The Orlando Magic's lineup has changed substantially since last season, inviting questions about whether they can reach the Finals again—and win. Recent play has disproven skeptics, however.
Many basketball analysts lamented the offseason signing of Vince Carter, who some criticized as being too old and selfish to work properly in Stan Van Gundy's system of quick ball movement and outside shooting.
Add that to fans' and analysts' dissatisfaction with the trade of Hedo Turkoglu to Toronto, eliminating one of Orlando's key offensive pieces in last season's Finals run, and it becomes surprising that Orlando currently sits in the No. 2 position in the East (in fact, NBA Senior Writer for ESPN.com, Marc Stein, currently has the Magic as No. 1 in his Power Rankings).
Recent Play
About a week ago, Orlando took on the defending-champion Los Angeles Lakers—and won. That brought the Lakers' record against the other five division leaders to 5-8; a far cry from dominating outputs.
For the majority of the season, the Lakers have stood head-and-shoulders above the rest of the ...
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Article written by nathan spicer
2010 NBA Playoffs: Orlando Magic’s Chances to Reach Finals Again
March 12th, 2010 by nathan spicer Leave a reply »
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