ORLANDO – As one of the greatest pure scorers in NBA history, Tracy McGrady often made piling up points look effortless throughout his Hall of Fame career from 1997-2013.
Though he certainly doesn’t lack from confidence even in retirement, McGrady is happy that he isn’t faced with having to try and score points against a towering and athletic defense such as the one the Orlando Magic will put on the floor this season.
``You’ve got some athleticism around here, height and this is a big-ass team,’’ McGrady said jokingly after addressing and working with the Magic squad on Thursday. ``So, you’re frontline can be 6-10, 7-foot, 7-foot with athleticism all across the board. So, defensively I think they can be one of the better defensive teams in the league with what they have.’’
McGrady, now 40 and working as an analyst for ESPN, visited Orlando’s training camp at the request of Magic head coach Steve Clifford. Those two were together with the Houston Rockets from 2004-07 with Clifford working as an assistant coach and McGrady as a high-scoring guard.
A product of nearby Auburndale, McGrady starred for the Magic from 2000-04 and he still holds the franchise record for points in a game with 62. He said he was delighted by Clifford’s request that he address the team and having a chance to reconnect with his Magic roots.
``(Clifford) is one of my favorites, having been with him and Jeff Van Gundy in Houston for a few years,’’ said McGrady, who won NBA scoring titles in 2003 and ’04 while playing for the Magic. ``Orlando is home, and I’ve got great ties with this organization. And any time they call me to come down and be with the team or whatever it needs to be for this organization, I drop everything to come down. When I got the call (from Clifford), I was ecstatic.’’
In addition to regaling the Magic squad about his 2011 Houston Rockets team that once won 22 consecutive games, McGrady worked individually with rising Orlando forward Jonathan Isaac. For nearly 30 minutes, McGrady instructed Isaac on some of the techniques he could use to enhance his low-post game. Isaac, who turned 22 years old on Thursday, was delighted to work with the seven-time all-star and seven-time All-NBA performer.
``That was his birthday present to me, so I’m grateful,’’ Isaac said. ``Low post, at the elbow, pivoting and how to get your defender off of you. Going quick, going slow and using that great footwork. I definitely want to have a low-post game and mid-post game as (McGrady) does. I’m a little bigger in terms of height, but just to have that size and be able to do everything he does – I see myself doing that.’’
McGrady said he is always eager to work with young players such as Orlando’s Aaron Gordon, Mo Bamba and Isaac because of the impact that a former Magic legend had on his life years ago.
``I always remember when I came here (in the spring of 1997) and when the Magic were playing the Miami Heat in the playoffs and I had just witnessed my favorite player, Penny (Hardaway) dropped 42 (points) and 41 on the Miami Heat,’’ McGrady remembered. ``After that, I went to his house and was talking to him.
``Here we are 20-something years later and I’m still telling that story. Why? Because it meant something to me that I was able to witness my favorite player, go to his house and talk to him,’’ McGrady added. ``It inspired me and helped me. Being a guy who went through this league, a perennial all-star who knows a thing or two, I just like to give it back. I know what that means.’’
McGrady, who was inducted in the basketball Hall of Fame in 2017, sees no reason why the Magic can’t use their smothering defense to pick up where they left off late last season. Riding a defense that ranked first in the NBA over their final 31 games of the regular season, the Magic ripped off a 22-9 closing kick to get the franchise into the playoffs for the first time since 2012. Now, it’s up to the Magic’s deep pool of talented and towering players to show that it was no fluke.
``They can carry it over because they have a core group of guys who have been here for some years. With the younger guys, it’s about adding more to their game and not being satisfied with what took place last year,’’ he said. ``There should be motivation because you were on a six-year drought and you made the playoffs, but now what are you going to do? What are you going to do for an encore? I’m sure these guys are motivated more than ever because they got a taste of the playoffs, which is fun and that’s where your legacy is made. I think they will do well.’’
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