The Orlando Magic's season came to a close Tuesday night with a 91-86 loss to the Detroit Pistons. Jameer Nelson's guarantee fell short, as the Magic committed too many turnovers and couldn't generate enough offense to overcome Detroit's consistent defensive play.
Poor free throw shooting doomed the Magic, as they made just 16 of 28 attempts from the line. Dwight Howard, though he had a double-double with 14 points and 17 rebounds, went 6 of 15 from the charity stripe, providing the majority of the team's misses.
This season will ultimately go down as a success for Orlando, as it finally broke through into the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 1996. It was also the first year under new head coach Stan van Gundy and the first year with Rashard Lewis. Dwight Howard was only 21 years old, the team is young and it has many good years ahead.
Two key offseason concerns face the Magic: finding a power forward and a perimeter defender. Lewis is not a 'true' power forward, although he played that position the whole season. Additionally, though Hedo Turkoglu and Lewis were great on the offensive end, neither will challenge for the NBA all-defensive team.
There is no shame for a team as young as the Magic to lose to a veteran, experienced team in Detroit. It is now up to Otis Smith and van Gundy to shape the team for future success. The future is definitely looking bright in Orlando.
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2 months ago
I think it will be much the same next year. will be good in the east but come playoff time, the magic dont have enough fire power.
from 2 months ago
They have plenty of firepower, it's the defense they don't have.
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