The Orlando Magic will be a very dangerous team for someone come the playoffs. Dwight Howard's inside power combined with the Magic's shooting will make them dangerous — if they get by their playoff inexperience. It's likely Orlando and Boston will play, and after watching the Magic play the Cavs I'm not ready to give that series to Boston. Orlando has a strong inside-outside game with Howard and more three-point shooters than most any other team in the league.
The Cavs' win was very important, to maintain their home-court edge and to beat a team that has given the Cavs problems. Mike Brown likes to finetune things as the playoffs approach, and he'll no doubt have a plan for Orlando's high pick-and-roll featuring Howard if the teams play in May. That is to the Cavs benefit, just as the home court advantage will be as well.
And Magic coach Stan Van Gundy pretty much conceded the top seed in the East home court to the Cavs after the game.
"I think it will be very difficult (to catch them) with 15 to go," he said. "They've got a lot of them here at home, and they've obviously been great here at home. I think we learned a lot about why."
Thing is, the Magic seemed to indicate that a big part of the "why" is because the Cavs got some calls. It's odd. Early last season James went for a game-winner against the Magic and was stripped by Howard. A jump ball was called, and the Cavs lamented James not getting the call.
Tuesday night, James and the Cavs got two calls that angered the Magic — a foul on Courtney Lee as he leaped when James pump-faked, and a three-second call on Howard with 30 seconds left.
"They're a very good team," Van Gundy said. "And when you get calls like that, you're in pretty good shape."
The foul on Lee was questionable, though there was contact. It was a superstar's call, and James deserves it.
"LeBron is going to get calls like that at the end of the game," Van Gundy said. "That's the way it goes."
James was pretty amazing … with 43 points and a huge three to go ahead late in the game. But the Magic lamented the three-second call on Howard after James made that three.
"I was in the lane, I got out," Howard said. "And it seemed like their bench, the Cavs bench and coaching staff, got into the ref's ear about me standing in the lane. So instead of them making the call, I guess the bench made the call."
Said Van Gundy: "The only three-second call in the game is with six seconds (actually 30) to go. I'm sure if we go through the film, my guess is we'll find at least a dozen both ways of guys being in the lane. And, with (30) seconds … you won't see that call again. That I guarantee. You won't see with a game on the line a three-second call in the last (30) seconds. But, that's part of the reason they're 30-1 at home."
OK then.
Howard went further.
"I wasn't too happy with a lot of calls tonight on both ends of the floor," he said.
The Magic probably should be spending more time kicking themselves for giving Howard only eight shots, none in the fourth quarter. The fact they were complaining about the calls shows how frustrated they were, but it also might show how hard it is to beat the Cavs at home. When a team plays its hardest and plays as well as Orlando did and comes up short, often the frustration points to external factors, like the refs.
Which makes the home-court advantage that the Cavs will surely hold come playoff time that much more important. If Cleveland plays Orlando and the Magic come in thinking they have to beat the refs and the Cavs, it's that much harder. So be it.
Contrast the Magic's words with the pregame approach of Mike Brown, who vowed he would not get another technical foul this year unless one of his players asks him to get one (remind me to ask him for a new iPod). Brown wants no excuses, and he figures if he's getting "Ts" he's telling his team there are other things affecting them.
Excellent game. Excellent interplay after the game. And if the Cavs face Orlando in the playoffs, it should be one heck of a good — and scary — series.
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
got that right about forgetting about super dwight in the 4th. the magic are not a true contender. they rely way too much on the 3 and on the road in the playoffs that is going to kill them against a good team. if they start out a home game bricking shots they might be in trouble there too.
8 shot attempts and only 2 fouls for dwight howard. that says it all stan van. your team was too shot happy and like a boxer swinging for a knockout punch every round they neglected to punch the cavs in their soft midsection.
Only 8 shots for their superduperstar?
Orlando would be a title contender if they had a good coach. When you have a cannon… shoot it!
LeBron is gonna get calls like that in the 4th quarter, eh? Obviously Van Gundy and his team haven't been around to witness the outrageous punishment LeBron has taken in the paint for SIX YEARS with NO CALLS. I don't know if the refs had it in for Cleveland's superstar or what, but if the tide has finally turned and we're actually GETTING calls our way, then baby….it's been a looonnngggg time coming. So the rest of the NBA can just quit their whining.
hey, just a note to all the cavs fans. you might want to fire off some e-mails to the heads of the abj. there is no reason the beat writer for the cavs should be sitting at home while the best player in cleveland since jim brown goes on a road trip on the west coast. seriously, it is shoddy of the abj not to have george thomas on the road with the team. yeah, i know that the cavs are done with the long road trips but if there is one player that demands constant local coverage it's lebron.
terje is right here, why didn't Ron Jeremy go straight for the throat? No pun intended. That guy has Dwight Howard on his team, who should get the ball every possession against a team like Cleveland. I don't understand what The Hedgehog's thought process was going into the game. If you're that stupid not to take advantage of Ilgauskas, then you deserve to lose.
I read a few of Brown's other enlightening locker room quotes. Brown used the always popular, "We control our own destiny." Uh, no you don't, Mike. By its very definition, if it is destiny, then it is impossible to control. But maybe that's too existential for you, buddy.
Also, check out the WKYC video, if it's still up. I thought it was epic that during the parade and after the barroom brawl in Moriarty's on East 6th, Pat tried to fight a police horse! Epic!
Orlando using excuses, blah blah blah. Just like everyone tells us when our team seemingly gets robbed by a bad call or two.
"Should have scored more points."
"Should have played better D on Lebron"
…The list of things Orlando could have done in that game to not let it get away by a bad call could go on and on and on…
terje, it's not the fact they have James, although they'd probably be a lottery team without him. It's irrelevant who is on the team, isn't it? If the Indians were in a pennant race and they had no stars, do you tell Ocker to rest his varicose veins and stay away from the West Coast? Either you're in the newspaper business or you're not.
read Pat and Windhorst. George waits for Brian's story and/or blog to post, and then gets after his "own" article.
i agree alan, but if the paper wants to cut corners in sports lebron should be last on the list.
i fired off a round of e-mails last night. not surprisingly i haven't received a single response.
drew, of course i read pat but the template that the peedee uses is horrid. ohio.com is a much cleaner design and much easier to read. sure, i read windhorst. that doesn't mean i don't want to check george out too.
That's not the point of who people "want to read." It has nothing to do with Windhorst or when who posts what.
Bottom line, George Thomas isn't being paid to write stories about Salma Hayek whipping out her giant fake bazooms to feed little babies in Africa, and then leaving TMZ.com to cover this "story" because of the travel expense.
Either bury the Beacon Journal as another dead newspaper and stop prolonging the agony, or send your beat reporter to cover the team no matter where they happen to be. The sports editor can't have it both ways. Otherwise, it's a sham. It's disrespectful to the readers, it's disrespectful to your reporter, it's disrespectful to the entire industry.
My point is, and I realize that I was a bit harsh re: George, is that I read Windy first, and then glean no additional information from George.