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``We have to clean up some things and get better in some areas, but as long as we keep working we’ll be all right,’’ Nelson said. ``As long as we finish out the preseason the right way we’ll be OK.’’
Memphis used the power of Marc Gasol (18 points and 13 rebounds), Zach Randolph (18 points and six rebounds) and Rudy Gay (20 points and four 3-pointers) to dominate the paint. The Grizzlies had 54 points in the lane when the front line checked out of the game in the fourth quarter.
Afflalo strained his left hamstring in September while doing sprints and distance running to get ready for training camp. He then ``tweaked’’ the leg again in the Magic’s third practice, forcing the team to shut him down for two weeks.
Afflalo has been bothered by chronic pain and fatigue in the hamstring the past two years, so the Magic were cautious with the injury and kept him out of the first six preseason games. Nelson said he had no doubts that Afflalo would fit seamlessly back into the fold with the Magic on Wednesday night.
``The thing about Arron is he’s a veteran guy and he knows what we’re trying to do here,’’ Nelson said. ``The whole time that we were practicing he stayed in the loop. And it translated tonight. He was able to keep up with the pace and if he had a question we answered it.’’
The return of Afflalo sent Redick back to his role as the Magic’s sixth man, but it did nothing to slow down his solid play this preseason. Redick made four of eight shots, hit three 3-pointers and had two assists to go with his 11 points in the first half. Orlando trailed 55-49 at the break in large part because of a 24-13 disadvantage on the glass and nine second-chance points by the Grizzlies.
``(Redick’s) ability to create offense and being able to rely on him to be in the right place on the defensive end is good for a coach,’’ Vaughn said.
The Magic fell behind by as many as 12 points in the second quarter because of some shoddy rebounding and spotty defense, but they clawed back by shooting the ball well from afar. Orlando got three 3-pointers from Turkoglu and Redick in the first half and two more from Nelson.
Redick had one of the niftiest sequences in the first half when he stopped on the fastbreak, faked shooting a 3-pointer and tried passing inside to Nik Vucevic. When the pass was batted away, Redick recovered it, faked a shot along the baseline to send a defender flying back and stepped back for a deadeye 3-pointer.
Afflalo’s first basket in a Magic uniform was a thing of beauty as he broke backdoor on Memphis’ Wayne Ellington, took a pass from Vucevic and converted a reverse layup. Afflalo drilled a long jumper a couple of possessions later and then headed to the bench while sticking to the pregame plan. He rested on the bench while out of the game, but made sure to stretch his legs before heading back into the game late in the first quarter.
``I’m not quite all the way back, but it’s a good start I guess,’’ Afflalo said. John Denton writes for OrlandoMagic.com. John has covered the Magic since 1997. E-mail John at jdenton@orlandomagic.com or follow him on Twitter at @JohnDenton555. ORLANDOMAGIC.COM FEATURES: Davis Resembling True Leader | Turk Eager to Prove Critics Wrong Note: The contents of this page have not been reviewed or endorsed by the Orlando Magic. All opinions expressed by John Denton are solely his own and do not reflect the opinions of the Orlando Magic or their Basketball Operations staff, partners or sponsors. His sources are not known to the Magic and he has no special access to information beyond the access and privileges that go along with being an NBA accredited member of the media.
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