Posts Tagged → Brandon Bass
Recap: Orlando Magic 100, Charlotte Bobcats 86
AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack
The Orlando Magic were able to defeat the Charlotte Bobcats by the score of 100-86 to extend their winning streak to two games. This was a simple case of the Magic being the better team. Orlando was led by a balanced attack, as five players scored in double-figures. Dwight Howard had a quiet game for his standards, finishing with 20 points, 10 rebounds, two steals and two blocks. Brandon Bass was solid, contributing with 17 points and three blocks. Gilbert Arenas had one of his better games in a Magic uniform, coming off the bench and putting up 16 points on 5-of-7 shooting from the field. Jameer Nelson had 13 points and seven assists, while Jason Richardson chipped in with 11 points and six rebounds. Perhaps learning their lesson from Wednesday’s loss against the Sacramento Kings, it must have been encouraging for head coach Stan Van Gundy to see the players for Orlando put in the requisite amount of energy and effort needed for them to come away with the victory. The Magic didn’t take for granted playing against an inferior opponent and instead went to work. Defensively, the focus was there for Orlando. For the most part, the team defense from the Magic was satisfactory. There were breakdowns defensively, sure, but they were far and few between. And the individual defense for the Orlando players was just as good.
Friday’s Magic Word
- Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel: “Orlando Magic coach Stan Van Gundy has decided he’ll stick with the same quartet of Jameer Nelson, Jason Richardson, Hedo Turkoglu and Brandon Bass to start alongside center Dwight Howard for tonight’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. But that doesn’t mean Van Gundy will keep those players in the game, especially if they play with the same low energy they displayed during Wednesday night’s frustrating loss to the Sacramento Kings. Van Gundy pledged won’t hesitate to use his entire active roster — even the guys who’ve been buried on the team’s bench — if he doesn’t like what he sees. Young forward Earl Clark, veteran wing Quentin Richardson and veteran point guard Chris Duhon might receive some playing time against the Thunder, especially if Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are scoring at will.”
- Dwight Howard hopes that his teammates heeded his words.
- John Cohen of OrlandoMagic.com evaluates the copious amount of trade deadline deals.
- Ian Thomsen of Sports Illustrated: “The Magic were thought to need more size in order to match up with Boston, but the Celtics traded away that advantage by sending Perkins to Oklahoma City.”
- More from Thomsen: “Will Perkins’ departure hurt Boston in the East? He was able to play one-on-one against Dwight Howard, but the Celtics have reason to be confident in a series against the newly reconstructed Magic, who have yet to develop title-worthy chemistry around their center. Neither Miami nor Chicago has a high scoring center to exploit Perkins’ absence, so perhaps the Celtics are acting on a gamble that they can make it back to the Finals without him.”
Thursday’s Magic Word
- Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel: “All 13 players on the Magic roster attended the team meeting. Point guard Jameer Nelson, who was not the subject of any trade rumors, was asked if it would be a relief if no one was traded before the deadline arrived. ‘It probably would be a relief for a lot of guys,’ Nelson said. ‘I mean, you see crazy things happen in this league. Guys get traded and not even know about it. So nothing surprises me. Hopefully, I’ll be here at 3:01.’ Nelson was half-joking, of course, but he is indeed still with the [Orlando] Magic. Orlando’s most obvious roster need still is at center, where the team has relied on power forwards Brandon Bass and Ryan Anderson to serve as Dwight Howard‘s backups. The Magic have been linked in news reports to 6-foot-11 veteran Troy Murphy, who has been traded to the Golden State Warriors and most likely will receive a buyout from Golden State. But there’s no guarantee that Murphy would sign with the Magic, even though he and [Otis] Smith go back to their days with the Warriors back in the early 2000s.”
- Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel: “Howard and the Magic have to feel like they are standing outside a great party without an invitation. When somebody like Williams — a member of Howard’s 2012 free-agent draft class — is dealt by Utah this early, it’s another option that could elude the Magic. Williams still needs to sign an extension with New Jersey. Paul could be the lone ’12 free-agent star left for Howard to recruit, though. Derrick Rose is a lock to re-sign with his hometown Chicago Bulls. Howard was shocked that Williams was dealt. More shocking was that Smith conceded he was caught off guard by the trade and did not make an offer. Williams was disgruntled long before Jerry Sloan quit the Jazz. Howard sounded disgruntled Wednesday night, one of those nights he can circle as evidence the Magic aren’t matching him, stride for stride.”
- Dwight Howard is not happy right now.
- John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com: “A day after superstar center Dwight Howard said the Orlando Magic had done enough talking and needed to do more executing, the team didn’t practice so that it could have a team-wide discussion about everything that ills it. Basically, there was plenty of talking by coaches and players. It will be determined if actions back up those words to avoid another disastrous loss like the one the Magic suffered Wednesday night to the woeful Sacramento Kings.”
- More on Howard’s unhappiness with his teammates.
- Zach Lowe of The Point Forward: “Over All-Star weekend in Los Angeles, Dwight Howard told me – rather emphatically — that the Magic did not have to make any trades in order to win the title. Last night, after a shocking Sacramento win in Orlando, Howard called out unnamed teammates for failing to play hard.”
- Eric Freeman of Ball Don’t Lie speaks the truth about Howard’s frustration.
- Kurt Helin of ProBasketballTalk isn’t a believer in the Magic’s talent pool: “Howard is wrong about something though — he thinks this team has the talent to win an NBA title if they just played hard. No, they really don’t. They are good, but not elite. Stan Van Gundy uses Hedo Turkoglu better than any coach in the league, he puts him in good positions as a pick-and-roll ball handler, but Turkoglu is average. Gilbert Arenas is average at best. Those are two guys the Magic gave up a lot for, two guys with massive contracts that limit what the Magic can do for years to come, and they are not guys who make your team elite.”
- Howard shares his thoughts: “I´m not singling or calling anybody out, but as a team if we don´t play hard then we are going to lose every night. If guys don´t want to play then they need to sit down. We just can´t have guys out there not playing hard. We´re professional athletes and this is what we do for a living. If we can´t get out there and go hard for two hours, then we shouldn´t be playing.”
- Matt Moore of CBSSports.com: “The timing is particularly poor for the Magic, as Howard, a free agent in 2012, watched Deron Williams be sent to New Jersey and Carmelo Anthony win in his debut in New York. Even though the Magic are the better team of those three, it’s another step in the direction of the door, providing Howard another excuse for leaving the Magic high and dry. Howard did everything he should and could last night to help the Magic win. It wasn’t enough.”
Recap: Sacramento Kings 111, Orlando Magic 105
AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack
Kicking off life after the All-Star break, the Sacramento Kings were able to defeat the Orlando Magic by the score of 111-105. Despite not having Tyreke Evans due to an injury and newly-acquired Marcus Thornton still in the process of making his debut with the Kings after being dealt for Carl Landry, while playing a road game on a back-to-back, the visitors won. A team with a record of 14-40 entering the night and, on paper, having no business winning a game against — supposedly — one of the better teams in the NBA, well, did just that. Win. Right now, the Magic should be embarrassed because even though anything can happen on a given night in the league, these are the games they’re supposed to come away victorious. It’s as simple as that, yet Orlando is incapable of doing the right things to win games and make chase to the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference for the No. 3 seed. If the Magic’s victory against the Los Angeles Lakers was the best of the season, this loss is the worst. Sacramento was led by a balanced attack, as five players scored in double-figures. But the two players that sparked the win for the Kings were Beno Udrih and Jermaine Taylor (former University of Central Florida star). Urdih played superbly, finishing with 18 points, 10 assists, and three steals. Taylor played well in front of his hometown, chipping in with 21 points and five rebounds. As for Orlando, Dwight Howard did his job and finished with 31 points, 17 rebounds, two steals, and two blocks. Even though players like Hedo Turkoglu played well statistically (19 points on 7-of-10 shooting with eight assists and two steals), Howard was the only player for the Magic that gave a crap on both ends of the floor.
Recap: Orlando Magic 101, Washington Wizards 76
AP Photo/Reinhold Matay
The Orlando Magic were able to defeat the Washington Wizards by the score of 101-76, sweeping the season series. Rashard Lewis made his return to the Amway Center since being traded on December 18 but unfortunately for him and Magic fans, he was unable to play due to a sprained right knee. Because of that, the game — itself — was uneventful as the Magic did what a good team does, beat the living crap out of an inferior opponent. And the Wizards, for a lack of a better word, are inferior. Orlando was led by a balanced attack, as five players scored in double-figures. Fresh off winning his fourth Eastern Conference Player of the Week award during the regular season, Dwight Howard dominated Washington, finishing with 32 points, 10 rebounds, and three blocks in roughly 29 minutes of playing time. Howard imposed his will on the game from the opening tip, and he did whatever he pleased against the Wizards when he was on the court. Jason Richardson snapped out of his shooting funk a bit, putting up 16 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the field. Brandon Bass finished with 15 points, 11 rebounds, and two steals. Ryan Anderson returned to his familiar role off the bench, chipping in with 14 points and eight rebounds. Jameer Nelson rounded things out with 10 points.
Earl Clark slowly making a name for himself
AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack
As seen on Hoopdata.
As the Orlando Magic continue their up-and-down season, especially after two blockbuster trades on December 18 that brought aboard well-known players like Gilbert Arenas, Jason Richardson, and Hedo Turkoglu, another player acquired in the deals is slowly making a name for himself. His name?
Earl Clark.
Long compared to Lamar Odom because of his ability to handle the basketball with proficiency as a 6-foot-10 power forward with a 7-foot-2 wingspan, Clark didn’t find too much success — or playing time — when he was with the Phoenix Suns for a season and a half. However, after getting traded to the Magic, Clark has gotten opportunities to make an impact when he’s on the floor.
Part of it is because Orlando is lacking for big men at the moment. Part of it is because Brandon Bass, the Magic’s starting power forward, sprained his right ankle on January 31 against the Memphis Grizzlies and sat out six games, thus allowing Clark a chance to get consistent minutes in head coach Stan Van Gundy‘s rotation. But most of it is because Clark has been one of the few players for Orlando to put in the energy and effort on defense — something that Van Gundy demands from everyone on the roster. Because of Clark’s willingness to work hard defensively, Van Gundy has rewarded him for it. Still, even though Clark has been able to improve on the defensive side of the ball and rebound at a better clip after gaining 10 points of muscle since arriving to the Magic, there’s a lot of refinement that’s needed from him on offense.
The good news is that Clark is showing signs of improvement already.
For starters, Clark’s at rim percentage has leaped from 45.5 percent on 0.6 shot attempts per game with Phoenix to 75.0 percent on 2.1 shot attempts per game with Orlando this season (league average is 64.1 percent). It remains to be seen if Clark can keep that percentage up but if he can, that’ll go a long way into him becoming a more efficient player offensively. Considering that a plethora of NBA players of all varying positions sit around that percentage, the odds for sustainability from Clark are good. That added muscle has helped Clark in that regard.
If there’s a specific area where Clark still needs to improve on offense, it’s his ability to hit shots from 16-23 feet. Right now, Clark’s percentage sits at 33.0 percent on 1.8 shot attempts per game (league average is 39.4). When watching Clark shoot the basketball, the form on his jumpshot is fine. The consistency isn’t there yet, though, which is something Clark will need to work on in the offseason if he wants to be a more dynamic threat offensively. Clark extending his range to three-point territory isn’t out of the question, but progress needs to be taken one step at a time.
Although Clark’s True Shooting percentage in the last five games is 52.1 percent, which is below the league average, the elements are there for improvement in the long-term. For the Magic, that much is encouraging.
Friday’s Magic Word
- Zach McCann of the Orlando Sentinel: “The relationship between a coach and an NBA superstar is not a simple one. The coach, by definition, is supposed to be the authority, the loudest voice in the organization and a leader to the team. But in many NBA cities, where a larger-than-life superstar plays basketball, the team’s best player holds more power than anyone else in the organization besides, maybe, the owner. For better or worse, that’s how it is. But Orlando Magic coach Stan Van Gundy, who’s coached megastars Dwyane Wade, Shaquille O’Neal and Dwight Howard in his career, says he’s never been big-timed or pushed around by a superstar. [...] Of course, the elephant in the room is Van Gundy being pushed out of the Miami Heat job in 2005 while coaching Wade and O’Neal, but this conversation wasn’t really about that. It was about Jerry Sloan’s abrupt resignation on Thursday, a move that some believe was because Sloan couldn’t get along with Jazz star point guard Deron Williams.”
- Brandon Bass could return to play against the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.
- Fran Vazquez is considering the NBA more seriously.
- A Hedo Turkoglu flowchart.
- Head coach Stan Van Gundy provides his take on Jerry Sloan’s departure.
- Scott Carefoot of The Basketball Jones: “You see that picture of smiling Dwight at the top of this post? That wasn’t hard to find. Dwight smiles all the time. He’s a fun-loving guy who loves to tell jokes and do funny impressions of his coach and other players. I wish he would start saving his smiling and joking for when he’s off the court and get serious about leading his team to a championship. As great as he is, I wonder if he’ll ever take the game seriously enough to try to do what’s best for the team all the time instead of just trying to have fun out on the court.”
Thursday’s Magic Word
- Zach McCann of the Orlando Sentinel: “#FreeEarlClark. That’s the hashtag that’s taken over Twitter, blog comments, message boards and live chats since the Orlando Magic’s game against the Cavaliers on Dec. 28, when [Earl] Clark scored 12 points and showed Magic fans there might be some potential in the mostly forgotten piece of Orlando’s blockbuster trade with Phoenix. There’s always one backup player who fans constantly pine for, a guy who enters the game for mop-up duty and cleans up. This year it’s been Clark, who’s endeared himself to Magic fans with his length, athleticism and bizarre method of staring straight into the camera during interviews. I don’t know who first typed #FreeEarlClark, and I don’t understand entirely why the term Earl Clark trended on Twitter during the Heat and Celtics games. But this, we do know: Over the last seven days, Earl Clark has been freed.”
- Dwight Howard is concentrating more on his free-throw shooting.
- The odds of the Orlando Magic signing a marquee free agent in 2012 are rather slim.
- Brandon Bass isn’t expected to play against the New Orleans Hornets on Friday.
- Head coach Stan Van Gundy: “I will maintain until the day they put me in my grave, which I hope’s not coming too soon, that he’s very capable of being a 70 percent-plus free-throw shooter.”
- John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com: “With a red backpack in one hand and a blue one in the other hand, Orlando Magic star center Dwight Howard went from station to station on Thursday collecting food and each time he greeted the students with the same expression. ’Trick or treat,’ Howard would say before flashing a mega-watt smile that had a contagious effect on the dozens of kids swarming around him and hanging on his every word. Just hours after getting back into Orlando following the Magic’s 99-95 defeat of the 76ers Wednesday night in Philadelphia, Howard was at Lake Como Elementary School helping students pack food into take-home pouches as part of the “Blessings in a Backpack’’ program. Howard donated $25,000 to the project as part of the winnings from the 2009-10 Rich and Helen DeVos Community Enrichment award.”
- Evan Dunlap of Orlando Pinstriped Post talks about Earl Clark’s development as a player, particularly on defense: “His strong work ethic is no doubt playing a role in his improvement. Last week, Magic strength and conditioning coach Joe Rogowski praised Clark by saying, ‘I’ve never had any one make progress so fast,’ in an interview for an Orlando Sentinel story. According to Rogowski, Clark has added ’10 pounds of muscle’ and ranks second to only Dwight Howard on the team in terms of wingspan, at 7-foot-2. His body now matches his position, in other words, as he used to lack the strength to defend power forwards. Now, coach Stan Van Gundy feels comfortable using him as the ‘defense’ part in an offense-defense substitution pattern, alternating Clark’s stints with Ryan Anderson‘s in the waning minutes of last night’s victory.”
- The meaning of head coach Jerry Sloan’s resignation for the Magic.
- Howard is adamant about not talking about free agency until the time comes.
- Best center in the NBA? Howard.
A steady descent for the Orlando Magic
Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
It was January 9.
The Orlando Magic just got done beating the Dallas Mavericks the night before to extend their winning streak to nine games — tying a franchise record. The Magic’s record was 25-12, third in the Eastern Conference, and they were within striking distance of the Miami Heat (trailed by 3.5 games) for the No. 2 seed. It looked like general manager Otis Smith struck gold with two blockbuster trades that brought Gilbert Arenas, Hedo Turkoglu, and Jason Richardson into the fray.
All was well.
The playmaking that was needed? Turkoglu took care of that.
The offensive firepower on the perimeter that was lacking? Arenas, Turkoglu, and Richardson brought the ammunition.
Unfortunately for Orlando, their nine-game winning streak — looking back on it now — was fool’s gold. That 22-point win over the San Antonio Spurs? The Spurs were playing on a back-to-back and head coach Gregg Popovich waved the white flag early in the third quarter, knowing the outcome was decided. That eight-point win over the Boston Celtics? Rajon Rondo, someone that has given the Magic plenty of problems in the past, didn’t play due to sprained left ankle (Kendrick Perkins was out, as well). That 10-point win over the Mavericks? Dirk Nowitzki sat out of the game with a sprained right knee. Orlando’s lone other win against a winning team in that timeframe came against the New York Knicks, a squad that is merely average and capable of beating beaten on any given night. Especially by the Magic.
Granted, Orlando has had some close losses too.
Losing by three to the New Orleans Hornets in overtime. Losing by a point to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Losing by three to the Celtics. Losing by nine points to the Chicago Bulls. Losing by four points to the Miami Heat. These aren’t bad losses, per se, but they’re not wins either.
For the Magic, close enough isn’t good enough. Not for a franchise that’s been considered part of the elite in the NBA since 2009 when they made their run to the Finals. And since Orlando’s winning streak, they’re 9-8 in their last 17 games and looking less like a championship contender.
It’s spurred writers from around the blogosphere to ask if the Magic are done?
Monday’s Magic Word
- John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com: “Delighted to be off losing teams and vaulted into the chase for a championship, Hedo Turkoglu and Gilbert Arenas initially played well in the afterglow of the Orlando Magic’s blockbuster trades back on Dec. 18. But in the weeks since, that glow has faded, the NBA’s dog days have hit and the two centerpiece players in the Magic’s midseason makeover have struggled mightily. That was never more evident than Sunday in Boston when Turkoglu and Arenas endured forgettable afternoons in Orlando’s 91-80 loss to the Celtics. Turkoglu missed nine of his 10 shots, while Arenas didn’t make any of his seven shots and went scoreless for the first time in his career since 2004. And when the frustrating Boston loss was over, Arenas not only racked his brain as to when the last time he played without scoring, but as to why all of his work in practice isn’t translating over to games.”
- Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel: “Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said that injured starting power forward Brandon Bass, who missed his third consecutive game Sunday because of a severely sprained left ankle, is making strides in his recovery. The club said that Bass still might be out until after the Feb. 17-19 NBA all-star break. Van Gundy said that the swelling in Bass’ ankle has decreased considerably. Bass, who was injured Jan. 31 against the Memphis Grizzlies, has been back in Orlando performing non-weight-bearing exercises in a swimming pool.”
- The Orlando Magic, simply put, are a team in disarray.
- Bradford Doolittle of Basketball Prospectus recaps the Magic’s loss yesterday.
- Dwight Howard was Jekyll and Hyde against the Boston Celtics.
- Is there a hitch in Howard’s free-throw shooting form?
- Marc Stein of ESPN.com: “The Magic were a wobbly 16-9 when they swung their big trades … and they’ve slumped to 16-11 since. They’re so out of sorts that Dwight, for the first time since December 2006, hasn’t blocked a shot for three games.”
- Howard is keeping the faith that the Magic can turn things around: “I look at the Packers in the Super Bowl and I know it can be done. Green Bay wasn´t great all the time during the season, but they got hot at the right time and crushed folks in the playoffs. Aaron Rodgers got it going and those dudes followed him, so I´m keeping the faith and hoping that I can do the same thing here with the Magic. We know we have so much talent on this team, but for us it´s about being more consistent on a night-to-night basis and bringing it defensively. We´ve struggled getting stops defensively and too often when our offense is struggling we let it affect our defense. We have to be tougher mentally and not let that happen.”
- Ken Berger of CBSSports.com: “Howard evidently is willing to be patient. A free agent in 2012 along with the Hornets’ Chris Paul, Howard has yet to form a strong opinion one way or the other, according to a person with knowledge of his thinking. Stay or go? To paraphrase LeBron, what should he do? If he does leave, Howard has his eyes on two teams — the Lakers and Knicks — as the big-market destinations where he’ll chase down his championships and marketing opportunities if things don’t work out in the Sunshine State. The Nets, who are supposed to be in Brooklyn by then, also are in the mix, the person said. So the Magic are on the clock — the way the Cavs were with LeBron and the Raptors with Chris Bosh, and the way the bill has come due for the Nuggets and Carmelo Anthony. But if you ask Magic GM Otis Smith — and I did — there isn’t some knee-jerk plan to deal with Howard’s future. Smith has been planning for the next year and a half for the past seven years.”
- Gilbert Arenas’ inability to produce in cold weather is not a hoax.
- Is Orlando still an elite team and championship contender?
- Zach Lowe of The Point Forward: “There are so many questions, and Van Gundy is still trying to answer them to find the right mix and the right sets on offense. The Magic will have only 25 games or so to work this out before Bass’ return. That’s not an ideal situation; the Cavaliers last season lamented how little time they had to prepare for the playoffs with their core lineup, and though Shaquille O’Neal’s late-season injury made that situation more troubling that Orlando’s current state, the fact remains that more preparation time is better.”
- Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports doesn’t mince words about Arenas’ struggles.
