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Look at the standings, look at the rosters, look at the games we've barely lost that we should have won... Look at our youth (second youngest roster in the league). Besides the Cavs, we have as good a chance as anyone in the east to make it to the playoffs, advance and see what happens from there. I believe in this team and I believe in the growth we are proving. Merry Christmas fellas!

I disagree man I think they're worse than at least 5 eastern conference teams. Oladipo HAS to go back to shooting at the same efficiency he was last year. Its not like his shot is broken. He's a good FT shooter, and from 16-3pt line Oladipo is shooting 45%. That's very good. I believe in him. I believe he can put it together throughout the season. He needs to shoot 34% from three like last year, and he needs to finish at the rim at least at 57% (same% as last year, currently 51%), which would have him averaging 15.4 pts. He should be an auto 15-5-5 in 30mpg with great defense off the bench. Once Oladipo does that, we can start thinking about this team challenging the rest of the east (not including Cleveland).

But merry Christmas.

Let's beat a few more good teams first. They are 3-3 against over .500 teams since the lineup change.

Yea we've been playing great but it's been the easier half of the season. Take a look at the January and February schedule. It's brutal, the real test of this teams potential this year.

I want to see us vs. Miami, and Indy 1 more time. I'd agree but want to see more from our guys.

Yeah I want no part of Atlanta or Miami in the first round (if we end up making it).

Looking too far ahead... Just keep on winning...

j-ragg wrote:Yeah I want no part of Atlanta or Miami in the first round (if we end up making it).

Atlanta is not scary at all. I would love a first round matchup with them.

rememberation wrote:Oladipo HAS to go back to shooting at the same efficiency he was last year.

The Magic is 11-4 since Oladipo was moved to the second unit. His job is to play elite defense and to create mismatches on offense. What Oladipo is doing is working. If his shooting improves, great. But what he is doing leads to the Magic winning games. That's the only stat I care about.


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drsd wrote:

rememberation wrote:Oladipo HAS to go back to shooting at the same efficiency he was last year.

The Magic is 11-4 since Oladipo was moved to the second unit. His job is to play elite defense and to create mismatches on offense. What Oladipo is doing is working. If his shooting improves, great. But what he is doing leads to the Magic winning games. That's the only stat I care about.


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increasing his offensive efficiency usually means more wins.

j-ragg wrote:Yeah I want no part of Atlanta or Miami in the first round (if we end up making it).

Neither team scares me. And especially if we grab home court advantage over some of these teams, I think we definitely have the upper hand.

Atlanta just has a ton of weapons in their starting lineup. Miami has Whiteside alone who murdered us last season (maybe tonight will be different) and they always have our number.

I'd say Cleveland, Chicago, Toronto, Atlanta, and Indiana would all be favorites.

Just get into the playoffs. We're in zero position to pick opponent preferences.

Nothing would help out the sunshine state rivalry more though than facing Miami in the playoffs this season. Few people remember '97.

Pushpic wrote:

j-ragg wrote:Yeah I want no part of Atlanta or Miami in the first round (if we end up making it).

Neither team scares me. And especially if we grab home court advantage over some of these teams, I think we definitely have the upper hand.

home court overrated in basketball. Especially our home court and lack of fans.

And both Atlanta and Miami have more firepower than we do. you should be scared of them

tiderulz wrote:

Pushpic wrote:

j-ragg wrote:Yeah I want no part of Atlanta or Miami in the first round (if we end up making it).

Neither team scares me. And especially if we grab home court advantage over some of these teams, I think we definitely have the upper hand.

home court overrated in basketball. Especially our home court and lack of fans.

And both Atlanta and Miami have more firepower than we do. you should be scared of them

We are 10-5 at home so far, so I would take home court any day of the week. Also, what exactly are you referring to with "more firepower" because besides Whiteside's defense, I don't see any glaring advantages for the Heat, or the Hawks.

right now I'm just ecstatic the Magic are still in the playoff picture entering the new year

I feel like we need to be a little less cocky considering the caliber of teams we've played. After January maybe I'll feel a little better but especially offensively, I feel like we really need to be better.

rememberation wrote:

drsd wrote:

rememberation wrote:Oladipo HAS to go back to shooting at the same efficiency he was last year.

The Magic is 11-4 since Oladipo was moved to the second unit. His job is to play elite defense and to create mismatches on offense. What Oladipo is doing is working. If his shooting improves, great. But what he is doing leads to the Magic winning games. That's the only stat I care about.


..

increasing his offensive efficiency usually means more wins.

In the post season, Oladipo (and Payton's) super low efficiency's will become a focal point of defenses. Right now teams are just getting their first looks at our system, by the playoffs they'll have every single little tendency scouted and practiced repeatedly in preparation.

Its true that tandem's defense (in particular Oladipo's) are a key reason the Magic are much improved on that end and that has created wins...but their inefficiency are also the key reason why the offense remains bad and why its doubtful the Magic will be able to compete very far in the post season. When every single possession counts, and every team has a pretty good to excellent defense, offensive efficiency becomes a very key factor.

Pushpic wrote:

tiderulz wrote:

Pushpic wrote:
Neither team scares me. And especially if we grab home court advantage over some of these teams, I think we definitely have the upper hand.

home court overrated in basketball. Especially our home court and lack of fans.

And both Atlanta and Miami have more firepower than we do. you should be scared of them

We are 10-5 at home so far, so I would take home court any day of the week. Also, what exactly are you referring to with "more firepower" because besides Whiteside's defense, I don't see any glaring advantages for the Heat, or the Hawks.

Bosh, Wade. they have people they can go to when they absolutely need a bucket or get fouled. We have some we hope can get one, but thats it