Denton: Magic-Celtics Postgame Analysis
By John Denton
November 20, 2009
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.
BOSTON – With so much focus swirling around Stan Van Gundy’s negativity of late, the steely, determined Orlando Magic went out Friday night and gave their head coach something to smile about.
Facing a Boston team that was out for revenge after being eliminated by Orlando last spring in the playoffs, the Magic stood toe to toe with the Celtics and won the kind of slugfest that only Van Gundy could love.
The 83-79 victory for the Magic spoke volumes about the offensive struggles for both teams, but it also said something about Orlando’s ability to get key stops and win in a hostile, playoff-like environment.
``That’s the first one of those that we’ve had and we showed real good competitiveness and toughness and really hung in there,’’ Van Gundy said. ``Those kinds of wins actually make me happier than when everything is going smoothly and you’re knocking everything down.
``Every team in this league is capable of getting it going and having a great night and anybody will win on those nights,’’ Van Gundy continued. ``What sets apart the better teams is they can win when they’re not having their best night.’’
The Magic (10-3) were back in Boston for the first time since last spring when they won a decisive Game 7 on the Celtics’ home floor. Whereas that game was an offensive masterpiece for the Magic, this one was anything but. What the Magic did was hold the aging Celtics to 34.5 percent shooting and a staggering 2 of 19 from 3-point range.
``Coach always told us when we’re not playing well on the offensive end that’s when you’ve got to pick it up on defense. Tonight, our defense kept us in the game,’’ said Rashard Lewis, who had 16 points in his third game back from a 10-game suspension. ``This is a big win for us and a real confidence boost. Cleveland came in (last week) and took it to us. This kind of lets us know that we’re still a good team. We didn’t get to The Finals for nothing. We’re still a very good team.’’
Before the game, Boston coach Doc Rivers said he wasn’t putting too much stock in the outcome win or lose because both the Celtics and the Magic are still trying to reassemble their chemistries. Rivers was fairly confident that the two teams would stage another late-May rematch and stand in the way of one another come playoff time.
Said Rivers: ``Both teams are just in a process to get to where we can fight each other later on.’’
Here’s an inside look at the good, the bad and the ugly from the Magic’s most important victory of the season to date:
THE GOOD
---- Vince Carter led the Magic with 26 points, but this was hardly a classic from the Daytona Beach native. With the Celtics smothering Dwight Howard (nine points, 15 rebounds and three blocks) inside and determined not to let Lewis hit 3-pointers, Carter had to carry the offense much of the second half. As a result, he made just 10 of 29 shots.
But by scoring 16 points in the second half and 10 in the fourth quarter, Carter gave the Magic the go-to scorer they needed at times last season. His post-up basket with 2:33 to play broke a 78-all tie and put the Magic ahead for good.
Carter could get almost any shot he wanted against the smaller Ray Allen and relished the opportunity to take big shots in games that matter again.
``I don’t put any pressure on myself and I’m just thankful that I’m on a great team that has enough confidence to put the ball in my hands to make plays,’’ Carter said. ``The plays were just coming back to back to back, but I didn’t want to let down. It would be great to have 29 shots and not miss the four layups that I did, but I’ll be better.’’
---- According to Lewis, Van Gundy was much better at controlling his negativity along the sidelines and in the team huddles in timeouts. Van Gundy insisted Friday that he’s trying to limit his negativity and focus more on the constructive critiques.
ESPN had Van Gundy in a microphone for the game, and it showed him sticking mainly to play designs and tactical adjustments during timeouts.
``Stan was great and positive the whole night,’’ Lewis recalled. ``He did do a good job of cutting back on the screaming and yelling. He was doing more coaching in the huddles about where we need to be instead of bashing. He usually bashes us for the first two minutes of the timeouts and then he’ll coach the game. (Friday) he was strictly coaching.’’
Lewis said Van Gundy’s not-so-subtle adjustments had a big impact on the psyche of the Magic’s players in Boston’s hostile environment.
``Instead of getting mad at coach and going out there playing frustrated this way sort of put our minds at ease,’’ he said. ``He just has to pick and choose his moments and not try to be a nice coach. He still has to stay on top of us because that makes us play harder.’’
---- The Magic announced to the Celtics early on that they were locked in by jumping to a stunning 29-13 lead. Mickael Pietrus hit all four of his shots, three of which were 3-pointers, and scored 11 first-quarter points. And the Magic were up into the Celtics defensively with Pietrus frustrating Paul Pierce and Jason Williams shutting off Rajon Rondo’s driving lanes
. ``The credit goes to Stan because the game plan was really good. We can say that because it worked.’’
THE BAD
---- Rasheed Wallace, Boston’s biggest free-agent acquisition over the summer, kept firing up one 3-pointer after another with little success. He missed all eight of his shots from beyond the arc and was just four of 16 for the game.
Too often, it seemed as if the Celtics were going for the home run 3-pointer while trying to break the game open. But the Celtics never led after being up 4-2 because in large part they were just two of 19 from 3-point range.
``Sometimes it’s going to be a cakewalk and sometimes it’s going to be a tough game,’’ Wallace said. ``You’re going to smile a lot and sometimes you’re going to be frustrated.’’
---- Boston star Kevin Garnett looked tentative throughout, choosing to hang out mostly on the perimeter instead of banging down low. Of his five baskets, four came outside of the lane. He missed eight of 13 tries in 31 minutes and is clearly still struggling with his rhythm.
``He’s 100 percent healthy, but his game isn’t here yet, but it’s coming,’’ Rivers said. ``His jump shot is back. But his timing is still off and one his quickness is there and one day it’s not. But we’re in no hurry and we’ve kept his minutes down.’’
---- Howard knew the Celtics would send big men at him in waves and he saw Kendrick Perkins, Wallace and Garnett in coverage throughout the game. As a result, Howard got just four shot attempts. A big part of the problem was that the Magic couldn’t even enter the ball to Howard on the post. Three times in the second half, Boston stole entry passes to Howard.
THE UGLY
---- As good as the Magic were in the first quarter when they stormed to a stunning 16-point lead, they were just as bad in the second quarter.
The Magic made only four of 18 shots in the second period and were outscored 27-14 to let the Celtics get back within 43-40 by halftime. The Magic were a mess offensively as the ball seemed to get stuck and fumbled away. The Magic kicked the ball away six times in the second period and were often forced to take hurried, contested shots near the end of the shot clock.
Whereas Orlando’s starters scored 29 points in the first quarter, they contributed just nine points in the second period.
---- Usually 21 turnovers are way too many to beat a good, veteran team like Boston, but the Magic survived their sloppy ball-handling by getting stops of their own on the defensive end of the floor.
``People don’t always look at us as a good team, but we know we are,’’ Howard said. ``We got this win by playing hard. We’ll make our statements in the playoffs, but right now we’re just trying to get better. Defensively, we were certainly a lot better against the Celtics.’’
John Denton writes for Orlandomagic.com. His Orlando Magic ``Behind the Scenes’’ segment can be heard on ESPN 1080 AM on Thursday at 5:05 p.m. Submit questions to John for his ``Ask J.D.’’ mailbag feature that will appear every Friday at AskJD@orlandomagic.com.
By John DentonNovember 20, 2009
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.
BOSTON – With so much focus swirling around Stan Van Gundy’s negativity of late, the steely, determined Orlando Magic went out Friday night and gave their head coach something to smile about.
Facing a Boston team that was out for revenge after being eliminated by Orlando last spring in the playoffs, the Magic stood toe to toe with the Celtics and won the kind of slugfest that only Van Gundy could love.
The 83-79 victory for the Magic spoke volumes about the offensive struggles for both teams, but it also said something about Orlando’s ability to get key stops and win in a hostile, playoff-like environment.
``That’s the first one of those that we’ve had and we showed real good competitiveness and toughness and really hung in there,’’ Van Gundy said. ``Those kinds of wins actually make me happier than when everything is going smoothly and you’re knocking everything down.
``Every team in this league is capable of getting it going and having a great night and anybody will win on those nights,’’ Van Gundy continued. ``What sets apart the better teams is they can win when they’re not having their best night.’’
The Magic (10-3) were back in Boston for the first time since last spring when they won a decisive Game 7 on the Celtics’ home floor. Whereas that game was an offensive masterpiece for the Magic, this one was anything but. What the Magic did was hold the aging Celtics to 34.5 percent shooting and a staggering 2 of 19 from 3-point range.
``Coach always told us when we’re not playing well on the offensive end that’s when you’ve got to pick it up on defense. Tonight, our defense kept us in the game,’’ said Rashard Lewis, who had 16 points in his third game back from a 10-game suspension. ``This is a big win for us and a real confidence boost. Cleveland came in (last week) and took it to us. This kind of lets us know that we’re still a good team. We didn’t get to The Finals for nothing. We’re still a very good team.’’
Before the game, Boston coach Doc Rivers said he wasn’t putting too much stock in the outcome win or lose because both the Celtics and the Magic are still trying to reassemble their chemistries. Rivers was fairly confident that the two teams would stage another late-May rematch and stand in the way of one another come playoff time.
Said Rivers: ``Both teams are just in a process to get to where we can fight each other later on.’’
Here’s an inside look at the good, the bad and the ugly from the Magic’s most important victory of the season to date:
THE GOOD
---- Vince Carter led the Magic with 26 points, but this was hardly a classic from the Daytona Beach native. With the Celtics smothering Dwight Howard (nine points, 15 rebounds and three blocks) inside and determined not to let Lewis hit 3-pointers, Carter had to carry the offense much of the second half. As a result, he made just 10 of 29 shots.
But by scoring 16 points in the second half and 10 in the fourth quarter, Carter gave the Magic the go-to scorer they needed at times last season. His post-up basket with 2:33 to play broke a 78-all tie and put the Magic ahead for good.
Carter could get almost any shot he wanted against the smaller Ray Allen and relished the opportunity to take big shots in games that matter again.
``I don’t put any pressure on myself and I’m just thankful that I’m on a great team that has enough confidence to put the ball in my hands to make plays,’’ Carter said. ``The plays were just coming back to back to back, but I didn’t want to let down. It would be great to have 29 shots and not miss the four layups that I did, but I’ll be better.’’
---- According to Lewis, Van Gundy was much better at controlling his negativity along the sidelines and in the team huddles in timeouts. Van Gundy insisted Friday that he’s trying to limit his negativity and focus more on the constructive critiques.
ESPN had Van Gundy in a microphone for the game, and it showed him sticking mainly to play designs and tactical adjustments during timeouts.
``Stan was great and positive the whole night,’’ Lewis recalled. ``He did do a good job of cutting back on the screaming and yelling. He was doing more coaching in the huddles about where we need to be instead of bashing. He usually bashes us for the first two minutes of the timeouts and then he’ll coach the game. (Friday) he was strictly coaching.’’
Lewis said Van Gundy’s not-so-subtle adjustments had a big impact on the psyche of the Magic’s players in Boston’s hostile environment.
``Instead of getting mad at coach and going out there playing frustrated this way sort of put our minds at ease,’’ he said. ``He just has to pick and choose his moments and not try to be a nice coach. He still has to stay on top of us because that makes us play harder.’’
---- The Magic announced to the Celtics early on that they were locked in by jumping to a stunning 29-13 lead. Mickael Pietrus hit all four of his shots, three of which were 3-pointers, and scored 11 first-quarter points. And the Magic were up into the Celtics defensively with Pietrus frustrating Paul Pierce and Jason Williams shutting off Rajon Rondo’s driving lanes
. ``The credit goes to Stan because the game plan was really good. We can say that because it worked.’’
THE BAD
---- Rasheed Wallace, Boston’s biggest free-agent acquisition over the summer, kept firing up one 3-pointer after another with little success. He missed all eight of his shots from beyond the arc and was just four of 16 for the game.
Too often, it seemed as if the Celtics were going for the home run 3-pointer while trying to break the game open. But the Celtics never led after being up 4-2 because in large part they were just two of 19 from 3-point range.
``Sometimes it’s going to be a cakewalk and sometimes it’s going to be a tough game,’’ Wallace said. ``You’re going to smile a lot and sometimes you’re going to be frustrated.’’
---- Boston star Kevin Garnett looked tentative throughout, choosing to hang out mostly on the perimeter instead of banging down low. Of his five baskets, four came outside of the lane. He missed eight of 13 tries in 31 minutes and is clearly still struggling with his rhythm.
``He’s 100 percent healthy, but his game isn’t here yet, but it’s coming,’’ Rivers said. ``His jump shot is back. But his timing is still off and one his quickness is there and one day it’s not. But we’re in no hurry and we’ve kept his minutes down.’’
---- Howard knew the Celtics would send big men at him in waves and he saw Kendrick Perkins, Wallace and Garnett in coverage throughout the game. As a result, Howard got just four shot attempts. A big part of the problem was that the Magic couldn’t even enter the ball to Howard on the post. Three times in the second half, Boston stole entry passes to Howard.
THE UGLY
---- As good as the Magic were in the first quarter when they stormed to a stunning 16-point lead, they were just as bad in the second quarter.
The Magic made only four of 18 shots in the second period and were outscored 27-14 to let the Celtics get back within 43-40 by halftime. The Magic were a mess offensively as the ball seemed to get stuck and fumbled away. The Magic kicked the ball away six times in the second period and were often forced to take hurried, contested shots near the end of the shot clock.
Whereas Orlando’s starters scored 29 points in the first quarter, they contributed just nine points in the second period.
---- Usually 21 turnovers are way too many to beat a good, veteran team like Boston, but the Magic survived their sloppy ball-handling by getting stops of their own on the defensive end of the floor.
``People don’t always look at us as a good team, but we know we are,’’ Howard said. ``We got this win by playing hard. We’ll make our statements in the playoffs, but right now we’re just trying to get better. Defensively, we were certainly a lot better against the Celtics.’’
John Denton writes for Orlandomagic.com. His Orlando Magic ``Behind the Scenes’’ segment can be heard on ESPN 1080 AM on Thursday at 5:05 p.m. Submit questions to John for his ``Ask J.D.’’ mailbag feature that will appear every Friday at AskJD@orlandomagic.com.
