Game 25: Bug Juice (Orlando @ Charlotte, 7:00 PM EST)

[ChosenSavior]

Sorry I dipped out of here after the 1st half. The way the game was going, I had a feeling we were going to lose and I was right. My girl was able to get me close to floor seats for the Spurs game so decided to go to the AT&T Center and watch that Pistons vs. Spurs matchup which ended up being a very good game.

Went through the thread and gave And-1's to just about every post honestly. Saw that Vuc got parked on his ass with that Dwight hesi which I'm at a loss of words that Vuc would actually be broken down by such a predictable move but he's a **** defender so it's not really shocking. The culture right now in Orlando is disgusting. The incumbents from the Rob Hennigan era do not fit and the coaching is awful. They are not mutually exclusive. Just have to hope Weltman and Hammond can fix all of this. I want the Orlando Magic to be relevant again.

[PrimeThyme]

I just have almost zero interest in watching this team if Isaac isnt out there. Like there's no point. We know that the Vuc's, Evan's, Mario's, and Elf's of the world will be gone sooner than later. Those aren't WeHam's guys and we know what the result will be as long as we have that same combination of players && frankly, I'm just tired of watching them. Im really eager for some wholesale changes on our roster, this is the first year during the rebuild that im genuinely losing interest in watching the games. Same old chit year after year.

[Furinkazan]

ehh AG seems following Ross footsteps and wants to become a coin toss himslef
2 amazing games of 29 and 40 points followed by 2 dud games each of 27%FG

[WeAreVenom]

Sorry I dipped out of here after the 1st half. The way the game was going, I had a feeling we were going to lose and I was right. My girl was able to get me close to floor seats for the Spurs game so decided to go to the AT&T Center and watch that Pistons vs. Spurs matchup which ended up being a very good game.

Went through the thread and gave And-1's to just about every post honestly. Saw that Vuc got parked on his ass with that Dwight hesi which I'm at a loss of words that Vuc would actually be broken down by such a predictable move but he's a **** defender so it's not really shocking. The culture right now in Orlando is disgusting. The incumbents from the Rob Hennigan era do not fit and the coaching is awful. They are not mutually exclusive. Just have to hope Weltman and Hammond can fix all of this. I want the Orlando Magic to be relevant again.

I've rewatched that a few times and there really is no reason to get broken on such an elementary move. Especially in today's NBA when Centers are capable of much MUCH more.

His demeanor sucks, and I'm tired of hearing him complain when he has to be one of the bottom 5 defenders at his position. He needs to go, I'm at the point where I just want him off the team now.

[thelead]

ehh AG seems following Ross footsteps and wants to become a coin toss himslef
2 amazing games of 29 and 40 points followed by 2 dud games each of 27%FG

The fg% doesn't bother me. Even the greats have bad nights. What does concern me is his (or the coaching staff's) inability to play through it and stay aggressive. Is it AG that defers when he's not hot or is it the coaching staff that limits his shots? It's probably a bit of both but this needs to stop. I would rather lose with AG taking 20 shots per game. Obviously, they can't be careless/forced shots but he needs to be more aggressive (post up smaller guys, drive past bigger guys, etc). And please... Isaac... don't come back until you're 100% healthy. No need to rush anything with this team. I don't want lingering ankle issue going into next year. Isaac and AG are the key to this team. That said, the only players worth keeping:

AG
Isaac
Evan (at SG because he can't rebound enough for the SF spot)
Simmons
Elf (2nd PG)
DJ (3rd PG)

We have a lot of work to do... I wonder what we would look like if this was our rotations:

D12/Vuc
AG
Isaac/Simmons
Evan/Ross
Kemba/Elf/DJ

And we need a new coach...

[npiper17]

Think there’s some slightly overly harsh comments when I think the officials were partly to blame for the loss.

Yes it doesn’t change the general trends eg Vuc is a poor defender, but I think the team have played better overall since OKC.

[PrimeThyme]

AG just needs to keep developing and adding to his game. He's so good at finishing at the rim but he's been very inconsistent this year with his aggressiveness. Early in the year, he was showing a knack for drawing fouls but he just doesn't attack the basket enough. He wouldn't have such poor offensive games like these last two if he found other ways to score when his shots not falling. Luckily, I feel that he's very capable of doing so and with him still being so young and having shown the ability to improve his game in the offseason I think he will in due time.

[John Murdoch]

I smell a big one here for Gordon

[WeAreVenom]

AG just needs to keep developing and adding to his game. He's so good at finishing at the rim but he's been very inconsistent this year with his aggressiveness. Early in the year, he was showing a knack for drawing fouls but he just doesn't attack the basket enough. He wouldn't have such poor offensive games like these last two if he found other ways to score when his shots not falling. Luckily, I feel that he's very capable of doing so and with him still being so young and having shown the ability to improve his game in the offseason I think he will in due time.

I fully believe he's going to become a star.

He also appears to have a giant work ethic, he's received great comments from our staff. I have high hopes for him.