It's time to correspond once again, and for our Orlando version, we're going straight to an actual team source. While the expertise of Mike Granieri (Chicago) and Robby Sikka (L.A.) is unquestioned (well, maybe not), we have an actual team representative down in Florida, Magic radio personality Chris Lewis.

Trudell: What's the deal, Chris? Thanks a lot for being with us today. Before we talk about our Saturday night matchup, tell us about what you do down there by Disney World.
Chris Lewis: What's up Mike, good to be with you. I host a few of the radio shows that are involved with the team, including "Magic Insider" on a number of Fridays, in addition to doing the radio sideline reporting. I've been apart of the broadcast team for three years now, and am basically a renaissance man around here.

MT: I’d put you more in the Enlightenment era, but since you're privy to a tremendous amount of inside information, would you mind giving us the scoop so that I can take it to the Wolves’ coaches? Don't worry, your correspondent check is already the mail...you know, in case you get the axe.
CL: You bet, you've got it man.

MT: Excellent, that's a good look. You lost a tough game on Friday night to Orlando, but were able to pull out a big victory on Wednesday night with a last-second shot.
CL: Yeah, Hedo Turkoglu ended up hitting a game-winning shot. We were all over Seattle early, but like every game the Sonics have played so far, they fought back into it and built up a lead in the fourth quarter. Orlando was able to get it close, and Hedo came up with a big shot when we were trailing 87-86 to allow the Magic to take a little two-game win streak heading into a three-game road trip. That ended last night, of course.

MT: For those of us that haven't been able to watch the Magic thus far, can you give us a roundup of what's going on in Orlando?
CL: I think the Magic are a sexy pick to actually do some things this year. “ESPN the Magazine” had a reporter following the team around for a week, and I think a lot of the speculation centers around forward Dwight Howard and how he played in the World Championships this summer, and the way he's built up his body and his game. The great push that Orlando made late in the second half of last season has people excited as well. They were the best team in the NBA for the last 30 games of the season last year, and that carried a lot of weight with a lot of people. We've seen signs of that this year, and with the additions of Carlos Arroyo and Darko Milicic, we're looking strong early on this season as well.

MT: Wait a second, Chris. We know you work for the Magic, but the best team in the league for the last 30 games? Maybe they won the most games, but were they going to beat the Heat, Spurs, Suns or Pistons in a playoff format?
CL: They beat them all, Mike. Statistically and record-wise, they were the best team at the end of last year. A lot of people want to say that other teams were sitting guys, but opposing starting lineups were in there most of the time. The Magic made a legitimate push last year.

MT: I hear you, but I'm still not taking them over any of those aforementioned teams playing their hardest. Now, can you give us an update on Grant Hill?
CL: Grant is back again. He spent four or five days a week this summer up in British Columbia working with a world-renowned trainer doing some stuff he'd never done in his rehab. Grant himself will tell you that he has never started a season feeling this good since he was traded to the Magic after his great years with the Pistons. He's the leader of this team, the veteran that they need, and is putting up double digits every night.

MT: We’ll see how long he can stay healthy. Now let's talk about Howard, the top pick in last year’s draft, a little bit. I spoke to our head coach, Dwane Casey, about Howard today at length, and Casey compared him to Karl Malone. I know you've spent a great deal of time with Dwight, so tell us his story.
CL: I spent nearly every day with Dwight during his rookie year, actually. I was on an assignment that was "The Diary of a Rookie," so we chronicled his coming into the league. When Dwight came in, he could not bench press 135 pounds. This is a guy who was about 6-10, 235 pounds. He had great lean muscle, but no strength, because he hadn't had a lot of weight room experience in high school. Now, he can't stop working out, and he has the genetics of a freak. Everyone I've talked to around the league that has spent time with him, like Dwane Wade or Gilbert Arenas, they all call him an athletic freak. Wade told me that if he had to pick one guy not to go against one-on-one, it would be Dwight Howard.

MT: Speaking of one-on-one, Chris, is there any reason we don't have a one-on-one contest at the All-Star game? Somebody please explain this to me. As far as I'm concerned, it would be tremendous. You could even do two-on-two, and bring NBA JAM to life. How sick would that be? Kobe and Shaq versus Lebron and Howard?
CL: Oh yeah, you might have something there. If you can get the guys to give up on their four days off, when they just loaf it until Sunday, you have a money maker right there Mike. I'll take Kobe over every one of those guys, but it'd be fun to see everyone play.

MT: True, when I argue with my friends about this, I grudgingly take Kobe as well. But KG, Lebron, T-Mac, Duncan, A.I...
CL: You know what, I've spent some time talking to guys off the record, and most players that I've talked to say that Kobe would win it. However, if you ask Kobe, he's quick to say that the toughest guy in the league to guard is Carmelo Anthony over there in Denver.

MT: Interesting, but I'm not sure if Carmelo stacks up defensively yet. Kobe's an All-NBA First Team defender. But let's get back to Howard for a second. After absolutely dominating Ben Wallace in the opener, his production has actually dipped a bit. Did other teams see that tape and start to better adjust/prepare for the big kid?
CL: That's a good observation by you, because he started out so hot, completely handling Wallace and the Bulls on both the offensive and defensive ends. But from that point, I think the league took notice of how you need to handle Dwight. You can talk all the hype you want coming into the summer, but after he showed what he could do in the NBA, teams are being more physical with him. We saw Seattle's Chris Wilcox just absolutely throw Dwight around, and Dwight hasn't responded to it like he should. I've known Dwight for three years, and since that Bulls game, I've never seen him as shaken in his game. He's very frustrated, and isn't getting calls from the officials. He just doesn't seem to be himself out there.

MT: But Lewis, isn't Minnesota the matchup that he doesn't have a problem getting up for?
CL: Yeah it's interesting because Kevin Garnett is his hero, and he'll always show up to play against Garnett. I'll go ahead and say it right now: By the end of the year, Howard will have better numbers than Garnett will, and he's going to have to hand over his spot in the league to this young guy.

MT: Hey, slow down there, Trick Daddy. You're saying he's going to have better numbers than the Big Ticket? KG isn’t handing anything over.
CL: Yeah, well Dwight's on a better team obviously, and Kevin is going to get a majority of the points there in Minnesota, but I think overall you're going to see a better eff....(interruption).

MT: Sorry Lewis, did Goofy or Daffy Duck just grab your cell phone down there in Orlando? Did you say the Magic are obviously a better team?
CL: Clearly a better team, and I think we'll see that on Saturday night. I'm calling an easy Magic win on the road. It's not the Timberwolves' year.

MT: Any Wolves fans reading this, remember: CHRIS LEWIS. Lives in Orlando. Are you going to keep killing our team with unfounded speculation (Chris is from Minnesota, by the way) or can you tell us the weirdest thing you've seen in your time there?
CL: The strangest thing I've ever seen was when Stacey Augmon, who was a veteran at the time, get offended at a question one of the reporters asked a younger player on the Magic. Augmon went after the reporter, and decided to squirt lotion all over him, and he got four reporters in the midst of it all, one looking like he had been in “Something About Mary.”

MT: That's professional. Who is the funniest guy on the Magic?
CL: Howard would like to think that it's him, but it's probably Hedo. Dwight is an interesting dude. Once you clear the age of eight, "Finding Nemo" should not be your favorite movie. He does all these impressions, too.

MT: Just as I suspected. So we haven't talked about Jameer Nelson. Is he a legit NBA point guard?
CL: Oh yeah. Guys love the fight that he has, even though his size takes him back a little bit. The thing I like most about him is that he'll do whatever he has to do to win. If you ask him how he's going to guard Allen Iverson, he'll ask how is A.I. going to guard him.

MT: I’ll take A.I., there. He’s the man. I know it's been a long time, Chris, but do you still have that silky-smooth game you put on me at Bethel Basketball Camp when we were in 5th grade?
CL: No, man, I can't shoot anywhere outside of three feet. But wait, I just remembered that the zaniest guy on our team by far is Bo Outlaw. As great of a guy as he is in the community, he sounds like Darth Vadar when he talks.

MT: I'll take your word for it. Is there anyone on your team that could make the All-NBA Ugly Team? Actually, don't answer that.
CL: That's a no win situation.

MT: Sorry. Briefly talk about your rookie, J.J. Redick, who has yet to play.
CL: He's inactive, and has been battling himself and his conditioning more than anything. He's been hurt a little bit, and it's been tough on him in practice because he gets out there and just goes too hard. He doesn't know any other speed.

MT: Do you ever call Darko the Human Victory Cigar, as he was known in Detroit? What a phenomenal nickname.
CL: Hey, if you saw the muscle he put on, you wouldn't say anything. I avoid any eye contact with Darko, and look at the floor when I talk to him. He's an intimidating dude, and if you ask the wrong question...

MT: You are like the 1990s Chicago Bulls with all of the white players on your team. Travis Diener, Redick, Darko, Turkoglu...and you still claimed to be the best team in the NBA last year, and guaranteed beating us?
CL: No comment.

MT: Ha. Back to Saturday's actual game, I think you'll have some trouble with us on the perimeter, especially if Mike James and Troy Hudson get going at the same time.
CL: You guys will have a pretty good advantage there, as our perimeter defense isn't anything special. But we do have the best interior defense in the NBA, statistically. With Darko and Dwight, we have the least amount of points allowed in the lane, and the most blocks.

MT: That's a good point, and we'll let you get out of here on that note Chris. We really appreciate you being with us, and again, your check is in the mail in case you get fired. CL: I am borderline getting fired for what I told you today. This correspondence is all I'm going to have to hold onto here.

MT: Fair enough. We'll see you next time.