Off-season moves should help Orlando finally beat Detroit
With the past few days being slow, I have had the chance to sit back and look at Orlando’s off-season moves so far. The Magic have made quite a bit of noise this summer considering that they didn’t have any cap room to work with. The team has added Mickael Pietrus, Anthony Johnson and Courtney Lee already and plans on bringing in another point guard via trade. I have to say, all the moves make sense and I applaud Otis Smith for bringing in some key pieces to help the team out in the playoffs. Orlando made huge strides last season beating Toronto in the first-round, but now it appears that the Magic are aiming to go further in the playoffs, and that likely means beating the Detroit Pistons in the post-season, something Orlando hasn’t done in the past two seasons.
Two years ago, the 40-42 Magic were swept in the first-round by the number one seeded Pistons. That Magic squad was youthful and while they held their own at times, the Pistons basically controlled the series and toyed with Orlando. This past season, the Magic were clearly an improved team and met Detroit in the second-round. They fell 4-1, but the series was closer than what that result indicates, and poor officiating seemingly played a roll, as did inexperience. Now with a team that will have playoff experience under its belt next season, the Magic will definitely give whoever they face a run for their money. Add in some of Orlando’s new additions this off-season and I think that Otis has tailor-made this team to finally beat the Pistons.
Let’s look at what Detroit did to beat Orlando in the playoffs last year aside from getting a few whistles towards the Motown side and having playoff experience. The Pistons had bigger point guards in Chauncey Billups (for a game I guess) and Rodney Stuckey. They then had Rip Hamilton, whose weaving and quick shooting carried the Pistons. Turnovers and poor shooting plagued the team throughout the series as well. Finally, a barrage of big man slowed down Dwight Howard and took advantage of Orlando’s lack of size. So what has Orlando done to fix these problems?
I’ll start with the size problem in the backcourt. The team was not able to retain Keyon Dooling, but replaced him with the more experienced and efficient Anthony Johnson. Johnson is a 6’3”, 200 lb. guard who has playoff experience. Dooling is a great one-on-one defender, but Johnson should also help the team’s turnover problems. The Magic are also looking to trade for another point guard, and the 6’5” Javaris Crittenton appears to be on the team’s wish list. If that happens, Orlando will have two big guards who could offset the 5’11” Jameer Nelson and could handle Stuckey and Billups. I also think the team will toy with Courtney Lee playing as an off-ball point when Hedo Turkoglu is in the game, and his length and quickness should help out too.
What hurt the team most was Hamilton, who was able to run through screens and lose the slower Maurice Evans and Keith Bogans. Now Orlando has Mickael Pietrus, so I’d assume things will be different. He stands at 6’6”, has a long wingspan and is extremely athletic. Pietrus is dedicated to the defensive side of the ball and can handle Hamilton’s crafty offensive play. Lee again will also help in this category, as he is quick enough to chase Hamilton around the floor.
In regards to turnovers, Johnson should be an upgrade in that department over Dooling, who played a little out of control at times, as he was more of a combo guard. Jameer Nelson needs to refine this aspect of his game, as he seems to get distracted from the game at times, and I think experience will fix that. For poor shooting, the team had a hard time scoring when open treys weren’t falling and players had a hard time creating shots at times. Lee will be able to help in that department too, as he can not just shoot the ball well but he can create his own shot, something Magic guards couldn’t do last season.
Has Orlando fixed its big man (or lack thereof) problem? Technically, yes. For one, Dwight Howard was playing with a busted hand and a cracked sternum, so hopefully he will be close to 100% this season. Tony Battie is a good defender and rebounder, and should help the team out a lot this post-season. Brian Cook is another big body that Orlando lacked last season and Marcin Gortat will have a year of experience under his belt this team. These additions should help the team hang with Rasheed Wallace and Jason Maxiell.
I’m not saying that Orlando will definitely play Detroit, the Magic are near locks to make the playoffs and while Detroit is aging, they shouldn’t fall off too much. The two teams also are good picks to make the second round, and there’s a great chance they could meet there. Even if Orlando doesn’t play Detroit, the additions of Pietrus, Lee and Johnson, as well as getting Battie and Cook back will help out in matches versus other teams. Pietrus can hang with LeBron James or Paul Pierce, and the depth the other players will bring will be invaluable come April.
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12 Responses to “Off-season moves should help Orlando finally beat Detroit”
July 18th, 2008 at 7:45 pm
I think Orlando is taking steps in the right direction. Pietrus will be an upgrade, although he is not a great free throw shooter, especially for a guard. The point guard additions would hardly scare Chauncey Billups, and especially not Rodney Stuckey.
If Dwight Howard can improve his mid-range game and outside shot he will be more difficult to stop. So while there is some reason to be optimistic in Orlando there is now Philadelphia and Washington to think about as well.
Cleveland could get better, and Detroit and Boston are still the teams to beat.
Tony Wichowski is a writer for the Bleacher Report and the host of “That’s Real Sports Talk” on the Godly Network
July 18th, 2008 at 8:31 pm
Hey Tony. As far as the East shakes out, Toronto, Philly and Washington like you said could all get better. I dont see Cleveland getting too much better though.
Detroit’s PGs are still head over heals better than Orlando’s I think, but the Magic now match up against Detroit better there. Orlando was the better team in the series, but they werent the most talented. Orlando is a young team and lacked experience, but now if they take what they’ve learned and with a year under SVG, Orlando will be a lot better. During the regular season I think you only see a couple of increased wins, but in the playoffs is where Orlando will show the biggest increase.
July 18th, 2008 at 11:07 pm
Detroit is aging.
What sport are your talking about?
Writers outside of Detroit still remain clueless to how the Pistons win 55 games year in and year out and advance to the ECF.
The Zoo Crew is on the move improving by leaps and bounds. Their improvement this year will more than make up for any fall off by the starters.
It unfortunate that the Magic’s best player can’t do anything but jump and dunk.
July 19th, 2008 at 12:32 am
i still feel we havent addressed the poer forward position well. Battie missed all of last year with an injury.. Will he be ready to give it a go against the big boys? Brian cook is more of a shooting power forward realy soft, not the best defender in the world. Gortat will likely be howards backup.. We still need a more athletic PF to add to the mix and i feel we will be ready to rock
July 19th, 2008 at 12:45 am
Mike, what the hell are you talking about? yes detroit is aging, but they still have some good young players to be competetive. And dwight howard can do more thank jump and dunk. Last year he used the hook shot pretty good and used his power to move defenders and lay the ball in. And last time i checked, he is prety damn good on defense. In fact, he led the league in rebounds and was fourth in blocked shots.
July 19th, 2008 at 7:01 am
Joe Dumars is contemplating gutting the team. He sees that this particular unit’s time is running out. While they have some young talent, I think the team will start to look a little slow. I havent been calling for them to fall apart for the last several years, but I am starting to think that the Billups, Hamilton, Wallace combo isnt going to get the job done this year.
The good thing about Battie is that he had an upper body injurt. THat means he was able to stay in shape and by the end of the season, he should be totally caught up. I dont think that is too big of a concern.
July 19th, 2008 at 8:42 am
If the Magic were a better team, then they would have won the series.
I never understood the logic of “they lost the series, even though they were a better team.” How does that work?
July 19th, 2008 at 3:32 pm
Ben, I don’t know; was Miami a better team than Dallas in the 2006 NBA Finals? The world may never know…
Regardless, the point can be twisted however you want to. It’s just ones opinion.
Dean, I expect Battie to be fine. He’s has plenty of experience, which should help him understand his limits, if he has any. Also, it was said they he could have attempted to comeback for the playoffs, however they held him out. I’m pretty sure that extra 5 to 6 months will payoff.
Mike, Billups is 32, Sheed is 34, and MyDyess is 34. Now if they were not starters, and didn’t play a MAJOR role for the Pistons last season, then you might have a point.
Sure, RIP is 30 and Prince is 28; but the rest of those young talented players, are not the reason for this teams continued success. Sure they contributed, but they are not what have brought the Pistons to the Eastern Conf. Finals consecutive years.
So until this well oiled machine that is the Pistons gets a few starters who are not over the age of 30, I think it’s fair to call them an aging team.
Washington:
They’ve had the same team for years, and they’ve yet to make it out of the first round. Sure, they’ve had injury problems, but I still think all they’re playing for is to make it out of the first round. They are not contenders, even in the East. Actually, they’re Lebron’s bitches, no offense.
Toronto:
On paper Toronto looks good, but it’s still up for debate right now. For them, it’s really all about what kind of player O’Neal is going to be. Ford and Nesterovic both played decent size roles for them last season. O’Neal is their x-factor, but I’m not sold yet, because when I saw him play last season, he didn’t look good, and was no where near the player he used to be.
Philly:
They could be a scary team. First, they must keep Iguodala, which I expect them too. Beyond that, I think they’ll be really good. However, I still think the Magic can match up well, mainly because Dalembert has no offensive game, so that only leaves us one low post presence to worry about. Have they added any shooters yet?
Boston:
I already mentioned Detroit. And I think the Cavs are just as much of a threat as Detroit. If Ferry could just add somebody, anybody (worth a damn) next to Lebron the East would be in trouble. But for now, Boston is still the team to beat, for at least a season or two.
July 19th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
I agree with you Damien regarding the East.
Orlando still matches up well against Philly.
IF Washington is healthy, they have a great team that could make some noise, but that hasnt really happend yet.
Cleveland like you said has James but nothing else. If they can find a way to add another player of substance than that is another title contender in the East.
Toronto looks to be improved, but in a matchup with Orlando, I think the addition of Oneal might benefit the Magic. THe only way Toronto was able to give Orlando problems in the post season was with the small lineup in which Dwight had to guard Bosh on the perimeter. Now with Onea;, Dwight can stay down low and I’d take Dwight over Jermaine any day of the week.
Detroit always seems to be a very good team, but like you said Damien, they have four starters in their 30’s. I know many have called for Detroit’s demise in years past, but I think this is the year they slip some. Expect Detroit to make the playoffs as a top 4 seed again, but I dont think they make the conference finals this year.
Boston is older too, but they didnt show many signs of wearing when it mattered, and again, they are the team to beat.
July 20th, 2008 at 10:27 am
Orlando has improved their team this offseason but the whole east has improved. You can’t sleep on Philly because they took Detroit to a six game series while Orlando only lasted five. Might I remind you that this was before the addition of Elton Brand. Why do I think Philly is better? They are more athletic and/or equally skilled at all positions accept the four where they are fairly equal.
Detroit has a superior backcourt even with Orlando’s additions (although I’m a little concerned if they get Crittendon -but not much) and they have a front court that knows how to handle the Magic. I haven’t even mentioned Milwaukee, Toronto, Cleveland, Atlanta and more importantly Boston. Orlando should be worried because despite their changes they probably won’t be enough to make a difference.
July 22nd, 2008 at 6:47 pm
Excuse me, but we are the better team and if anyone else trys to say that the hawks are gonna be better than the magic, they need to check the stat books. Magic all the way, screw all yall! And yall are forgetting the heat as well. I’m from florida and jus cuz i stick up for my team (or WE do), doesnt mean you detroit fans have to make a point of reading every little article that we as fans partake in, and to be quite frank, WHO INVITED YOU???!!??? get off the ego crap and lets get real, the hawks get the 7 spot and the magic take em 4-2, game over detroit.
August 2nd, 2008 at 3:12 pm
Detroit will not make it to the ECF, but neither will Orlando. Boston beats Cleveland in the ECF and goes on to win back to back titles.
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