It often seems like a mistake to me that teams will go so far in the playoffs, lose and then use that loss as a map for how the team should be defined the following year. For example, if your team loses to a team with a big center that posts up, like a Shaq, then in the off season you trade a starter to get a defensive low post player. That rarely makes sense to me.

Orlando failed to consult with NBAObsessed and went ahead and retooled without me.

Gone is Hedo Turkoglu and missing for a while is Rashard Lewis (failed drug test). In their place is Vince Carter for points and Jameer Nelson for direction. Now eventually Rashard Lewis will return to the lineup and Jameer Nelson was with the team last year, just injured. It is Vince Carter that adds the new dimension to the team.

Dwight Howard will get help from Vince Carter

Orlando is thinking Vince Carter will give them more explosive scoring so that Dwight Howard does not have to always carry the team. It is different than having Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu bomb long range threes to open up Howard underneath. Carter has always been able to score.

“All those moves? Sure it’s risky,” ESPN analyst Jon Barry said. “I know they would’ve preferred to re-sign Turkoglu, but once they realized that wasn’t happening they felt they needed to add another piece.

“I just don’t see Carter over Turkoglu as an improvement. That’s not an indictment of Carter. I just thought Turkoglu was Orlando’s best playmaker in the postseason. I think it’s going to be a problem for them.”

But losing the Finals to the Los Angeles Lakers in five games set Smith off on a new course.

“Vince gives us somebody who can create his own shot or create a shot for somebody else,” Smith said of filling last season’s void.

source

It remains to be seen if breaking the NBAObsessed rule for retooling will cost the Orlando Magic or benefit them. Even if Vince Carter only gives them scoring, the return of Jameer Nelson and the continued development of Dwight Howard point to a successful campaign for the Orlando Magic.

Photo source Newscom

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed

You have Chris Bosh. He is an excellent player and almost nobody in the USA realizes it. Chris will be a free agent next year and may want to belong to a different NBA team. Is he that good? What do you do?

He played on the Olympic team, you know.

During the tournament itself, Bosh operated as the main backup to center Dwight Howard as Team USA went unbeaten in all eight games en route to the gold medal, defeating Spain in the final.[54] He averaged 9.1 points per game, and led the team in rebounds with 6.1 a game.[55]
source

Now Toronto is trying to build a team to put around him, because next year Chris is a free agent and may want to leave. The biggest off season move was to land Hedo Turkoglu. Hedo is a definite mismatch player that becomes so valuable if you make the playoffs. He not only has the outside shot, but also stands 6′ 10″ tall. Hedo averaged over 16 a game this year.

Will Hedo Turkoglu convince Chris Bosh to stay?

Toronto also made some other smart moves in order to convince Bosh that the Raptors will remain competitive.

“Everything kind of falls into place,” explained Triano. “We have (Hedo) Turkoglu for five years, Bargnani for five, Calderon for the next four, (DeMar) DeRozan’s going to be in that mix giving us athleticism that maybe some of those players don’t have. We’ve got this year to figure out what Chris Bosh is going to do. That’s a great nucleus moving forward for the next five years and one that might not be super successful next year but we’re definitely going to be a better basketball team. As these guys get to spend more time playing with each other I think the ceiling is very, very high for this group.”
source

Photo source Newscom

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed

This will be more about opinion and less about facts, sorry about that. Hedo Turkoglu has opted out of Orlando and will be a free agent. Orlando decided to sign Vince Carter from New Jersey.

Hedo Turkoglu is looking for a big payday

Wait, those are facts. Now comes the opinion, and feel free to chime in and disagree.

Orlando will be worse off with Vince Carter. While Carter can put up numbers, he does not play winning basketball and he cannot check anyone. Ok, he held my grandma to less than 10 points once, but that was when she was hurt and using a walker.

Turkoglu was a more stable player and understood that Dwight Howard was what made Orlando great. There is a reason that New Jersey could not win when Carter, Jefferson, and Kidd played there at the same time.

The Magic believe Carter is an upgrade over Turkoglu as a one-on-one player who can create his own shot, any time, any where, especially at the end of games.

They traded starting shooting guard Courtney Lee, point guard Rafer Alston and power forward Tony Battie to the New Jersey Nets for Carter and power forward Ryan Anderson, a rookie like Lee.

The Magic will have a distinctively different look next season, changing starters at shooting guard and (probably) small forward.
source

Photo source Newscom

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed

Hey, this Dwight Howard guy is pretty darn good. Well, we all know that is an underestimation for the ages. Howard has been dominant.

Oh, yes, LeBron has been LeBron and is still clearly the greatest player this side of Kobe Bryant, but Howard has turned his team into winners and carried them on his back. When he becomes unstoppable underneath, then the Orlando shooters like Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu, Rafer Alston, and Michael Pietrus become great 3 point shooters.

Howard wants a shot at the Lakers

Vinnie Johnson once remarked after making a dozen threes in a row in warm-ups, “But can you make them in a game with a hand in your face?” Well, when you are sending 2 or 3 guys down low to stop Howard, there are no hands in your face!

Everyone is still looking to LeBron to somehow pull this one out, but the Magic are frustrated with how much the public pays attention to only LeBron. They want respect and they want a shot at the NBA Title.

So the Cavs laid off Howard to start Tuesday, and he made them pay, scoring 11 points in the first six minutes. They went back to double-teaming him for much of the next three quarters, and Howard scored just six more points before the start of overtime. Still, all the attention he drew freed the Magic shooters, most notably Rafer Alston (notes) and Michael Pietrus (notes), who combined to make 11 3-pointers.

On one comical possession, Cavs guard Mo Williams turned his back on Alston to follow Courtney Lee (notes). With no other Cav within five feet of him, Alston buried yet another 3-pointer.

“We need one stop,” James said. “We haven’t got one stop to win a ballgame yet.”

James has realized he can’t beat Howard and these Magic alone. He received more support on Tuesday than he did in Game 3, but it still wasn’t enough. Williams made just two shots after halftime, falling flat, so far, on his “guarantee” that the Cavs would win the series.

source

Photo source Newscom

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed

You know we have sort of been sidetracked by the Chicago Bulls/ Boston Celtics series that became very interesting once Kevin Garnett was announced out of the playoffs with an injury. Don’t look now, but the pesky Philadelphia 76ers are giving the Orlando Magic all they can handle.

The 76ers made play after play at the end of the 4th quarter to almost pull out game four, in spite of Orlando’s 10 point lead. It all came down to a botched pick play by Orlando on offense and a clutch 3 pointer by a cold Hedo Turkoglu.

Turkoglu nailed a three-pointer over Thaddeus Young with 1.1 seconds left to lift the Orlando Magic to an 84-81 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, evening their Eastern Conference first-round series at two games apiece.

GAME REPORT: Magic 84, 76ers 81

“The coach had confidence in me,” said Turkoglu, who came in just 7-for-30 from the floor in the series. “He called a play for me and I’m just glad I made it.”

source

Without an answer to Dwight Howard underneath, the 76ers are probably going to take this series to game 7.

Photo source Newscom

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed

LeBron James is partying at the thought of all the NBA players available in 2009

Even with all the big name free agents in 2010, with LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh in the group, the year 2009 could still be the year of the free agent.

Try this out for 2009.

Some of the Restricted Free Agents: Andrew Bynum, Marvin Williams, Jason Maxiell

Some of the players that can opt out of contracts: Kobe Bryant, Carlos Boozer, Rip Hamilton, Hedo Turkoglu

True Free Agents: Shawn Marion, Andre Miller, Rasheed Wallace

So what about money?
Some teams are loaded depending on what happens.

Thunder 25 – 30 million
Trail Blazers 15 – 32 million
Grizzlies 18 – 24 million
Pacers 11 million
Heat 10 million
Bobcats 10 million

Plain and Simple, there will be lots of player movement in 2009 in the NBA.

story source espn

Photo source newscom

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed

LeBron James salutes Team USA

Wow! Small news. Team USA beats Turkey. Turkey with no Memo Okur and no Hedo Turkoglu.

No Hedo Turkoglu for Turkey? No problem for LeBron Ameri-James. Evidently the sprained ankle is a thing of the past.

James was 8-of-9 from the field and finished with six rebounds, five steals and four assists in 23 minutes, sitting out the fourth quarter.

source

Team USA had a lot of problems paying attention in this game and kind of let the Turks hang around for a while.

Turkey was still close late into the second before James seized control on both ends. He rebounded his own miss for a 10-point lead, came up with a steal and made a free throw, then leaped high for a one-handed dunk off an alley-oop pass from Kobe Bryant for a 50-37 lead. Another steal by James led to Howard’s dunk and a 15-point cushion.

Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh had 13 a piece and Chris Paul had 6 assists.

America plays Lithuania on Friday.

Be sure to check out all your Olympic news at NBCOlympics.com

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed

Tayshaun Prince can be the Prince, if LeBron James is the King.

Prince is known more for his defense than his offense and he has shown that side in the playoffs guarding Hedo Turkoglu on two game winning attempts that failed, one of them blocked in a spectacular piece of defense.

Actual his best block was on an attempted breakaway jam by Keith Bogans. Tayshaun slapped it away and Bogans still went through the motions of a dunk, but without a basketball.

In the NBA Playoffs Tayshaun is shooting 56 percent and averaging 17 per game. He shrugs it off, saying that when you make shots the Pistons look for you.

Watch this YouTube of Tayshaun swatting Hedo Turkoglu.

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed

Hedo Turkoglu misses over Jason Maxiell with game 4 of the Orlando Magic vs. Detroit Pistons NBA playoffs on the line

Image details: Detroit Pistons v Orlando Magic, Game Four served by picapp.com

The Orlando Magic had great chances to win game two and game four of the second round series with Detroit.

In game two, Rashard Lewis had the ball with seconds on the clock and Orlando down by 1. He chose to drive to the hole and put up a funky shot while guarded by McDyess. Rashard sort of tried an up and under layup trying to go under the outstretched arm of McDyess. The ball rolled off of the front of the rim and Dwight Howard missed the put back.

Why did Orlando choose that particular play?

In game four, Hedo Turkoglu had scored several points in a row and he was red hot. Orlando again had the ball in the waning seconds down by one.

Down by one with 8.9 seconds left, Hedo Turkoglu bled the clock at the top of the key, then drove into traffic and missed a lay-up at the buzzer.

It seemed a curious decision.

“I was reading the situation,” Turkoglu told the Sentinel. “I didn’t want to rush and force a bad shot. Maybe I was holding it too long instead of going right away. I’m just upset that I couldn’t help the team. I think we can all say this one is our fault.”

Coach Stan Van Gundy shouldered some of the blame.

source

Some of the blame? Stan Van Gundy should be taking more than some of the blame.

The play was strange in several ways. First off, Hedo had driven to his left about 50 thousand times in a row. Tayshaun Prince was guarding him, an excellent one on one defender. Hedo faked to his right with the same right footed jab step. Tay took the fake and Hedo was off to the races. Maybe the Pistons wanted him to go left, who knows.

Then, Jason Maxiell was waiting for him, just like the Pistons knew the play. Go left and run into Maxiell. Hedo put up a funky shot and from there the game is history.

Second off, the Magic have a play with a high post of Dwight Howard. You remember him? Yeah, he is the center on the Orlando Magic known as Superman. He used to be a main cog in their offense until game 4.

Hedo would come off of a high screen by Dwight Howard and have several options. It is their bread and butter game breaking play. Two times now they could have used it to win games and instead called for one on one drives by three point shooting forwards.

Stan? What are you thinking?

Post from: NBA Obsessed

Rashard Lewis – We beat the Pistons!

Young teams have to go through a growth cycle and it appears that the Orlando Magic took a big step in that growth cycle.

The Magic beat the Pistons 102 to 100.

The Pistons had pounded the Magic on a regular basis

It had gotten to the point that some of the Magic were tired of the losing and some of them half expected to just lose again.

This is the growth cycle.

You must overcome the psychological hurdles that the great teams can throw at you. Losing to the Pistons was one of those hurdles.

It happened four straight games in last year’s playoffs, and four in the regular season before that. Detroit also handily won their first of four contests this year. source

The Pistons did not make it easy for the Magic. Chauncey Billups managed to can a 32 foot 3 pointer to tie it up with 3.6 seconds left.

“I was thinking, ‘How in the world did he make that?”‘ Howard said. “I was expecting him to miss it, but they call him ‘Big Shot Chauncey.”‘

Actually they call him Mr. Big Shot, maybe correct nicknames is another one of those hurdles.

Rashard Lewis made a tough shot at the buzzer to pull out the victory.

Mr. Big Shot was willing to accept that. Great teams accept great losses.

“I can sleep after a game like this,” said Chauncey Billups, whose 32-foot 3-pointer tied the score with 3.6 seconds left. “After that loss in Chicago, I was up at five in the morning, mad, wondering what’s going on. A game like this, we fought, we competed and the dude (Lewis) hit a tough, tough shot. That’s why he gets paid the big bucks.” source

The Magic had more heroes in this game.

Lewis might have received a $116 million contract from the Magic, but on this night, it was Hedo Turkoglu who hurt the Pistons the most.

He had 26 points and had eight assists. The Magic kept running a high pick-and-roll play with Dwight Howard (23 points). While the Pistons’ defense focused on Howard, Turkoglu continually got clear lanes to the basket.

Rasheed Wallace had a monster game for the Pistons with 15 points and 15 rebounds.

Orlando took a little step towards believing in themselves and it can only pay dividends down the road.

Keep in mind they caught the Pistons in a mini slump and things may not work as well the next time, but that too is a part of the growth cycle.

NBA Basketball Fan Question Where is your team in the growth cycle?

As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.

More blogs about basketball.

Post from: NBA Obsessed