The Magic lose to the Miami Heat, 98-93, in the final game of the year. The Magic were missing the usual suspects and the Heat were without Shaq and Dwayne Wade. The Magic led most of the way but could not close out the game in the fourth quarter. The Heat went on a 14-3 run to finish the game. Without a doubt, the inability to get Dwight Howard the ball in the closing minutes allowed the Heat to take control.
The Heat are a pretty good defensive team. They knew the Magic would not go inside in the final minutes and they just flooded the perimiter. There were no easy shots down the stretch. The Magic failed to get Howard the ball on several wide open looks. On at least 4 occasions in the fourth quarter, Howard broke free from the pick and roll. Miami was slow to rotate the player over to Howard, leaving him open long enough to get a decent over the head pass. However, the guards were unable to get Howard the ball in this situation and the play would collapse. The Magic would then settle for a jump shot.
In the last dozen or so games, I have noticed that the team was looking to get Dwight Howard involved a little more each time. The problem is with the location in which he is receiving the ball. The ball is handed to him down around his knees or a weak bounce pass that fails to get above his waist. Howard is 6'11", in case anyone was unsure. He needs to catch the ball around his chest or even higher. The guards need to get the ball to him so he continue onto the basket, not down around his feet for him to kick around.
After taking care of the ball in the first half, the Magic finished the game with 20 turnovers and only 10 assists. Howard finished with 21 points and 6 rebounds. Howard collected enough rebounds in his last two games to finish the season averaging a double-double. Steve Francis also added 21 points for the Magic.
