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Create A Caption #39 Winner
by erivera7 on Nov 23, 2009 8:28 PM EST
in Diversions
2 comments
Well, 72 hours have passed and we have a winner in Third Quarter Collapse's thirty-ninth "create a caption" competition. The voting was close for a third straight week (a welcomed trend, to say the very least).
Looks like the Hammer got nailed.
3QC member telka is the winner in the competition, garnering 52% of the votes.
We'll do this again soon! For those that participated, thanks. If you didn't win the contest this time around, you'll have another crack at garnering precious glory later this week, on Friday. Stay tuned.
2 comments | 0 recs |
Poll: Who is Your Favorite Orlando Magic Newcomer?
by erivera7 on Nov 23, 2009 5:31 PM EST
in Diversions
27 comments
With the month of November beginning to come to a close, I wanted to know how the community felt about the new players on the Orlando Magic roster. To be specific, I wanted to know which individual has become your favorite out of the group, so far, between Ryan Anderson, Matt Barnes, Brandon Bass, Vince Carter, and Jason Williams? There's no wrong answer.
If you'd like, in the comments section below, feel free to explain how or why you've been gravitated towards a certain player.
Have at it.
27 comments | 0 recs |
Orlando Magic News for November 23rd: More on the Rashard Lewis Saga; Some Thoughts on the Magic's Win over the Raptors
by erivera7 on Nov 23, 2009 5:23 PM EST
in News
25 comments
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Does Allen Think Lewis Should've Missed Playoffs?
Bethlehem Shoals of The Baseline questions Ray Allen's rationale for bringing up the timing of Rashard Lewis' suspension, at this point.Then comes the more perplexing remarks, either a good-natured jab at an old pal—proof that these mistakes mean nothing—or a bit of bitterness creeping in. Not the "Lewis was juicing" kind, more "if only that suspension had come down sooner." [...]
You could argue that, if Lewis was competing in the Finals, the NBA probably should've rushed the test and figured out his situation before the end of the season. Allen, taking it a step further, wants the initial test to hold more water.
The question is, why? Allen acknowledges that Lewis probably did nothing wrong, so it's not like he was unfairly beating Boston in the semis. Or maybe he's just defending Lewis's character, but not the fairness of his chemical activities. Which brings us back to the curious quip: Is Allen bemoaning the fact that Lewis should've been out, mistake or not, and thus showing his competitive stripes? Or is it simply a jokey aside? -
Behind the Box Score, where the Knicks nearly pulled one
Kelly Dwyer of Ball Don't Lie recaps the Orlando Magic's victory over the Toronto Raptors in yesterday's matinee game.The go-to story involves Vince Carter, who was an absolute prat in forcing his way out of Toronto. Carter deserves more enmity than any other ex-player gets from any other ex-crowd, combined, and that noted go-to story involves him playing well in Toronto. That works, actually; because though Carter shot 9 for 24, there were probably six shots that rimmed in and out or bounced out while he was fouled (and didn't see a call). Not V.C.'s biggest fan, but I can't slough that off.
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The Citizens Of Toronto Still Hate Vince Carter
Gerald Narciso of Dime Magazine points out how the city of Toronto still has an intense dislike for Vince Carter.Fans in T-Dot sure know how to hold a grudge. Nearly five years after Vince Carter’s shaky departure from Toronto, the fans have still not forgiven him nor are they planning on doing so anytime soon. In his first return as a member of the Magic on Sunday, the fans mercilessly booed Carter every time he touched the ball. While locals are still upset about Carter forcing himself out of town, they probably weren’t too pleased he declined to take part in the Raptors’ 15th anniversary celebration. [...]
"Why would I want to do it? You heard it out there," Carter told the Orlando Sentinel. "They came to me. It just didn’t make sense. Actually, it wasn’t as loud as it has been. It used to be deafening." -
What Do You Mean, The NBA Is Poorly Marketed?
Matt Moore of Hardwood Paroxysm humorously points out how, using a screenshot, TV guide writers "poorly marketed" the matchup between the Magic and the Boston Celtics this past Friday. -
Hollinger: Denver Nuggets nab No. 1 spot in Power Rankings
UPDATE: John Hollinger of ESPN Insider takes time in his article to analyze Orlando's "problem" at power forward (hint: too much talent).The most shocking box score lines of the weekend had to belong to Orlando's Brandon Bass -- DNP Coach's Decision on both Friday and Sunday. Bass sat even though he's fared well statistically, as his PER of 15.90 is right at his usual norms and he's shooting 52.3 percent from the floor.
His basic problem is that he's still only the third-best power forward on the Magic. Second-year pro Ryan Anderson has been borderline spectacular thus far, with a 20.76 PER and the type of floor-spacing game that fits Orlando's system. His D hasn't been too shabby either -- check out that fourth-quarter charge he took on Toronto's Andrea Bargnani Sunday.
And despite the solid numbers, Bass has looked a little confused of late -- most notably when I saw him in person against Cleveland nearly two weeks ago. He's played only 20 minutes since that game, one in which he seemed a bit shot-happy and had a couple of defensive lapses. -
Will Toronto Ever Get Over VC?
UPDATE 2: More on the man formerly known as Air Canada.At the risk of offending any rabid Raptors fans out there, while Vince Carter let your team down, he's hardly the first athlete ever to quit on a team and demand a trade. [...]
This non-stop "Judas!" and "Antichrist!" posturing makes columnists and fans look naive, especially when Carter is far from the worst case of this in recent history. Let it go. For his part, Vince was "incredulous ... and mischievous" when responding to the news that he was in the running for an honor. Of course he has a vested interest in taking it all in stride, but part of having a history is learning to put things in perspective. And in the past. - Orlando Finds Bosh’s Kryptonite
UPDATE 3 (from Ben): Magic center Dwight Howard explains to Ryan McNeill of HoopsAddict how he and his teammates were able to limit Raptors power forward Chris Bosh, who entered yesterday's game averaging 27 points and 12 rebounds, to 22 points and 5 rebounds on Sunday afternoon.
"I think the last time we played him we just gave him a free path to the lane and tonight we did a better job of keeping a body on him," Howard explained to me after the game. "We forced him to stay out of the lane and just not be able to get those easy rebounds. The guy who rebounded well tonight for them was Amir Johnson so the next time we play them we need to hit him and hit Chris (Bosh) to get those guys off the glass."
- In The Scrum With Dwight Howard
UPDATE 4 (from Ben): McNeill, a friend of ours, also passed along this link to Howard's entire post-game media availability session.
25 comments | 0 recs |
Orlando Magic Not Missing a Beat with Jason Williams at the Helm
by erivera7 on Nov 23, 2009 8:15 AM EST
in Analysis
11 comments
With Jameer Nelson out with an injury (torn meniscus in his left knee), Jason Williams has been forced to assume the starting position at point guard for the Orlando Magic beginning this past week and so far, so good.
Since Williams has been inserted as the starter, the Magic have been able to come away with wins over the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Boston Celtics, and the Toronto Raptors. Out of the trio of victories, winning without Nelson against the Boston was the most impressive without a doubt.
Although Jason is not the scorer that Jameer is, he is as capable of running the offense without a hitch. The assist percentage of both players are nearly identical this year, at this point. Likewise, in his three starts, Williams has tallied 14 assists to only 3 turnovers. Jason has done an excellent job of starting the offensive sets for the Magic and letting the team's bevy of playmakers make plays. For example, with Nelson sidelined, one has seen Vince Carter's shot attempts rise a bit, given that he's had to assume more offensive responsibilities with Orlando lacking one of its main scorers on the court. However, don't let Williams fool you - he's still capable of scoring if the matchups are favorable, as they were yesterday against the Toronto Raptors.
What's been most impressive about Jason, though, has been his defense. It's been sterling, to put it simply. Although it's still early in the regular season and Williams benefits from playing in one of the best defensive schemes in the NBA, he has more than held his end of the bargain as the first line of defense for the Magic. With Jason, Orlando has been 13.4 points per 100 possession better than with him off the floor. If one looks closely, it's been Williams' presence on the defensive side of the ball that's been the catalyst. And those numbers aren't a fluke, either, as Jason's adjusted defensive plus/minus has been excellent, as well.
The questions remains whether or not Williams can keep up this level of play with extended minutes. So far, Jason hasn't shown signs of slowing down with more playing time, so it appears he can weather the storm while Jameer is rehabbing from his injury. As has been stated before, the Magic are better equipped as a squad to handle Nelson's loss and last Friday's win over the Celtics exemplified that particular statement.
The more pertinent question may be whether or not Orlando can continue to have Anthony Johnson be the back-up point guard to Williams. Granted, Johnson got off to a slow start this past season and rounded into form as he played more, but there's no denying that the offense "slows down" with Johnson at the helm, as opposed to Williams. Also, Jason can create his own shot, Anthony can't. One shouldn't rush to judgment as Johnson has played three games backing up Williams and performed well against Oklahoma City in one of those contests, but it's something to keep an eye on for the next few weeks.
All in all, it may not be worth it for general manager Otis Smith to make a move, given that Jameer is expected to be back within a month or so (possibly sooner). Of course, anything is possible.
11 comments | 0 recs |
Vince Carter of the Orlando Magic unveiling his top hat. (HT: malars)
1 day ago
erivera7
3 comments
0 recs
Orlando Magic 104, Toronto Raptors 96
by Ben Q Rock on Nov 22, 2009 6:10 PM EST
in 2009/2010 Recaps
87 comments
After a slow start that saw them trail by as many as 11 points, the Orlando Magic battled back on the road against the Toronto Raptors to win 104-96, for their fifth consecutive victory. Vince Carter's jumper just before the third-period buzzer knotted the game at 76, and the Magic's second unit started the final period on a 17-6 run to take control of the game. Carter, the reviled former Raptor, led all scorers with 24 points on 9-of-24 shooting while also contributing 8 rebounds and 2 assists. J.J. Redick scored 19 points off Orlando's bench, with four three-pointers, and came up big in the fourth period. Chris Bosh paced Toronto with 22 points, as usual, but the Magic held him in check; he had averaged 30 points per game against them in their last 10 meetings.
| Team | Pace | Efficiency | eFG% | FT Rate | OReb% | TO Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Magic | 88 | 118.5 | 46.4% | 32.5 | 28.6 | 8.0 |
| Raptors | 87 | 110.7 | 48.1% | 28.6 | 20.0 | 10.4 |
| Green denotes a stat better than the team's season average; red denotes a stat worse than the team's season average. | ||||||
The spotlight always shines a bit brighter on Carter when he visits the Raptors, and looking at the boxscore it might be tempting to say he wilted today, with another inefficient game. I don't think that's fair, given how he played. He got to wherever he wanted on the floor with relative ease, and in the early going, he made the basket his destination. Unfortunately, he struggled to finish after absorbing contact, even missing two dunks. In the second half, perhaps irritated by the contact the officials were letting go, he turned his game more toward the perimeter. It worked. He shot 7-of-13 in the second half overall, scoring 18 points, with just 1 attempt at the basket; he also drew four free throws. For whatever reason, he was simply more comfortable from mid-range. The Magic should at least be happy that he tore through the Raptors' defense with relative ease, even if his finishing left a lot to be desired.
As well as he played--we can't discount those 8 rebounds--he was arguably the Magic's second-best shooting guard today. Redick was the star off the bench, lighting the Raptors up just as he did three weeks ago, when he scored 27 starting in Carter's place. With the game tied after three periods, Redick led the Magic's surge at the beginning of the fourth to take control. He shot 3-of-4 for 7 points, and assisted on 3 other field goals, thus accounting for 15 of the Magic's 28 points in the period. The Raptors' poor defense did him a favor by continuing to go under screens set for him, allowing J.J. to shoot uncontested much of the time. Interesting that coach Stan Van Gundy made Redick, and not starting point guard Jason Williams, the playmaker down the stretch. It's a move that paid off, though.
Dwight Howard continued to struggle offensively, in part due to Bosh's surprisingly good defense and in part due to his receiving a beating down low. Lots of off-line flings at the rim after getting hit for Howard, but it really didn't matter too much. He was still active on the offensive boards, as 5 of his game-high 12 rebounds came on that end. He's improved as a passer, finding Redick in the opposite corner for a three-pointer after one of those rebounds.
Really, the story of the day was the Magic's secondary players filling in well for the stars. Rashard Lewis was set to have a big game, but could not stay out of foul trouble. In his place, Ryan Anderson scored 8 points on 2-of-6 shooting, all from beyond the arc. Lewis missed all of his three-point attempts, but made up for it by driving to the basket or pulling up from mid-range if his defender bought his head-fakes.
Williams, too, made an impact. He played Jose Calderon, who is at his very best a borderline All-Star, to a draw: Williams scored 16, grabbed 5 rebounds, and tallied 3 assists with no turnovers; Calderon also scored 16, with 2 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 turnovers. Williams' 34-year-old legs didn't betray him, sinking two three-pointers in the fourth quarter despite playing 39 minutes, his highest total since logging 42 minutes against Charlotte in March 2008. His to more-or-less matching Calderon in a game in which the Magic's top players struggled to score efficiently proved to be huge.
The biggest cause for concern here isn't the offense. Carter, Howard, and Lewis will all come around. But nobody the Magic had seemed to be able to contain reserve pogo-stick power forward Amir Johnson, who contributed 14 points and 8 rebounds in 29 minutes. Defensively, he altered shots inside, and drew a charge on Howard. Offensively, the Magic didn't have an answer. He can't create his own offense, but relies on missed shots and his teammates' passing savvy to get him buckets. Orlando continued to lose track of him, on both backboards and in transition, and he nearly won the Raptors the game today. In the waning minutes of the third quarter, Johnson scored 9 points and grabbed 5 rebounds, just by running the floor and being active; he even out-leaped Howard for a few of those boards. The East has plenty of these sorts of players--J.J. Hickson of Cleveland comes to mind, as does Josh Smith of Atlanta--and the Magic cannot go through the whole season letting them get whatever they want. Lewis is the Magic's best defender at power forward, but he's not athletic enough to keep up with them; look no further than his futile attempt to avoid fouling Johnson after a head-fake late in the fourth quarter today for evidence. If Brandon Bass, who earned his second consecutive did not play-coach's decision today, can prove he has both the athleticism and the awareness to stick with the more athletic power forwards of the East, he could carve his way back into the rotation.
Overall, it's great for Orlando to win its 5th straight, especially on the road in a particularly hostile environment. It played hard and executed on both ends of the floor. Had the Magic managed to keep a body on Johnson throughout the game, and had Howard been able to avoid early foul trouble, they would have won this one much more easily. They get two days off before a difficult stretch this Thanksgiving weekend, in which they'll play 4 games in 5 nights in 4 different cities.
87 comments | 0 recs |
Create A Caption #39: Round 2
by erivera7 on Nov 22, 2009 4:19 PM EST
in Diversions
0 comments
Round 1, completed.
Round 2, started.
After two days of submissions, these are the captions that made the cut. The submissions will be listed by number of "recs/votes" in descending order, starting with the leader.
Please vote in the poll for the caption you like the most.
Thanks.
Looks like the Hammer got nailed.
by telka, 5 recs
"I wouldn’t touch this picture with a 7-foot Pole."
by travelerkt, 3 recs
Rules:
I'm sure everyone here is familiar with a "create a caption" competition, but in case someone here doesn't know what this type of contest is .. basically a picture is provided and you, the reader, attempt to come up with a quick sentence describing what's occurring in the photo. The line can be funny, stupid, witty, etc.
I'll be a judge but I like to have another collective voice determining the winner, that way there's a bit of a consensus among the community. What I prefer for everyone here to do is this .. if you like the caption a fellow member has come up with, "recommend" it. That will be 'your vote', in essence. If you don't know how to "recommend" a comment, go to the comment you like, click on 'actions', then click on 'rec'. You can "recommend" multiple captions/comments, if you want.
So for a quick recap ..
- Write a quick sentence describing what's occurring in the photo.
- If you like a caption/comment that's been written, "recommend" it.
- After you "recommend" a caption/comment, write something (like +1, for example) to indicate you like the sentence a 3QC member has written.
- The contest will last four days, so whichever caption/comment gets the most recommendations, wins. In case of a tie, I'll determine the winner.
- There will be two rounds in the competition. In the first round (Friday/Saturday), submissions are made and votes are tallied. At the end of the second day, the submissions that garnered four or more "recs/votes" will advance. In the final round (Sunday/Monday), votes are tallied for the eligible submissions.
- Winner will be announced Monday afternoon or evening.
- The contest is subject to change.
Let the contest begin!
0 comments | 0 recs |
[Ray] Allen brought up an interesting point: Did [Rashard] Lewis test positive before the Eastern Conference semifinals, in which the Magic beat the Celtics in seven games? Lewis was tested once before the NBA Finals and then again during the Finals. He tested positive for DHEA both times.
"When did he take the drug test?’’ Allen asked. "Because if he took the drug test during our series, we’re supposed to be playing in the conference finals.’’
Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe (hat tip: CelticsHub)
1 day ago
Ben Q Rock
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About 3QC
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