Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

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Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

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Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

J.J. Redick plays a solid game, a fluid game, and a game that makes us think we are missing him when he is gone. Those around the league like to say he has a “high basketball IQ.” But does he? It seems that sometimes there are players who can give you positive output in almost every statistical category, but still fail to impact the game the way you want them to.

First we have to define basketball IQ. I hear it a lot when a player makes an unexpectedly good decision, or shows in some way that he schooled himself on his opponent. Generally it means preparedness, or the ability to adapt the rhythm of the game no matter what. Moreover, it means thinking ahead, and being one step ahead of your opponent.

At first glance I would say Redick definitely has a high basketball IQ. But how does this translate to statistics? I break it down into four categories: taking smart shots, making smart passes, playing strong defense, and protecting the ball. Superstar or not, if you can keep those four areas of your game on speed dial, you will do more good than harm for your team.

As for taking smart shots, Redick obviously does not struggle with the temptation to throw up circus shots, or go off shooting fadeaway’s from deep. His shot selection is sound, as evidenced by his .589 True Shooting percentage from this season. In fact, only two Magic players have a better True Shooting percentage than Redick—Dwight Howard and Ryan Anderson.

Need a current Eastern Conference Finals contender to compare that to? Kyle Korver currently has a True Shooting percentage of .572, and D-Wade is .581. So yes, Redick shoots for a high percentage, and at 17 percent usage, that is exactly what you need out of him.

Redick’s True Shooting percentage puts him among the leagues top 50 players, so he gets an A in this category.

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Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images

With the regular season winding down and the postseason just a mere six days away, I figured I’d do what other writers have been doing lately — reveal my awards ballot. I know that I’m not a member of the Pro Basketball Writers Association, which means I do not have a say in who wins which award but I still wanted to engage in this exercise.

Most Valuable Player

With LeBron James teaming up with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, coupled with ‘The Decision’ becoming a PR disaster, it’s no surprise that the race for the MVP award was wide-open this season. Voter fatigue was already going to be an issue for James in his quest for a third consecutive MVP, given that not even Michael Jordan accomplished the feat in his career. As such, it was going to take a historical year from James to overcome the many obstacles in his way for him to win the MVP but it didn’t happen. James’ numbers took a small hit across the board, with Wade’s presence being a corollary reason. That allowed a player like Dwight Howard to be his near equal statistically. When looking at their resumes and complete bodies of work, it’s hard not to choose between James or Howard for MVP — there’s no wrong answer between the two them.

Howard gets the nod because of many factors.

The improvements that everyone was waiting for from Howard were fulfilled, as he was able to maintain his efficiency on offense even with a career-high usage rate of 27.2 percent. The sign of a great scorer in the NBA is his ability to be efficient while shouldering a heavy load offensively, and Howard was able to do that this season. And it can’t be understated the type of impact Howard has when he’s not scoring, given that his presence in the low post allows the shooters for the Orlando Magic to enjoy plenty of open looks from the perimeter that wouldn’t come otherwise. Also known as the Shaquille O’Neal effect with Damon Jones as a prime example.

Likewise, Howard is vital to the Magic’s vaunted pick and roll attack that’s anchored by Jameer Nelson and Hedo Turkoglu, with the threat of him being the roll man making it extremely difficult for opposing defenses to aggressively contain the pick and rolls. With a refined post game and a reliable mid-range jumper from 10-15 feet that he’s making at a rate (40.2 percent) better than the league average (39.4 percent), coupled with an underrated ability to pass out of double-teams effectively, Howard has all the tools offensively. It’s only at the free-throw line where Howard continues to struggle.

Critics are quick to point out Howard’s lack of involvement in crunch-time situations but that’s partly due to his teammates not getting him the basketball enough, plus head coach Stan Van Gundy not calling plays for him at times. Sometimes it’s as simple as Orlando needing a three-point shot in the closing seconds of a game. Even then, Howard’s ability to rebound and defend gets overlooked way too many times in discussions of players performing in the clutch.

And when it comes down to it, there’s not another player in the league that can impact a game defensively like Howard. Despite general manager Otis Smith acquiring acquiring Turkoglu, Jason Richardson, and Gilbert Arenas, thus becoming far weaker on defense in theory, the Magic are ranked 3rd in defensive efficiency — better than teams like the Miami Heat — thanks in large part to Howard’s ability to coerce opposing players into shooting jumpshots while limiting their chances at the free-throw line and devouring rebounds. Van Gundy’s schemes are a factor too, but Howard puts it into practice on countless possessions, which is the primary reason that Orlando defends post players better than any other team. Or that Howard is able to slow down a pick and roll, recover to the paint, and provide weak-side defense in one felt swoop. Was it mentioned that the Magic do the best job of limiting field goal attempts at the rim because of Howard’s intimidating presence in the lane? Indeed, Howard is an omnipresent defensive force.

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• Josh Cohen of OrlandoMagic.com: “Ignore the regular season series between the [Orlando] Magic and Hawks because every game they played was inconsequential evidence of what to expect in this rematch of last year’s conference semifinals. The first meeting was before Orlando’s blockbuster trades; the second collision was during the Magic’s stomach virus epidemic, the third was the first game following the deals and the final contest was injury-plagued for the blue and white. While Jason Collins was credited for his willingness to body up on Dwight Howard in the regular season, I expect Superman to flourish and dominate against his counterpart in a seven-game series. I also anticipate Jameer Nelson to thrive against Kirk Hinrich, who the Hawks acquired at the trade deadline from the Wizards. One of the more intriguing matchups will be at the shooting guard spot with Joe Johnson and Jason Richardson – two explosive scorers and primetime players. Some of the most glaring curiosities will be injury related as Atlanta’s Josh Smith recently returned from a sprained knee and it remains unspecified whether Orlando’s J.J. Redick will be back after missing more than a dozen games with a lower abdominal strain.”
• John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com looks back at the top 10 moments for the Orlando Magic in the 2010-2011 NBA regular season. Here’s number one: “A sluggish Magic team given up for dead when it trailed the rival Heat by 18 points at halftime and by as much as 24 points in the second half awoke from its slumber and pulled off a comeback win for the ages. Once down 73-49 early in the third quarter, the Magic used runs of 22-7 (to end the third period) and 18-2 (to start the fourth quarter) – a shocking 40-9 spurt in all – for what very well could be the biggest regular-season victory in franchise history. The 24-point rally just missed equaling the all-time Magic record. Orlando’s comeback from 25 points down on Nov. 8, 1989 in Cleveland is the all-time franchise record. Orlando held LeBron James and Dwyane Wade to just 10 points combined in the second half after the Heat duo had 47 points in the first half. Wade did not have a field goal in the second half and James did not score in the fourth quarter.”
• Dwight Howard likes being the underdog.
• Tas Melas of The Basketball Jones makes his case for Howard and the MVP award.
• Matt Moore of CBSSports.com: “Orlando poneyed up for the new arena critics of small-markets allege the non-top cities never approve. Ownership elected to go above and beyond the cap, deep into the luxury tax. They were smart enough to draft, and develop, a franchise player, acquire a competitive and arguably brilliant head coach, surround the team with competent role players. When the 2009 team failed to get past the last challenge, management did not get complacent, and instead opted for the home-run move you’re supposed to make, according to many. Vince Carter, for all his Vince-Carter-ness, was still a legit star in the summer of 2009. They went for the big move. When that didn’t work out, they once again swung for the fences. You can’t say Otis Smith didn’t try. But here they are. Entering the playoffs as the worst seed they’ve been since 2008, with little to no momentum, and considered nothing more than after-thought in the playoffs. They are a speedbump in the road to the Finals for teams from Miami, Chicago, Boston. They gambled. They lost. And the worst part of all is this season may turn out to be the one that gives Dwight Howard an excuse to leave Orlando; it may be the one reflected on as what turns Howard away; it may be the year Orlando lost their franchise center, again.”
• Offensive rebounds aided the Orlando Magic’s victory against the Philadelphia 76ers.
• Kurt Helin of ProBasketballTalk is skeptical that Jason Collins will make a difference for the Atlanta Hawks in their first round matchup against the Magic in the 2011 NBA Playoffs: “Orlando has dominated this matchup in recent years, but Atlanta is counting on Jason Collins to change that. Sure, that will work.”
• Kevin Pelton of Basketball Prospectus reveals his awards ballot.
• Atlanta and Orlando are two teams searching for respect in different ways.
• Britt Robson of Sports Illustrated: “Based on this regular-season performance, Orlando has to hope Howard remains loyal when he’s eligible to become a free agent after next season. That would enable the Magic — whose salary-cap situation doesn’t look pretty — to go back to square two in rebuilding around the 25-year-old center.”

Photo by Fernando Medina/NBAE via Getty Images

Via the Orlando Magic:

The Orlando Magic’s Dwight Howard was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played Monday, Mar. 21, through Sunday, Mar. 27. It marks the sixth time this season, which is an NBA-high (LeBron James-5; Russell Westbrook, Dwyane Wade-4), and the 17th time of his career that Howard has earned the league’s top weekly honor.

Howard led the Magic to a 3-0 week and helped push the team to its fifth consecutive victory, which is Orlando’s third longest winning streak of the season and is tied for the longest active winning streak in the Eastern Conference. Howard averaged 27.3 points (third in the East), an NBA-high 14.3 rebounds per game and shot .717 (27-of-38) from the field, which was also tops in the league. He also ranked first in the East in blocks (3.3 blkpg.) and second in steals per contest (2.3 stlpg.). Howard tallied double-doubles in each of the Magic’s three contests, extending his franchise record double-double streak to 30 games (Jan. 21-present) and led the team in scoring and rebounding in all three games.

In addition, on Mar. 21 at Cleveland, Howard recorded 28 points, 18 rebounds, four blocks, four assists and four steals. According to ESPN, he became the first player since Hakeem Olajuwon over 21 years ago to record those numbers in a single game (Olajuwon tallied 29 points, 18 rebounds, 11 blocks, 10 assists and five steals on Mar. 3, 1990 in a victory over Golden State).

Here is a recap of the week for Howard:

Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic
Mar. 21 @ Cleveland: Posted 28 points, 18 rebounds, four blocks, four assists and four steals in a 97-86 win over the Cavaliers.
Mar. 23 @ New York: Poured in 33 points to go along with 11 rebounds, three blocks and two assists in a 111-99 win at New York.
Mar. 25 vs. New Jersey: Tallied 21 points, 14 rebounds, three blocks and two steals in a 95-85 victory over the Nets.

AP Photo/Frank Franklin II

BOX SCORE

The Orlando Magic were able to defeat the New York Knicks by the score of 111-99 to extend their winning streak to four games. This was a game that went back-and-forth for three quarters before the Magic were able to take control in the fourth quarter, and come away with a double-digit victory. Orlando was led by a balanced attack, with five players scoring in double-figures. Dwight Howard continues his race towards the MVP award, even if he’s seen by many as a longshot to win it, as he finished with 33 points, 11 rebounds, and three blocks. The most impressive thing when looking at Howard’s box score wasn’t his point total or even shooting percentage, but his ability to go 11-for-13 from the free-throw line. Howard is already an efficient player by the nature of the types of shots he gets but when he’s making his free-throws, he becomes impossible to contain. The Knicks, especially Amar’e Stoudemire (committed three personal fouls in the fourth quarter trying to defend Howard), found out the hard way. Jameer Nelson had a strong performance with 19 points. Hedo Turkoglu contributed with 16 points, 11 rebounds, and four assists. Brandon Bass had 15 points and seven rebounds, while Jason Richardson chipped in with 12 points and six rebounds. With the win, the Magic inch closer to winning their 50th game of the regular season.

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Photo by Flickr/mcdonaldsallamericangames

In Part I, we discussed the idea of teams drafting winners. Part II looked at the teams who drafted winners, and how the players performed in the NBA.

Part III will explore two different one-and-done scenarios, and the NCAA Tournament history of players on top NBA teams. We will also see the “good ol’ days” are aptly named.

One-and-done and one-and-done
Before the NBA outlawed entering the draft right after high school, many players made the leap from prep-to-pro. The only March Madness footage you’ll see of Dwight Howard and LeBron James is during their McDonald’s commercial. We won’t hear highlights of Gus Johnson screaming “rise and fire!” before Kobe Bryant nailed a game winner. It’s sad these players were never part of March Madness. Fortunately, the restrictions on draft eligibility have led some NBA stars to the Big Dance.

The NBA’s leading scorer, Kevin Durant, steered Texas to the tournament in 2007, but that was about it.  The Longhorns beat New Mexico State in round one, and lost their next game. In the 2008 Final Four, Derrick Rose and Memphis toppled the UCLA Bruins, who featured Kevin Love and Russell Westbrook.  Rose came close to a title, but his team lost a late lead two days later in the championship game. Highlight machine Blake Griffin reached the Elite Eight in his final collegiate season before falling to North Carolina.

Other NBA greats went to college before the restrictions were in place, but they didn’t cut down the nets either. Dwyane Wade led the Marquette Golden Eagles to the 2003 Final Four, but was knocked out by Kansas. Tim Duncan reached the Elite Eight at Wake Forest, but Chris Paul never made it past the Sweet 16 as a Demon Deacon. Shaquille O’Neal, one of the most intimidating players of all time, met kryptonite in three straight NCAA Tournaments and never advanced past the second round.

Failing to stand on stage with Jim Nantz wasn’t the end of the world for these guys. Tim Duncan and Shaquille O’Neal both boast four NBA rings and will be remembered as two of the best players ever. Dwyane Wade won a ring with Miami, and Kevin Durant and Derrick Rose are positioning themselves for some jewelry.

The basic structure of the tournament is the simplest explanation for these all-time greats never winning an NCAA championship. The one-and-done format essentially caters to underdogs, as the randomness of single elimination allows many inferior teams to advance. Sustaining tremendous performance throughout a series is much more difficult and is a major reason the best NBA teams usually meet in June.

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• Zach McCann of the Orlando Sentinel: “Among Stan Van Gundy’s memorable Monday of this week — when he infamously called out David Stern on the topic of officials’ treatment of Dwight Howard — he also gave a nice little jab to the Miami Heat. It was a day after the Heat’s crying incident, and Van Gundy was hardly sympathetic to the Heat’s suffocating media attention. ‘My suggestion would be if you don’t want the scrutiny, you don’t hold a championship celebration before you’ve even practiced together,’ Van Gundy said. ‘It’s hard to go out yourself and invite that kind of crowd and celebration and attention, and then when things aren’t going well, sort of bemoan the fact that you’re getting that attention. To me, that doesn’t follow.’ Credit to Van Gundy for saying what everyone else was thinking. Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade responded on Thursday, saying no one except those in Los Angeles have any right to speak about the Heat’s situation.”
• J.J. Redick got injured in shootaround earlier today.
• Get to know the players and coaches on the bench for the Orlando Magic.
• Jason Richardson talks about his trade to the Magic: “It took a little bit of time. This team is not as much about being a primary scorer and in Orlando I don’t have to be that because we have Dwight Howard, Gilbert [Arenas], myself, Hedo [Turkoglu], Jameer [Nelson], we got so many guys, J.J. Redick, you could just go down a list of guys who can score. I knew my scoring was going to take a dip. I didn’t have a problem with that as long as we winning games that’s all that really matters.”
• Zach Lowe of The Point Forward points out that offensive rebounding, something that coaches like head coach Stan Van Gundy don’t stress very much, is diminishing in value around the NBA: “The larger story is that the league as a whole seems to be moving away from viewing the offensive rebound as an important weapon. For the second straight year, the league has a pretty good chance to post the lowest overall average offensive rebounding rate in its history, or at least back to 1974, the first year in which Basketball-Reference has reliable public data on the stat. Last season’s league-wide average of 26.3 percent was the lowest on record. The Timberwolves currently lead the league with an offensive rebounding rate of 30.8 percent, a mark which would have placed them 19th out of 23 teams in the 1983-84 season. This is not a new thing. Coaches such as Doc Rivers, Stan Van Gundy, Tom Thibodeau, Gregg Popovich and many others have talked openly about why they prioritize transition defense over offensive rebounding, and NBA folks ranging from Donnie Walsh to Reggie Evans reflected on the death of the offensive rebound in a piece I wrote last season for NYTimes.com. It’s a well-known strategy, which is why it’s frustrating to hear guys like Miller lambaste the Celtics (and other such teams) based on their low rebound totals — and why it was so refreshing to hear Steve Kerr rebut that argument, with liberal mention of rebounding rate, during a recent Boston game on TNT.”
• Would Orlando and the Los Angeles Lakers be a dream NBA Finals matchup?

• Zach McCann of the Orlando Sentinel: “For the first time since Orlando Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said NBA commissioner David Stern doesn’t allow free speech and compared him to oppressive world leaders, the commissioner addressed those comments on Thursday on The Herd with Colin Cowherd on ESPN Radio. Stern said the comments made him sad and he intends to speak with the team’s management about getting Van Gundy’s comments under control. ‘I’m going to engage in a private discussions at this point with his franchise,’ Stern said. ‘I actually am not going to talk to Stan Van Gundy. I’m going to talk to the ownership of the team.’ Stern also implied he doesn’t intend to fine Van Gundy. ‘Because he tried to make it so personal, I’m not going to do anything about it this time,’ Stern said.”
• What’s it like being Stuff the Orlando Magic mascot?
• Gilbert Arenas is showing flashes of his old self.
• Josh Cohen of OrlandoMagic.com takes a look at playoff tiebreaking scenarios.
• Commissioner David Stern strikes back at head coach Stan Van Gundy. Eric Freeman of Ball Don’t Lie is impressed that Van Gundy got Stern’s undivided attention: “That’s an exaggeration of the state of the Magic, of course, but that’s just how Stern operates. As Bethlehem Shoals explained in a recent piece for Tablet, Stern isn’t fully engaged if he’s not slyly ragging on people. I suppose that means Van Gundy should be honored to have the attention of the league’s top dog, even if it’s under less-than-ideal circumstances.”
• Dwyane Wade doesn’t mince words at Van Gundy either.
• Rob Mahoney of ProBasketballTalk: “If he were playing for any number of other NBA coaches, [Ryan] Anderson would likely go about his hot-shooting business undisturbed. Defense would likely be emphasized in practice and in games, but Stan Van Gundy is among the few who will repeatedly make the decision to bench productive players on the basis of defense alone. As good as Anderson is, this is the right play for the Magic and Van Gundy’s system; if Anderson can’t or won’t defend, then SVG should endeavor to find a player who will.[...] Anderson — and the same is true of Brandon Bass — needs to improve defensively if he’s to fully replace Lewis on his own rather than filling in for 20-minute bursts. More playing time may have been gifted him in other systems, but SVG knows no charity in his rotation, and every minute will need to be earned with defensive execution.”
• Players for the Magic chime in, including Sacramento native Ryan Anderson and former Kings’ player Hedo Turkoglu, on the Sacramento Kings’ current arena dilemma.
• Kelly Dwyer of Ball Don’t Lie takes a look at Orlando’s win against Sacramento: “Sacramento played hard, and they gave us a fun game to wind down a crazy Wednesday night. And Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy deserves dap for letting Dwight Howard play through four fouls for most of the second half (reminded me, and he’ll hate this, of Phil Jackson). But this game came down to Sacramento’s inability to stop Orlando’s screen and roll.”