” game to the playoffs and looked like the most dominant big man in the game. His line read 25 points, 22 boards, and 5 blocks, and although that’s impressive, his presence was even better. He played for 43 minutes, but because Van Gundy has carefully monitored his minutes through the season, Dwight should be ready to play a lot more during the post season. He only got better offensively as the game progressed and his presence in the post on defense was felt as well, as Orlando allowed just 26 points in the paint.

Another player who seems to have a game crafted for the playoffs is guard Jameer Nelson, who had a huge game, logging 24 points and seven assists. Nelson started the game strong and faded in the middle of the game, but exploded in the fourth game to help cap off a win for Orlando.

Other players did what they were asked for perfectly as well. Hedo Turkoglu had 21 points, 6 boards and 6 assists, but he did struggle shooting the ball at times and seemed to force it. However, he did a good job taking the ball up the court at times and being a point forward when Nelson struggled.

The team’s other starters, Rashard Lewis and Maurice Evans, also did exactly what they were asked. Lewis started off hot but faded after nailing a few three’s early and finished with just 13 points. However, he did an amazing job on Chris Bosh and was all over the floor. I said it in my last article, but he is peaking at the right time and SVG unveiled his game perfectly. Evans made his open shots, going 3-of-6 from behind the arc, and he finished with 14 points, and also played great D as usual.

Off the bench, it was the same story…guys doing what they are asked. There were only three guys, but they still did a good job. Keith Bogans had 9 points, and Keyon Dooling was nagging on D as usual, but he also added 10 points. Adonal Foyle,god bless him, tried hard for the 4 minutes he was in, but he was flat footed. If Howard gets in foul trouble, Orlando might be in big trouble as Foyle’s -7 point differential was the worst of any Magic player.

Orlando started off absolutely on fire. They scored 43 points in the first quarter and shot over 80% from the field. They did slow down as expected, and Toronto brought the game back within 5 points after some fancy Jason Kapono shooting. However, Bosh got into some fouled trouble, sat the rest of the fourth and Orlando held on.

Now there are several things I look for in game two, which will be on Tuesday. First, it is probably a good thing Toronto came back because now the Magic wont overlook them. Second, Don’t expect Bosh to let Lewis keep fronting him like that again. Sam Mitchell will probably make a change but SVG has to know that, so it should be interesting to see how Orlando guards Bosh this time. Third and finally, I think Toronto will play Rasho Nesterovic less. He did solid, but matchup wise, it allows Howard to stay in the pain more. If Bosh is the starter for the Raptors, that will force Dwight to go out and guard Bosh and he has a difficult time guarding players away from the basket.

That’s your summary for Game 1. I don’t expect Orlando to sweep the series, but after watching them play, I have the utmost confidence in SVG and his players. Look for Toronto to come out firing on Tuesday and they might even pull out a win, but Orlando is the more talented team and the better coached team in a matchup of two franchises that play a very similar brand of basketball…Orlando just seems to play it better when it counts.

This entry was posted on Sunday, April 20th, 2008 at 11:21 pm and is filed under Orlando Magic. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.