By John Denton
Feb. 20, 2015
ORLANDO – Not long after getting home from practice on Thursday, Orlando Magic guard Victor Oladipo flipped on the TV and watched in awe as name after name scrolled across the bottom of the screen after having been dealt just before the NBA’s trade deadline.
Then, Oladipo thought to himself how happy he was that the Magic kept their team intact and didn’t do a deal at the deadline. After all, Oladipo thinks the Magic have the proper pieces in place to make a significant run over the final 26 games of the season.
Oladipo was particularly aware of all of the point guards that were dealt on Thursday, especially Michael Carter-Williams – a close friend of Oladipo’s who beat him out for the Rookie of the Year award last season. Carter-Williams was shockingly traded from the Philadelphia 76ers to the Milwaukee Bucks. In all, 15 points guards – Goran Dragic, Brandon Knight, Isaiah Thomas, Andre Miller, Ramon Sessions, D.J. Augustin, Reggie Jackson, Pablo Prigioni, Norris Cole, Kendall Marshall, Tyler Ennis, K.J. McDaniels, Isaiah Canaan, Ish Smith and Carter-Williams – were involved in deals just before Thursday’s 3 p.m. deadline – something that was shocking to Oladipo’s system.
``It’s a crazy situation and wasn’t expecting it,’’ Oladipo said of all of the volatility at the point guard position following the trade deadline. ``I came home and saw it in the ticker on the bottom of the screen. The first thing I saw was (the Carter-Williams trade) and I was like, `No way!’ But then I saw all of the other ones and thought how crazy it is. But at the end of the day, it’s a part of our business. I wish the best for those guys.’’
All of the activity at the deadline also made Oladipo reflect on the reality that the Magic (17-39) before facing the New Orleans Pelicans (27-26) tonight at the Amway Center. Magic GM Rob Hennigan and assistant GMs Scott Perry and Matt Lloyd held talks with several teams about trades, but ultimately decided to keep their many young assets in place so that they can grow together.
Undoubtedly, the pressure is on for the young Magic to start showing signs of growth over the final two months of the regular season.
``We’ve got to start getting it going since we didn’t make any trades,’’ Oladipo said. ``We definitely have to have the proper approach for the games. If we continue to do that over these last 26 games, there’s no telling what we can do.’’
Barring any player buyouts or players being waived, the Magic know that this will be their team over the final 26 games of the season. That also includes James Borrego, who found out on Tuesday that he will remain Orlando’s interim coach the rest of this season. Borrego took over for the dismissed Jacque Vaughn on Feb. 5 and the Magic responded with two wins and nearly a third in a heartbreaking loss to the Chicago Bulls.
Borrego has tried to keep the focus on the here and now, blocking out any thoughts of what might come in the future for himself or any of the players on the roster. He said he took the same approach to Thursday’s NBA trade deadline, letting it pass without even a mention to his players.
``This is our group. Until we hear differently, this is our group,’’ Borrego said. ``The trade deadline passed, we love this group, we believe in them and off we go.’’
Orlando’s hopes of putting together a strong second-half run begins tonight, coincidentally, against a Pelicans team that smashed it 101-84 in the season-opener in New Orleans. Superstar forward Anthony Davis was a one-man wrecking crew in that game, compiling 26 points, 17 rebounds and a career-high nine blocked shots. Former Magic forward Ryan Anderson (22 points, nine rebounds and three 3-pointers) had a big game against Orlando on opening night and both he and Davis are expected to play despite recent bouts with injuries.
``We’re coming off the All-Star break and we’re trying to get ourselves rolling and playing the Pelicans will be a good way to test ourselves,’’ said Magic power forward Kyle O’Quinn, who made the bold move of shaving off his lengthy beard on Friday morning. ``They beat us up a little bit on the glass at their place, so hopefully that’s not a problem tonight.’’
O’Quinn went on to stay that Magic players can breathe a sigh of relief now that the trade deadline has passed. He feels like everything is in place for the Magic to continue playing good basketball and make a push down the stretch.
``We know that we have the players and have the talent and coach has a great game plan,’’ O’Quinn said. ``So it’s just about us putting it together and playing 48 minutes every night. We have to get some Ws in the column and end the season the right way. … Guys have to fall into their roles given, even guys who thought they might have been getting traded. The team needs them from the first man to the 15th man. On this team, everybody likes one another. Hopefully everybody can maximize their role for the team.’’
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