Dave D'Alessandro brings Nets fans up to speed on New Jersey's pursuit of Keyon Dooling:

The Nets have been in touch with Rob Pelinka, they haven't made an offer for his client, and it's fairly obvious to both sides right now that this probably isn't going to happen unless the market dries up even faster than we thought.

[....]

Oh, you need more details: Keyon, of course, saw his market shrink when Orlando signed [Mickael] Pietrus, so his best bet to get into a more aggressive price range would be Golden State (now looking for a starter) and New Orleans (especially if [Jannero] Pargo leaves). They can give him midlevel money.

Meanwhile, the Nets, as you know, handed Eddie Najera a $3.4M jumpoff point, which leaves $2.18 from their MLE to give some worthy recruit.

So if they think that bargain recruit is Dooling . . . not gonna happen. Not until he exhausts all his other options, anyway. Funny thing about that: Some coaches would tell you that Keyon is good enough to start for a few teams in the league, but people are treating him like a September hire -- like he's Royal Ivey or Keith McLeod.

D'Alessandro goes on to mention that neither Dooling nor Pelinka should be surprised by the lack of offers. I'll grant him that this free-agent market is loaded with wings, but Dooling was arguably the best available point guard not named Baron Davis. I still can't get over the fact that Chris Duhon was a hotter commodity. Chris. Duhon.

The rest of free agency comes down to what Celtics forward James Posey decides to do. New Orleans is said to be in the market for him. Should he land there, he'd take all the Hornets' mid-level exception, thus whittling Dooling's options even further. Golden State might end up being Dooling's destination, although he might not start there, either. Currently, the Warriors have slotted Monta Ellis, last season's starting shooting guard, as their point guard, pairing him in the backcourt with Stephen Jackson while newly acquired Corey Maggette will man the three.

I'd be truly shocked if Dooling wound up having to accept an offer of less than $3.5 million annually. He's a better player than that. DeSagana Diop, of all people, got the full mid-level...

A couple more details from the Orlando Magic's signing of Mickael Pietrus have trickled in. The team will host an introductory news conference to introduce its new starting shooting guard this Thursday, says Brian Schmitz.

• John Denton, who first broke the news of Pietrus' signing, has more details. It's a four-year deal worth $25.1 million. If you ask me, the Magic overpaid, but Pietrus fits their system and upgrades their weakest starting position from last season. Here's my favorite nugget from the piece, though:

  Also, Pietrus is close friends with Magic small forward Hedo Turkoglu and the two families recently vacationed together in Turkey for a week.

  So he's friends with Hedo and knows Otis Smith from his Golden State days. He should be comfortable here, especially since he'll play his natural position.

• Sean Deveney of the Sporting News spoke with Bill McCandless, Pietrus' agent, and gives us this information about which other teams pursued Air France:

  McCandless said 11 teams were interested in Pietrus but only five were serious. It came down to Orlando or Detroit, with Atlanta also a possibility. For the Pistons, Pietrus would have been a reserve. With the Magic he will start, McCandless was told, not at power forward, but at the more natural shooting guard spot.

  "It was not the most lucrative offer," McCandless said. "But the opportunity, combined with the money, to start for an up-and-coming team was too much to pass up. He could have gotten the same money, or more, from Detroit. But he would have been coming off the bench. ... It becomes a matter of timing. Orlando had the perfect spot for him. You have the threat of someone else moving into the spot. We did not want to wake up tomorrow and find that Otis had signed someone else."

  First, I love that we beat Detroit to signing Pietrus. I'm sure it's no big loss to Pistons fans, but it feels good to get something from them for once. Jeez.

  Deveney notes that the four-year deal includes an Early Termination Option for Pietrus after the third season.

• If you're wondering what this signing means for the Magic's chances of re-signing Keyon Dooling, you aren't alone. Dooling himself doesn't even know what's happening. When reached for comment, Dooling told Brian Schmitz the following:

  "It looks like they have filled their position at the 2. Pietrus will help us," Dooling said. "I don't know what's going to happen. Things are all over the place."

  The switch from third-person to first-person probably doesn't mean much, -- dude was probably a bit frazzled -- but it can't be a good sign that Dooling isn't confident he'll return. And, frankly, why should he be? The Magic made overtures to Chris Duhon, to Corey Maggette, and to Pietrus, but have yet to present him with an offer.

  The Magic can sign him, but doing so will bring them close to luxury-tax territory, which they want to avoid. The Magic's best bet is to make Dooling a long-term, front-loaded offer, which would give Dooling the money and security he wants while simultaneously freeing-up cap space as the salaries of Dwight Howard, Rashard Lewis, and Jameer Nelson increase.

Woof. Busy offseason ahead. Either J.J. Redick or Keith Bogans will surely move via trade -- the smart money's on J.J., as he has more value -- and the Magic still have plenty of holes to fill.

Throwing a wrench in the Orlando Magic's free-agent plans, Chris Duhon has agreed to a two-year deal with the New York Knicks, reports Sean Deveney of Sports Illustrated. Deveney's source reports that the deal is worth the full mid-level exception, which is considerably more than the Magic were willing to offer.

Orlando will now likely turn its attention to Keyon Dooling, who has come off the bench to play both backcourt positions for the Magic in the last three seasons. A New York Post report earlier today, before Duhon's signing was announced, said Dooling was indeed the Magic's "fallback plan" in the event Duhon signed with New York.

I was never thrilled with the idea of the Magic replacing Dooling with Duhon, so this news comes as a relief to me. But if the Magic are unable to retain Dooling -- at least six other teams have contacted him -- they will have no other choice but to target shaky veterans like Jason Williams or Anthony Carter to back-up incumbent point guard Jameer Nelson. More likely, they'll wait to see what swingman Corey Maggette, the biggest remaining prize in this year's free-agent market, does before making an offer to anyone else at any position.

UPDATE: John Denton's version of the story includes reaction from Keyon Dooling:

"No, (the Magic) haven't given me an offer yet, but it is what it is," Dooling said Friday. "I've gotten a lot of interest, but what's interest without an offer. It's like a Catch-22.

"I understand that it's still young in the free-agent process and some of the bigger names have to go before I do. But I do think Duhon going (to New York) clears up some things for me (with Orlando)."

Aside: Denton also notes that Jameer Nelson will get married tomorrow, and that Dooling will be part of the ceremony. Congratulations, Jameer.

Other teams interested in Dooling include Miami, which won't offer a contract longer than two years, and Golden State, which needs to replace Baron Davis. I suspect Denver is in the mix as well, although apparently it prefers to sign Carlos Arroyo.

UPDATE: One final, interesting detail, this one from Brian Schmitz:

Bradbury [Kevin Bradbury, Duhon's agent] said Duhon himself called Magic General Manager Otis Smith to tell him he signed with the Knicks.

Huh. Nice guy, that Chris Duhon.

Free-agent point guard Chris Duhon, formerly of the Chicago Bulls, will receive a three-year, $10 million contract offer from the Orlando Magic.

File photo by Chuck Burton, the Associated Press

Tim Povtak and Brian Schmitz report the Orlando Magic will offer free-agent point guard Chris Duhon a three-year deal worth around $10 million. Duhon could decide by the end of the week if he will accept the offer, and his agent, Kevin Bradbury, says he wants his client to work quickly to make a decision.

As Povtak and Schmitz note, signing Duhon would end any possibility of the Magic signing free-agent swingman Corey Maggette, who's drawn interest from nearly every NBA team.

It's unclear whether Duhon will accept the Magic's offer, having received a two-year, $7 million offer from the New York Knicks just yesterday (link found via Posting and Toasting). Orlando's proposal gives him a lower average salary, but an extra year of job-security. It also gives him the opportunity to play for a contending team.

UPDATE: Thanks to 3QC reader travelerkt for pointing out the Magic have Keyon Dooling's Larry Bird Rights, and can thus exceed the salary cap to sign him. Keep that information in mind when reading the rest of this post, which I've amended with strikethroughs when appropriate.

What I'm more interested in knowing is how Duhon's potential signing affects the status of the Magic's incumbent backup point guard/best perimeter defender/sixth-man, Keyon Dooling, also a free agent. It's doubtful the Magic could retain his services, as Duhon's salary ($3.3 million, which is more than half the mid-level exception) leaves just $2.5 million for Orlando to use to keep Dooling, who earned $3.5 million last season and who now seeks a raise. It could mean Orlando could re-sign shooting guard Maurice Evans, who earned $1.5 million as a starter last season.

I'm disappointed by Orlando's offer to Duhon; although he's an above-average defender, he's also an offensive liability who struggles to his 40% of his shots. Opposing defenses will leave him open to double-team Dwight Howard. Although Dooling was not a great outside shooter either, he at least got to the basket and created offense for himself. I'll liken him to other recent Magic backup point guards in this way: he combines Dooling's defense with Carlos Arroyo's passing ability and Jacque Vaughn's "marksmanship." He's certainly not worth $10 million over three years, nor is he worth losing any hope of signing Maggette or Dooling, who are is a far superior players.

Once again, Magic management baffles me with its decision-making. Even with Jameer Nelson's relatively steady play, and with Dooling's career-best season, the Magic had one of the worst overall backcourts in the league. It just got appreciably worse.

• Adrian Wojnarowski has the upsetting news that the San Antonio Spurs are the "front-runners" to sign Corey Maggette. The most the Spurs can offer is the mid-level exception, which happens to be what the Magic can offer. Maybe Maggette will become the first-ever star-caliber player to take a paycut to play on a contending team. Every team in the league will look silly if Maggette indeed signs with the Spurs, but especially the Magic, who are both title-contenders (or would be, if Maggette took the mid-level with them) and play where he started his career.
  • Just another reason to hate the Spurs. As if we needed any more. I feel like vomiting.
  • And another reason for some people to hate Otis Smith, who hasn't showed much gumption lately, what with staying-pat at the trading deadline and on draft night. Thing is, Otis has displayed aggression before: last summer, he landed two great coaching candidates (Billy Donovan and Stan Van Gundy) and won the services of the best-available free agent (Rashard Lewis). So it's possible he could change Corey's mind... but I doubt it.
• Sean Deveney of The Sporting News says free-agent point guard Chris Duhon will meet with Magic officials today after spending yesterday in New York with Knicks brass. I imagine he's Orlando's safety valve at backup point guard, a contingency in case incumbent backup Keyon Dooling bolts for more money. For what it's worth, Dooling told John Denton that Orlando is "first choice if all the stars align, but in free agency you have a duty to see what value is out there."
• Brian Schmitz, who spoke to Magic GM Otis Smith, says the team will likely divide the midlevel exception in two:

  Smith said the club likely will split the $6 million-per-year midlevel exception, meaning they will spend about $3 million apiece on two role players instead of giving it all to one.

Free agency is here! Everybody freak out!

• Free-agency coverage abounds in the Sentinel today.
  • Tim Povtak lists Golden State Warriors swingman Mickael Pietrus (more on him below), Chicago Bulls point guard Chris Duhon, and Los Angeles Clippers swingman Corey Maggette as the Magic's primary targets.
  • Povtak also has a list of the NBA's top free agents, which includes Clippers forward Elton Brand, Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas, and Warriors guard Baron Davis. Most of the guys on this list are either out of the Magic's price range or off their radar completely. If Kwame Brown ever plays for Orlando, I might throw up.
  • Brian Schmitz received word from Bill McCandless, who represents Pietrus, that he expects the Magic to contact him regarding his client. Pietrus' calling cards are defense and three-point shooting, so it's easy to see why Stan Van Gundy and Magic management would be interested in him. If the Magic's top priority is to replace Maurice Evans in the starting lineup, Pietrus is probably the best option. For more on Pietrus, check out...
    • this ridiculous weakside block of the Kings' Kevin Martin, which made waves in the basketblogosphere.
    • this criticism of Pietrus' work ethic from 3QC fave Tim Kawakami:

      When Pietrus is hurt, he usually takes about 2 or 3 games longer than any other Warrior mainstay would in a similar circumstance. He's right at 3 games longer right now, by the way.

      He has now missed 11 games this season for various reasons -- all valid enough -- but that's 2 more than Stephen Jackson has missed, and that includes Jackson's 7-game suspension to start the campaign.

      Pietrus has missed 5 more games than Andris Biedrins has missed, and, yes, Biedrins had an appendectomy in the middle of the season.

      That's not a good stat. That's about normal for Pietrus' career, too.

      Those facts should raise some red-flags for the Magic

  • In less exciting news, Schmitz reports that the Magic have told free-agent forward Pat Garrity that they will not offer him a contract until later this summer, if at all. It's a wise move on their part to hold-off, yeah. If they make a splash in free-agency -- unlikely -- they might need a cheap 15th man, and Pat might be that man. But if the team signs him, even for a year at the smallest possible salary, Magic fans will revolt. Of that I am sure. Despite Garrity's long stay in Orlando, he hasn't drawn a large fan following, largely due to his lack of productivity. He should have ended his playing days long ago.
• As expected, Magic draftee Courtney Lee signed a four-year, $6 million deal.
• Yesterday, I speculated that the source Tim Povtak cited as saying Corey Maggette could return to Orlando was none other than Maggette's agent, Rob Pelinka. User "Orltragic07" at Denton's board speculates the source could be Bo Outlaw, a former Maggette teammate and current Magic Community Ambassador. You'll have to scroll down to find his post; I can't seem to find a way to link it directly.
• The annual Pepsi Pro Summer League, which the Magic hosts, starts next Monday. The Bulls, Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat, New Jersey Nets, and Seattle SuperSonics will all send teams filled with players hoping to make the opening-day roster. Click here for the summer-league roster page for all teams. A few notes from Orlando's squad:
  • James Augustine, Marcin Gortat, and Courtney Lee are the three "real" Magic players on the team. Lee will wear uniform no. 32, the same one he wore at Western Kentucky. If he chooses to wear that number in the regular-season, he'll be only the third Magic player in 20 years to do so. The others were Otis Smith and Shaquille O'Neal.
  • Kevin Kruger, who played on last year's summer-league team, will also play on this year's.
  • Temple guard Mark Tyndale, who went undrafted last Thursday, also made the Magic's summer-league team. He was among the five shooting guards the Magic worked-out before the draft. The week before the draft, stat guru Ed Weiland, of HOOPSANALYST, ranked Tyndale the third-best shooting guard in the entire 2008 draft class, behind O.J. Mayo and Chris Douglas-Roberts; he rates Lee, whom the Magic selected 22nd overall, to be the 6th-best.
  • Like last year, you can watch each game online free.

That's all for today. Leave your free-agency suggestions in the comments or the FanPosts.

Confirming a rumor we first heard in March, former Magic forward Corey Maggette might be interested in re-joining the team in free-agency this summer. Tim Povtak of the Orlando Sentinel cites "a Maggette friend who is close to both the player and the Magic organization" as a source for his story in today's paper.

What Maggette's really interested in, I suspect, is making more money. SHOCKING, I know. The more cash-strapped teams he encourages to offer him money, the more leverage he has in negotiating with teams that have more cap room. The most Orlando could offer him is the mid-level exception, which has a starting salary of around $5.5 million (it changes from year to year due to the salary cap). Maggette, coming off a season in which he averaged 22.1 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.7 assists, is certainly worth more money than that. Hell, the Magic paid Rashard Lewis a max-level contract worth $118 million over six years after a season in which he averaged 22.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 2.4 assists. While no team can afford to offer Maggette that kind of money this summer -- and Maggette knows as much -- Lewis' contract ups Maggette's market value.

I wonder who, exactly, Povtak's source is. Who might be in a position to know players and teams equally well? Perhaps an agent... like Rob Pelinka, who represents both Maggette and Magic free-agent guard Keyon Dooling. We suspect Pelinka floated this rumor himself to increase Maggette's paycheck, not to mention his own. Additionally, by bumping Maggette out of the Magic's price range, Pelinka ensures the team has enough money to re-sign Keyon Dooling. Everybody wins... except Orlando, which loses the prospect of ever using the absurdly talented Jameer Nelson / Maggette / Hedo Turkoglu / Lewis / Dwight Howard starting lineup.

Maggette's coming off a career-best season and, at 28, knows this summer will be his last chance to secure a lucrative, long-term deal. He won't risk losing millions of dollars just for the opportunity to play close to home. The fact is, no borderline All-Star like Maggette has taken the mid-level exception to play for a contending team. Veteran lunchpail-types in their mid-thirties have (see Boston's free-agent crop last summer after it acquired Kevin Garnett), but never players of Maggette's caliber.

Summarily, the odds of Corey Maggette signing with the Magic this summer are slimmer than Shaquille O'Neal's chances of winning the Three-Point Shootout. And I'm pretty sure the previous sentence marks the first time anyone has used "slim" with "Shaquille." Go figure.

UPDATE: Mike Bianchi, writing on his blog, makes a salient point about the Magic's chances regarding Maggette:

Secondly, don't the Magic have more pressing needs than another small forward/shooting guard? They already have zillions tied up in Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis and have spent their last two first-round draft picks on J.J. Redick and Courtney Lee. I guess the Magic conceivably could do some sort of sign-and-trade involving Turkoglu and somebody else, but then you have to ask yourself is Maggette appreciably better than Turk?

That last sentence underscores why I don't understand the logic behind trading Turkoglu for Maggette, although it didn't stop me from making it a poll option, nor did it stop at least one reader from choosing it. For all intents and purposes, Maggette plays the same offensive game Turkoglu does, only without the playmaking ability for others: 68% of Maggette's shot attempts last season were jumpers, compared to 67% for Turkoglu. However, Turkoglu shot a much higher effective field goal percentage (.495 to .418), and created more of those shots off the dribble; just 49% of his jumpers were assisted, compared to 75% for Maggette.

So, really, what advantages do Maggette have over Turkoglu? The biggest one is his ability to get to the foul line, as he averaged more than double the free throw attempts per 36 minutes than Turkoglu did (9.8 to 4.7). But, in many respects, that's Maggette's only advantage. Before you say "age!" keep in mind that Maggette is a shade less than 8 months younger than Turkoglu.

If anyone wants to explain why they'd dump Turkoglu in favor of Maggette, I'm willing to listen. Right now, I'm unconvinced.

Corey Maggette spent his rookie season in Magic blue, but could return to Orlando as a free-agent this summer.
File photo by Eric Gay, the Associated Press

In his NBA Confidential piece in today's Orlando Sentinel, Tim Povtak mentions two possible free-agent acquisitions for the Magic this summer: Jason Williams and Corey Maggette:

Point guard Jason Williams of the Miami Heat isn't the only one who will go into free agency this summer hoping the Orlando Magic will give him a call. With the Magic having so many guards in the final year of their contracts -- and with center Dwight Howard locked in for many years -- there are players all over the league hoping for a ride to Orlando.

Shooting guard Corey Maggette of the Los Angeles Clippers will be another one looking to see what the Magic will do, which is why he smiled last week when he was asked about opting out of the final year of his contract to become a free agent this summer [....]

"We'll sit down this summer and see where it goes," Maggette said before the Clippers were pounded by the Magic last week [....]

I have no interest in Jason Williams at all -- seriously, if we want to have a pass-first point guard around to back-up Jameer Nelson, we'd be better off re-signing Carlos Arroyo -- but Maggette is an interesting proposition. So interesting, in fact, that discussing his potential signing merits its own discussion.

Consider these positives: Maggette is averaging career-highs in scoring (22.4 points per game), field goal percentage (.470), and three-point percentage (.413). Additionally, he's fourth in the league this season in free throw attempts per game, and he converts on a solid 84% of them. Adding him to a starting lineup that already features Nelson, Hedo Turkoglu, and Rashard Lewis along the perimeter -- not to mention Dwight Howard down low -- would make the Magic formidable indeed. Furthermore, Nelson, Maggette, and Turkoglu can all handle the ball well, meaning they aren't just going to stand around on the perimeter and launch threes. This year's Magic team is fourth in the league in offensive efficiency, and it's not a stretch to think that standing would surge to first with Maggette in the starting lineup.

There are a few downsides to Maggette, however. For one, he likes to dominate the ball: when he's on the floor, he uses 27% of the Clippers' possessions. Of course, if he's willing to sacrifice " million in guaranteed money next season to play for us, as Povtak suspects he might, I'm sure he'd be willing to share the ball. Second, he's a poor defender. He allows opposing small forwards to post a PER of 18.4 against him. For comparison's sake, note that Dallas forward Josh Howard's PER this season is 18.2. Understandably, I'm a bit leery of signing a guy who lets his man post borderline All-Star numbers. Finally, he's far from a beast on the offensive boards. The player he'd replace in the starting lineup, Maurice Evans, grabs 7.2% of the Magic's missed shots when he's on the floor. Maggette grabs just 3.6% of the Clippers' misses. Don't be fooled by Maggette's higher overall rebound rate: the Magic are 26th in the league in offensive rebound rate and third in defensive rebounding, and Evans is the better offensive rebounder. We could also retain Evans more cheaply than we could obtain Maggette. Even if Evans wants a raise this summer -- and he's earned it, by all accounts -- he'd still only command $2.5 million or so. Maggette would cost us the whole $5.5 million mid-level exception, and he'd be on our books for five seasons.

So, should the Magic make a run at Maggette to improve their already elite-level offense? Or should they look elsewhere, hoping to shore-up their 11th-ranked defense and save money? I'm still undecided. On the one hand, I like the idea of having yet another offensive threat, especially one whose presence could -- gulp! -- allow us to trade Hedo Turkoglu, whose value has never been higher, for help at the power positions. On the other hand, there's no reason to tinker with what's already a fantastic offense, especially not when the defense needs attending to.

Corey Maggette and Maurice Evans statistics from www.basketball-reference.com.

Rashard Lewis elevates to shoot against Corey Maggete. Lewis' Magic beat Maggete's Clippers by a final score of 110-88.
Photo by John Raoux, the Associated Press

Tonight, the Magic got off to a slow start against an inferior opponent, spotting the Clippers a 7-1 lead to start the game. It appeared as though the Magic were on their way to losing yet another "trap game," something their fans have become accustomed to watching over the past several season. But thanks to some strong defense and aggressive offense, the Magic battled back to take a 13-12 lead midway through the first period, a lead they would not relinquish en route to a 110-88 drubbing of the undermanned, overmatched Clippers. Here's the boxscore.

I give Rashard Lewis a lot of credit for getting the Magic out of their early funk. The usually passive Lewis drove hard to the basket for the Magic's first field goal, a layup on which he was fouled; he converted the free throw, and the Magic got the message. They didn't settle for too many open jumpers, instead driving into the teeth of Los Angeles' poor interior defense. With Chris Kaman and Elton Brand unavailable, the Clippers had no choice but to depend on Josh Powell, Nick Fazekas, and Tim Thomas to defend the post. They did poorly, to say the least. Dwight Howard had his way with the smaller, weaker defenders hanging onto him; as Magic color-commentator Matt Guokas observed, Howard was "literally head-and-shoulders" above everyone else down low, and it appeared as though he was playing in a high-school game. Our franchise center scored 22 points, grabbed 15 boards, and swatted three shots, numbers good enough to compensate for his 7 turnovers.

Once again, the Magic played stellar defense. Granted, the Clippers are not an offensive juggernaut, but only Corey Maggette distinguished himself; he scored 22 points in the contest, but just 2 after halftime. Rookie sensation Al Thornton scored 17 points, but missed 16 of his 24 shots. Despite being quicker and more athletic than his defender, Rashard Lewis, Thornton too often settled for jump-shots, which the Magic were happy to grant him.

Indeed, only two negatives came from this game: first, the Magic once again struggled to force many turnovers. The Clippers turned the ball over 7 times in 92 possessions, which is 7.6 percent. On average, they turn the ball over on 15.9 percent of their possessions. Granted, the Magic's defense held them to offensive efficiency (95.7) and effective field goal percentage (.428) below their respective averages (102.8 and .464), but the Magic absolutely need to make a stronger commitment to getting into the passing lanes if they hope to succeed in the playoffs. The better teams in the East will certainly score more efficiently and shoot straighter than the Clippers did tonight, and the Magic will need to balance that by forcing turnovers, something they've struggled to do all season.

The other negative is Dwight Howard's injury. Howard collided with Corey Maggette with 6:37 to play in the game and the Magic leading by 19. He was called for an offensive foul and struggled to get up. He has a bruised right quadriceps, but the injury does not appear to be serious. This hopefully minor injury certainly calls Stan Van Gundy's substitution patterns into question. With a 19-point lead against a team as offensively challenged as Los Angeles, there's no reason for the starters to be in the game.

Overall, though, the Magic played very well, and continue to surge toward the playoffs. Tonight's game marked the fourth time in six games this month the Magic held their opponent to a sub-100 offensive rating. They also got great point guard play: Jameer Nelson and Carlos Arroyo combined for 25 points on 9-of-13 shooting, 9 assists, and 0 turnovers. Yes, we should take those numbers with a grain of salt, given the Clippers' less-than-formidable point guard platoon of Brevin Knight and Dan Dickau, but it's still encouraging to see the much-maligned Magic signal-callers get back on-track.

Check out Steve's recap at Clips Nation for the view from the other side. He assesses Howard thusly: "He's got some of the worst footwork this side of Michael Olowokandi [....] The guy is one of the most dominant players in the league already - if ever develops a game he's going to be unstoppable."

Final notes:

• The Magic's 11 three-pointers brought their season total to 622, which ties a franchise record. (HT: Denton)
• Pat Garrity played 2 minutes of garbage-time this evening, his 500th career game in the NBA. He scored 2 points by making his only shot.
• J.J. Redick played alongside Garrity for the game's final two minutes, recording a turnover as his only stat. He drove into the lane, left the floor, and dished to Brian Cook on the right baseline. Cook zigged when Redick thought he would zag, and the ball sailed out of bounds.

	vs.
41-24		21-41
Amway Arena
7:00 PM
Sun Sports HD
Probable starters:
Jameer Nelson	PG	Brevin Knight
Maurice Evans	SG	Quinton Ross
Hedo Turkoglu	SF	Corey Maggette
Rashard Lewis	PF	Al Thornton
Dwight Howard	C	Josh Powell
Season series:
9 Jan 2008: Magic 113, Clippers 106

Given the heaps of praise piled upon the Los Angeles Lakers, it's easy for some people to forget that they share a building with the Clippers. For more on this criminally underexposed team, I checked-in with Steve from Clips Nation.

------------------------------------------------------

3QC: The Clippers are in a bad way right now. Elton Brand and Shaun Livingston, two of their top-four players, have yet to play this season due to injury. Another top-four player, Corey Maggette, is worth more money than he's earning and may leave via free-agency this summer. If you could only bring one of those players back next season, which one would you choose? And why do you think that player is Clippers' key to building a winning franchise?

Steve: There's no question who everyone in ClipsNation would bring back - it's Elton Brand.  And it's not close.  I've wondered at times why other teams seemed to weather prolonged absences of superstar players a little better than the Generic Clippers (no Brand).  I've come to the conclusion that Elton Brand, as the best all around player on the Clippers - the best scorer, the best rebounder, the best post defender, the best locker room influence, the best leader - is just that much more important to the Clipers than, say, Gilbert Arenas is to the Wizards.  The Wizards replace Arenas with Antonio Daniels and there team defense gets better and their turnovers go down, while their offense definitely suffers.  The Clippers replace Brand with Tim Thomas and every damn thing gets worse.  EVERY DAMN THING.

In fact, I'd go so far as to say that if Brand isn't coming back, don't bother re-signing Maggette.  With both of them gone, they'd be far enough under the cap to actually sign somebody (not that there's anyone out there, but still).  If Brand isn't going to be here, get out the dynamite, blow it up.

Livingston is a bit of an exception - because of his uncertain status, he can probably be retained inexpensively.  I don't expect him to play anywhere else next season - he and the Clippers have been through too much together.  But he's a restricted free agent, and it remains to be seen how much he signs for and for how long.

The good news is that Brand is not going anywhere.  He's chomping at the bit to get back on the floor this season, and would be playing on this trip if Coach would let him.  And the reason he wants to play is to start getting the team ready for next season.  He's committed to staying with the Clippers, and has said as much.  It may only be for the final year of this contract (he has one more year, with an opt out this summer), but he'll be a Clipper next season, and so will Livingston.  Maggette is a tougher call.  I really have no idea what will happen with him.

3QC: The Magic and the Clippers have something in common in that they both have veteran players having career-years this season. We have Hedo Turkoglu; you have Chris Kaman. When completely healthy, how far can Kaman lead the Clippers? Is he All-Star material?

Steve: Is he All Star material?  Well, the short answer is yes.  He might well have been an All Star this season had he not been playing on a last place team.  But I think we're finding out that he's not really cut out to be the main man - as the double teams have become more aggressive, his offensive numbers have definitely suffered.  He has certainly shown that he will be a defensive and rebounding force in this league for years.  He's third in the league in both rebounding and blocked shots, and maintaining that position despite playing hurt for the last month.  He also is a surprisingly good on ball defender - he does ok on the pick and roll, he can cover more mobile centers - he's not just a Camby style free safety loading up on weak side blocked shots.  In the absence of Brand he's had to take the tough low post assignments all season long, and he's still managed to be third in the league in blocks.  (This is another reason Brand will be back - he definitely wants to play alongside this new version of Kaman.  Brand has been top 10 in rebounding and blocked shots for years.  If they can manage to be top 10 in those categories in the same front court it will be the first time since David Robinson and Tim Duncan - and those guys did alright together.)

This isn't actually a question; I just want to give you the opportunity to tell Magic fans, and other 3QC readers on the East Coast, how awesome Al Thornton is.

He's pretty awesome.  Since I see him every night, I forget what a secret he is around the league.  But never fear - everyone got to see Jeff Green in the Rookie game, so there's that.  The fact that Al Thornton wasn't selected for the rookie game; the fact that he lost out to Luis Scola for February Rookie of the Month (Scola averaged 11.7 points and 5.9 rebounds while Thornton went for 17.4 and 6.3); well, that's just life in ClipsNation.

While many rookies have been hitting the Wall, Thornton has been steadily improving.  He averaged 6 points in November, 8 in December, 13 in January and the aforementioned 17.6 in February, which he's pretty much maintained into March.  He's also shooting better and rebounding more.  In 21 games since January 30, he's been in double figures 18 times, gone for 20 or more 9 times, and had two games of 33.  He's a freak of an athlete, and can score in a variety of ways.  He's got a deadly first step and the ability to finish around the basket; he can create space for his jump shot; he has NBA three-point range (31 for 87 on the season); and he's got a motor that just doesn't stop.  The athleticism in particular is very welcome on the Clippers.  Brand is one of the less athletic superstars in the NBA.  Outside of Maggette, the Clippers don't have anyone that qualifies as a flyer, let alone a high flyer.  Thornton's myriad dunks this season, over Vince Carter, Chris Bosh, Josh Smith and Mikki Moore among others, are the only things getting the Clippers onto SportsCenter these days.

Perhaps most amazing for a rookie is that he's been the go to scorer in the fourth quarter of several wins.  Against New Jersey he out-dueled Carter in the fourth.  He scored 9 crucial fourth quarter points while being defended by Bosh in a close win on the road in Toronto.  And last week against the Kings he nailed a nasty step back 20 footer on the Clippers final possession to send the game into overtime.  He scored 22 points in the fourth period and overtimes combined in that game, which the Clippers eventually won.  How many rookies are getting the ball in key late game possessions this season?  I'll answer my own question - two.  Kevin Durant and Al Thornton.

The duel emergences of Thornton and Kaman are definitely the silver lining on this cumulonimbus of a season in ClipsNation.

3QC: I like to end these Q-and-A sessions positively, so I wanted to compliment your team on its wonderful uniforms. What are your thoughts on the Clippers' on-court attire? I think the blue alternate uniforms are among the best in the entire league.

Really, that's it?  That's the most positive you can be?  "Nice unis."

I'm no expert by any means, but this is probably an area where the Clippers non-innovative ways have benefited them.  While most of the NBA has been exploring the color pallet (teal?  really?), designing ever more detailed logos, and adding black to pretty much everything (it was cool when the Bulls did it - it's just lame for the T-Wolves), the Clippers have remained with the most primary of primary colors, and logos involving nothing more than letters and a basketball.  As the pendulum has swings back to old school unis, it turns out the Clippers have been there all along.  That blue road uniform is a case in point - pretty much a straightforward royal blue uni with the word Los Angeles on the front.  But name another team that uses that color at all?  Of course, I don't think they've won while wearing that uniform in like two seasons, so I'm beginning to hate it.  But it looks sharp.

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Many thanks to ClipperSteve for those thorough responses. I meant no harm in commending the Clippers for their beautiful uniforms, but I do indeed see now how that could come across as a slight. Apologies to Steve and to Clippers fans for that.

Check out my answers to his questions -- including my take on the Magic's point guard situation -- at Clips Nation.

Assorted notes:

• Corey Maggette gets to the foul line at will -- he's taken 48 foul shots in his last 5 games! -- and converts at a high rate: .841 on the season and .823 for his career. Keith Bogans and Mo Evans are going to keep him away from the basket and force him to take contested jumpers. Maggette's hitting his outside shots at an effective field goal percentage of .418, which is well below average.
• Chris Kaman is day-to-day with a sore back and may not be available this evening. If that's the case, Dwight Howard will feast upon match-up against Josh Powell.
• Al Thornton should go for 20+ points tonight. I don't think Rashard Lewis can stop him.
• No word on if J.J. Redick, who left the team after Saturday's loss to Golden State to be with his brother, will be in-uniform tonight. David Redick underwent successful surgery to remove a tumor from his spine on Monday.
• If J.J. isn't available, and the game is a blowout, we could very well have another Marcin Gortat sighting. I do not object to this. Free Marcin.

Tip's at 7, as usual. I may be a bit late to the party, but better late than never, amIrite?