By John DentonJanuary 29, 2012
ORLANDO – Orlando Magic veteran point guard Jameer Nelson didn't
play Sunday and won't travel with the team to Philadelphia on Monday
because of post-concussion symptoms and nausea.
Nelson was hit twice on Friday -- once in the head and again in the
jaw -- and began suffering concussion symptoms in the hours after the
game. Nelson, an eight-year NBA veteran, has suffered at least four
concussions.
Nelson said by text message on Sunday that he was in good spirits and
would be back by the middle of the week. Magic coach Stan Van Gundy
lauded the NBA's safeguards put in place to protect players who suffer
concussions and said that Nelson won't play again until he's fully
cleared by Magic team physicians.
``The league and all of pro sports are starting to get on the right
track with (head injuries). You can not mess with these things,'' Van
Gundy said. ``We owe our players better than (taking a chance).''
Nelson, who turns 30 years old next week, has struggled much of this
season and is averaging just 8.1 points and 5.1 rebounds. He's shooting
only 38.7 percent from the floor and 28.9 percent from 3-point range.
Nelson claimed to have felt fine after the game on Friday, but his
condition got progressively worse on Saturday.
``One, he's a very tough guy. And number two, there are times when
you are going to feel OK,'' Van Gundy said. ``But even if you look at
some of these pro football guys, they are tough and competitive who
want to be on the court and if you let them they will go out there. But
we owe them better than that. This isn't an ankle or knee injury and
maybe you can push through it. You're talking about somebody's head and
brain. You have to take care of the players. The league has great
safeguards in place and he'll be back when he checks out and not a
minute sooner.''
NOT SO SUPER TRAVEL ARRANGEMENTS: The Magic have already experienced
somewhat of a travel nightmare for next Saturday's trip to Indianapolis
to play the Pacers.
Because Indianapolis is hosting the Feb. 5 Super Bowl at Lucas Oil
Stadium, there is no hotel space for the Magic to lodge in Indy before
Saturday's game. Their original plan was to remain in Orlando and then
fly to Indianapolis on Saturday morning -- something usually against
NBA rules, but the Magic were granted a waiver because of the lodging
issues.
Now, the NBA is requiring the Magic to fly from Orlando to Cincinnati
on Friday night after hosting the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Magic were
originally told they would have to bus the 115 miles from Cincinnati to
Indianapolis on Saturday morning. However, NBA spokesman Tim Frank said
Sunday night that the Magic would now be allowed to fly from Cincinnati
to Indianapolis on Saturday morning.
Van Gundy was less than thrilled about the travel arrangements and
attempted to bite his tongue when discussing the matter. he said part
of the blame lies with the NBA for not blocking out several hotel rooms
for the visiting team. Originally, the Los Angeles Clippers were slated
to play in Indianapolis the day before the Super Bowl, but the schedule
was adjusted following the NBA lockout and the Magic were sent to Indy
instead.
PICKING UP PIECES, ENERGY: Now in his fifth season with the Magic,
Van Gundy called Orlando's defeats last week ``three of the worst
losses since I've been here.'' He was referring, of course, to the
Monday loss in Boston in which the Magic scored a franchise-low 56
points, the Thursday loss to the Celtics in which they blew a 27-point
lead and Friday's 26-point defeat in New Orleans.
Van Gundy debunked the notion that the daily drama surrounding
superstar center Dwight Howard was distracting the team. Howard
requested a trade prior to the season and has discussed the matter
several times in recent weeks when visiting other NBA cities. Van Gundy
doesn't think that's a reason behind the recent struggles, pointing out
that the Magic were 11-4 and rolling along just last week.
``That's a convenient excuse and I've said that to people both inside
and outside of the organization,'' Van Gundy said. ``We were playing
well last week and the situation was the same. So now that we're having
a rough week it's a distraction? I don't buy it. That's just an
excuse.''
Van Gundy pointed to the Magic being in their toughest stretch of the
season schedule-wise. Monday's game will be the Magic's sixth in eight
nights. In the weeks before the Feb. 26 NBA All-Star Game in Orlando,
the Magic will play 20 games in 32 nights. After the break, the Magic
will play 31 games in 60 nights, a schedule more closely resembling a
normal NBA season.
``Fatigue is a part of (the recent struggles), and we've given into
it and now we're looking for excuses,'' Van Gundy said. ``When we've
played with great energy we've played great. When our energy has been
low we've played poorly. ... When we're walking around we're not a hard
team to guard. We're not a 1-on-1 team or a team that has a LeBron
(James), Paul Pierce or Kobe (Bryant) who will create shots for other
guys. We need to move and play with energy. We played slow (in the
three losses). Watching the way we played in the Indiana game (a Magic
win) you'd think something was wrong witht he computer and it was on a
different speed.''
ETC: Chris Duhon started his second game of the season at point
guard and will be in the starting lineup again Monday in Philadelphia.
Nelson missed a win in Charlotte earlier int he season with neck
spasms. ... Magic forward Ryan Anderson started and played extensively
Sunday night despite the lingering effects of a bruised calf muscle
suffered Thursday against the Celtics. Anderson, who was held out of
Friday's loss in New Orleans, played on Sunday despite being less than
100 percent healthy. ... The Magic turned the ball over 14 times in the
first 17 minutes of Sunday's game, but finally got their ball-handling
issues under control. They didn't turn the ball over in the final 7:25
and the result was an 18-2 Magic run. ... Sunday's game was the Magic's
108th consecutive regular-season sellout. Including the 22 playoff
games over the previous three seasons, the Magic have had 130 straight
sellouts.
John Denton writes for OrlandoMagic.com. John has covered the Magic since 1997 and recently authored ``All You Can Be’’ with Magic center Dwight Howard. E-mail John at jd41898@aol.com
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