Denton: Magic-Heat Postgame Analysis
By John Denton
November 25, 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.
ORLANDO -- Considering all of Dwyane Wade’s late-game heroics through the years and the way he heated up late in Wednesday’s fourth quarter, this is the last thing the Orlando Magic expected from the Miami Heat superstar: An airball.
But that’s just what shockingly happened in Wednesday’s closing seconds and Miami second-year forward Michael Beasley was there to catch the errant shot and converted it into a dunk that silenced a sold-out Amway Arena and stunned the Magic.
Seconds after Vince Carter positioned himself to be the hero with a clutch 3-pointer, Miami converted two putback baskets, the final one a Beasley dunk with 1.6 seconds remaining for a shocking 99-98 Miami defeat of Orlando.
``You’re looking up at the ball, trying to figure out if it’s going to hit the rim or not, but you never think the shot is going to be short and be an airball. Not with D-Wade,’’ Carter said while shaking his head.
The Magic (11-4) had plenty to shake their heads about Wednesday night as they were denied their sixth consecutive victory. Orlando blew an 11-point lead by yielding a 16-0 run by the Heat that was fueled by Magic turnovers. And down the stretch, Orlando undermined a gutsy rally by missing five of eight free throws.
Miami (9-5) won in Orlando for the first time since February of 2006, a span that had covered six consecutive losses. Orlando had beaten Miami in 12 of the past 13 games before Wednesday night.
Miami got tip-ins from Udonis Haslem and Beasley following Wade misses to win the game. The way Orlando lost – giving up offensive rebounds and missing free throws – was particularly galling to coach Stan Van Gundy and many of the players.
``It’s over with now. There’s nothing we can do about it. We can’t get those last 14 seconds back,’’ huffed Magic center Dwight Howard, who had 12 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, but missed three free throws in the final two minutes. ``I think we did a good job of fighting back into the game. We just have to make sure we get the defensive rebound.’’
The Magic are back in action again Thursday night in Atlanta against the red-hot Hawks. But before we move ahead to that showdown, let’s look back at the good, the bad and the ugly from Wednesday’s game. Magic fans come down off the ledge, the sun will come up again tomorrow.
THE GOOD
---- Carter came through in the clutch with 14 seconds to go, hitting a 26-foot 3-pointer over Wade with the game tied at 95-all. The out-of-bounds play was for Carter all the way, and the first-year Magic shooting guard never hesitated on the shot.
But deep down he knew that the game wasn’t over – not with Wade across the way.
``You never know, that’s why I was able to get over being excited about it,’’ said Carter, who finished with 22 points, six rebounds and three assists. ``I was fortunate to give us an opportunity to win the game. But the satisfaction of making it would have made me happy once the game was over and it actually meant something.’’
---- Jason Williams, the starter at point guard in place of the injured Jameer Nelson, carried the Magic offensively much of the night. He made nine of 12 shots and four of six 3-pointers and put 25 points with his eight assists.
But Williams missed out on a chance to seal the game when he missed two free throws with the Magic up 98-97 with 9.5 seconds to play. He had made 17 of 22 free throws before the two late misses.
``He took over the game, pushed the ball, made plays and knocked down open shots,’’ Carter said of Williams. ``I feel bad for him because he played that well and kept us in the game. I wanted him to make those (free throws) because he deserved to be the man of the hour because he was phenomenal.’’
---- Wade, who averaged 38 points a game against the Magic last season, was ordinary most of the night. But he put Miami in position for the win by getting scorching hot in the fourth quarter.
He scored 12 in a row at one point in the fourth period, keying a 16-0 spurt that took the Heat from 11 down to five up. He got to the line for seven of those 12 points when Mickael Pietrus was whistled for touch fouls on Wade’s shooting hand.
Wade said he’d like to call the airball that Beasley dunked a pass, but he finally admitted that it was just an errant shot that came up roses for Miami.
``I’m going to stop lying,’’ said Wade, who had 24 points despite making just six of his 21 shots and missing his last five field goal attempts. ``That was a great play by Mike. That was a very athletic play and he did exactly what the coaches told him. They told him in the huddle and (Beasley) and Udonis kept crashing and got tip-ins. He said for everybody to crash when I go to the basket and shoot it.’’
THE BAD
---- Rashard Lewis struggled through another forgettable game and is clearly showing the aftereffects of missing three weeks because of his NBA-mandated suspension.
Lewis’ 3-point shot is still awry (one of six on Wednesday and 17.2 percent for the season) and he’s struggling to find his way with his post-up game alongside of Howard.
Lewis made just three of 15 shots and scored only nine points in 32 minutes. He admitted after the game that he’s still struggling with his conditioning and rhythm because of his time away.
``I’m not shooting the ball well and I just don’t feel like my legs are up under me for some reason,’’ Lewis said. ``I feel like I’m pushing my shot and my legs feel heavy. I feel like I’m playing catch-up with the rest of the guys. I’m playing pretty good defense, but on offense I haven’t gotten myself in a good rhythm yet.’’
---- Howard was yet again in foul trouble, making it difficult for him to stay on the floor for long stretches and find any rhythm offensively. Howard picked up three fouls in the first half – two of them when Wade collided with him on drives to the hoop and a third when he tried to back down Jermaine O’Neal on the offensive end of the floor.
A fourth foul came in the third period and a fifth foul was the result of another Wade drive right at him. Howard is somewhat perturbed that as the NBA’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year that he is rarely given the benefit of doubt on calls.
Because he played just 39 minutes, he got up just five shots in the game. He helped put the Magic over the top late in the game by grabbing three offensive rebounds off misses, but he did struggle at the free throw line.
``I’m getting a little frustrated,’’ admitted Howard, who had 12 points, 16 rebounds (four offensive) and three steals. ``I’m going to continue to work, work extremely hard in practice and I know that my hard work will pay off soon. I can see it right now.
``I think something is brewing and hopefully whatever it is comes out right when we need it. Right now I just need to keep my cool and keep my head on both ends of the floor. Sooner or later, it’s going to come.’’
THE UGLY
---- The first half of the game featured some downright ugly basketball from both teams. Orlando made just 14 of 40 shots (35 percent), missed four free throws and turned the ball over eight times in the first half. The Magic did make eight of 17 3-pointers, but three of those came at the end of the shot clock after rocky possessions.
``Right now, we’re just not getting good enough play out of the guys that we look to – Vince, Rashard and Dwight,’’ Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said. ``I have confidence that they will come along, but that is probably the biggest problem right now. It was just a tough night.’’
Miami wasn’t much better early on, making just 38.5 percent of its shots in the first two quarters. Wade was a mess offensively, refusing to challenge Howard inside and settling for several contested jump shots. He missed seven of eight tries in the first half and one of his three turnovers came when he dribbled the ball off his foot for a backcourt violation.
---- Magic forward Matt Barnes reacted angrily to the loss, firing the basketball into the crowd at the buzzer. Just seconds earlier, Barnes threw the ball the length of the court following Beasley’s tip-in and Carter had to fling up a prayer of a shot as he was falling out of bounds. The problem was that the Magic had no timeouts remaining to advance the ball to halfcourt, having just used two timeouts the possession before to get the ball inbounds.
Barnes will likely be fined by the NBA for throwing the ball into the stands.
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 25, 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.
ORLANDO -- Considering all of Dwyane Wade’s late-game heroics through the years and the way he heated up late in Wednesday’s fourth quarter, this is the last thing the Orlando Magic expected from the Miami Heat superstar: An airball.
But that’s just what shockingly happened in Wednesday’s closing seconds and Miami second-year forward Michael Beasley was there to catch the errant shot and converted it into a dunk that silenced a sold-out Amway Arena and stunned the Magic.
Seconds after Vince Carter positioned himself to be the hero with a clutch 3-pointer, Miami converted two putback baskets, the final one a Beasley dunk with 1.6 seconds remaining for a shocking 99-98 Miami defeat of Orlando.
``You’re looking up at the ball, trying to figure out if it’s going to hit the rim or not, but you never think the shot is going to be short and be an airball. Not with D-Wade,’’ Carter said while shaking his head.
The Magic (11-4) had plenty to shake their heads about Wednesday night as they were denied their sixth consecutive victory. Orlando blew an 11-point lead by yielding a 16-0 run by the Heat that was fueled by Magic turnovers. And down the stretch, Orlando undermined a gutsy rally by missing five of eight free throws.
Miami (9-5) won in Orlando for the first time since February of 2006, a span that had covered six consecutive losses. Orlando had beaten Miami in 12 of the past 13 games before Wednesday night.
Miami got tip-ins from Udonis Haslem and Beasley following Wade misses to win the game. The way Orlando lost – giving up offensive rebounds and missing free throws – was particularly galling to coach Stan Van Gundy and many of the players.
``It’s over with now. There’s nothing we can do about it. We can’t get those last 14 seconds back,’’ huffed Magic center Dwight Howard, who had 12 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, but missed three free throws in the final two minutes. ``I think we did a good job of fighting back into the game. We just have to make sure we get the defensive rebound.’’
The Magic are back in action again Thursday night in Atlanta against the red-hot Hawks. But before we move ahead to that showdown, let’s look back at the good, the bad and the ugly from Wednesday’s game. Magic fans come down off the ledge, the sun will come up again tomorrow.
THE GOOD
---- Carter came through in the clutch with 14 seconds to go, hitting a 26-foot 3-pointer over Wade with the game tied at 95-all. The out-of-bounds play was for Carter all the way, and the first-year Magic shooting guard never hesitated on the shot.
But deep down he knew that the game wasn’t over – not with Wade across the way.
``You never know, that’s why I was able to get over being excited about it,’’ said Carter, who finished with 22 points, six rebounds and three assists. ``I was fortunate to give us an opportunity to win the game. But the satisfaction of making it would have made me happy once the game was over and it actually meant something.’’
---- Jason Williams, the starter at point guard in place of the injured Jameer Nelson, carried the Magic offensively much of the night. He made nine of 12 shots and four of six 3-pointers and put 25 points with his eight assists.
But Williams missed out on a chance to seal the game when he missed two free throws with the Magic up 98-97 with 9.5 seconds to play. He had made 17 of 22 free throws before the two late misses.
``He took over the game, pushed the ball, made plays and knocked down open shots,’’ Carter said of Williams. ``I feel bad for him because he played that well and kept us in the game. I wanted him to make those (free throws) because he deserved to be the man of the hour because he was phenomenal.’’
---- Wade, who averaged 38 points a game against the Magic last season, was ordinary most of the night. But he put Miami in position for the win by getting scorching hot in the fourth quarter.
He scored 12 in a row at one point in the fourth period, keying a 16-0 spurt that took the Heat from 11 down to five up. He got to the line for seven of those 12 points when Mickael Pietrus was whistled for touch fouls on Wade’s shooting hand.
Wade said he’d like to call the airball that Beasley dunked a pass, but he finally admitted that it was just an errant shot that came up roses for Miami.
``I’m going to stop lying,’’ said Wade, who had 24 points despite making just six of his 21 shots and missing his last five field goal attempts. ``That was a great play by Mike. That was a very athletic play and he did exactly what the coaches told him. They told him in the huddle and (Beasley) and Udonis kept crashing and got tip-ins. He said for everybody to crash when I go to the basket and shoot it.’’
THE BAD
---- Rashard Lewis struggled through another forgettable game and is clearly showing the aftereffects of missing three weeks because of his NBA-mandated suspension.
Lewis’ 3-point shot is still awry (one of six on Wednesday and 17.2 percent for the season) and he’s struggling to find his way with his post-up game alongside of Howard.
Lewis made just three of 15 shots and scored only nine points in 32 minutes. He admitted after the game that he’s still struggling with his conditioning and rhythm because of his time away.
``I’m not shooting the ball well and I just don’t feel like my legs are up under me for some reason,’’ Lewis said. ``I feel like I’m pushing my shot and my legs feel heavy. I feel like I’m playing catch-up with the rest of the guys. I’m playing pretty good defense, but on offense I haven’t gotten myself in a good rhythm yet.’’
---- Howard was yet again in foul trouble, making it difficult for him to stay on the floor for long stretches and find any rhythm offensively. Howard picked up three fouls in the first half – two of them when Wade collided with him on drives to the hoop and a third when he tried to back down Jermaine O’Neal on the offensive end of the floor.
A fourth foul came in the third period and a fifth foul was the result of another Wade drive right at him. Howard is somewhat perturbed that as the NBA’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year that he is rarely given the benefit of doubt on calls.
Because he played just 39 minutes, he got up just five shots in the game. He helped put the Magic over the top late in the game by grabbing three offensive rebounds off misses, but he did struggle at the free throw line.
``I’m getting a little frustrated,’’ admitted Howard, who had 12 points, 16 rebounds (four offensive) and three steals. ``I’m going to continue to work, work extremely hard in practice and I know that my hard work will pay off soon. I can see it right now.
``I think something is brewing and hopefully whatever it is comes out right when we need it. Right now I just need to keep my cool and keep my head on both ends of the floor. Sooner or later, it’s going to come.’’
THE UGLY
---- The first half of the game featured some downright ugly basketball from both teams. Orlando made just 14 of 40 shots (35 percent), missed four free throws and turned the ball over eight times in the first half. The Magic did make eight of 17 3-pointers, but three of those came at the end of the shot clock after rocky possessions.
``Right now, we’re just not getting good enough play out of the guys that we look to – Vince, Rashard and Dwight,’’ Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said. ``I have confidence that they will come along, but that is probably the biggest problem right now. It was just a tough night.’’
Miami wasn’t much better early on, making just 38.5 percent of its shots in the first two quarters. Wade was a mess offensively, refusing to challenge Howard inside and settling for several contested jump shots. He missed seven of eight tries in the first half and one of his three turnovers came when he dribbled the ball off his foot for a backcourt violation.
---- Magic forward Matt Barnes reacted angrily to the loss, firing the basketball into the crowd at the buzzer. Just seconds earlier, Barnes threw the ball the length of the court following Beasley’s tip-in and Carter had to fling up a prayer of a shot as he was falling out of bounds. The problem was that the Magic had no timeouts remaining to advance the ball to halfcourt, having just used two timeouts the possession before to get the ball inbounds.
Barnes will likely be fined by the NBA for throwing the ball into the stands.
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.
