<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">On February 14th a year ago, Darko Milicic fell in love. It was his third Valentine's day in the United States, and even in his native Serbia, third time's a charm. There were no flowers nor candy, just Nenad Krstic and a few other friends, talking about that evening's Pistons' victory over the visiting Nets. Although Milicic had little to do with the 85:71 final score, trade deadline was around the corner and Darko was in love with the idea of playing somewhere else. A week later, Peja Stojakovic was in town with the visiting Indiana Pacers, and was sitting in the same living room, when the news came that Darko was traded to Orlando. "He was jumping up and down like a kid", recalled Stojakovic. A year later, and Darko is still in love with his new team. Wrapped around his first anniversary with the Magic, Darko had his best basketball month ever, averaging about 12 points in 30 minutes per game through February. It was a quiet, behind-the-scenes transformation that was never possible under the Detroit media spotlight. In Orlando, Darko is outgrowing that three-year rookie mentality as fast as he outgrew his out-of-place blonde streaks. Welcome to Darko Milicic 2.0. "I am happy that I am in Orlando", explained Milicic, sitting alone in a locker room hours before a game. With increased minutes, he started coming to the arena as early as possible, usually about an hour before the rest of the team. "Everywhere I turned, people always had very high expectations of me, but its really my own expectations that I have to take care of. I still have more to show to everybody. I am not too happy with how I am playing. I will try to become what I have the potential for." He pauses briefly while watching his own moves on the TV monitor in the locker room. "I understand what I am supposed to do." It was a similar setting four months ago in their practice facility back in Florida: a lot of players, a lot of coaches and a lot of video equipment. Darko was one of their high-profile acquisitions and after observing him for a few months last season, there was a team gathering preparing him and the rest of the team for something he missed in Detroit -- changes. "Before the start of the season we had a meeting where we talked about the team, about what individual players had to do. We agreed we are going into the playoffs and I knew I would have to do some things differently, that's what the coach asked me to do." Of course, they are asking him to expand his game. Milicic is one of those rare big man hybrids that can excel both at forward and center. This season he is playing both positions and is splitting minutes and points between the two. He is also a member of two out of the three most productive lineups Orlando coach Brian Hill has used. But currently holding on to the eight spot in the East by just half a game, conclusions from that pre-season meeting seem to be fading. "I don't think we are really ready for the playoffs, especially with how we have been playing recently. I know that nobody in the team is happy because we all know we can do better. We don't know ourselves what the problem is. We are not playing as good as we could. There are games where we really give it our best, against some of the best teams in the league, but it just doesn't go our way. We are inspired by better teams to play our best basketball. We certainly should not lose to teams that are weaker than us." No amount of Darko Milicic coverage and focus will help bring a unifying theory of how good he really is. Like Einstein's work itself, it involves time and relativity which, in the NBA, make Milicic appear differently to media, players and fans. While the media and fans themselves might disagree, players are unanimous: Milicic is an extremely talented player that needs an opportunity to develop. Will he continue that development next year with Orlando or some other NBA team depends on the Magic management. Milicic can only guess. "Maybe I will be the player that the offense goes through, who knows? That would be a totally different story, a totally different team. We have players that, whether I like it or not, are here as our primary scorers. Guys like Howard, Hill, or Turkoglu. My points come from finding open spots on the floor. I am communicating with the coach, and that decision is up to the coach and the organization." Milicic never forgave the media for referring to him as, among other things, the "human victory cigar". It seems that his decision was aimed at media in general, as Darko still remains one of the more elusive players in the league. You can find traces of Rasheed Wallace -- the guy that brought the phrase 'Serbian Gangster' into the NBA -- in both Darko's game and his relationship with reporters. "Hardest thing was listening to fools accusing me of not knowing how to play. This is only a game, this is only basketball. I worked hard, I practiced. My only desire is to recover from those three years and play to my full capabilities. After sitting on the bench for three years, when you finally get a chance to play you can't stop thinking about every move you make. I must not let those three years in Detroit still slow me down." But Milicic continues to think about minutes, more so than about anything else. He cares about the little decimal place in his minutes-per-game averages, and the number that comes after it. Loosing the starting spot two weeks ago has shaved about three minutes of his average, but none of his resolve. "I would give everything I ever got for more minutes, more consistent playing time. If I could now choose if I wanted another championship ring or a lot of minutes on the floor through the season, I would choose the minutes." As we are walking to the bus following the game, basketball elements around us no longer matter. Darko is now talking about how his favorite team, Chelsea, is doing in European football. He admits that its a toss-up between soccer and basketball when picking a favorite sport to follow in spare time. Assuming that it must be basketball, I can't help but wonder would it be European or NBA ball? With a smile brighter than his long-forgotten blond highlights, Milicic answers with mock self confidence. "I don't need to read about the NBA. I am here and I know everything." Coming early for practice, taking himself lightly, having fun in an interview? Darko Milicic 2.0, indeed. </div> Source
It's good to hear that he likes it in Orlando. Hopefully he can stay with us in the future and be an important part of our team for many years, along with the rest of our young core.
I'm not sure how he will turn out in the end, but hes still very young(even younger then some rookies) believe me Detroit fans want to see him do good just as bad as you guys.
<div class="quote_poster">Coli Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Was nice seeing him show emotion getting ejected tonight.</div> Yeah definitely. I've heard many critics talk about Darko's lack of passion but he definitely showed it last night. Hedo had to hold him back and he was going crazy out there. If he can continue to show that kind of emotion, he'll only get better.
I remember Darko also got ejected the last time he played against the Raptors in March when he dropped the loudest F-bomb I've heard on TV. Not really the best way to vent your emotions, don't you think? It's nice for someone to show passion on the floor, but if you're going to show emotion at least learn how to control it and don't hurt your teams' chances of winning by picking up a tech or getting ejected from a game. Technical fouls resulting from too much emotion only hurts the team.
