Orlando Magic News & Notes: Howard Reactions, Magic Overpaid
The internet, especially in Orlando, was abuzz yesterday because of Dwight Howard’s comments in Esquire magazine.
Zach McCann of the Orlando Sentinel thinks anyone around Howard’s age can relate to him:
"Dwight Howard is 25. Anyone who’s been in their mid-20s knows what he’s going through. I’m in my mid-20s and almost everyone I know in Orlando wonders what their life would be like if they lived in New York City or Los Angeles. They wonder if they should’ve switched majors or joined the Peace Corps or if they’re settling on their boyfriend or girlfriend. It’s an age when there’s so much in front of you, so much of the world unseen, and you’re afraid of getting old before seeing it all. Howard – like myself and the other twenty-somethings in Orlando – just wonders sometimes if his life would be better somewhere else."
Brian Schmitz can sense Howard’s frustration:
"“And I just don’t know what else I can do. I can’t live for everybody else. I don’t know what decision I’m gonna make as of right now. It’s been crazy. Everybody wants me to come here, come play here, come to our team, do this. It’s a great feeling, though, to be wanted.”Raab, who apparently just met Howard, says, “You’re gone. I can feel it.”Howard responds, “The toughest part for me is the city — the people. They’ve got burgers named after me in Orlando, they’ve got a Web site saying, “Please stay.” I love the people in the city. I’ve literally sat on the bench with a towel on my head crying, because I feel the passion in the stands. I just think about what’s going to be best for what I want to accomplish in my life. And I don’t want that door to close on me, wherever that door is. I don’t want it to close.”"
"As we said in our look at the Magic after the lockout, GM Otis Smith has put himself in a corner. They need more talent around Howard, talent that fits better. They have a lot of big contracts from guys that are only moderately helpful, even if they can use the amnesty clause on Gilbert Arenas there is little room to maneuver. The only trade chip of real value is Jameer Nelson, but moving him creates a new hole to fill. There are a lot of challenges and not a lot of options."
Evan Dunlap of Orlando Pinstriped Post takes a look at the value of Magic players:
"Hedo Turkoglu fared better than expected: The NBA media and fans tend to cite the five-year, $52.8 million contract Turkoglu signed with the Toronto Raptors in 2009 as an example of NBA largesse, the sort over role-player overpaying that led to the current NBA lockout. Yet in 2010/11, Turkoglu outperformed his salary by $1.4 million, according to this analysis, thanks to his all-around contributions (11.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 5.1 assists) and efficiency (55 percent True Shooting).Turkoglu’s strong showing here does raise questions about the fairness of Win Shares. At the risk of sounding obvious, Win Shares relies only on what’s recorded in the box score. Though Turkoglu’s aggregate statistics are surprisingly solid, the box score doesn’t account for what is arguably the Turkish forward’s biggest shortcoming: his inconsistency. As documented previously on this site, Turkoglu’s highs are high and his lows are low, and one never quite knows what to expect from him on a night-to-night basis."
(Andrew Melnick is Howard the Dunk’s lead blogger, ESPN Florida’s Magic Insider (http://ESPNFlorida.com) and is the co-host of the ESPNFlorida.com Insiders Show Sunday mornings at 10:00 am EST. Subscribe to his RSS feed, add him on Facebook and follow him on Twitter to follow him daily. You can download the HTD app here).