<div class="quote_poster">23MJordan23 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I'd agree that he has the potential to take away Shaquille Oneal's title as most dominating player.</div>While I think Dwight will be dominant, this might be a stretch. I love Dwight and all, but he needs to develop a post game before I'm going to say anything close to this. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Tmac was only a name to Orlando, more like a "wow, we have Tracy McGrady playing for our team" type of thing, he had a big name, but his play while in Orlando was very sub par.</div>Oh how I must disagree with this. His play wasn't sub-par. He averaged no less than 26.8ppg in Orlando, and just a question, but have you made it to the playoffs since his departure?
Dwight deserves a huge contract. The guy is a monster and a freak athlete. Hopefully Orlando can build the right team around him in the years to come.
<div class="quote_poster">Moo2K4 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">While I think Dwight will be dominant, this might be a stretch. I love Dwight and all, but he needs to develop a post game before I'm going to say anything close to this. Oh how I must disagree with this. His play wasn't sub-par. He averaged no less than 26.8ppg in Orlando, and just a question, but have you made it to the playoffs since his departure?</div> Dwight has potential to become the most dominant player in the game. Look how young he is, and look how he manhandles people in the lane. One thing that you are forgetting is that basketball is a team sport. It doesn't matter how many points T mac made per game...none of that counts when the chemistry of the magic was abysmal. An abysmal team chemistry + a good ppg = ball hog. Basketball isn't all about one scorers points...sure, his points are a big factor, but not everything. The magic would make it to the playoffs on a whim, and get whooped. 2000 - 01 Orlando Magic 43 39 .524 Lost First Round Milwaukee 3, Orlando 1 2001 - 02 Orlando Magic 44 38 .537 Lost First Round Charlotte 3, Orlando 1 2002 - 03 Tmac was traded. Tmac was more of a "self" player than a "team" player. "but have you made it to the playoffs since his departure?" Steve Francis was way worse than T Mac, so no, the Magic have not made the playoffs. T Mac is overrated.
<div class="quote_poster">23MJordan23 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Dwight has potential to become the most dominant player in the game. Look how young he is, and look how he manhandles people in the lane.</div> Exactly, so why are you saying that $87.5 million is a stretch?
<div class="quote_poster">Swish Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Exactly, so why are you saying that $87.5 million is a stretch?</div> Do you honestly believe NBA players or sports players in general deserve this much money? Look at teachers, professors, and war Veterans who do not even make 1/5th of that.
<div class="quote_poster">23MJordan23 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Do you honestly believe NBA players or sports players in general deserve this much money? Look at teachers, professors, and war Veterans who do not even make 1/5th of that.</div> Your going into a different issue. Players are going to get paid, because owners make way more money these days.
The issue is valid though. But do you think they <u>deserve</u> it? I know why they make so much money, but do they deserve it?
<div class="quote_poster">23MJordan23 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">The issue is valid though. But do you think they <u>deserve</u> it? I know why they make so much money, but do they deserve it?</div> Of course not. They are getting paid millions to play a 48 minute game of basketball for 8 months.
<div class="quote_poster">Bobcats Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Of course not. They are getting paid millions to play a 48 minute game of basketball for 8 months.</div> Exactly my point...87.5 million is ridiculous.
Oh ok, that's an entirely different issue. I thought you were saying he didn't deserve that much money in comparison to how much other players are making these days. With that said, I do agree that athletes in general make far too much money. Teachers, nurses, and war veterans like you said are all extremely underpaid and the jobs they do are much more important than putting a ball into a basket. With that said, sports are a form of entertainment and a player is going to take however much a general manager is willing to give them. Do they deserve the money? No. Would you turn it down? Probably not. That's why I really respect the guys who give a good portion of their money to charities. It really shows a different side of them and it's good to see they aren't greedy and selfish. Dwight is the kind of player who speaks at churches, does charity work, and donate a lot of money. If anywhere were to receive this much money, I'm glad it's Howard because he's a great player, a great role model, and a great kid.
<div class="quote_poster">23MJordan23 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">The issue is valid though. But do you think they <u>deserve</u> it? I know why they make so much money, but do they deserve it?</div> Do owners deserve millions of dollars for owning a team and not even really being part of the entertainment factor? A lot of owners just sit on their ass and let their GM take care of team issues and have operations managers take care of everything else. (not all owners do of course, but the majority of them do) I think the players deserve a good chunk of what the NBA is bringing in. You have to look at the industry. The NBA is a gigantic industry and no you shouldn't make that much money to play basketball, but since the NBA makes so much money the salaries go up. If schools or hospitals made millions of dollars then teachers/doctors would be paid more than they are. Sure it's unfair and doesn't seem right, but it's a reality. Personally I would rather the players make the money rather than the majority of the owners.
<div class="quote_poster">23MJordan23 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Yes, a brilliant young and big star he is, but if he loves Orlando so much then why wouldn't he settle for less than 87.5 million? Orlando cannot afford to lose Dwight Howard, but seriously. I'd agree that he has the potential to take away Shaquille Oneal's title as most dominating player. Tmac was only a name to Orlando, more like a "wow, we have Tracy McGrady playing for our team" type of thing, he had a big name, but his play while in Orlando was very sub par. "do you blame us in locking him up long term with a 87.5 million dollar deal?" I don't blame you for trying to clench his interest with lots of money, but if he really loves Orlando and the team, money won't be the only thing on his mind.</div> Lebron loves Cleveland, but he still took a max deal. Wade loves Miami, he still took a max deal. It's not like most superstars turn away cash to help their team get better. <div class="quote_poster">Mamba Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">It's really not, outside of Dwight. Isn't there a good chance that Darko walks this offseason? I was reading an article, I believe it was on Realgm, that the Magic are afraid he's going to want more than what he's worth. </div> I think we'll sign him regardless of what he wants. My estimation is that he will demand an $8-10 million deal for 4-5 years. I would give it to him if not only for the reason of his own game, Dwight has excelled since then. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Redick? Has he improved his play yet? Has he gotten minutes? I don't think he's anything to be scared of, all he's got is a shot, but he's only shooting 40% this year. </div> He's currently our 6th best wing(when Hill comes back), so he gets ZERO playing time. He plays behind Hill, Turkoglu, Ariza, Bogans, and Dooling. I doubt he does much more than this because of his lack of anything other than a shot, but most Magic fans are still high on him. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Trevor's a good role player.</div> Trevor will be a damn good player. I can see him becoming a more slashing type Josh Howard(since Ariza has no outside shot). He's got killer D and is so active. He always seems to be around the ball and has great chemistry with Dwight. If Ariza can get a halfway decent jumpshot, then he could be an all-star every once and awhile. Don't forget he's only 21 too. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post"> Jameer? I thought you were complaining about him the other week, no? He's nice, but is he your PG of the future? He's only getting 4 APG.</div> That would be me again. Most Magic fans are still high on Jameer, but I would much rather have a Steve Blake as our starting PG then Jameer. Jameer is best suited as a backup PG in the Troy Hudson mold who can provide instant energy and instant offense. I'm really high on Darko and Ariza, but other than that not much else on our roster. Turkoglu/Bogans/Jameer are nice role players, but not much more. We need a lot of work to do to get more players around Dwight, but this is way more than anything that Tmac had. Darko has the potential to be a very good big man next to Dwight and Ariza has the potential to be a very good wing man. That's 2 very good pieces next to one of the best players in the game(as I think Dwight will become). Not to mention all 3 of these guys are 21 years old and will be hitting their primes together and none of these 3 are really even that close to hitting their potential. Those 3 players playing together in their primes is a scary thought, especially for an organization that has been mediocre at best for the last several years. Do you blame us for getting excited and overrating our players when we've been crappy ever since Shaq left 11 years ago? Otis Smith needs to do whatever it takes to get Dwight, Darko, and Ariza locked up long term. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">This is a great deal for the Magic though, if they can lock it up that'd be fantastic. Dwight is going to be one of the best centers to play the game, if he can stay healthy. If they can put the right pieces around him, then the Magic will be a force. How much more can his game expand? In his prime, I can see him getting 23/15. He's a monster. I don't see him play that much, how are his post moves? From what I can remember, his offense is pretty limited to putbacks and dunks? Am I way off here?</div> <div class="quote_poster">Moo2K4 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">While I think Dwight will be dominant, this might be a stretch. I love Dwight and all, but he needs to develop a post game before I'm going to say anything close to this. </div> That's the scary thing about it. He doesn't have much of a post game, just a couple of moves and in the last month(30 days and 14 games) he has avg 21.9 ppg. Just imagine if he refines his post moves and adds some more. He does have a nice spin move and his hook shot is improving, but he doesn't really have a go to consistent move. <div class="quote_poster">23MJordan23 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Dwight has potential to become the most dominant player in the game. Look how young he is, and look how he manhandles people in the lane. One thing that you are forgetting is that basketball is a team sport. It doesn't matter how many points T mac made per game...none of that counts when the chemistry of the magic was abysmal. An abysmal team chemistry + a good ppg = ball hog. Basketball isn't all about one scorers points...sure, his points are a big factor, but not everything. The magic would make it to the playoffs on a whim, and get whooped. 2000 - 01 Orlando Magic 43 39 .524 Lost First Round Milwaukee 3, Orlando 1 2001 - 02 Orlando Magic 44 38 .537 Lost First Round Charlotte 3, Orlando 1 2002 - 03 Tmac was traded. Tmac was more of a "self" player than a "team" player. "but have you made it to the playoffs since his departure?" Steve Francis was way worse than T Mac, so no, the Magic have not made the playoffs. T Mac is overrated.</div> Tmac was a team player. You have to remember who he had around him. He had Garrity and Declerq splitting time starting at PF/C. He had old guy Darrell Armstrong(as much as I love Darrell, he just wasn't that effective as a starter at that part of his career). He had to deal with draft picks such as Ryan Humphrey and Reece Gaines. He also had to deal with the Magic trading the only respectable player they had on their roster and his best friend in Mike Miller. You have to also consider that the Magic's owner was really really penny pinching and with Grant Hill's contract, the Magic were basically playing with 2/3rds of a normal salary cap. The last season was the only season that he really had any raw talent with Drew Gooden and even then Johnny Davis was the worst coach ever(even worse than Brian Hill) Dude, trust me when I say this, I ABSOLUTELY HATE TRACY MCGRADY, but everything you are saying is completely false. It was incredible what the guy did with what he had to work with. I doubt many players could take the team that Tmac had to the playoffs, not even mentioning winning a series.
I doubt they extend him for more than 3 years. That's the new trend for these big money guys to maximize the money they make over their entire career.
<div class="quote_poster">44Thrilla Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I doubt they extend him for more than 3 years. That's the new trend for these big money guys to maximize the money they make over their entire career.</div> Actually, last offseason when Bosh, Wade, and LeBron were all extending for three years, Dwight said he wasn't interested in that and would rather just get a long term deal worth five years worked out because he loves Orlando so much and he wants to stay here his whole career.
Yeah, I remember he said he wants to stay here, because Orlando picked him first when others were doubting him and people thought we should of picked Emeka.
"Do owners deserve millions of dollars for owning a team and not even really being part of the entertainment factor? A lot of owners just sit on their ass and let their GM take care of team issues and have operations managers take care of everything else. (not all owners do of course, but the majority of them do) I think the players deserve a good chunk of what the NBA is bringing in. You have to look at the industry. The NBA is a gigantic industry and no you shouldn't make that much money to play basketball, but since the NBA makes so much money the salaries go up. If schools or hospitals made millions of dollars then teachers/doctors would be paid more than they are. Sure it's unfair and doesn't seem right, but it's a reality. Personally I would rather the players make the money rather than the majority of the owners." Instead of giving so much money to the players, they could do larger donations to the community instead of pocketing it SO much of it....seriously. "Wow, I can make 14 million dollars per year to play basketball...but my passion is teaching, I can only make 30, 000 dollars per year.."...Hello?! look at that? In comparison to what other NBA players make, Dwight's salary is justified..but other wise, 87.5 million is too much money for something like dribbling and shooting a basketball. ----------------------------------------- T Mac is an All Star...but he is very overrated...I remember watching him play on the Magic, his hands were always opened to get the ball...how can you deny that T Mac is a "self" player.
<div class="quote_poster">23MJordan23 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">The issue is valid though. But do you think they <u>deserve</u> it? I know why they make so much money, but do they deserve it?</div>You have a valid issue here. However, you're not looking at one side of it, the players. If you look at professional sports, the average retirement age is what, 35 or 36, something like that. In other jobs, the retirement age is now pushing 63 or 65. I think the reason athletes get paid so much is because their careers are MUCH shorter than the average joes. Granted they don't necessarily need to have huge jacked up contracts like they do, but they do need to make quite a bit so they manage to have money to live off of when they retire. As for deserving it, it's not like they don't work their butts off. The ones who do make the huge amounts (i.e. Kobe Bryant-esque money) are always working their butts off. They show up to practice early, they work hard all season and then in the offseason. So, it's not like they don't do anything. Granted what they do might not be as important as the job of a teacher or a police officer, it's still a job in some sense of the word. However, despite this, I don't necessarily think it validates the ridiculous contracts athletes are getting paid nowadays. Anyways, back on topic now.
<div class="quote_poster">Swish Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Yeah because a core of Dwight, Darko, Trevor, Jameer, and Redick isn't scary at all... </div> Not really to be honest... It's a good core to build around no doubt, but I think Mercury is right, it wont be anything damaging for at least a couple more seasons.
I know it won't. I was talking about scary it would be in a few years. Read what I said after that. Assuming Dwight signs this deal, we would have him locked up for five years. In three or four years, all of those guys will be in their primes, a scary thing for many teams.
<div class="quote_poster">Swish Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I know it won't. I was talking about scary it would be in a few years. Read what I said after that. Assuming Dwight signs this deal, we would have him locked up for five years. In three or four years, all of those guys will be in their primes, a scary thing for many teams.</div>This is of course assuming you hang on to all of them (isn't Darko rumored to want out) and that they all pan out the way you think they will.
