• Stan Van Gundy answered a question that had been on the minds of many of the Magic faithful: why hasn't Trevor Ariza seen more playing time? As usual, John Denton has the answer. Van Gundy explained that he doesn't like to make adjustments when his teams are "on a roll," as the Magic were before the Suns crushed them at home on Saturday. He added that Trevor's performance on Saturday was "professional" and "fabulous." So it sounds like we're going to see more of him.
• Bethlehem Shoals offers his take on the Shareef-to-Orlando rumors over at Fanhouse. I agree with his assessment that the Magic need cap flexibility, and thus trading valuable expiring contracts to Sacramento for Shareef Abdur-Rahim is not a good idea. The Magic's need for a big man is only temporary; why trade for an aging power forward with three years left on his deal when you can sign a veteran to a one-year deal?
• Wondering which Magic players might get traded this season? Brian Schmitz lays down the odds in his blog. Carlos Arroyo, Pat Garrity, Keith Bogans, J.J. Redick, and Ariza are among the players he thinks the Magic might trade away in 2007/2008.
• Who else but Jerry Greene, my favorite Orlando Sentinel writer, would pass along the news that Orlando-area Dunkin' Donuts locations will give away free donuts the day after any Magic win? He explains:

  • You need show no proof of watching the game.
  • The game doesn't even have to be on local TV and it doesn't matter if it is played home or away.
  • Just show up the day after a victory and pick the free doughnut of your choice.

    How cool is that? They did the same thing in Tampa/St. Pete with The Baseball Team Formerly Known As The Devil Rays and gave away about 110,000 doughnuts as the TBTFKATDR actually won 66 games.

• Speaking of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, check out DRaysBay, SB Nation's Rays blog, which has recently undergone some cosmetic changes to fit in with the rebranding of the baseball franchise.

Keyon Dooling and Grant Hill talk before the Suns' 106-96 victory over the Magic. Dooling had the better game, but Hill had the last laugh.
Photo by Phelan M. Ebanhack, the Associated Press

Well, that was ugly.

The night got off to a bad start when a fan shouted "You suck!" at the woman singing the national anthem, and it only got worse for the Magic as they fell to Phoenix by a score of 106-96. The final margin is deceptively small; if memory serves, we were trailing by 20 with 6 minutes to go. Here's the boxscore.

Leandro Barbosa started for the Suns in place of Raja Bell, who suffered an ankle injury in Phoenix's victory over Miami last night. He proceeded to torch us for a career-high 39 points, including 8-of-13 from three-point range.

Dwight Howard had another great performance for us with 33 points and 18 rebounds, but he was just 7-of-16 from the free throw line. He looked to be the only Magic starter with his head in the game. Rashard Lewis was especially awful: our $118 million man had just 7 points on 3-of-14 shooting. On the plus side for him, he pulled down a season-high 9 rebounds. So there's that.

I want to know what happened to "We do what we do." Only 19 three-point attempts tonight? Really? It was like watching a Brian Hill-coached team.

1. Get possession.
2. Give the ball to Dwight on the block.
3. Stand around and hope he can do something with it.

Ugh. But that wasn't the only bad part. Our transition defense was also terrible, and Phoenix's fast-breaking offense exploited it. On two fast breaks in the first quarter, Barbosa got the ball in the open floor and strolled right into the lane for a layup. On every level of basketball, the first thing they teach you on defense is to STOP THE BALL ON  THE FAST BREAK. No Magic player cut off the lane, and the result was easy baskets for Phoenix.

And I'm not one to blame losses on officiating, but it was a bit questionable early in the game tonight. By my count, the Magic were whistled for five offensive fouls in the first half, each time by Ken Mauer, who has enough oil in his hair to fuel an aircraft carrier. Again, I'm not blaming the loss on officiating, but it was hard for us to get into a rhythm offensively.

Well, at least the bench played well. Trevor Ariza, Keyon Dooling, and Carlos Arroyo all scored in double-figures. Keyon also gave Steve Nash all he could handle defensively. A good showing from Keyon.

For those wondering, Grant Hill was booed lustily during pre-game introductions and every time he touched the ball subsequent to that. He shot just 6-of-18, so maybe it had an effect on him. Or maybe he just can't play anymore.

Yeah, I think I just went there.

UPDATE: Brian Schmitz and Tim Povtak report that the fan who shouted "You suck!" during the national anthem was directing his vitriol to Grant Hill, not the woman who sang. That doesn't excuse his comment, but it's important to make that distinction.

	vs.
4-2		5-1
Amway Arena
7:00 PM
Sun Sports
Probable starters:
Steve Nash	PG	Jameer Nelson
Raja Bell	SG	Keith Bogans
Grant Hill	SF	Hedo Turkoglu
Shawn Marion	PF	Rashard Lewis
Boris Diaw	C	Dwight Howard

25 words or fewer: The Magic and the Suns meet in a matchup two of the NBA's hottest teams in this early part of the season.

Know your enemy: The Suns have struggled in the early-going, mostly because they have not been able to consistently hit the three-point shot.

Useless information: In the Suns' last visit to Orlando, Dwight Howard was held to 4 points. Also, Tim Donaghy was one of the officials that night.

Bullet points:

• Despite trailing by 5 points late in the game, Phoenix rallied to beat the Heat in Miami last night behind Steve Nash's 30-point, 11-assist performance.
• I hope to goodness that the Suns don't wear their hideous orange alternate uniforms. I know I've mentioned them before. They are that offensive to me.
• Mike Bianchi is not backing down from his prediction that the Magic won't make the playoffs. I'm going to hold him to that.
• Tonight's game should be a sellout. Not only is Phoenix a perennially exciting team to watch, but they also feature former Magic player Grant Hill, who doesn't know if he'll be cheered or booed. Damien Nielsen of Believing in Magic has decided to boo, as has his colleague, Brendan Sonnone.
• I have no idea how Rashard Lewis expects to score tonight. He'll likely be guarded by Shawn Marion, who should be named Defensive Player of the  Year each year. Hedo Turkoglu and Dwight Howard will have to pick up the slack in the scoring department.
• Tim  Povtak checks in with his All-Former-Magic-Players first- and second- teams. No surprises on either of those lists.
• Jameer Nelson needs to remain aggressive in taking the ball to the basket. Steve Nash is not a great defender, so Nelson should be able to get to the rim easily. That will open up the lane for lob dunks to Howard, as we saw last night in New York.
• The Suns are on pace for a 53-win season; the Magic are on pace for 57 wins.
• UPDATE: Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic reports that Raja Bell is questionable for tonight's game with a sprained ankle suffered last night. If he is unable to play, Leandro Barbosa will start in his place. Thanks to Bright Side of the Sun, SB Nation's Suns blog, for pointing that out.

I'll be at the game tonight, and I've decided that I won't cheer Grant Hill. But I also won't boo him. His community contributions balance out the way he left us, so I will have a neutral reaction to his presence.