By Dan Savage
February 8, 2012
There are not enough positive adjectives in the English language to describe Ryan Anderson’s tremendous personality.
He’s humble, friendly, well spoken and extremely approachable.
In fact, it’s impossible to even think of a flaw with the young man’s persona.
And now, it’s also becoming increasingly difficult to find holes in his on-the-court play.
In the Magic’s thrilling 102-89 home victory over the Heat on Wednesday, Orlando’s starting power forward was phenomenal. He set the tone right out of the gate, scoring 24 before halftime on his way to a sensational 27-point night.
“Ryan was amazing,” All-Star center Dwight Howard explained. “They were leaving him open and he knocked down shots.”
But scoring doesn’t tell the whole story for Anderson anymore. In addition to knocking down five of the Magic’s 17 3-pointers, he pulled in 11 rebounds, seven of which came on the offensive glass.
“How many guys make five threes in a half and get six offensive rebounds in the same half,” Magic Head Coach Stan Van Gundy pondered out loud to the media in his postgame press conference. “He’s exceptional.”
The thing that’s hard to believe about Anderson is that he’s only 23 years old and this is his first season as a consistent starter in the Magic’s lineup. He’s had to endure the challenge of going against top-notch talent night in and night out and starting for the first time in a condensed lockout-shortened season.
He’s responded well to the test, averaging the second most points (16.5) and rebounds (7.4) per game on the team.
“It’s hard to argue (against the fact) that he’s had a hell of a year so far,” the Magic’s head coach explained.
While most players would attribute such success to increased time in the gym or extra sessions in the weight room, Anderson believes there are a number of factors also involved his breakout campaign.
He’s surrounded himself with what he calls “good people,” focused on his relationship with God, no longer obsesses with the big names of the players he’s responsible for guarding and developed a consistent routine.
It starts on game days with lunch at Crispers, which is followed by a short nap. Once awake, Anderson engages in a short prayer session before heading to Amway Center. Upon his arrival, he gets his shoulder warmed up by team trainers, goes through the squad’s walk through and depending on the day puts up some extra shots. Afterwards, Anderson then goes through a “secret” part of his routine with Hedo Turkoglu. He then wraps the whole game-day tradition up by saying a prayer right before tip off.
“I’m a guy who likes routines so I made a new routine,” Anderson said. “Every game is out of my control and I’ve really have relied a ton on my faith and focused on that rather than the stresses of basketball.”
With the success Anderson is having, it’s possible that “Ryan’s Routine” could soon become as popular as the “Kobe System.”
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