How Good Are the Magic?
Marc Stein says they are #1. He also says his rankings are based on both the here and now, and who should eventually be the champ. His rankings come out on ESPN each Monday.
ESPN - NBA Basketball Power Rankings - National Basketball Association
John Hollinger says they are #2 behind Boston. His is based on some statistical formula. His rankings are updated daily.
John Hollinger Power Rankings
NBA.com says they are #4 behind San Antonio, Boston, Phoenix.
NBA.COM Power Rankings
At the quarter point of the season and 13 road games it's all well deserved. The coaching has been great, Howard has reached a new level, Nelson is playing up to his new contract, Lewis has created the floor space he was signed to do, and Turkoglu and Bogans have resurrected their careers by playing the smart basketball they were always capable of.
Even the bench is starting to shape up after the Ariza trade. Boston is on pace to wear out their Big 3. Van Gundy is keeping the starting front court minutes in the mid 30's and has added Evans, Redick and a few minutes for Cook to the mix.
Although they haven't won a playoff series since Shaq quit Orlando, this team has a legitimate shot to win the East this year. They need to continue to improve, and learn to beat Detroit. They also have over $10 million worth of expiring contracts to make a February trade.
Go Magic!
ESPN - NBA Basketball Power Rankings - National Basketball Association
John Hollinger says they are #2 behind Boston. His is based on some statistical formula. His rankings are updated daily.
John Hollinger Power Rankings
NBA.com says they are #4 behind San Antonio, Boston, Phoenix.
NBA.COM Power Rankings
At the quarter point of the season and 13 road games it's all well deserved. The coaching has been great, Howard has reached a new level, Nelson is playing up to his new contract, Lewis has created the floor space he was signed to do, and Turkoglu and Bogans have resurrected their careers by playing the smart basketball they were always capable of.
Even the bench is starting to shape up after the Ariza trade. Boston is on pace to wear out their Big 3. Van Gundy is keeping the starting front court minutes in the mid 30's and has added Evans, Redick and a few minutes for Cook to the mix.
Although they haven't won a playoff series since Shaq quit Orlando, this team has a legitimate shot to win the East this year. They need to continue to improve, and learn to beat Detroit. They also have over $10 million worth of expiring contracts to make a February trade.
Go Magic!
posted by WeRDevos @ 9:57 AM
4 Comments:
At 8:40 PM,
Mike from Illinois said…
I think the Magic are third best right now in the NBA behind the Spurs and the Suns. I think they're better than the Celtics. When the Pistons have a healthy team, I'm not sure the Magic are better than they are at this point... I'd like to see the Magic be more competitive in future games with the Pistons.
After a quarter of the season, though, the Magic have surpassed everyone's expectations, and though some things can be improved on, they're playing really well and proving themselves to be a top NBA team.
GO MAGIC!!
At 10:31 AM,
Big Figure said…
I agree,magic are probably 4th best when it comes to actually playing the games against each other. I wouldnt pick the magic to beat the spurs,suns or pistons. Spurs and suns the magic wouldnt have to face until the finals if they made it,and the pistons if they dont have a better record than the magic may have to come to orlando for the playoffs,the magic may have a chance in that situation.
At 12:44 PM,
WeRDevos said…
I like the Magic odds to make the finals. They are on a terrific run, they could still improve with both more experience and by a possible trade.
To make the finals they need to get by Detroit and Boston. Both are coached by career losers. Doc Rivers has never won a playoff series as coach, and Flip Saunders has underachieved. If Doc doesn't ease off on the minutes the Celtics will have a tough time in the playoffs. By the end of last year Saunders and Rasheed weren't talking. Given a long season, this could happen again. The coaching gives the Magic a chance at beating both teams.
Cleveland just got a lot better with Varejo. New Jersey just got a lot worse with Kidd calling in sick last night. Everyone else is suspect and unlikely to make it out of the first round.
Miami and Chicago may already be toast.
At 5:23 AM,
OVERWADED said…
I pretty much agree with you guys, except for one thing...
"Cleveland just got a lot better with Varejo".
Really? Were that good with him last year? Yeah, I know, they made it to the Finals, but they had a "cake walk" minus the Pistons who crumbled in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Of course then the Spurs brought them back to reality by crushing them without even trying.
While I agree that Lebron is good enough to take there team places, I wouldn't give much credit to "Side Show Bob".
In comparison, that'd be like me saying the Magic just got a lot better the day Tony Battie returns.
While I agree that he'll help, I just don't see him making a difference in the W/L column.
The Cavs needs to make some moves if they want to contend.
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