Orlando Magic Blog

Group Blog talking about the NBA 2009 Eastern Conference Champions. Due to the amazing success of the 2009 playoff run comments are now frequently deleted to kill offensive comments, incoherence, or asininity. Comments can no longer be anonymous and require either a Blogger or OpenID account.

Wednesday, January 11, 2006

Ugly Loss at Clippers

I thought in this post Orlando Magic Blog: Upcoming Schedule that the Clips game wasn't winnable, but didn't count on it not being competitive with Brand out. That's ugly. Makes me wonder when Steve-O starts skipping practices again.

Maybe there's a silver lining. It could be the loss was so bad that they bounce back against Seattle. But Seattle has been playing a bit better with the other Hill coaching them. If they lose tonight then the game on the 13th with the Trailblazers becomes a must win.

posted by WeRDevos @ 11:08 AM  

9 Comments:

  • At 11:21 AM, Blogger Matt said…

    I agree that the game was way too ugly. Steve's turovers, as well as some of Jameer's, were plain foolish. At some point it looked like Steve simply handed the ball over to his buddy Cuttino. I worry about the mental status of the team being so unpredictable. They had two days of rest and this is all they could come up with? Where does the coach come in on these mishaps. Brian Hill admitted multiple times that Magic has been "outplayed" and "outcoached" in some games. I understand being outplayed, but how can a coach admit that his team has been outcoached? Isn't it his responsibility to make sure that the team is not outcoached?

     

  • At 11:48 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    I don't think the guys will bounce back from this and give a killer performance in Seattle. This is stuff that lingers, we'll hear stories about locker room rumbling, huddle upsets...Or maybe not. Maybe Grant comes back and stays healthy, maybe Steve-O gets his groove back and maybe Brian Hill starts outcoaching others. But I'm afraid that's starting to sound not just like it's unlikely, but like it's dreaming.

     

  • At 1:38 PM, Blogger Matt said…

    I commend the sincere posting by mathieu. I tend to have a more positive oulook short of dreaming. In short, this team is expected to be better than last year's, as well as coached better. If that stands true, they should do better than last year's in term of results.

     

  • At 2:40 PM, Blogger OVERWADED said…

    I've watched the Magic from the beginning. I watch the rest of the NBA. It's not often that a team just confuses me the way the Magic do. No matter what there are positives. The Magic have won their last 4 home games, yet, we're on the road all month. They also have a nice foundation with Howard, Nelson, and Stevenson. But there are so many questions. Pat Garrity has played himself useless especially if he keeps missing open shots. Hedo is very inconsistent. Cato is as good as gone. I really don't think he cares anymore. But the two major concerns right now are G Hill and Francis. With Hill; his age, injuries, and contract are a concern. I don't question what he brings on the court. But Francis... What is wrong with him? He put together a nice stretch a few weeks ago starting with the Lakers game. But then the ear problem, what not, which I hope that is what's bothering him, because he has looked horrible. He's not doing much for the team at all right now. Is he unhappy with something? I mean, what is the problem? He's never looked this bad in his whole career. Sorry for the rant, but I just can't figure out this team. It's like watching two different teams. One looks like a serious playoff team, and the other looks like a team that has already thrown in the towels for the season. But the moment they start looking like that for to long, they come and put together a nice string of games to confuse you more. If it continues, one point or another, the coach is going to have to take responsibility. Maybe not this year, or in the summer, but I don't see Brian Hill lasting long. Some of the plays he runs, substitution patterns, are just really questionable, and he's always been like that. Remember back in the day when he would just leave Brian Shaw in the game, and the fans would be booing Shaw, I often felt sorry for him.

     

  • At 4:07 PM, Blogger WeRDevos said…

    Introvert,

    Nice of you to show up. I also remember how well Jackson eventually used Shaw in L.A.

    I have a pet theory that hockey-guy quit/was fired over B.Hill being rehired. I thought the rumblings were that he wanted Musselman. The family thought the fans wanted a nostalgia binge. I posted Hill's non-Shaq record over at the Sentinel once and it's ugly. Nothing so far this year changes my mind that he's improved.

    Another theory is that Francis is a head case and pouted himself out of Houston after Yao showed up to become the new face of the franchise. It was a miracle that another franchise would come along and offer to take Steve-O's huge contract, let alone get something back in return. Question: is Francis pouting again because Hill came back and assumed a starting role? Or is he starting to rebel against Hill? I can't get a handle on this guy or his career at all.

     

  • At 5:13 PM, Blogger WeRDevos said…

    Maybe Francis is just an unhappy guy. He forced his way out of Vancouver, wasn't happy with Van Gundy, led the league in technicals the last 3 years (prior to this season anyway). And didn't he kick a photographer last year?

    Could he play PG for the all unhinged NBA team?

    PF -- Rasheed
    SF -- Artest
    SG -- Sprewell
    PG -- Francis
    Coach - Mitchell (Toronto)

    Just need a crazy center...

     

  • At 5:50 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    No doubt that Steve-O is a difficult guy, the examples (Vancouver, Van Gundy, technicals) are there. But it's a matter of balancing and comparing. I feel with all his turnovers and technicals, he stíll has been a major factor for this team. His points, his game winners, hell, I'd take some nastyness for that. But when the points aren't there anymore, and with a Jameer Nelson behind him, you have to start asking questions. He had slumps before, but like Introvert pointed out, this is maybe the worst slump he had so far. I have no doubt he'll get out of it, I'm just not that sure anymore the Magic is the team he's gonna do it with. Or, let me rephrase, I'm not sure Brian Hill is the coach that'll help him get out of it.
    But I'm still hesatative when it comes to trading. Weisbrod's overhaul of the roster was The Make-Over, and now, only two years later, there's already talk about a new make-over. I believe that the Magic can be consistent on the court if the organisation is consistent of the court (that includes arena issues, mmoving town, gm's coming and going, all that).
    As far as Brian Hill's concerned: he's limited as a coach, and he seems to have no reason admitting that, as matt said in his first post. But I do believe he's a key factor for the magic staying in Orlando. I don't catch all the buzz here in far far away Belgium, but BH=the memory of the good times, the glory, and that's what the people in Orlando want back, I guess. The signing of BH was one of the heart, I think, and I don't mind that. However, this team won't bond with the community with a losing Hill as they would with a winning, let's say, Musselman.

     

  • At 6:50 PM, Blogger Matt said…

    I take this opportunity to welcome Introvert316 to the blog, as well. Our little blog is quickly turning into a nice forum. In a few days that the blog has satrted we have covered a lot of grounds, mainly thanks to WeRDevos's keen efforts to collect data of interest from a large pool of sources. Pete's posting on the arena issue has been broad and informative. In 1986 when the Orange County Convention Center was not such a huge complex, and Mr. Rosen was not that big of a player in hotels' industry, an agreement for a small tax on hotel rooms was reached allowing the main source of funding for the Orena. Now Mr. Rosen is the main opposition to any contibution to the new arena's construction. I am amazed that the public may show outrage on the ineptness of the Magic franchise, and rightly so, but do not show the same outrage towards Rosen and gang who see nothing but their own interests. The fact is nobody will notice a small tax on the tourists' related revenues, and the opposition's claim that such tax will affect thier business is absolutely absurd.

     

  • At 12:14 AM, Blogger OVERWADED said…

    And Mark Cuban did it because he didn't care how much he had to spend to build a solid team.

    On a side note... I don't know how or why the Allen/Dooling fight broke out, but I'm glad it happened. Not to say I want fights in the NBA, but this team needs some fire. Although after the fact the Magic are still not playing with any fire at the moment. Maybe I should take that back, they are making a run, down 10 with 7 to go.

     

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