Orlando Magic PG- This is going to be the spot to watch during training camp, with Jammer Nelson and Kenyon Dooling going at it, both can run the point well Nelson can score off the dribble and pass the ball not to mention he can play pretty good D, Dooling a FA that signed with the Magic during the off-season, he is a bench player that may start this season he can score with his shot but dont always count on his 3-point shot because it is inconseitant. To back these guys up is rookie Travis Diener out of Marquette. In the the end I say Jammer Nelson will start which I say is the best idea. Overall grade-C+/B- SG-This will be Steve Francis if Brian Hill goes with the small ball line-up, Francis is the leader of the team he can do it all almost, the only thing holding him up is his attitude he can't control it which gets him in trouble, If Hill does not go with small-ball than expect Deshawn Stevenson to play this position he has the potential to be a good player if he played more, you also might see Hedo Turkolu(sp?) play this spot a little. Overall grade-B/B+ SF-This positon goes to Grant Hill he can do anything on the court, BUT his ankle everyone knows this story about him breaking his ankle and basically not playing for 4 years. If his ankle holds up expect him to be an all-star again dont expect Hill to be playing a lot of double header games, thats when Hedo comes in to play he is a potential 6th man canidate and he is a pretty good player whens he is hot. Overall grade- B/B+ PF-This position goes to the cornerstone of this franchise which is Dwight Howard, last season he averaged a double-double being the 4th option with the ball and a rookie, so expect his scoring numbers to go up with his touches going up also his all around stats should go up, I can't say anything wrong about Dwight except that he is raw and needs to play more than he will be a force to be dealt with in the future. With Fran Vasquez gone this could be a bad position because when Dwight gets tired there is really nobody to back him up. Overall grade- B/B+ C-This is also going to be a matchup to watch during training camp with Tony Battie and Kelvin Cato, Battie can score and board but he also hustles every play, Cato can also score and board but he is lazy and injury prone, with that said I say Battie will start over Cato. Overall grade- C/C+ Bench-The bench will revolve around Hedo and Dooling they will be the first ones off the bench to give the starters a break, also look for Cato and Stevenson to get some minutes. Overall grade- B-/B Projected depth chart PG-Nelson/Dooling/Francis/Diener SG-Francis/Stevenson/Hedo SF-Hill/Hedo/Garrity PF-Howard/Cato/Garrity C-Battie/Cato/Kasun Projected record 38-42, expect the Magic to be in the lottery again
Great post and I can tell you put a lot of time into it TT. Excellent job. There are just a couple of things I disagree with in this preview. I think our point guard position is higher then a C+/B-. We have tons of depth at the one and I think Jameer Nelson is capable of running the offense effectivley. If Jameer were to get injured or need a break during a game, we have a solid backup in Keyon Dooling who can step up and make an impact off the bench. I think we are closer to a B-/B because we don't have a huge gap at the point guard position. Next, I think our power forward position should be a B+/A-. With Dwight Howard getting another year under his belt, I think he will have a successful season. He will also be getting more touches on offense which will help his scoring and draw defensive pressure to free up our other players. Finally, I think our bench is a B. We are a very deep squad and have solid backups at every single position. We have offensive and defensive threats coming off the bench so I would give it a B-/B. Also, I will making the official Orlando Magic season preview for the Writing Team which will be released in September or October. If you want, you can post your preview in the same thread once it comes out.
well, by looking at your position grades, you basically have everything in the high Cs and low Bs. you dont think that is good enough to at least get a .500 record??
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting phiLA:</div><div class="quote_post">well, by looking at your position grades, you basically have everything in the high Cs and low Bs. you dont think that is good enough to at least get a .500 record??</div> No, the Maic will fall into pieces late in the season and miss the playoff cut by a couple games IMO.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting TwinTowers:</div><div class="quote_post">Projected record 38-42, expect the Magic to be in the lottery again</div> Sorry TwinTowers, but that's about everything I agree with. Yes, I believe that we're not making the playoffs again. But I don't understand a few things with your grades, are you giving the players who start the grades or are you giving the whole position an overall grade? Your PG position could be just right. But the SG position isn't as good as you make it. I doubt Hedo will play much SG and Steve Francis needs to prove that he's capable of playing SG. DeShawn is an okay player, but that's it. Imho, our SF spot should be the highest rated, Hedo and Hill (if healthy) are at the moment better than Francis and Stephenson. Depending on how well Francis adapts to his new role and on DeShawns progress, this position might be the best at the end of the year, but I doubt it. Giving the PF a B is a bit overrated I believe. Don't get me wrong, Dwight will progress and develop a lot but I doubt he and whoever backs him up (Garrity if healthy I believe) are as good as our SG/SF position. The C spot, however, should be clearly graded as our worst position. Without Fran and a legimate other PF, I doubt that Dwight will make the move to C for a while. Cato is injury prone and Battie is only solid. Also, you're forgetting Kasun. Our bench is superior to most other team benches, just because of the depth we have. Hedo was one of the best 6th man last year and with Stevenson, Jameer/Dooling (whoever is going to start/come off of the bench) we have capable players. Battie/Cato (again whoever is going to start) are less than average starting C but as backups, they might be just okay. I never liked Garrity for his ability but his hustle game is great, I don't know nothing about his health status, though. Depth Chart (if all are healthy) with Grades: PG: J. Nelson/K. Dooling/T. Diener/S. Francis B- SG: S. Francis/D. Stevenson/H. Turkoglu (right spelling) B- SF: G. Hill/H. Turkoglu/S. Augmon B+ PF: D. Howard/P. Garrity/K. Cato B- / C+ C: T. Battie/K. Cato/M. Kasun C-
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Swish15:</div><div class="quote_post"> I think our point guard position is higher then a C+/B-. We have tons of depth at the one and I think Jameer Nelson is capable of running the offense effectivley. If Jameer were to get injured or need a break during a game, we have a solid backup in Keyon Dooling who can step up and make an impact off the bench. I think we are closer to a B-/B because we don't have a huge gap at the point guard position.</div> With the PG positon we are not sure if Jammer can run it full time and Dooling he has never been a starter so we dont know about him either thats why I gave it a C+/B- <div class="quote_poster">Quoting Swish15:</div><div class="quote_post"> Next, I think our power forward position should be a B+/A-. With Dwight Howard getting another year under his belt, I think he will have a successful season. He will also be getting more touches on offense which will help his scoring and draw defensive pressure to free up our other players.</div> If we had a solid backup for Dwight I would have gaven the Magic a higher grade but we dont so when Dwight gets tired there is really nobody to step up and contibute well, but Dwight will tear it up this year for sure. <div class="quote_poster">Quoting Swish15:</div><div class="quote_post"> Finally, I think our bench is a B. We are a very deep squad and have solid backups at every single position. We have offensive and defensive threats coming off the bench so I would give it a B-/B.</div> I agreed with you here I forgot about Stevenson and Kasun so I changed the grade for the bench we will have a solid bench. And one more thing if we get one more solid FA we could get in the playoffs with ease.
