Anyone else thinks this hurts Orlando? According to Realgm, Some Magic teammates have said that Nelson will play. He's been off of basketball for far too long, he won't be effective in slashing to the hoop because one hit on that shoulder and his career could be in jeopardy. I can't imagine his shot being on with all that time off, neither will his cardio. I think this hurts Orlando more than anything. I just don't see any way possible that Nelson could have a positive impact for Orlando.
I still don't think he will play. At least not in LA, maybe they can put him in the end of some quarter in Orlando to boost the crowd and that's it.
It was a tear in his shooting shoulder, so I can't imagine his shot being there. But injured Jameer>>>Anthony Johnson w/o a doubt
I hope they keep playing this angle because it's a distraction for Orlando. Similar to how Bynum was a distraction for us last year when everyone was hoping he'd return at some point during the playoffs. I don't think he'll be a factor either way. I'm sure the Orlando fans would get fired up if he came in the game and SVG would be smart to do that if he felt his team needed a lift at home. However, I don't anticipate Nelson being very productive.
So is he gonna be like Okur, who was supposed to come back and help the Jazz compete? Is he gonna be like Bynum, coming back into the lineup and giving us 20/10? Is he gonna be like Trevor, who was supposed to come back last year and give us key contributions defensively? Honestly I could care less. He's been away from basketball for months, he shouldn't be a big problem.
This reminds me of the 2002 WCF when the Kings were trying to get a lingering Peja back in to be their secret weapon. He was awful during his playing time. I see the same with Nelson, he might cost them the finals if they overuse him.
It doesn't help Orlando? He's going to be a reserve and filling in for Anthony Johnson. That alone is addition by subtraction. Anything is better than AJ.
The Magic made it this far with AJ on the court and it's risky to mess with rotations and chemistry this late in the game. There's a lot of IFs involved with Jameer at this point and you also have to consider the long term setbacks this could have. What if Nelson gets injured again? What if AJ & Alson lose confidence in themselves with Jameer competing for their minutes? What if Nelson tries to hard to contribute and makes critical mistakes?
That's a stretch. Not a huge one, but a stretch nonetheless. This should help Orlando's psyche, knowing that their all-star is back. I think they all, including Jameer, know he won't be playing like the guy they had in the regular season, they're smarter than that. At the same time, it should pump their team up knowing that he'll be there.
I don't know how much it helps them. I can't imagine he's going to be in basketball shape, so his conditioning is going to be pretty poor. His shot is also going to be off since he's been away from basketball activities for so long, and since it was his shooting shoulder, shooting wasn't something he'd be able to do during his rehab. Plus his timing and chemistry will be off with his teammates. All in all, I don't really know how it helps the Magic. It might give them an emotional boost to see him in there, but he's not going to contribute too much.
I think you guys are trippin', but maybe that's just me. Bringing a PG like Nelson back for the finals will only help Orlando, not hurt them. It's not like a Center (Bynum) who might be rusty, or you have to worry about getting his wind back or getting his game back. Nelson will come in and likely (I'm guessing if he's good enough to come back) pick up right where he left off. He killed the Lakers in the regular season. This could all just be a distraction, who knows. He'll probably play Game 3 when they get their first game at home. But yeah, I gotta go against the grain on this one and say I'm not happy about this at all.
Why are you worried, homie? He tore his shooting shoulder and has been away from NBA basketball since before the all-star game. That is a LONG time off. You think he can just come back in and be effective? Why?
this will hurt them... Alston has been terrific... Jameer will be kinda like our Ariza last year... He was healthy enough to play but not game ready.
You make good points, Mamba. I just think that he wouldn't have come back for the Finals if he didn't feel like he could go out there and contribute in a positive way, rather than hurt the team. I think a PG of his caliber can come back in with MUCH more ease than if Bynum would have came back for us last year. Coming off injury, long layoff or not, the guy is a BALLER, and I would hate to see him out there. If he stinks it up, they'll sit him, it's not that big of a deal. Like you said, it's a long layoff, so he's also probably feeling pretty good and recovered. Plus, look who's guarding him man...the anti-guard, Fisher. I'm just imagining P&R all day to Dwight and depending on his shot, him burning us with those J's. We really don't know how he's going to be shooting, but I can imagine he's been practicing a ton since he hasn't been playing. I dunno, I'm hoping you guys are right, but if it's to the point that Jameer's killing us, I won't say I told you so, but I definitely wouldn't be surprised either.
Alston had a few good games but was honestly painful to watch most of the time. Johnson plain sucks. Nelson is easily better than either of them, even at 70% of his ability, which I think he is far above or they wouldn't risk playing him. If he's at around 85%, he won't even have to score a lot in order to impact the game. His decision making and ability to run the point alone helps Orlando a lot. Obviously, he's not going to be in all-star form but the Lakers would be mistaken to underestimate him.
