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Harris Not Sweating Feud with LeBron

Josh Cohen
Digital News Manager

By John DentonDec. 26, 2014

ORLANDO – After the fact late on Friday night, LeBron James said that it was the terse words from Orlando Magic forward Tobias Harris – and not the shoulder that connected with the jaw of the four-time MVP – that fired him up and led to Cleveland’s fourth-quarter rally.

Harris and James squared off following the accidental third-quarter hit, barking at one another with some blue language and ultimately picking up technical fouls. James took a dramatic tone after the game, saying the moment inspired him to score 15 fourth-quarter points – one more than Orlando had in the final 12 minutes – and lead the Cavs to a 98-89 victory.

On Saturday, Harris wanted nothing to do with a back-and-forth with James, saying prior to Orlando’s game in Charlotte: ``Does LeBron play for the Charlotte Hornets? That’s all I’m focused on. We’ve got another game and that’s all we’re focused on as a team.’’

A big part of Harris’ focus in on why the Magic have struggled to hold big leads and close out the fourth quarters of tight games.

Harris said the Magic looked like ``two different teams’’ on Friday night after they shot 59.6 percent through the first three periods and then limped to a five-of-21 shooting performance in the fourth quarter. That game came on the heels of Orlando blowing an 11-point second half lead against Philadelphia and nearly squandering all of a 27-point fourth-quarter advantage in a tense victory against Boston two days before Christmas.

``The ball stops moving and we stop executing. And defensively we didn’t get stops out there in the last five minutes – the most important time,’’ said Harris, who had 14 of his 16 points in the first three quarters. ``The most important thing is we have to continue to execute our stuff and play a whole game the way we play in the first, second and third quarters.’’

Harris said learning how to close out games can often be a process that is learned through pain and misery – and it can be especially difficult for a team like the Magic with a gaggle of inexperienced players. Orlando is respectable in games decided between 1-5 points this season, going 6-4. However, they are just 7-6 in games in which they were either tied or holding the lead going into the fourth quarter.

``It’s definitely been a process for us, but it comes down to everybody trusting each other,’’ said Harris, who is averaging career highs in points (18.5 ppg.), rebounds (7.1 rpg.) and assists (2.1 apg.) this season. ``Nobody can do it on their own and you have to trust that if you get to the lane and you kick (the ball out) that that person will make the shot. Make or miss, we’ll live with the result and just keep playing hard.’’

AARON GORDON BACK WITH TEAM: To Magic rookie Aaron Gordon, it seems like baby steps going from a walking boot, to wearing two tennis shoes again and being back around his teammates on road trips. But considering the type of injury that knocked Gordon out of action six weeks ago, it’s probably a good thing that the youngest player in the NBA is taking small steps.

On Nov. 15, following a game in Washington, D.C., a X-ray revealed that Gordon broke the fifth metatarsal in his left foot. The injury required a surgery in Charlotte on Nov. 21, and Gordon has progressed so well with his recovery that he didn’t even need to stop in for a check-up while in Charlotte. Gordon recently had a bone scan and he said everything in his foot checked out well.

``Everything is going according to plan right now,’’ he said. ``There’s really no timetable. It’s playing it by feeling and understanding my body, listening to my body and being honest.’’

Gordon said that he has started back doing non-impact exercises such as swimming, free throw shooting and weight-lifting to build up his hamstring, quad and calf muscles. A gym rat who improved dramatically over the summer by spending countless hours in the gym, Gordon said all of the hours of inactivity was the worst part of his rehab.

``I was just so bored, but I’ve been staying around Amway Center and doing what I need to do to get back,’’ Gordon said. ``It’s good be back around the time, hang out with them and understand them better. (Being back with the team) just means that I’m one more step closer to getting back onto the court.’’

COMEBACK KIDS: With the Magic back in Charlotte for Saturday night’s game it sparked memories of Orlando’s epic comeback on Nov. 21 to beat the Bobcats. Saturday’s game is the Magic’s first time back in Charlotte since they wiped out a 23-point deficit and won 105-100.

That rally tied for the third-largest in team history for the Magic. That night Orlando trailed by one at the end of the first quarter, by 11 at halftime and fell into the huge hole with a bad start to the third period.

However, the Magic got within 15 points of the lead by the end of the third quarter and then outscored the Hornets 41-21 in the fourth quarter. Veteran guard Willie Green scored all nine of his points in the fourth quarter, the final of them a put-back of an Elfrid Payton free throw miss to give the Magic a lead that they would not relinquish in one of their most thrilling victories of the season.

``I watched (the video footage of the game) and it was amazing how we got down and also how we were able to climb back into the game,’’ Magic coach Jacque Vaughn said. ``So I looked at it both ways – the negative and the positive.’’

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