(Unofficially) Watchin' Basketball with Orlando Magic GM Otis Smith

Going to sporting events is a unique experience for the common man. Sure, there are the season ticket holders and the folks that attend every match, but the average Joe goes when they can (or when they can afford it).

I usually blow my financial wad on tickets to the once-a-year showdown of Orlando and Phoenix in the NBA. As a lifelong Orlando Magic fan, there is nothing quite like seeing your 'home' team when you no longer live in the town. It makes seeing the players live extra special...almost like seeing a live play of a TV show you watch 81 plus times a year.

Having now lived in Phoenix for 14 years, I have seen my beloved Magic 14 times. When I first saw the Magic play the Suns, in the 1996-97 season, I was as high as you could go; I was basically touching the ceiling. But as time (and luck) has gone by, I've upgraded my yearly Magic-trek as close to the floor as possible.

For the last two years I've secured seats in the second row right next to the visitor tunnel (uber-access to autographs, quick player chats, and fist bumps). The bonus of this year's hardcourt battle was that I managed to get a hold of someone in the Suns organization who could bump me up to floor seats. Not exactly on the court but in one of the rows surrounding it.

And that was fine and dandy but, for whatever reason, I decided to stick with the second row seats again. For the second year in a row I'd get to high five my favorite players as they passed by and wish them good luck. Sure, the arena allows all sections to invade the bottom row for autographs during shoot around (something I've partaken in for pretty much the entire 14 years I've lived in Phoenix) but sitting that close and watching the action is just addicting.

If I took the court side seats given to me, the action would have been less intimate. And, as luck/fate would have it, I wouldn't have had a chance to meet and talk with Magic GM Otis Smith.

For those who don't know, Otis Smith is the former NBA player whose position it is to oversee operations for the Orlando Magic franchise and, as general manager, arrange player trades and put contracts together. Mr. Smith will be one of the most vital players in Dwight Howard's 2012 free agency.

But one of Otis' habits is to travel with the team on road trips. Since he took the position in 2006, I've seen Otis standing at the visitor tunnel watching the games and mumbling to himself. But in all the years I've seen him, he's kind of stayed far back, somewhat in the shadows of the tunnel, watching and, I assume, scheming.

But for whatever reason, Smith decided to stand next to me the entire game, quite out in the open. Was it the Magic jersey, hat, and enthusiasm that made him feel comfortable there in enemy territory? I'm not sure but, as the game went on, I was so grateful I didn't take the upgrade.

*Note: for those who watched the ABC broadcast of Suns-Magic on March 13, 2011, when the camera focused in on Smith sometime in the first half to discuss a recent Stan Van Gundy incident, that was my shoulder to his right, your left. My claim to fame now, I guess.

Otis Smith is an intimidating cat. There is no doubt he looks like a boss who demands and gets respect. A former player, Smith is 6' 5" and a fit 220 (I'd guess). Impeccably dressed and almost morosely serious, the idea of talking to the dude while he was at work scared me a bit.

But as the game progressed, and I heard Smith talking to himself (at the players), I summoned up the courage and opened a dialogue. Now, I won't go into too many specifics since Smith, in a high profile position with a major NBA franchise, wasn't aware he was talking to a media correspondent, but I can say that Smith was candid and it was refreshing and enlightening.

I never hear about GMs in a positive light unless they happened to draft an eventual Hall of Famer. Otherwise, their moves are always criticized, their actions are always second guessed, and their position is never understood. What I saw and heard from Smith was a man passionate about basketball and invested, as anyone with a job should be, with the success of his team. Yet, unlike a fan, Smith was objective and a realist when it came to the product on the floor.

I liked that Smith didn't just pat his superstar players on the back. He and I shared a laugh when I told Dwight Howard, mostly to myself, to shut his mouth so he wouldn't get a T. Smith chuckled but with that look in his eye that Dwight's behavior annoyed him a bit. Later in the game he lightly berated him, telling him that it was "okay" and, to me, said that Dwight acts like he never fouled anyone in his life and the world is out to get him.

This wasn't what I was expecting from the GM whose head coach basically called the refs and the league commissioner an evil dictator! Smith was real. When I congratulated him on a certain player he picked up, he looked a little skeptical and said "we'll see". I found it weird that I then defended this player to his own boss.

That was, of course, when the dream scenarios entered my mind: maybe Otis Smith will think I'm a genius and hire me! Then I wake up.

Talking to a GM also opens you up to how human the players are; something uber-fans like myself forget sometimes since we often live isolated from the flesh and blood of the players. When I asked Smith if a certain player was feeling ill (since he looked sick), I was surprised to hear the player just has nervous bathroom habits. It's little insights like this, nothing profound mind you, that make the experience a little more real.

But despite the ability to constructively criticize and see behind the bright lights and glamour, Smith was also proud of his "employees". Whenever a player was subbed out, Smith, from far away, was the first to make his approval known, clapping loud and even, at times, hollering their name in support. Bosses can be encouraging and caring, too.

The best part of the experience was at the end of the blowout game (the Magic won 111-88) when I saw Stan Van Gundy (*shock*) smiling and laughing. I joked with Smith that "this is so good of a game that even Stan is smiling". Smith smirked but said "let's not get too crazy. He's just happy the game is over". As the buzzer sounded I thanked Smith for engaging with me throughout the entire game and we shook hands.

Of the 14 Magic-Suns games I've seen live, this was the best simply because I felt like, for a few moments, I got an inside look at how a GM thinks. He can joke but he certainly doesn't find himself seduced by celebrity or superstardom. The players and coaches are his employees and if they do well, the GM does well. Despite the laughs we had or the discussions on travelling and former/current players, Smith, in the end, was observing his work force and was very serious. He was doing his job. And he was doing it well.