Boston Celtics forward Paul Pierce drives to the basket past Orlando Magic center Tony Battie in Boston's 107-88 victory on Monday night.

Photo by Charles Krupa, the Associated Press

Nothing to see here, folks. Just move along. The Boston Celtics rolled to a 107-88 victory over the Orlando Magic thanks to the stellar third-quarter play of Paul Pierce, who scored 17 of his 24 points in the period, and to suffocating defense throughout. Injury-depleted Orlando challenged near the end of the first half, but ultimately had neither the firepower nor the personnel--coach Stan Van Gundy only used two reserves the entire game--to mount a serious challenge in the second half.

There are a few reasons for Magic fans to panic, but let's not lose perspective here: Orlando hung with Boston for some of the game despite the fact that it was missing its three best guards. We'll get a better idea of what Orlando's made of when it's healthy, which may not be for a while now. January 22nd is the next meeting between these two teams. Let's hope both sides are healthy for that one. Before accusing me of homerism, please not that CelticsBlog, the web's foremost destination for Celtics fans and a proud member of SB Nation, agrees:

Honestly, with the Magic starting a backcourt of Anthony Johnson and JJ Redick, the Celtics absolutely should have won as they did. This is an unfair test of the Magic - we'll see what they've got in Orlando in the new year.

Bam.

More on the game, including why Otis Smith needs to start working the phones, after the jump.

Continue reading this post »

2008/2009 NBA Regular Season
	@
13-4		16-2
December 1st, 2008
TD Banknorth Garden
7:30 PM
NBA TV / Sun Sports
Probable starters:
Anthony Johnson	PG	Rajon Rondo
J.J. Redick	SG	Ray Allen
Hedo Turkoglu	SF	Paul Pierce
Rashard Lewis	PF	Kevin Garnett
Dwight Howard	C	Kendrick Perkins

Well, it took a little more than a month, but it's finally here: the Orlando Magic's first game against a contending team. Prior to tonight's game, the Magic had not played any team that 100% of sane NBA observers would endorse as legitimately elite. Apologies to the Houston Rockets, of course.

Facing the World Champion Celtics at full strength is tough enough, so imagine the consternation the Magic face at having to Unfortunately, the Magic are well below full strength. Their top three guards--Jameer Nelson, Mickael Pietrus, and Keith Bogans--will all miss tonight's game due to various injuries. Indeed, their backup backcourt of Anthony Johnson and J.J. Redick will have to tangle with the Boston Celtics' first-string backcourt of Rajon Rondo and Ray Allen. Unenviable, to say the least.

Keeping the score respectable should be seen as a net positive. Allen will probably torch Redick, and although rookie Courtney Lee has shown signs of being a well above-average defender, he's still susceptible to picking up dumb fouls. Basically, I'm trying to keep my expectations low so if Orlando manages not to get blown-out, I can look at the game as a net positive.

Tip's at 7:30 on NBA TV nationally and Sun Sports locally. If Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu get it going, maybe the game won't be such a laugher. I don't hold out much hope, though.

Go Magic. Keep it close. Or, even better, win. Upset the champs. Yay!

UPDATE: Here's CelticsBlog's take on the game. The featured matchups are Howard vs. Perkins and Turkoglu vs. Pierce. I'd argue that Johnson vs. Rondo is even more important, at least from Orlando's standpoint. I don't know how Johnson plans to stick to Rondo, one of the league's quickest players, defensively, but he's going to have to give it his all. I'm ridiculously afraid of him.

Quick bullets before today's game against the Celtics. GameThread should be up at 2:45. On with it:

• Otis Smith tells John Denton he's not in a hurry to add more players, despite the fact that the Magic's three best guards are currently injured:

  "Like I have told (coach) Stan (Van Gundy) and (CEO) Bob (Vander Weide) I'm probably the most patient person around and I'm willing to give the situation time," Smith said. "It gives the kids (Redick and Lee) time to play and we'll see what they can do. You'd rather these injuries happen now than late in the season, but we'll be OK."

  I actually agree with Otis' approach, for the most part, but he should at least waive Mike Wilks to open up a roster spot for somebody. Wilks is out for the year and his contract is guaranteed whether he's on the team or not, so there's no harm in officially cutting him loose to make room for a player who might actually, you know, see the floor.

• Dwight Howard discusses his first career triple-double in his latest blog entry on NBA.com. He also posts photos of him in costume as Sho Nuff and Tyrone Biggums.

• Bucks Diary looks at the NBA's best starting lineups and bench units on a +/- per minute basis. Orlando has the 4th-best starting unit and 17th-best reserve unit. What does it say about this team that I was impressed that the reserve ranking was as high as 17th?

• In this weekend's NBA Dime at ESPN.com (Box #5), Marc Stein says he does not yet consider the Magic on the same level as Boston and Cleveland in the Eastern Conference. His argument is that Orlando hasn't actually beaten anyone, which is a pretty fair assessment, actually. Winning on the road is great and all, but it doesn't actually prove anything.

• UPDATE: Henry Abbott names Orlando as a potential destination for Stephon Marbury once the Knicks free him:

  The Magic are without Jameer Nelson for a few games. Mike Wilks is out all season. Keith Bogans is out as well. The result is talk of a rookie shooting guard getting time handling the ball.

  All the statements are true, and Marbury would indeed fill a need in Orlando. The problem is that Otis Smith does not gamble on guys with character issues, and explicitly ruled out signing Marbury last July. I have just as good a chance of suiting up for the Magic this year than Stephon Marbury does.

See you at tip time.

Jeff Foster of the Indiana Pacers has no choice but to foul Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic as Howard gains inside position. Orlando's star center tallied season-highs in points (32) and rebounds (21) as the Magic cruised to a 110-96 victory.

Photo by Fernando Medina, NBAE/Getty Images

The Orlando Magic defended their home floor against the Indiana Pacers, blowing them out by a score of 110-96, to finish the month with a 13-2 record. Dwight Howard and Anthony Johnson got the offense going early, Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis kept it going later, and the Magic staved off a late Pacers rally.

It's frustrating to watch the games lately and come away with so little to say about them. I suppose the best thing we've seen from this team is that its forming an identity. They play swarming defense on one end and dump the ball in to their franchise center on the other end. Howard has picked defenses clean lately, and appears to have refined his post game ever so slightly. His dominance, as well as the contributions from Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis on the wings, has lead to Orlando looking much sharper offensively than it did earlier in the season. That the Magic have improved without Jameer Nelson, their starting point guard, available says a lot about where this team might be headed if it stays on its present course.

What's most encouraging about this game from Orlando's perspective is the play of rookie shooting guard Courtney Lee. Already expected to take on a bigger role when Keith Bogans injured his thumb last week, Lee's role expanded even more when the team learned today Mickael Pietrus would miss at least 3 weeks with a thumb injury of his own. Although Lee did not shoot well today--only 1-of-4--he played his best offensive game overall by moving the ball quickly and decisively. Tonight, he tallied several "hockey assists" and appeared much more comfortable in his role. Although he's not quite ready to take the starting job from J.J. Redick--who struggled with 4 points on 1-of-4 shooting and 3 turnovers tonight--Lee looks like he won't hurt the Magic as much as I thought he might. A backhanded compliment is still a compliment.

Orlando heads back into action Monday night in Boston for its first game against a title-contender this season, unless one counts Houston as a contender, of course. Wonder if coach Stan Van Gundy will open his rotation just a bit; tonight, he played only 8 men, and one of them (Brian Cook) played just 5 minutes.

UPDATE: You gotta be kidding. Mickael Pietrus will miss 3-5 weeks with a torn ligament in his right thumb. He joins fellow guards Jameer Nelson, Keith Bogans, and Mike Wilks among the Magic's wounded.

J.J. Redick will start in his place.

This ---- is ridiculous.

2008/2009 NBA Regular Season
	@
6-9		12-4
November 29th, 2008
Amway Arena
7:00 PM
Sun Sports
Probable starters:
T.J. Ford	PG	Anthony Johnson
Marquis Daniels	SG	J.J. Redick
Danny Granger	SF	Hedo Turkoglu
Troy Murphy	PF	Rashard Lewis
Rasho Nesterovic	C	Dwight Howard
Previous Meetings:
November 21st: Magic 100, Pacers 98 (OT)

No extended preview today. Note that the Pacers lost to the Bobcats in overtime last night after surrendering a career-high-tying 31 points to Raymond Felton. Anthony Johnson is due. Tip's at 7 on Sun Sports. Fear Danny Granger.

Go Magic.