The Magic were a surprise to everyone but themselves last season. Like the Cavaliers before last season, there are still skeptics who don’t think the Magic have what it takes to win it all – even after a tremendous season. The skeptics were right about the Cavaliers. Will they be right about the Magic? Paul Pierce said they looked like poodles against the Lakers.
Well.. the poodles added a few more dogs to their pack and they will have more bite, thanks to those additions. On Celticsblog, a survey of fans says that the Magic are a bigger threat to the Celtics than the Cavaliers are.
Here is a preview of the preview….
What significant moves were made during the offseason?
Gosh, where to start with this question?
The Magic showed the door to Alston, Lee, and Turkoglu–three-fifths of the Magic’s starting lineup in the NBA Finals–in large part to make room for Carter and Bass, the team’s most significant short-term additions. Basketball observers appear to be split on the Magic’s decision to essentially swap Turkoglu–their go-to scorer in the clutch, and their secondary playmaker–for Carter, who has not enjoyed playoff success or media acclaim in recent years. Nevermind the fact that Turkoglu had one borderline All-Star-caliber season before bottoming out in 2009, or that Carter might one day find himself enshrined in the Hall of Fame; who needs logic or statistics when we can rely on a few nationally televised games and abstract notions like “chemistry”?
We should not overlook the other additions, although Carter understandably looms largest. Bass, an undersized, powerful, bowling-ball of a frontcourt player in the Jason Maxiell mold, does everything Tony Battie did, but better; and, at 24, he may not have reached his peak. I think we tend to overstate Barnes’ reputation as a defender just a tad–there’s no way he’s as talented as Mickael Pietrus on that end–but he’s still well above-average, and can handle the ball some offensively…
What are the team’s biggest weaknesses?
Saying “none” would be hubris of the highest order. But with a potential to rate in the upper echelon of the league on both sides of the ball, well, it’s hard to point to anything really specific with this team. Magic detractors say that Carter will sink the Magic’s chemistry, or that the new additions Boston and Cleveland made trump the Magic’s. Is other teams having equally good summers a weakness? If so, that might be the Magic’s.
Another perceived weakness, one into which I do not put much stock, is that the Magic’s best player (Howard) is not a proven leader
