Go big or go home appears to be the motto for Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic this season. They have played 3 games so far this season, they are 2-1, and none of the games have been close.
In their two wins, they’ve won by margins of 29 and 42 points. In their one loss, they lost by 26 points. Granted, in their two wins they’ve played the rebuilding Washington Wizards and Minnesota Timberwolves and in their one loss they got manhandled by the pre-season champion Miami Heat but which team is this Orlando squad?
Is this going to be the trend for them all season? Feasting upon the NBA Eastern Conference bottom feeders while getting dominated by the league’s elite teams? This team is supposed to be in contention for the championship this season and dominating these undermanned squads are exactly what title teams should do but are they really good enough to handle the Heat, Lakers and Celtics of the world?
It might take some time to find this out since their next major test isn’t until around thanksgiving when they play the Heat again, unless you count the 5-0 and much improved Atlanta Hawks as a true test…which they really shouldn’t be.
My guess is no, they Magic aren’t quite ready for the title yet. I am thinking the Magic will continue to feast upon teams that have no big man that can handle the likes of Dwight Howard and/or no defensive skills adept enough to handle the way the Magic spread the court with their 3 point field goals…which is pretty much most of the East. While against the more talented NBA teams, this 2 trick pony of a team can and will be shut down just like we saw against the Heat and in the playoffs last season.
I mean, who actually expects Vince Carter to last an entire season at 33 years old? C’mon now, he is due.
Can someone think of a better nickname for Dwight Howard than “Superman”? Didn’t Shaq have that once? Its tattooed on his arm? He was Steel in a movie, thats a superman spin off sorta. Somethin like Sir Blocks-A-Lot or The Bard of Blocks or The Poster Maker or something anything besides Superman.
Having to play 3 games in 4 days was tough for the Orlando Magic and it showed in their loss to the undermanned Detroit Pistons last night, 98-94, but the real culprit behind the loss might have been the fact that a bunch of them were praying for their lives and puking their guts out last night.
The team plane taking the players to Detroit on Sunday seemed to encounter a bit of turbulence, like about 40 minutes of turbulence, the Orlando Sentinel notes. It was so rough, the flight crew told the team to use the shoulder harnesses if their seats had them…if not, oh well. Here’s some quotes from the team:
Coach Stan Van Gundy said several players vomited and he quipped, “I was about one bump away.” PG Tyronn Lue said, “It was unbelievable. Man, I was like, ‘I’m going to be like John Madden and take the bus.”’ “That was the worst flight I’ve ever been on,” veteran PG Rafer Alston said. “Forty straight minutes of turbulence.”
As if these guys don’t have it rough enough, shuttling across the country for a rough stretch of games, but they had to deal with that. That kind of flight would knock anyone off their game, even Dwight Howard who, despite tallying 27 points, did the unforgivable and allowed Kwame Brown to drop 10 points on his ass. His shame is real.
Here we’ve got Brian Urlacher, Dwight Howard, Big Papi, 50 cent and Adrian Peterson gettin ready to walk on the moon or somethin. Actually this was taken at a photo shoot for Vitamin Water. Has the makings of a wonderful ad campaign there. They don’t look foolish or anything. Money is worth it all fo’ sho’. Cant wait to see the actual ad…no really
