Staying F/C Dwight Howard- The future of this franchise. Needs to work hard on his post up game to take his game to the next level. PG Jameer Nelson- In past years, the Magic have never felt he was the starter of the future signing Keyon Dooling with chance to start and rumblings he would have to earn pg spot from Carlos Arroyo after he came back. It is great to see the Magic finally commit to Nelson as their point guard of the future. PF/C Darko Milicic- Just getting time last season is a huge boost for Darko going into the offseason. However, he needs to continue to improve his game and build his body. If he can do this, do not be shocked to see him lead the NBA in blocks next season. The fact he is in a contract is even more incentive. SF Hedo Turkoglu- It might not be this year but within the next two seasons, Hedo will move to the 6th man role he is best suited for. PF/C Tony Battie- The backbone of this team and he even agreed to take a pay cut in 2007. Everything a team wants in the lockeroom and leadership department. G Keyon Dooling- A pleasant surprise and a burst of great energy off of the bench. The 2nd good free agent signing in two years by management. G Carlos Arroyo- If there was ever an untradable backup in this league, it is Carlos Arroyo. When the Milicic deal went down, Arroyo's addition was a huge boost for the fanbase and helped the Orlando area connect with the hispanic community and with the rest of the team re-connect with the entire area. Trade Bait? Grant Hill- The big questions is "if" he plays next season. If not, his expiring contract will have a lot of value to possibily fetch a disgruntled star or a player a team wants to dump for salary purposes. Pat Garrity- The player with the longest current tenure could be on the way out. Sources tell me this could very well be the case My guess is . A team like Cleveland or Houston would be an ideal fit. Travis Diener- If you did not follow Darko Milicic's situation in Detroit, Travis Diener's situation here is a great example. Like Detroit, where Milicic was buried behind forwards like Rasheed and Ben Wallace along with Antonio McDyess, Diener is stuck behind Jameer Nelson, fan favorite Carlos Arroyo and Keyon Dooling. It is possible he might catch another team's eye in summer league and be used as trade bait/throw-in. Reserves Deshawn Stevenson- Known as a defensive stopper, Stevenson held back a bit this year from what he can do to help the team defensively. The big questions is what he gets on the free agent market. Some teams might consider him Bruce Bowen without the three-point shot. Still, I only expect him to be offered around $3-4 million making it feasable for the Magic to re-sign him. Trevor Ariza- The Magic want to re-sign him but the question is how much Otis Smith is willing to cut into the team's 2007 capspace? Ariza could command $2-$2.5 million on the free agent market with the Magic having the right to match any offer. Bo Outlaw- Could return on a one-year deal. Stacey Augmon- If the Magic lose Trevor Ariza in free agency, there is a chance Augmon could return on a one-year deal. Mario Kasun- He has had one foot out the door for a while now. I expect him to play in Europe where he could make more money next season. Draft The Draft lottery is on Tuesday night. Unless the Magic can come up with a 8 in 1,000 a miracle, they will be selecting 11th. Speculation has the Magic drafting a shooting guard or small forward with a possibility of more frontcourt help. The shooting guard position seems the most likely though. If Pat Williams can pull a 8 in 1,000 miracle, names like Adam Morrison and Brandon Roy are possibily. First, let's hope one of the three teams behind the Magic doesn't jump them. However, the talent might not be that pick from top 3 to 11. At 11, there could some good options like J.J. Redick and Rodney Carney. A trade is also being strongly considered according to sources to move up a few spots with one of the second rounders or two or possibily getting out of the draft all together. Anything could happen through workouts and team needs. Last year who thought Danny Granger and Gerald Green would drop so far? I also expect this draft to be full of surprises much like last year. Expect an active Draft Night no matter how the lottery goes. 2007 Every single move the Magic make this summer has an impact on next summer where the Magic hope to have enough capspace bring in a big-time scorer at shooting guard to complete the championship puzzle. This could effect whether Deshawn Stevenson and Trevor Ariza get re-signed. In all likehood, Stevenson will be back but based on what I hear, I expect Ariza to get a better offer elsewhere. If The Magic get a top three pick in the lottery, it actually will tighten the capspace so it could be both a good and a bad thing if Pat Williams works his lottery magic tonight. The big factor will be which 2003 rookies sign contract extensions. If they do not, they will become restricted free agents in the summer of 2007 and could try to force their way out via a sign and trade. Possibilities include LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, Dwayne Wade, and Kirk Hinrich. However, I do expect all of them to sign extensions this summer leaving fewer options for the capspace at least via free agency. After the Draft, we will explore some possibilities. http://magic.realgm.com/articles/38/200605...ight_breakdown/
I love reading Howards stuff. I do disagree with him about Hedo though, I do think Hedo will be able cement the Magic's starting SF spot for the future. He really tore it up and he looked like he enjoyed starting and being one of the main focuses on offense. He can score however and whenever.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Swish15:</div><div class="quote_post">Did you write this TheHighness?</div> No, I saw the same article on RealGM. http://magic.realgm.com/articles/38/200605...ight_breakdown/
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Swish15:</div><div class="quote_post">Did you write this TheHighness?</div> No but I couldn't figure out how to "quote" it
Howard always writes nice stuff and yes I also agree with it and hope Garrity is traded but would be a little sad if Deiner goes he was a pretty good shooter.
