Tracy McGrady leaves after the first quarter with a strained right hip. He is listed as day to day. Other than that - it was a poor effort on the entire team. Juwan Howard and Drew Gooden put up some good numbers - but the defensive effort was not there. The Knicks would score at will against any player on the Magic except for Keith Bogans. Through all of the bad times, Bogans seems the one bright spot on the team. I really wish the players would learn how to make contact when setting a screen. The pansy ass attitude that our team takes on is getting out of control.
Speaking of Steven Hunter - did anyone else see him stare while a player grab another rebound and dunked? No wonder the Magic cannot find anyone to unload him on. Here are a few stats for the year so far. Now maybe some of the fans (sarcastic note: those who think Hunter should be our starting center) can get a real idea of what he brings to the table every night.
When Hunter plays, the Magic are 3-21. In the 3 wins, he played a total of 8 minutes. In those 8 minutes, he contributed 3 rebounds, 2 points, 1 assist, 0 blocks, 1 turnover and 2 personal fouls. The Magic have not won a single game when Hunter plays 5 or more minutes. In the other 5 victories - Hunter did not even play.
I guess those games that we lost had nothing to do with Mcgrady shooting under 40% and Howard shooting horribly along with Giricek and Gooden. No thats not it. Its Hunter who shoots over 50% from the field and is our leading shot blocker. No its all Hunters fault right? The fact that every player played like shit including T-mac had nothing to do with the losing. All Hunters fault I guess.
Point is - our "future" center is pulling down horrible numbers and often stands around. This is his third year and his numbers are far worse than a rookie 6'5" guard who easily pulls down more boards and is not afraid to mix it up. Hunter is pansy and should not be in the league.
Your right his numbers suck and Bogans is a better rebounder. But who better do we have to stop people from scoring around the basket. Drew Gooden is inconsistent sometimes with 3 or 4 blocks and then 0. Keith Bogans will grab the rebound which is great, but will he block a centers dunk or layup attempt. I watched many games this season and the ones with Hunter getting minutes he blocked shots. I mean come on, its not as if they are giving him a chance. He started the year off as a starter and he provided blocks, and had some games where he scored and rebounded well. For some reason they just benched him. Now I agree he is no starter but should be getting good minutes off the bench. You call Hunter a pansey, well everyone on this team is a pansey. They all need to work on the enthusiasm and passion if they want to succeed. I think we should trade Howard for a Kenyon Martin type player.
It's simple with Hunter - he is a horrible player. Can he block shots - yes, if he goes after them. He hardly defends his position and too often does not help from the weak side. When setting screens - he NEVERS puts a body on the guy coming through the screen. When it comes to rebounding and boxing out - he misses his assignment almost everytime. In summary - he is a liability when he is on the floor. 3 blocks a game is not going to cut - especially when he is not playing agressive defense.
Your right. He definitely needs to work on the basics like boxing out and all that. He has so much potential but I dont think it is all his fault. The coaching staff doesnt really concentrate on crap like that. They want players to score and thats it. Even doc was mostly offensive minded. Since we arent going to make the playoffs why dont we use these other games and practicing to just play defense.
I somewhat agree with you - however, we need to get our core players and let them play together so that next year is not such a cluster. The Magic did not pickup Hunter's option - so he is obviously not included in the grand plans for next year - that's not to say he isn't picked up at a cheaper price - but he is obviously looked at as part of our core. McGrady, Gooden, Garrity and possibly Hill and DeClercq are the only sure things for next year. Howard, Lue, are new with multi-year contracts - but I am not sure they will be back - if a good trade presents itself. We also have rookies Z, Bogans, Gaines that may or may not be back. Most likely Gaines will be cause of his contract - and Bogans deserves a spot as well as Z. Giricek, Williams, and Strickland will most likely not be back. I think the turn around will start with the coaching staff. JD has done a good job at trying to get this team together - but I really think we need a Riley, Rudy or Karl to run this team. Enough of the offense - let's see a tough defensive minded team for once.