Opportunity is often discovered in the most awkward situations.
The Orlando Magic have dealt with plenty of head-scratching moments throughout the 11-12 season.
No situation was crazier than when Stan Van Gundy, the team’s former head coach, told the world that Dwight Howard wanted him to be fired. The unprecedented move aired the organization’s dirty laundry and made everyone, especially Howard, look bad. As crazy as that moment was, it wasn’t the most surprising. If we’re being honest, Van Gundy only confirmed an idea that many people already believed.
The most significant moment, and at this point the most relevant, is the initial report that Howard would be given the power to decide the fates of Van Gundy and Otis Smith, both now former Magic employees. The moment people started to discuss that particular rumor, the Magic gained leverage in the court of public opinion, which is a very important factor in this business.
No longer were Smith’s costly roster moves important. Van Gundy’s coaching methods were secondary. The complaints that fans and players have had no longer mattered because at that moment, Howard was universally seen as just another diva athlete showing he had absolute power; Smith and Van Gundy were collateral damage.
More importantly, the Magic no longer needed a real reason to fire Van Gundy or Smith. They could cite the team’s direction, first-round exits, lack of a return trip to the NBA Finals, whatever they felt sounded best because everyone assumes the move was made to appease their franchise player even if he, directly, had nothing to do with the decision.
Here is where the opportunity is found in all of this.
The Magic are positioned to lose Howard and come out looking like they did everything in their power to keep him. In the meantime, Howard’s image will take another hit.
From the perspective of a fan, it appears the Magic have started the process of meeting Howard’s demands, even though CEO Alex Martins has said Howard never asked for either man to be fired. The perception is that Howard is calling the shots.
The media’s point of view is that Howard has removed himself from the team and city and won’t ever return.
All of these things are happening without anyone having a real idea of how Howard feels or what he wants. And with him allowing this thing to get ahead of him, any response he makes will be seen as damage control.
It’s foolish to think the Magic don’t know this.
It’s even more foolish to believe they won’t capitalize on that idea in an effort to appease their fanbase, a fanbase that won’t be too eager to pay to watch a lottery team.
At the end of the day, this is a business. The Magic won’t let Howard take their fanbase with him if he leaves.
What has been lost in this entire ordeal are the real basketball issues that exist with Orlando. Howard is one of the most valuable players in the NBA, but the Magic are a middle-of-the-road team and there isn’t anything worse than that in professional sports. From a basketball perspective, Howard has every reason to explore his options and every reason to expect the Magic to improve the team’s on-court chances and off-court appeal.
Unfortunately, this situation isn’t primarily about the on-court product anymore. This has now become about saving face and avoiding more negative publicity. The sad thing is that may not be possible for either side.
Read more:
http://basketball.realgm.com/article/22 ... z1vj1QCvBw
haha.
Might as well defend other Centers while you can.
