Rashard Lewis returned to the Magic lineup on Monday night and helped Orlando improve their record to 8-3 with a win over the Charlotte Bobcats Monday night.
It was the second win over the Bobcats in a week but once again Magic Head Coach Stan Van Gundy was unhappy with his team’s play.
"“It was a good win to get. I guess I’m just waiting to see us play well.”"
The Magic let the most inefficient offensive team in the entire NBA scored 91 points. They came into the game averaging just 82.4 points per game. The Bobcats shot 50.7% (36-of-71). Their season average is just 39.4%.
Orlando also allowed the Bobcats to score 40 points in the paint. Boris Diaw started the game by making his first seven shots and had his way on the inside for most of the game. He finished with 21 points on 10-of-13 shooting. He only attempted five shots in the second half.
Flip Murray was nearly unstoppable throughout the game, no matter who the Magic tried to cover him with. Murray went 13-of-21 and tied a career-high by scoring 31 points.
The Magic did shoot the ball better. They were 11-of-32 from beyond the arc (34.4%) but went 5-of-11 in during a decisive third quarter run that gave them the lead for good. The Magic shot just 42.9% (33-of-77) from the field but their 3-point shooting, free throw advantage (20-of-31 compared to Charlotte’s 15-of-26) gave them the edge they needed. They also out-rebounded the Hornets 41-34.
It wasn’t all bad. The Magic had a much better second half on the defensive end. The Bobcats shot 40% in the second half (still above their average) but scored just 39 points. This was a huge improvement after the Magic let the Bobcats shoot 59% in the first half and score 52 points. Stan Van Gundy was disappointed with the team’s performance but noted the improvement.
"“The first half was terrible. The second half, we held them to 40%, 39 points and defended pretty well. It improved in the second half. That’s what turned the game around and got a win.”"
After the Magic got an early 25-21 lead, the Bobcats’ offense dominated the second quarter. Charlotte shot 68% and scored 31 points in the quarter. Boris Diaw scored 10 points on 5-of-5 shooting. Luckily, 3-point shooting and free throws kept the Magic within two.
The Magic really picked it up during the third quarter – they outscored the Bobcats 26-16. Orlando started the quarter on a 9-1 run. Mickael Pietrus hit a 3-pointer and then Jameer Nelson made two 3-pointers in a row.
The Magic cooled off again and allowed Charlotte to take the lead back at 62-60. Pietrus hit two more 3’s in the quarter and the first gave Orlando the lead right back 63-62. After missing a 3-pointer, Pietrus’ second make gave Orlando a 66-62 lead. Ryan Anderson completed a 3-point play and Rashard Lewis finally hit a field goal after missing his first 8 shots. He wound up with 6 points in the period, including a late layup on a pretty pass from Mickael Pietrus that put Orlando up by 8.
The Magic built the lead up to 80-68 before they let Bobcats back in it again. The Bobcats closed the gap to 90-87 on a Boris Diaw jumper with just under two minutes to go. After Pietrus traveled, the Magic came up with a steal and Vince nailed a deep 3-pointer with under a minute to go, extending the lead to 6 and putting the game away.
Rashard Lewis was not sharp in his return. He didn’t make a field goal until late in the third quarter and scored just 10 points on 4-of-15 shooting. He missed all six of his 3-point attempts. Rashard really didn’t seem to get into a groove until late in the third quarter. Van Gundy talked about that.
"“He had his good moments. I thought playing with the second unit big guys, playing the three-spot and getting down in the post, which has been a good thing for him in other games where he has struggled. He did a good job down there and had a nice little run down there. And that was good.”"
I thought the best thing about Lewis was that he was able to play over 34 minutes tonight. He looks like he needs to be in better “basketball shape (as he called it),” rather than just in shape, but that’s an encouraging start.
Orlando’s bench really saved the day for the Magic.
Ryan Anderson scored 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting in his return from his ankle injury. He was just 1-of-3 from downtown. He continues to prove that he can put the ball on the floor when he needs to and did an outstanding job of cutting to the basket tonight. He made a couple of great cuts. One of them earned Anderson a three-point play while the other resulted in a dunk. Anderson said that Van Gundy put an emphasis on cutting to the hoop when the big men are double-teamed. Anderson listened.
Brandon Bass was also very effective off of the bench. He scored 10 points and grabbed 6 rebounds in just under 14 minutes of play. He did all of this while having to play Center because Marcin Gortat was out with the flu and Dwight Howard got into early foul trouble. Brandon did a much better job on the glass tonight and I asked Brandon about his approach to the game playing Center instead of Power Forward.
"“When I go in, I got to rebound the ball. Coach wants me to be a physical presence, versatile scorer, rebounder, runner, and energy guy, so that’s what I got to do. Every night. Either way, either way (Center or Power Forward), I got to turn it up. I got to bring energy when I’m out there.”"
Brandon certainly did that tonight.
Jason Williams saw limited minutes, scoring 3 points off his only 3-point attempt and dishing out 3 assists.
J.J. Redick and Matt Barnes struggled tonight.
Barnes, coming off his best game of the season, scored 4 points on 1-of-7 shooting. He had just 2 rebound and 2 assists. He also had 3 turnovers He played just over 17 minutes tonight.
J.J. Redick played only 6 minutes and attempt just one shot – a 3-pointer, that he made.
Once again, Dwight Howard picked up two quick fouls and was sent to the bench. He bounced back to play over 34 minutes but attempted just 5 shots, making 4 of them. He was awful from the free throw line, going just 6-of-14. Howard did do some nice things. He managed to grab 11 rebounds, including 4 offensive and had just 1 turnover. His turnover numbers have been down because of the way he is handling the double-teams. He is becoming an excellent passer out of double-teams. He had 2 assists today including a pass that earned Ryan Anderson a wide-open dunk. He had several other passes that didn’t directly result in assists but were the reason that a Magic player had an open shot. For example, when Pietrus found Lewis for a layup with a beautiful behind the back pass, Howard hit a cutting Pietrus to set up his pass.
Jameer Nelson played pretty well. He shot 50% (5-of-10) and scored 16 points. He had 5 assists and just 2 turnovers. He hit some crucial 3-pointers but Nelson seems to be at his best when he is driving. The few times he attacked the basket Monday night, he came away with positive results. He set up a Vince Carter 3-pointers, made a layup and drew foul on his first three drives. This something he must do more of and something that Van Gundy is calling for him to do more of.
Game Notes:
- Mickael Pietrus scored all 10 points during Orlando’s third quarter run, hitting three 3-pointers. He also had 6 rebounds and 2 assists.
- Outside of Vince Carters’ game-sealing 3-pointer, he was pretty quiet. He attempted just 2 shots in the second half and finished with 15 points on 5-of-12 shooting (3-of-5 from downtown).
- Carter said that he wasn’t getting to the hoop because there is “nowhere to go.”
- Boris Diaw tied a season-high with 21 points and while Flip Murray tied his career-high with 31 points.
- Both Stephen Jackson and Acie Law arrived at Amway Arena about an hour before tip-off. They were traded to Charlotte this morning.
- Jackson, who was told three plays before the game, started, played 45 minutes and scored 13 points, but shot just 4-of-14.
Final Thought: Rashard Lewis returned but the Magic still have the same problem: defense.
Next Up: The Magic look to avenge an ugly loss to Oklahoma City when they host the Thunder on Wednesday, November 18th.
(Andrew Melnick is Howard the Dunk’s lead blogger and a contributor at NFL Mocks Subscribe to his RSS feed and add him on Twitter to follow him daily.)