Magic face an age-old problem: Experience By Tim Povtak | Sentinel Staff Writer Posted October 26, 2003 The Orlando Magic never have been so young. And neither have they looked so unsteady with so much at stake. Not in 15 years. Maybe this retooling wasn't such a good idea. Maybe old was better than bold. Maybe they should introduce themselves to each other once again. The Magic will begin the regular season Wednesday night with three rookies likely on the 12-man roster, an average age of 25.5 years and plenty of youthful enthusiasm -- but with the worst exhibition record (1-7) in franchise history. "I'm not worried," said power forward Drew Gooden when the exhibition season ended. "It's going to click, and everything will be fine. But we just haven't heard the clicking sound yet." Trying to rebuild a supporting cast for all-star and NBA leading scorer Tracy McGrady may take longer than originally thought. When they open in New York against the Knicks, only two of their top eight players will have been wearing a Magic uniform for a full season. "Being young and new can be a double-edged sword," said center Andrew DeClercq, 30, the oldest player on the roster. "It comes with young legs, good enthusiasm, but it also comes with inexperience. Remember, they tried the opposite approach before, and that didn't work. Just give this time." The Magic have not advanced beyond the first round of the playoffs since 1996, but their goals now go well beyond that opening round. Another early ouster would be greeted with groans. They are hoping that three more days of practice can solve some of the problems, yet those problems will not be solved easily. This may be a young man's game, but these young men haven't yet figured out the game. "We just have to forget about being young and start playing like basketball players," McGrady said. "Sure, it's going to take some time. You can see that already. But how long? We'll just have to see." If the exhibition schedule was any indication -- and that remains debatable -- then the Magic have considerably more work to do. No starting center has emerged, and they likely will open Wednesday with a starting lineup of three forwards (Juwan Howard, Britton Johnsen and Gooden) and two guards (McGrady and Tyronn Lue). The new lineup doesn't look comfortable around McGrady. And the 2003 draft picks (Reece Gaines, Keith Bogans and Zaza Pachulia) will be of little help at the start of the season. "No, I'm not worried," said Magic General Manager John Gabriel when asked about his youthful team. "A team like this can be exciting. It means energy, young legs. I don't think any of these guys view it as a disadvantage. And I don't think that's why the preseason went as it did." The previous youngest Magic team (26-year average) was in 1999-2000, the season after dismantling a veteran group and playing mostly with a collection of castoffs to create salary-cap room for the following summer. It finished 41-41, earning Doc Rivers the NBA Coach of the Year honors in his first season. The oldest Magic team (30.9-year average) came in 1997-98 when they finished with an identical 41-41 record under Coach Chuck Daly. Neither one of those teams reached the playoffs. "We're not that young. We're not babies out there," Gooden said. "No one is going to use that as a crutch. We've got all-stars [McGrady, Howard], and we've got a guy [Lue] with a championship ring." By playing without a center, the Magic have been outrebounded badly this month. Although Rivers had hoped to use DeClercq in reserve, a slow start by the Magic could push him back into the starting lineup, where he was parts of last season. Pachulia, who is just 19, has the size and has shown some potential, but his skills are too raw. And Steven Hunter still struggles with consistency. Howard, 30, is expected to be a steadying force once the regular season begins, but he is out of position at center. Lue, 26, replaced Darrell Armstrong at point guard, but he isn't sure yet how to play alongside McGrady and Howard. Gooden, 22, is the youngest starter, and he played well in the preseason. Johnsen, 24, is an undrafted rookie who capitalized on injuries to Pat Garrity (injured list) and Donnell Harvey (abdominal strain) to make the team and the starting lineup, but he was unimpressive in the last couple of exhibition games. Among the rookies, Bogans is expected to start the season on the injured list with Garrity and Grant Hill, leaving Gaines and Pachulia near the end of the bench -- for now. "I still think that we're going to have two rookies who will have an impact on our success this season," Rivers said. "I'm going to push them. I've always thought of rookies as guys you can play in the middle of the game, where they can't hurt you. Don't let them start too much, and don't let them end a game, ever."
