Brandon Bass has waited all season to make an impact. He has struggled integrating into Orlando's 3-point happy offense and to learn the team's defensive strategy. With the postseason approaching, Bass has yearned for his chance to play.

Finally earning his chance, Bass is making the most of it.

Bass provided the highlight of the evening blocking a 3-pointer in the second quarter that sparked a fast break. Only this fast break was led by Dwight Howard, who crossed over a defender at the 3-point line and fed Bass underneath for an easy slam. Howard smiled all the way down court as the Magic built a lead into the 30s and were never challenged after the first quarter in a 113-87 win over the Clippers on Tuesday at Amway Arena.

Bass scored eight points and grabbed five rebounds in a little more than 13 minutes of play. Bass has made the most of his minutes since being inserted at the backup power forward spot around the All Star break. He is averaging 5.6 points per game and 3.3 rebounds per game in 13.1 minutes per game. Those are all well above his season averages -- mostly because of his increased playing time.

But those stats translate to nearly 15.3 points per 36 minutes and 9.0 rebounds per 36 minutes. A lot of people -- who have watched Bass in Dallas and those who simply want Bass to play -- have said Bass just needs a chance to prove himself. His energy and toughness have been very present in Orlando's 7-1 stretch since Bass started playing.

Then again, tonight it did not take much to top the Clippers.

The Magic dominated early and never looked back. Excuse me for trying to sidetrack myself from this game, but it was really that uninteresting. Los Angeles did not have the firepower to keep up with a focused and rolling Orlando team. The Magic are now on a six-game winning streak, tying their longest win streak of the season.

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Clippers (25-38) vs. Magic (44-20)
Time/TV: 7 p.m./FSFlorida
Key Matchup: Chris Kaman (19.4 PPG, 9.4 RPG; 16 pts., 9 rebs. vs. Magic on Dec. 8) vs. Dwight Howard (18.5 PPG, 13.2 RPG; 25 pts., 11 rebs., 5 assists vs. Clippers on Dec. 8)
Season Series: Won 97-86 in Los Angeles on Dec. 8; Tonight in Orlando.

-Matt Barnes turned a lot of heads Sunday against the Lakers. Enough heads that he may opt out of his two-year deal after this season. Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel reports Barnes is looking for a multiyear deal, but wants to stay in Orlando.

-In a a power rankings check, Orlando has moved firmly into the top two. Marc Stein of ESPN.com rates them first in the league right now while The Orlando Sentinel has them second.

-Scottie Pippen is the latest to chime in on Dwight Howard, saying Howard does not have the ability to dominate games late and will not win a title until he gets a superstar running partner.

-Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel reports Dwight Howard received a little more breathing room with his technical fouls after the NBA informed the team that a technical foul he received against the Hornets on Feb. 26 was rescinded. He now has 13 technicals, three away from an automatic one-game suspension.

-Everyone welcome Michael Gavin to the Orlando Magic Daily team! In his first post, he writes that the Magic's win over the Lakers was big. But, as he points out, there is plenty more to come from this team.

-Everyone in the Magic family (but here specifically Ben Q Rock of Orlando Pinstriped Post) are wishing Matt Barnes and Adonal Foyle a very happy birthday today.

-Andrew Melnick of Howard the Dunk transcribed various interviews from players after the game Sunday. Well worth the read.

-Kevin Arnovitz of Clipper Blog gets the feeling the Clippers have not fully embraced the advanced statistics that many of the successful teams use.

-Steve Perrin of Clips Nation hopes Orlando has a let down after a win over the other team in L.A. and is astounded by the team's 3-point shooting prowess and the fact it has only used 12 players total all year.

-Trey Kerby of Ball Don't Lie is astounded that Larry Brown reached out to the Clippers when it was uncertain who would buy the Bobcats. David Arnott of Rufus on Fire thinks it is an amusing nonstory.

-Chris Sesno of FanHouse has largely positive comments about the Superman-edition adidas TS Commanders Dwight Howard sported during Sunday's game.

-Matt Barnes tells Tim Povtak of FanHouse that Orlando will not get punked by the Lakers. He then makes some comments about referee bias that I think most fans would probably agree with.

-Tom Ziller of FanHouse unveiled his NBA Playoff Matchup Matrix showing how the playoffs teams have fared against each other this year. The graph shows Orlando might want to try to avoid some teams in the first round.

-Baron Davis is named to DIME's All-Beard team. No surprise there. The Clippers' Brian Skinner also named to that team for his facial hair prowess.

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Note: This is the first post by Michael Gavin, the newest member of the writing staff at Orlando Magic Daily. Michael works for Newsday in New York and is a lifelong Magic fan. -ZM.

Could it be that the Lakers and Cavaliers' ceilings, although high, may prove to be slightly lower than that of Orlando’s?

Even with the second best record in the East and third best in the league, there is a sense that we are yet to see the Magic play their best basketball.

With Sunday’s impressive 96-94 win over the Lakers, the Magic improved to 8-2 since the All-Star break and stand one blown 18-point lead at New Orleans from an eight-game win streak.

Dwight Howard is adding to his offensive arsenal, Vince Carter is becoming more acclimated to the offense, Jameer Nelson is regaining All-Star form, and most surprising of all, Stan Van Gundy is improving his in-game interviews.

Opponents are shooting 43.6% for 95.5 points per game, numbers that are approaching last year’s 43.3% and 94.4 points per game.

All is well in the Magic Kingdom but things could get even better with time. Even after incorporating two new starters and key reserves, the Magic stand just four games off last season’s pace.

The Lakers may have added Ron Artest – who seems to spend more time at the barber than he does working on his jumper – and the Cavs added Shaquille O’Neal and Antawn Jamison, but all were acquired with clearly defined roles.

This is a luxury that Carter, who has only just begun to find offensive balance in a lineup that features three All-Stars, did not have. Despite their success, the Magic are still a work in progress as they continue to familiarize themselves with one another and juggle with the rotation to establish clearly-defined roles heading into the postseason.

The Cavs have strategically assembled their roster to overcome the weaknesses the Magic exploited in last year’s conference finals. The Lakers have a frontline that can give the Magic fits over the course of a series. But the team that may give the Magic the most trouble in a seven-game series is the Magic themselves.

At times, Orlando has shown a tendency to be its own worst enemy. They still must learn to do a better job of protecting the ball to cut down on turnovers, which in turn will help them close out teams and protect leads, something they have struggled with all season.

They need to consistently get the ball to Howard early and often to establish their inside-out game. They need to force Carter to attack the rim and get to the free throw line rather than settle for ill-advised perimeter jumpers. They need Nelson to distribute at the pace we have seen post-All-Star break.

With each game that passes, the Magic gain another 48 minutes of cohesiveness as they slowly iron out the flaws that show their ugly faces when incorporating new pieces to a championship-caliber team.

They will only get better with each game and could be on schedule to peek when such timely progression can transition a contender to champion.

Right now, the Magic have room for improvement. But by June, they may be making room for a new banner.

Matt Barnes is not afraid, he is a football player after all. He is not afraid of getting in anyone's face. He is not afraid of cursing on Twitter (although, the team has asked him to dial that back). He is not afraid of Paul Pierce. He is not afraid of LeBron James. He is not afraid of Kobe Bryant.

Barnes went toe to toe with Bryant on Sunday. And the six-year pro got a rare win over Bryant.

It was Barnes who followed a Bryant miss with a wide open 3-point hit with 1:10 remaining to give the Magic a six-point lead. It was Barnes who got into a shoving fight with Bryant earning the two technical fouls for the effort. It was Barnes who was constantly shoving and playing mind games with the Black Mamba throughout the day to throw him off his game.

It was Barnes who ultimately was defending Bryant as his fade-away two-pointer clanged off the rim no good, allowing the Magic to survive with a 96-94 win at Amway Arena on Sunday afternoon, avenging in part last year's loss to the Lakers in the Finals.

Barnes never does too much that stands out in the box score. But it was hard not to notice him in this one. He was jawing with Bryant all game and doing everything he could to throw the superstar off his game.

He finished with 10 points, six rebounds, four personal fouls, a steal and a technical foul. Bryant scored 34 points, but shot 12 of 30 to get it and added seven rebounds and seven assists.

The chess match between the two clearly had Kobe's attention. Bryant gave Barnes a small shove after Barnes had a put back dunk in the second half. The two were battling all day and set the tone for the game.

Because this game (at least its ending) resembled Game Four of last year's NBA Finals almost to a tee. Barnes' three gave Orlando a six-point lead, but the Lakers found a way once again to cut into it thanks to the Magic gifting some points back to them.

Jameer Nelson, Vince Carter and Dwight Howard all missed a free throw in the final minute of the game, giving Los Angeles a faint glimmer of hope. As the Magic learned last year, the Lakers will take that glimmer any time they can get it. Bryant hit a contested three in the corner and then a two-pointer with his foot on the 3-point line to make it a one-point game with 12.9 seconds left.

Orlando was crumbling a bit at the end, but what made this game different than the Finals was that the Magic found a way to pull it out in the end. Confidence gained.

The Magic showed themselves to be a much tougher and grittier team. Orlando was willing to make some hard fouls and not stand for the physical play Dwight Howard had to endure throughout the game. There was an overt toughness element missing about last year's team (they were plenty tough, but they certainly were not willing to try and out-physical a team as they proved in their continued struggles with the Pistons). Tonight, Orlando matched Los Angeles' physicality.

And Barnes had a lot to do with that. He is the one who got in Paul Pierce's face a few weeks back after a hard foul on Howard. He was the one blowing through a Jonas Jerebko screen to show Detroit not to try anything funny against Orlando. Barnes set the tone for this game and was one of the key reasons Orlando pulled this one out.

This game proved that while the Lakers may still be a favorite to win the title and can still do many of the same things they could against the Magic last year, this is a much different Magic team.

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Lakers (46-17) vs. Magic (43-20)
Time/TV: 2:30 p.m./ABC
Key Matchup: Pau Gasol (16.9 PPG, 11.2 RPG; 18.6 PPG, 9.2 RPG in 2009 NBA Finals) vs. Rashard Lewis (14.8 PPG, 39% 3FG%; 17.4 PPG, 40% 3FG% in 2009 NBA Finals)
Season Series: Lost 98-92 in Los Angeles on Jan. 18; Today in Orlando

-UPDATE Kobe Bryant did not arrive to Amway Arena with the team today because of a stomach ailment, but he is at the arena now and will play.

-Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel writes the Lakers are back in town for the first time since spraying champagne all over the visitor's locker room and the memories from that last appearance have not died quietly.

-Kobe Bryant is not happy with losing and Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel reports Bryant had some words with his teammates as Los Angeles hopes to avoid its first three-game losing streak since 2007.

-Tania Ganguli of The Orlando Sentinel said the Magic expect a playoff atmosphere today at Amway Arena for the Lakers.

-Phil Jackson had an "air it out" session for his team after Los Angeles lost to two quasi-.500 teams, reports Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times.

-Orlando has faced some pressure from its fans in trying to repeat its trip to last year's Finals. Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times reports Lakers fans share some of our same consternations for the Lakers in their title defense.

-Mark Heisler of the Los Angeles Times writes Los Angeles sometimes makes less with more.

-Elliott Teaford of the Los Angeles Daily News writes the Lakers are trying to regain some of their lost mojo in today's game.

-Eddie Rivera of Orlando Pinstriped Post previews today's game with Forum Blue and Gold's Darius Soriano.

-Andrew Melnick of Howard the Dunk has a quick recap of what happened in last year's Finals (like you need a reminder) and what happened in the team's first meeting.

-Darius Soriano of Forum Blue & Gold gets a preview of the Magic from Eddie Rivera of Orlando Pinstriped Post.

-Silver Screen and Roll previews today's game and is feeling a lot of bad mojo entering the game. Then again, Los Angeles tends to relish these type of statement games.

-Chris Shellcroft of Lake Show Life has the latest on the new hairdo Ron Artest will sport for today's game. Oddly reminiscent of former Laker Dennis Rodman. Artest put defense in three different languages in his hair.

-In a strange arrangement, Phil Jackson introduced Charles Oakley to Pau Gasol after Friday's loss to Charlotte. Chris Shellcroft of Lake Show Life hopes some toughness rubbed off.

-Dave McMenamin of ESPN Los Angeles writes Los Angeles has plenty to prove as the team tries to defend its title.

-John Denton of OrlandoMagic.com writes beating the Lakers has been at the forefront of many Magic player's minds.

-John Carroll of Scouts Inc. breaks down the matchups in today's game between Orlando and Los Angeles.

-Rob Mahoney of Hardwood Paroxysm discusses Brian Skinner's paper, "The Price of Anarchy," from the Sloan Sports Conference. In it, Skinner argues that it is more efficient for teams to have a more balanced attack rather than letting a star player go bonkers. Interesting implications for today's matchups.

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New Jersey has six wins and is well on its way to breaking the NBA record for fewest wins in a season. It is not surprising then to know how easily Orlando won its fourth straight game -- not quite dominating but not quite sweating for a 97-87 win at Izod Center on Friday night.

The Magic took control with a 32-18 first quarter and were never really threatened. The lead throughout the game bounced between 15 and 10 after the Nets cut the lead to seven at the half.

Both offenses were inefficient and Orlando's defense, at least, seemed a bit lazy at times. The team turned it up enough to keep New Jersey at bay while not outright running away with things.

Dwight Howard was a big difference, stabilizing the Magic any time the Nets made a run. He scored only 11 points, but grabbed 16 rebounds and blocked four shots. He also had four assists and a +14 plus/minus rating.

Orlando's struggles offensively at least started with its inability to convert off of double teams on Howard. New Jersey elected to double Howard hard and hope Orlando did not make jumpers or rotate to chase them off the 3-point line. Howard had four assists and plenty of opportunities for more assists and more "hockey" assists. The shots were just not falling at a high enough rate for the Magic to make the score look how much they dominated.

Orlando shot just 44 percent and a pretty solid 13 for 31 from beyond the arc (42 percent). But the 31 3-pointers should also tell you that the Magic were settling for jumpers with Howard blanketed in the post.

Again, enough shots fell to ensure a victory.

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