Summer Changes: So Far

ESPN - Orlando Magic Statistics - NBA Basketball:

While the Magic haven't made a huge change this summer like the Warriors, Clippers, 76ers, and Rockets the changes they have made are fairly significant.

Definitely gone from last years club are:

Mo Evans, 47 starts, 1626 minutes, 633 points
Keyon Dooling, 72 games played, 1333 minutes, 581 points, 133 assists
Carlos Arroyo, 20 starts, 1266 minutes, 430 pts, 219 assists
Pat Garrity, 31 miserable games, 284 unbearable minutes, 66 pts, 17 TO
James Augustine, 25 games, 116 minutes, no discernable contribution
Trevor Ariza
Bo Outlaw

Those 7 guys totaled 24.1% of all minutes played, 20.9% of the points scored, 14% of rebounds, 26% of the total assists. So the team is effectively changing a quarter of last years floor time covering 4,780 minutes or 58 minutes per game.

If you just look at the guards and g/sf combo players from last year (in descending order of minutes played):

Bogans 2205
Nelson 1963
Evans * 1626
Dooling * 1333
Arroyo * 1266
Redick 276
Ariza * 116

The guys who are gone (*) represent 49% of the minutes played from the 2007 group, 51.1% of the points scored, 45% of the groups rebounds, 46% of steals, 46% of the groups turnovers and 50% of its fouls.

The guards who have left played 4,341 minutes last year. Where are those minutes coming from?

Nelson, missed 13 games, averaged 28 minutes per game. Put him down for 30 minutes a game and 82 games, that is 500 more minutes.

Pietrus: last year played 1317 minutes for Golden State in 66 games. He better come to camp in shape, the most minutes he's ever played in a season is 1940 in 2006/07. Put him down for 30 minutes and 2500 minutes minimum.

Anthony Johnson played 1530 minutes in 69 games for Atlanta & Sacramento last year. If he gets 18 minutes a game in 82 this year that's 1500 minutes.

Nelson, Pietrus and Johnson will be called on to step up and deliver the bulk of the minutes that have left the team. The rest is up to Lee and Redick to earn minutes from Pietrus and Bogans. Otis continues to stress they need a 3rd PG.

Preseason games just got more interesting

ESPN - Five NBA teams to partake in exhibitions against Euro powers - NBA

Fran Vasquez is finally coming to America, but with FC Barcelona on a tour of NBA cities for exhibition games.

Reigning Euroleague champion CSKA Moscow, Spanish powerhouse FC Barcelona and Lithuania's Lietuvos Rytas will face the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Orlando Magic, Toronto Raptors and, possibly, the Los Angeles Clippers at undetermined NBA venues.

The Euroleague American Tour tips off Oct. 10 with CSKA facing the Magic before the Russians fly to Toronto to play the Raptors on Oct. 14. FC Barcelona will play two games as part of the "Preseason Shootout" at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, meeting the Lakers on Oct. 18 and either the Clippers or Raptors a day later. Rytas will play the Warriors at the Oracle Arena in Oakland on Oct. 21 to culminate the tour.

If televised, it would give a glimpse of Vasquez vs. Bynum, Gasol & Marcus Camby. I look forward to seeing the Magic vs. CSKA Moscow.

Magic say goodbye to James Augustine

From today's Online Sentinel from Brian Schmitz:

The Orlando Magic will soon try to re-sign center Adonal Foyle, adding another big man to the roster after waiving little-used power forward James Augustine on Tuesday.

Magic General Manager Otis Smith said he would like Foyle to return and would speak to his agent, Lon Babby, in the next few days.

"Adonal's a big body, he knows how to play," Smith said. "We'll see where it goes."

Augustine's release was not a surprise, considering he seldom played and the club is looking to reduce its payroll.

He played in just 27 games since arriving as a second-round pick in 2006. The Magic had until today to either re-sign the 6 foot-10 Augustine to a guaranteed contract of about $800,000 or waive him. He was playing on a make-good contract in the team's summer league.

Smith said even the absence of Augustine's salary "give us some flexibility; it's a little bit, but it's not a little bit when you're talking about the cap and getting close to the luxury tax. It's the flexibility it gives us. It's more about where we are salary-wise."

Smith said he wants to add a third point guard, and added the club could go with just 14 players. Most teams carry 15. "We tried to do that last year, go with 14, but then Tony (Battie) got hurt," Smith said.

2007/08 Magic League and Player Rankings

NBA Team by Position stats

from www.82games.com who are the stats geeks for the NBA.

Below is the Magic performance compared to the rest of the league by position, not player. PER is a John Hollinger stat from ESPN. 82 games ranks PER - Opposition PER.

Orlando Magic

07-08	Ranks (Net)						PER Difference
POS	Pts	FG%	Reb	Ast	T/O	FTA	PER	Opp	Rank
PG	16	7	19	12	16	14	16.7	16.8	14
SG	27	5	25	30	1	25	14.1	17.1	24
SF	8	5	14	5	28	14	17.9	15.7	7
PF	8	3	30	7	25	23	17.0	16.1	12
C	4	1	1	23	30	1	22.6	15.1	1

A lot of the data here is pretty obvious to Magic fans.

1. Dwight Howard plays over 80% of the available Center minutes for the Magic so it's no big surprise the Magic are the best in the league at the position overall, FG%, Rebounding and Free Throw Attempts. Howard can still get better, he is relatively poor at passing and very bad at turnovers. Plus there are three teams that score more out of the Center position.

2. The combination of Turk and whoever is pretty good all around.

3. Lewis & company is clearly playing out of position at PF with very poor rebounding and turnovers. Then again, how much rebounding is needed with Howard at Center? As with SF, the Magic get strong passing from the PF position, and marksman-like shooting.

4. My anti-Magic Guard bias figured the PG position was even worse than these numbers show. Plenty of room for improvement here. I still have trouble picturing the Magic winning a title with Nelson as starter. And he was much better than Arroyo and Dooling.

5. I knew the SG position was a bit on the bad side, but these stats say they were awful last year. SG was mostly Evans, Bogans & some Dooling. Pietrus and Lee are in a position to really help the Magic out in 2008/09. They would really have to suck to maintain last years production.

Here is a look at the entire roster as sorted by Roland Rating which is:

This rating isn't an absolute measure of a player's ability, but it does represent how successful a player is with a given team. In general the player with the best Roland Rating on a team is the difference maker (exclude the guys who play a statistically insignificant number of minutes). When the top guy is on the floor the team performs at a much higher level.

These ratings represent a player's value to a particular team and are not intended to be an accurate gauge of the ability and talent of the player away from the specific team.

Explanation: The on court +/- number repesents the team's net points with the player on the floor per 48 minutes, while the off court number is the team's net with the player off the floor per 48 minutes. The Roland Rating is the difference between the two, with a positive number indicating the team has played better with the player than without.

Again, very obvious to fans. The big three are Howard, Turk & Lewis. Arroyo, Nelson & Dooling were neutral contributors (ie. with big three on the court along with them the team succeeded, when they were on the court with others the team performance was poor.) The rest of the list is like dragging an anchor on a speedboat. Evans/Bogans hurts the team performance quite a bit. Cook, Foyle & Garrity quite a lot, with Garrity just killing the Magic when he's was on the floor.

Getting rid of any or all of the guards is not a bad summer plan. Just two years ago Nelson was the 2nd best player on the team. Now he's badly overpaid at $8 million.

Production			On Court/Off Court			Roland
Player	Min	Own	Opp	Net	On	Off	Net	Rating
Howard	78%	25.8	13.3	+12.5	+7.4	-1.6	+9.0	+11.1
Turkoglu	77%	20.2	14.6	+5.6	+7.0	+0.3	+6.8	+6.1
Gortat	1%	22.5	9.6	+12.9	+0.0	+5.5	-5.5	+5.5
Lewis	78%	18.9	14.6	+4.4	+6.5	+1.6	+5.0	+4.6
Arroyo	32%	14.6	15.3	-0.7	+5.1	+5.6	-0.5	-0.6
Nelson	50%	17.6	18.9	-1.3	+5.6	+5.3	+0.2	-0.7
Dooling	34%	16.0	16.1	-0.1	+4.4	+6.0	-1.6	-0.7
Bogans	56%	12.5	17.7	-5.2	+6.6	+4.0	+2.6	-2.1
Redick	7%	14.7	14.8	-0.1	-2.8	+6.1	-8.8	-3.6
Evans	41%	15.7	19.4	-3.6	+3.1	+7.1	-4.0	-3.8
Ariza	3%	14.5	20.2	-5.8	+4.6	+5.5	-0.9	-3.8
Augustine	4%	12.1	17.8	-5.7	+2.9	+5.5	-2.6	-4.4
Cook	14%	11.1	20.2	-9.1	+1.9	+6.0	-4.1	-7.1
Foyle	20%	11.2	18.7	-7.4	-0.8	+6.9	-7.8	-7.6
Garrity	7%	4.3	16.2	-11.9	+0.5	+5.8	-5.3	-9.3
Outlaw	0%	10.3	38.2	-27.9	-29.1	+5.5	-34.6	-30.6

Done Deal: Dooling to NJ for a Piece of Paper

Orlando bounces Dooling to Nets | floridatoday.com | FLORIDA TODAY\

The Magic have a year to use the $3.3 million trade exception. It allows them to take back a player making up to $3.4 million ($3.3 million plus $100,000) in a trade without having to send matching salaries back in return. The trade exception can't be combined with another player's contract in a bigger trade.

The likelihood is the Magic won't use the trade exception because their payroll has swelled to $68 million this offseason. The NBA's dollar-for-dollar luxury tax kicks in at $71.1 million and Magic general manager Otis Smith has emphatically said Orlando will not exceed the threshold.

One possible scenario could be the Magic dealing the trade exception in a three-team transaction or to a team looking to shed salaries in order to pick up a future first- or second-round draft pick.

Is Europe a Threat to the NBA and the Magic?

There is a fascinating article on Yahoo Sports that mentions that Josh Childress is seriously considering a contract from a Greek team Olympiakos because he is so upset with the way he's been treated by the Hawks. Childress is a restricted free agent, so any offer he gets from another team can be matched by the Hawks. Because of this, no offers are coming. The Hawks are waiting for him to sign a lowball offer so the can resign him for cheap.

Enter Europe. Seven years ago the Euro was about 80 cents. Now it's $1.58. Plus the European leagues pay foreigners taxes, so the players salaries are tax free. Childress has been offered a 3 year 12.5 million Euro contract. That's the equivalent of $20 million for three years. However, factor in a top tax bracket of 35% currently (which is likely to increase with whoever the next government is run by) and the contract is worth the equivalent of $10.25 million a year, or about $31 million and could not be matched by the Hawks.

Why am I writing about the miserable Atlanta Hawks on this Magic blog? Well besides the point that the Hawks continue to be poorly run and are working at missing the playoffs after last years good fortune... Turkoglu is likely in the last year of his contract this season. Next year, according to Hoopshype, is a player option. If he opts out he will demand big bucks that the Magic may not have. Gortat will be in the same boat. Both could be heading to Europe for BIGGER salaries than would be offered by the NBA after this year. Not to mention that the falling dollar makes it less likely that Fran Vasquez will ever show up in Orlando.

David Stern's goal as commissioner was to grow the NBA game internationally. But I'll bet he never saw this one coming, where better players start choosing European teams over the NBA.

This could become a real problem for the Magic as early as next year.

Magic Take Care of Dooling

Say what you will about whether the Magic want or need Dooling but they did take care of him. They first offered him the contract they gave to Anthony Johnson. It offended Dooling, but at least the Magic gave him the right of first refusal. Now this:

Rod Thorn is about to fill his most glaring vacancy, and now all he have to do is wait for Orlando to do some clerical work. The Nets have an agreement in principle to make a sign-and-trade deal for free agent Keyon Dooling, a combo guard they have pursued for years, and he'll fit right in as a reserve for starters Vince Carter and Devin Harris. "I'm hopeful ... that we can make a trade," was Thorn's closest statement resembling a confirmation Friday night.

An eight-year veteran, Dooling would be acquired by making use of a $3.3 million trade exception the Nets obtained in the Jason Kidd deal last February. That will now be transferred to the Magic, who will prepare a two-year contract that calls for a $3.3 million salary next year and a $3.5 million salary for 2009-10, with a partially-guaranteed third season that will pay him a pittance.

The process is expected to be completed by mid-week, after Orlando prepares the contract and the Nets give the 6-foot-3 Dooling his physical. But the process won't begin until the teams run the trade past the league Monday morning.

Via hoopsworld.com

Magic Sign PG Anthony Johnson to 2 year deal

Per John Denton at Florida Today:

ORLANDO -- The Orlando Magic reached an agreement with free-agent point guard Anthony Johnson Tuesday on a two-year deal worth approximately $4.2 million, according to a source close to the negotiations.

The 33-year-old point guard could sign his contract with the Magic as soon as today or by Wednesday.

Johnson, a 6-foot-3, 195-pounder, is best known for his on-ball defense and veteran savvy. He has played 11 NBA seasons, including 18 games in the 1999-2000 season with the Magic.

He split time between the Atlanta Hawks and the Sacramento Kings last season, averaging 5.6 points, 2.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists a game.

The signing ends the Magic’s faint hopes of retaining combo guard Keyon Dooling, who was angered by the Magic’s offering of the two-year deal after he made $3.6 million last season. When Dooling rejected the two-year, $4.2 million deal, it was offered instead to Johnson.

Johnson’s agent, Richard Howell, did not return messages left to his Atlanta-area office on Monday.

Orlando is still trying to acquire a third point guard and has held trade talks with the Memphis Grizzlies about the availability of 6-foot-5 guard Javaris Crittenton, according to Crittenton’s agent, Wallace Prather.

Johnson has played for eight NBA teams, 10 if counting his three different stints with the Atlanta Hawks. Because he’s often been used as a stop-gap guard signed to 10-day contracts, he’s split four NBA seasons between two teams.

His finest NBA season came in 2005-06 with Indiana when he averaged 9.2 points, 2.2 rebounds and 4.3 assists in 26.4 minutes a game. He started 53 of the 75 games that he appeared in that season.

He also played exceptionally well in the 2006 playoffs with the Pacers, averaging 20 points, 5.0 rebounds and 5.2 assists in six games. He had a career playoff high of 40 points (16 of 23 shooting, three 3-pointers) in 2006 against New Jersey.

Pietrus ripped by Golden State sideline reporter

Golden State Warriors Examiner - Mickael Pietrus leaves Warriors with less fanfare than B.D. ... or Adonal Foyle, for that matter - Examiner.com

It was harder to say good-bye to Adonal Foyle than it was Pietrus, even though Foyle was a far less productive player. But Warriors fans came to respect Foyle because in the end they knew, unfortunately, he had reached his potential as a player.

The same can’t be said of Pietrus and that’s why he’s out the door with no fanfare.

To call Pietrus an “underachiever” would be too strong. When he was good, he helped the Warriors win. But he was never consistent in his five seasons with Golden State and for that reason I don’t believe he’ll make any more of an impact for the Magic than he did the Warriors. (Conjecture?)

But I can’t remember Pietrus ever hitting a big shot. I remember him hitting shots that kept momentum going or perhaps stopped another team’s momentum late in games. But I can’t remember a shot he made that was the difference between a Warriors win and loss.

Help me out if you remember one.

Pietrus was usually upbeat and charismatic, a little too soft overall, special at times, ordinary a lot and ineffective a little too much. He will definitely benefit from a change of scenery. Pietrus will amuse, impress and confound the city of Orlando. Just like he did here.

But at the end of the day, Pietrus isn’t an NBA starter. Or to put it more gently, he has yet to prove he's an NBA starter. He can't be a starter on a contender anyway. But coming off the bench is not going to sit well with him, not at this point of his career.

Pietrus is like countless NBA players; he thinks he’s better than he is. If he comes off the bench, he’s not going to be content, and if he starts you’re not going to be that good.

Pietrus was one of the most friendly and positive players who ever came down the pike for the Warriors ... among the nicest and most outgoing I've dealt with in 15 years or so doing this. Fans should be collectively bumming out about his departure.

But Pietrus needed to be a better player for that to be happening.

Wow. That is pretty harsh. Golden State is an odd team. They sucked before Don Nelson showed up. Then Nelson ran Pietrus as a 4, didn't like him there, so didn't play him much. Not sure if a SG not making it as a big man is underachieving or simply bad coaching. With Nelson you can never tell, but it's safe to say Don Nelson would earn a lot of votes in the Most Overated Coaches Hall of Fame.

SVG has Pietrus scheduled to start at SG instead of PF. All of the above hopefully will turn out to be b.s. with SVG calling the shots.

Depth Chart: So Far

Center (3): Dwight Howard ($13 million), Tony Battie ($5.746 million), Marcin Gortat ($711K)

PF (2): Rashard Lewis ($17.238 million), Brian Cook ($3.5 million)

SF: (1) Hidayet Turkoglu ($6.864 million),

SG (4): Mickael Pietrus ($5.2 million), Keith Bogans ($2.912 million), Courtney Lee ($1.176 million), JJ Redick ($2.140 million)

PG (1): Jameer Nelson ($5.556 million)

Total: 11 players, $64 million payroll. Luxury Tax happens around $69 to $71 million range this year. There are four positions open.

The biggest hole is PG. Need two more to fill out the roster. SF seems weak until you consider that Rashard, Pietrus and Bogans can swing to SF when Turk sits.

Otis ain't near done. So far the Magic have said goodbye to a bad PF in Garrity, an iffy PG in Arroyo, a streaky combo guard in Dooling, and an average SG in Evans. Plus unknown status of permanent bench warmer Augustine and aging center with funny accent Foyle.

There needs to be a net gain of 2 PG, 1 SF and 1 PF before training camp starts at the end of September.

Courtney Lee impresses in summer league action

The Magic finished their summer league schedule this past week at 2-3, but first round draftee Courtney Lee had an impressive week. In the five games, he averaged 20.2 ppg (with a high game of 30 pts) on 43.7% FG shooting, including 8 of 17 (47.1%) on 3 pt FGs. From the free throw line, he was an outstanding 31 of 34 (91.2%).

Center Marcin Gortat averaged 12.8 ppg and 8.6 rebounds in the five games, and PF James Augustine averaged 7.8 ppg and 6.2 rebounds.

Sources: Keyon Dooling not returning to Magic; Redick thinks he will be traded

Excerpts from an article in the online Sentinel by Brian Schmitz that appeared late Wednesday evening:

Dooling - according to NBA sources and his camp - will not be returning to play for the Magic, barring an 11th-hour change.

He was disappointed, but did not want to comment on the record when reached by the Sentinel in the Bahamas, where he is vacationing with erstwhile teammates Jameer Nelson and Tony Battie.

It appears the Magic could not financially accommodate Dooling - who made $3.5 million last season - after signing Pietrus.

The Magic's payroll is about $65 million and they apparently are butting up against a budget. They will look to sign a point guard through free agency for the minimum, acquire one in a trade or create more cap room with a deal. Nelson is the lone point guard on the roster.

J.J. Redick concedes his future is dim in Orlando.

"The writing's on the wall" Redick told the Sentinel. "The writing's been on the wall for some time."

The only way the situation can somewhat change is if the Magic deal Bogans.

"I spoke with Otis (Smith) last week and I'm sure we'll speak again," Redick said. "I don't really know. Obviously, Otis has the control. I just want to play. I would like to play in Orlando."

The Magic are also looking to sign another big at the veteran's minimum, and the club could bring back center Adonal Foyle.

One player also said Wednesday that it was his understanding that Foyle - who opted out of his veteran's minimum deal after last season - will return.

Magic make a move for Mikael Pietrus; Keyon Dooling unsure of future

The latest from the online Sentinel from Brian Schmitz on the situation:

The Orlando Magic are moving closer to signing shooting guard Mickael Pietrus as a free agent while waiting on Corey Maggette to make a decision.

Acknowledging that it's a gamble, the Magic might be willing to wait on Maggette's decision, but they apparently have Pietrus in hand.

"It's risky," Magic General Manager Otis Smith said. "He doesn't have to be in a hurry, so we can wait. But it's a risk we take or any team takes." Free agents can begin signing contracts today with their new teams.

Pietrus, 6-6, 198 pounds, is described as a strong defender and accurate 3-point shooter. He averaged 8.6 points in five seasons with the Golden State Warriors.

Smith reiterated that he thinks the Magic are a long shot to land Maggette with a few other teams having enough salary cap room to sign him.

While it's likely now that Pietrus will fill the Magic's vacant shooting guard spot, Keyon Dooling concedes he doesn't know where he fits in his former team's plans.

"I don't know. I'll have to wait and see now. Everything is all over the place," Dooling said while fishing Tuesday. "I figure I'll fit in somewhere. I just don't know where. There are still teams interested."

Dooling, who played for the Magic for the past three seasons as a point guard and shooting guard, said it appears if he returns at all it will be as a point guard.

"The Magic have had their priorities. They got their 2 position. Pietrus will help us at the 2," Dooling said, still using the term "us" when speaking of the Magic.

Dooling said the Magic have not handed him an offer sheet.

UPDATE: According to Brian Schmitz of the Sentinel, the Magic are expecting to sign Pietrus to a four-year contract worth about $24 million on Wednesday or Thursday.

Magic President Bob Vander Weide and Coach Stan Van Gundy were thrilled with the chance to land Pietrus.

The Magic were toying with the idea of waiting on Corey Maggette to make a decision, but Vander Weide acknowledged that it would have been too risky to lose Pietrus.

Vander Weide and Van Gundy said they want Dooling to return but Vander Weide is concerned with butting up against the punitive luxury tax. Dooling can be signed outright by the team, without using any exception.

Magic fall to Nets in first summer league game

Despite having four players in double figures, including first-round draft pick Courtney Lee with 13 pts, the Magic lost Monday evening to the Nets 86-74.

For the complete recap click here

Magic shift focus as Chris Duhon heads to Knicks

With Chris Duhon now heading to the New York Knicks, the Orlando Magic will turn their focus to two free agents: shooting guard Corey Maggette and point guard Keyon Dooling.Duhon has chosen the Knicks over the Magic, opting to take a shorter deal with a better shot at becoming a starter in New York.Kevin Bradbury, Duhon's agent, told the Sentinel on Friday that Duhon will sign a two-year deal with the Knicks when free agents can begin signing contracts on Wednesday.Bradbury said the Magic did not present an offer sheet, but the "parameters" of the Magic's offer "was more than fair." Duhon is believed to have agreed to a contract around $6.5 million with New York -- or roughly $3.25 million a year.
The Magic had deemed point-guard depth their biggest need and wanted the defensive-minded Duhon to back up starter Jameer Nelson.The club still has their entire mid-level exception available, worth an average of about $6 million per year.And apparently that is what is available around the NBA to Maggette, a top-flight scorer who could upgrade Orlando's shooting-guard spot.Magic Coach Stan Van Gundy didn't rule out the team adding a player such as Maggette, and then filling out the roster with minimum-salary players.As of late Friday, Maggette had yet to agree to sign with any team after opting out of his contract with the Los Angeles Clippers, although the San Antonio Spurs were thought to be the frontrunner.Maggette has expressed through friends that he would love to return to Orlando, where he began his career. The Magic acquired him during the 1999 draft but traded him after one season to the Clippers. He averaged 16.1 points in eight seasons in L.A.The Magic were looking for a true point guard as they courted Duhon, and likely will have to try to re-sign Dooling, a combo guard.Dooling said he "wasn't surprised" the Magic tried to sign Duhon, but added Duhon's leap to the Knicks could open talks with Orlando, though the Magic have yet to make him a formal offer.Bradbury said Duhon called Magic General Manager Otis Smith to tell him he was signing with New York."For Chris, it came down to the fact he had opportunity to start in New York, and to turn this thing around. It was a short-term deal and he wanted to take that chance to take his game to the next level as a starter," Bradbury said by phone. "It's always tough when it's down to two teams. Chris felt he couldn't lose either way. Chris had a terrific visit in Orlando."

Magic sign Courtney Lee

From today's online Orlando Sentinel:

Courtney Lee is officially a member of the Orlando Magic.

Lee, the Magic's first-round draft pick out of Western Kentucky, signed a four-year, $6 million contract on Thursday, clearing him to participate in the team's summer league next week at the RDV Sports Complex.

Lee, a 6-foot-5 guard, is expected to compete with J.J. Redick and Keith Bogans for playing time as the team's shooting guard.

Chris Duhon In Town Today, But Wants Magic Money

Erstwhile Chicago Bulls point guard Chris Duhon is expected to be in town to talk to the Magic today about a free-agent opening.
His astute agent, Kevin Bradbury, is saying all the right things.
It's the way you play the free-agent wheel of fortune.
How Duhon wants to play on an up-and-coming team like Orlando's. How he'd love to play with Dwight Howard. And how, just a few years ago when Duhon was a restricted free agent, that he and the Magic made eyes at each other.
"One of the things Chris wants to do is play for a championship contender," Bradbury told the Sentinel. "This is one of the teams he is serious about. There's been interest both ways for some time."
Bradbury also said Duhon would be excited about playing for the New York Knicks, whom he visited on Tuesday (although why he'd go to that cuckoo's nest is beyond me.)
Here's the thing:
Duhon wants more than what the Knicks and the Magic are offering.
He wants all or a majority of the mid-level exception, worth about $6 million a season. But like the Knicks, the Magic want to split it up between two players almost evenly.
So unless Duhon comes down a little -- hey, it's early in the bargaining process --- he and Orlando can't marry.
Duhon is just playing the game. He knows that even though he has been a back-up most of his career in Chicago, the point-guard free agent class is weak. (Now you know why Magic GM Otis Smith signed Jameer Nelson to a five-year, $40 million extension before the start of last season. Nelson would be the runaway No. 1 point guard as a free agent this summer.)
Duhon would be a nice addition to the Magic because he can play defense and is listed at 6-1. With the return of Keyon Dooling expected, the club could have some more defense at the point. (Also the same goes with Dooling: If he wants to get heavy into the mid-level exception, he might price himself out of the Magic's thinking.) Bschmitz