The Spurs re-signed Kurt Thomas, the forward/center whom the Magic coveted at the deadline. Meanwhile, a day after acquiring combo guard Keyon Dooling from Orlando, the Nets sent backup point guard (and object of Magic fans' affection) Marcus Williams to the Warriors for a future first-round pick.

Oh, and the Magic's chances of re-signing Carlos Arroyo -- already a long shot -- took a big hit when he tore a leg muscle during an Olympic qualifying tournament.

But Javaris Crittenton, long connected to the Magic in trade rumors, is still in play. The Grizzlies' young combo guard is likely the odd-man-out in Memphis, which wants to focus on developing O.J. Mayo, Mike Conley, and Kyle Lowry. I think Crittenton would be a home-run acquisition for Otis Smith and the Magic. For one thing, he's tall (6'05"). For another, his presence would make both J.J. Redick and Keith Bogans more expendable than they already are... assuming they weren't the guys dealt for Crittenton in the first place. Finally, it would mean fewer minutes for Anthony Johnson, the Magic's 34-year-old current backup, whose talent level befits that of a third-stringer.

Could Mikki Moore be an option? The Kings spent their full mid-level on the veteran power forward last summer, but might look to unload him to free-up playing time for youngsters Spencer Hawes, Shelden Williams, and Jason Thompson. Kings fan pookeyguru, whom you may know from his participation in the Sactown Royalty community, would swap Moore for Redick and Brian Cook.

I still support the idea of swapping Redick and Cook for Jeff Foster, but I doubt the Pacers would part with him now that they've dealt Jermaine O'Neal to Toronto for T.J. Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, and riff-raff.

Maybe we overestimate the Magic's need for another player at the power positions. After all, Tony Battie will make his return this season, and figures to steal some minutes from Adonal Foyle (at center) and Rashard Lewis/Cook (at power forward). And Marcin Gortat, who played in more post-season games than regular-season ones, showed promise. But you'll forgive me for feeling nervous about a big-man rotation that includes Lewis, Battie, Gortat, Foyle, and James Augustine.

What's the Magic's biggest area of need? Whom should they target to fill that need?

• Don't read too deeply into J.J. Redick's extended playing time Wednesday against Philadelphia. Tim Povtak writes in today's Magic Beat that Redick will likely return to the end of the bench:

  "It was not any grand plan. We were just searching," said Magic Coach Stan Van Gundy, when asked about Redick's rare appearance. "The guys who had been playing weren't playing great anyway, so then you give somebody else a chance. You give some minutes to J.J."

  I'm disappointed, but not surprised. Towards the end of Sunday's blowout win over the Kings, some fans in attendance began clamoring for Van Gundy to play J.J., most notably while Dwight Howard split a pair of free throws to give the Magic a 101-81 lead. Van Gundy pointed toward the Magic bench, and up sprang Pat Garrity, Adonal Foyle, and Maurice Evans, set to check in on the next stoppage in play. After seeing that Redick was not one of the players set to enter the game, a few fans booed Van Gundy. Less than a minute of game-time later, Keith Bogans drilled a three-pointer from the right corner and looked back at the Magic bench, as if to say, "Don't take me out, coach!" Rashard Lewis fouled Shelden Williams on the Kings' next possession, and it was only after that timeout that Van Gundy subbed Redick in for Bogans. I'm not sure what changed his mind, but it initially appeared as though Stan the Man would be content with keeping his unhappy, talented, hardworking shooting guard on the bench in a 20-point blowout victory. And I thought Brian Hill's rotation was tough to crack.

• In the same Magic Beat article, Povtak quotes Van Gundy on Jameer Nelson:

  "Jameer is our guy [....] We're going to stick with him."

  Sounds good to me, although he's going to need to score more than 7.5 points per game -- as is his average over his last four games -- to justify the contract extension he signed before tipoff opening night.

• Kelly Dwyer of Yahoo!'s Ball Don't Lie has a transcript of the Magic's most recent "players-only" meeting. I had no idea that Dwight Howard was a Dora the Explorer aficionado, but it makes sense.
• SLAM's Michael Tillery chatted with Rashard Lewis briefly after the Magic's loss to the 76ers Wednesday night. The comments section is also worth reading.
• If Keyon Dooling can't play on Saturday, Carlos Arroyo will get his minutes as the Magic's backup point guard. It'll be Latin Night at Amway Arena, so he's sure to get a rousing ovation when if he checks in. I hope Stan finds some time for him, even if Dooling is healthy
• If you want to find an NBA player having a meal, your best bet is the Cheesecake Factory, says TrueHoop's Henry Abbott. P.F. Chang's is also a popular restaurant among the professional ballplaying fraternity. The Winter Park Village, as Central Florida residents are well aware, boasts both a Cheesecake Factory and a P.F. Chang's. I've never seen a Magic player at the Cheesecake Factory, but a friend once told me he saw Tracy McGrady at The Loop when McGrady played for the Magic.
• Must-see TV tonight as the Utah Jazz visit the New Orleans Hornets. Tipoff's at 8:00 PM on ESPN. Watch the duel between Chris Paul and Deron Williams, the league's best young point guards, and try not to weep when Paul throws filthy passes like this one to Tyson Chandler in transition. If the Magic had a guy like that, we'd be unstoppable.

	vs.
35-22		26-28
Amway Arena
6:00 PM
Sun Sports HD
Probable starters:
Jameer Nelson	PG	Beno Udrih
Maurice Evans	SG	Kevin Martin
Hedo Turkoglu	SF	Ron Artest
Rashard Lewis	PF	Mikki Moore
Dwight Howard	C	Brad Miller

The Kings may be talented enough to make the playoffs. That's what section214 concludes after this Sactown Royalty article about the players earning fewer than $2 million who give the most bang for their buck; Jameer Nelson makes an appearance. So why don't the Kings stand a chance? Because they have $21 million tied-up in unproductive power forwards. Sounds like a problem we could stand to have, no?

The last time these two teams played, the Kings totally embarrassed us on their home floor. As the GameFlow tells us, we never had a lead after the opening minutes of the game, and we were down by as many as 19 points in the fourth quarter; the respectable final margin, 104-100, was largely due to J.J. Redick scoring 10 points in the final 8 minutes.

Since then, the Kings have shaken up their roster. They traded Mike Bibby to Atlanta, a division rival of ours, for Shelden Williams and Cap Space. Bibby's replacement at point guard, Beno Udrih, produces almost the exact same level. Additionally, the Kings will have Ron Artest and Kevin Martin available this evening. Those two players sat out the first time we played the Kings.

For us to win, we're going to have to keep Kevin Martin off the foul line, which is much easier said than done. "Speed Racer" is capable of scoring 15 points without making more than five shots. Consider what Martin did to us the last time the Kings were here, a loss so infuriating it caused some deluded moron to start a website: in 30 minutes, he made only one-of-eight shots, yet still scored 20 points. The Kings managed to win despite shooting .338 from the field. That's got to be some sort of record.

Other Kings who could kill us: Brad Miller, whom Rashard Lewis had trouble guarding in these teams' first meeting this season; Francisco Garcia, who is en fuego this month, shooting .600 from three-point range(!); and Quincy Douby, a rambunctious combo-guard who can join Paul Millsap and Anthony Carter in the "Obscure Players Who Absolutely F---ing Destroyed Us" Club.

Be sure to mosey on over to Sactown Royalty for some brilliant Kings blogging. Tipoff tonight is at 6 PM instead of 7, and the first 5000 fans at the Amway Arena will receive a Jameer Nelson action figure. No word on if the concession stands are serving turnovers to commemorate the event.

Post your pre-, in-, and post-game comments in here. Go Magic.