The yin and yang of fandom

downtown Cleveland is estimated to lose nearly $40 million dollars during the next year because of LeBron’s departure? And politicians claim that sports don’t matter to a city….) Secondly, I’ve been spending the last couple of weeks traveling around the country, getting the feel of multiple fan bases and understanding how exactly they’ve reacted to their team’s signings (or lack thereof). This climaxed in a trip to NYC to experience the James announcement in the city that’s been courting him the last few years. Lastly, I can relay what these last few weeks mean to us as Orlando Magic fans and truly understand exactly what this off-season means. Therefore, in a 3-part feature on this off-season, I will start off talking about the Magic’s 2 recent signings and whether or not they can match up to the hype of 2009. So, without further ado, let me first talk about the first business this off-season:

Daniel Orton – 1^st Round Pick

I’m honestly confused with this pick. While the Kentucky Wildcats had a plethora of NBA stars, I don’t understand why the Magic would spend a first round pick on a team’s 2^nd best big man just to have him on the bench as their 3^rd option at Center. While only 6’10”, he is a solid rebounder who can act as a hustle big off the bench. But I am concerned that, with the need for a backup point (personal favorite Armon Johnson was available) and at the time, 2-3 depth, Orlando opted to draft a backup who played minimal minutes. Then, there was the mediocre Summer League performance, which ended with a 1-7 shooting, 0 rebound performance in the final game. I really hope he provides more than just practice bodies for Superman and Gortat and that this summer performance was just a fluke adjustment. However, someone I am impressed with:

Stanley Robinson – 2^nd Round Pick

This is one of the early candidates for steal of the draft. As a projected late first rounder, the UConn superstar surprisingly slipped to the late 2^nd round and was quickly nabbed by the Magic. He is that athletic swingman I was hoping Orlando would select in the likes of Quincy Pondexter or Damion James (who were frustratingly selected before hand). During the Summer Leagues, he showed great flexibility on the floor, notching a double-double in his final game and is an almost lock to provide bench support. Don’t be surprised if Robinson sneaks into the rotation, showcasing some rookie heroics. (Also impressive in the Summer Leagues, Patrick Ewing, Jr., who is another athletic forward who could be helpful on the bench) And while I was frustrated with one pick, and happy with another, the beginning of my summer was then followed up by:

Chris Duhon – 4 years, $15 million

With Jason Williams nearly guaranteed to exit, and Anthony Johnson filing for Social Security, Orlando was in desperate need of a backup Point Guard. Though Jameer has shown he can be an All-Star caliber point, he has also shown that a reliable backup is almost a necessity to maintain this team’s cohesiveness. Enter Chris Duhon who went from fighting as a starter in Chicago, to showcasing his talents in New York. Funny enough, two years ago, the Magic pursued Duhon as a backup for Jameer before losing out to the Knicks who nearly guaranteed him a starting position. While I’m never comfortable with paying

nearly $4 mil a year to a rotating cast position (See: Jason Williams, Anthony Johnson, Tyron Lue, Rafer Alston, Carlos Arroyo, Travis Diener), having C-Doo on our roster (yes, I’m trying to push for this nickname) is a tad comforting. Remember, he was a starter on a horrid Knicks team, still averaging over 7 apg on a team that went 18 games under .500. He’s a solid jump shooter who can definitely hit the 3 when necessary.

But while we have youth and experience in our first free agent signing, there isn’t a full taste of satisfaction in our collective mouths. Salary aside, there is a question mark in the defensive apartment. And with a point guard, you never want to see a season of nearly 3 turnovers per game (and that was during his career year, statistically). But when weighing all of the pros and cons, I must admit that I’ve come to comfortable terms with this signing. While I think there were less doubts with the ’08 AJ and ’09 J-Will backup options, having Chris Duhon for the next 4 years will at least provide a good amount of consistency. Orlando needed a point guard, didn’t pick one up in the draft, so, they did what they had to do. This next signing, however, is kind of telling for what may happen in the future.

While Chris Duhon smiles, Otis Smith provides the reaction
every Magic fan portrayed with this signing (AP Photo/
John Raoux)

Quentin Richardson – Terms Undisclosed

“Q” (or “Q-Rich” as he’s sometimes called…although I think we need to start curbing the whole “first letter of your first name, then part of your last name” combo in the nickname department. We get it, J-Will, J-Rich, D-Wade, T-Mac….can’t we be a bit more creative? That’s really the lazy way to do it, kind of like how ESPN’s Linda Cohn tried calling Dwight Howard, “D-Ho”. And I know, I know, I called Chris Duhon “C-Doo” before, but at least the similarity to the jet-ski company gives that nickname some form of making sense. By the way, I am glad that, even though the team lost out on Quincy Pondexter in the draft, they were still able to have the endless possibilities of a “Q” based nickname. Wow, I think I’ve broken my own record for longest side note ever in an article) is a very impressive swingman who can play either G-F position when needed. As a journeyman to the league, Richardson is a classic shooter who will thrive well in Stan Van’s “shoot first” system. He has shown flashes of amazing scoring ability, even notching a career high in 3-pt shooting last year with the Heat (nearly 40%). While I am curious of exactly how long he’s signed on to the team (and how much the Magic have paid for him) and while I am a bit weary of his lack of defensive capabilities (a common trend with Orlando’s upcoming season…which is sad considering they’ve spent the last 2 years as one of the most effective defensive teams in the league), I’m very happy that an experienced, young shooter is on the team to provide yet another option when our starters struggle (and yes, I’m referencing the entire Eastern Conference Finals from this past season.)

However, the signing of Q is likely the end of the Matt Barnes era in Orlando. With Barnes opting out of his contract (and you can’t really blame him…he was a steal last year and considering this business has one of the shortest shelf lives of any industry, you have to cash in whenever you can), the Magic probably won’t have the money, or the room, to keep one of our biggest assets from last year. Granted, this is under the assumption that the whole Redick situation figures itself out over the next few days. Regardless, this new signing gives Orlando a great rotation of Vince, Pietrus (the projected starters), Q, Robinson, and either JJ or Barnes (since they more than likely won’t be able to retain both of them). And speaking of JJ:

JJ Redick – Offered 3 years, $19 million by Chicago

More than likely, the Richardson signing was listed under the Mid-Level Exemption, meaning the Magic still have the flexibility to match the Bulls offer to our main bench shooter (I’m sorry, when Pietrus never passes and shoots every single time he touches the ball, that doesn’t classify him as our main shooter). Not wanting to encounter a Gortat situation like Dallas did last year (in which Orlando took all 7 days to match the Mavs offer, fooling them into thinking they were getting the Polish Hammer, then letting fellow big man Brandon Bass go, only to be screwed over by the Magic who retained Marcin anyway), the Bulls played it safe by front-loading their offer to JJ, giving him $7.5 mil the first year (essentially telling the Magic “you’d be insane to give a backup shooter this money next year when you’re already in the luxury-tax”). Now GM Otis Smith has one of the toughest decisions to make: do you spend this amount of money on a fan-favorite, or do you let your only pure shooter go and rely on a handful of newcomers to provide your spark from the bench. And in doing so, how does this affect negotiations with Barnes? Does that free up money to keep him, or is the intention to sign a different third swingman guard/forward?

It’s this writer’s opinion that the Magic have to match the offer and keep JJ. Yes, that seems like a steep price for a backup 2-guard who is somewhat undersized, but the team needs their pure shooter. There are certainly enough superstars on this team; they need role players. Every great championship team had that pure shooter…that Steve Kerr/Robert Horry type who knew their role was to just get open on the wings and create shots. Keeping JJ means having a team loaded with role players: a former staring PG to maintain control (Duhon), a pure shooter (Redick), an athletic defensive stopper (Pietrus….which, if he finally learns that he needs to stop shooting and focus on defense, he would be a superstar in the league, similar to Bruce Bowen…this is applicable whether he comes off the bench or acts as the starter), an enforcer big (Gortat), a 3-point shooting big to take away defenders from the paint (Anderson), and a flexible explosive guard who can help keep the energy up when the team is down (Richardson). Those are all complimentary role-players who can help our starters succeed and finally take this team to the promise land. And while I absolutely hate to see Barnes go, the signing of Richardson essentially foreshadows Matty-Ice’s departure. What that also foreshadows is the possibility of a complete team, if (and this is a big if) Otis resigns Redick to the team.

So how will the rest of the summer play out for the Magic? Will Orlando’s maxed out cap mean possible trades in the future? And how exactly does the superstar realignment affect the Southeast Division? Well, loyal readers, stay tuned for my next two articles, which will discuss how the rest of the NBA’s Free Agency affects Orlando, and what exactly this team needs to do to bring a title to the City Beautiful this season. In the meantime, let’s take comfort at our favorite diner.