Magic ready to surge (Schedule Analysis)

[UCFJayBird]

So we have 27 games left. Here's some interesting stats about the rest of the schedule...

Home Games:16
Road Games:11
Back 2 Backs:5 sets (10 games), this does not include tonight's game against Toronto.
vs the West: 6, all at home

And the best ones...

vs .500+ teams: 7
vs sub .500 teams: 20
vs teams with a better record: 2 (San Antonio and New Orleans, both at home)

not to get ahead of ourselves, but the Magic should be able to built a good amount of momentum going into the playoffs.

[Illuminati]

I hope they play better at home. All Orlando has to do in the 2nd half of the season is get better defensively.

[MagicMadness]

I still can't believe it, we're actually in position to win 50 games this year.

Not saying that we will or won't, just that odds are in our favor. Don't want to get ahead of myself.

[MagicNolesFSU]

I still can't believe it, we're actually in position to win 50 games this year.

Not saying that we will or won't, just that odds are in our favor. Don't want to get ahead of myself.

EXACTLY i cant either man. Its been a great season. I wasnt guessing 50 games before the season started.

[craig01]

Not too many waould have guessed 50 W's.

But first, the Magic have stayed healthy.

And secondly, the East is horrible again.

As of this morning, the Magic would be the 9th seed in the West based on winning percentage. Not sure about the late games, if any though.

[drsd]

All these easy'ish home games should level out the Magic's record to be more equal in home compared to road.

Still, in the end, I expect the Magic to have a rare season where a team has a better road record than home.

Still on pace for 51 games. No reason to think the Magic won't match or exceed that.

[AdamTheGreek]

I said 50-32 and my reasoning for that was the schedule. We've never really had this sweet of a scenario in the past where if we go through hell and come out more than all right, that the 2nd half of a season would seem like a cakewalk.

We are more than setup to get 50 wins, it's just a matter of showing up and not underestimating our opponent.

[mhectorgato]

Not too many waould have guessed 50 W's.

But first, the Magic have stayed healthy.

And secondly, the East is horrible again.

As of this morning, the Magic would be the 9th seed in the West based on winning percentage. Not sure about the late games, if any though.

Despite everyone saying that every team but us improved and that we'd be fighting for the 8th spot yet again.

[Happyfoosball]

Not too many waould have guessed 50 W's.

But first, the Magic have stayed healthy.

And secondly, the East is horrible again.

As of this morning, the Magic would be the 9th seed in the West based on winning percentage. Not sure about the late games, if any though.

Yeah but the West is so screwed up this year it's not even funny. They probably will end up changing the playoffs because of how messed up the West is. A 50 win team should never not be in the playoffs.

[Gerhalt11]

And secondly, the East is horrible again.

Understatement of the year.

[Happyfoosball]

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Understatement of the year.

See, I don't think the East is as bad as it looks, or that the West is as good as it looks. I see a lot of really good teams out west but I don't see any great ones. I see good teams making trades trying to become great teams like the Suns, and the Lakers. In the East, I see Boston and Detriot as the two best teams in the nba right now, both Eastern conference teams. The Lakers will have potiential to join them if this trade works out the way most people think it will, then the Spurs will be tough around playoff time. They just seem to be slumping a little this year. Denvers like the Orlando of the East, tons of scoring, no defense, Utah doesn't strike me as a team that can win it all, Dallas sucks every year in the playoffs because defense is a foreign word to them. Yeah I see the West being better but it's more of a top to bottom team thing then it is wow they have this unstoppable team over there.

[Gerhalt11]

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See, I don't think the East is as bad as it looks, or that the West is as good as it looks. I see a lot of really good teams out west but I don't see any great ones. I see good teams making trades trying to become great teams like the Suns, and the Lakers. In the East, I see Boston and Detriot as the two best teams in the nba right now, both Eastern conference teams. The Lakers will have potiential to join them if this trade works out the way most people think it will, then the Spurs will be tough around playoff time. They just seem to be slumping a little this year. Denvers like the Orlando of the East, tons of scoring, no defense, Utah doesn't strike me as a team that can win it all, Dallas sucks every year in the playoffs because defense is a foreign word to them. Yeah I see the West being better but it's more of a top to bottom team thing then it is wow they have this unstoppable team over there.

True, but we are the third best team in the East and is there a single West playoff team that you can say, without hesitation, that we would beat on any given night? My answer to that is no. I think Detroit and Boston, in that order, are the best teams in the league right now, but after that, it gets a litte dicey. All you have to do is look at the records. The East has three playoff teams that are below .500. I don't know what the East's winning percentage against the West is, but you have to figure it's somewhere around .300.

[Last Guardian]

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Despite everyone saying that every team but us improved and that we'd be fighting for the 8th spot yet again.

Bucs80 and richboy, pwned.

[Optimus_Steel]

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Despite everyone saying that every team but us improved and that we'd be fighting for the 8th spot yet again.

Yup i remember the heated arguments other fans made. "But Mil, Atl, Cha, NJ all got better and Orl didnt." LMAO. It goes to show that you never really know until the games are played, and adding players wont necesseraly make a team better.

[Optimus_Steel]

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Bucs80 and richboy, pwned.

And strangely they have been absent recently, coincidence?. Good.

[KingRobb02]

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See, I don't think the East is as bad as it looks, or that the West is as good as it looks. I see a lot of really good teams out west but I don't see any great ones. I see good teams making trades trying to become great teams like the Suns, and the Lakers. In the East, I see Boston and Detriot as the two best teams in the nba right now, both Eastern conference teams. The Lakers will have potiential to join them if this trade works out the way most people think it will, then the Spurs will be tough around playoff time. They just seem to be slumping a little this year. Denvers like the Orlando of the East, tons of scoring, no defense, Utah doesn't strike me as a team that can win it all, Dallas sucks every year in the playoffs because defense is a foreign word to them. Yeah I see the West being better but it's more of a top to bottom team thing then it is wow they have this unstoppable team over there.

First, the mavs don't suck every year, they were 2 wins away from a championship two years ago. They just caught a bad matchup last year. It happens. Also, the Nuggets are the 5th best defensive team in the league and the 3rd best in the west. Don't compare them to us.

Yeah, the east is pretty bad, but a lot of it is unexpected. the east has 4 teams who can win 50 games this year and match up with any western team including Cleveland who hasn't really been at full strength the entire first half of the season. The 5th team, Toronto, could still catch fire if TJ and Andrea come back and play well down the stretch. That's five eastern conference teams who I think will are good enough to make the playoffs if they were in the west. That doesn't include Chicago, who decided to take the year off, New Jersey, whose best player decided to quit on them back in December, Atlanta (now that they have another shooter, and a real point guard) and Philly (check their last 10 games), who will both surge in the second half, or the Wizards who have been without their best player all year. If Gil and Caron are healthy this half, they are another team that could surge, The only truly bad teams in the east are Miami, New York, Milwaukee, Indiana and Charlotte.

As for the west's superiority, I think it may come back to earth in the second half. Kobe needs surgery, and whether or not he has it, determines whether or not they remain the favorite. Any game now, I am waiting on someone to accidentally hit it. The lakers won't be as good. the Jazz are gettign hot right now, and I think they can make the finals. the Hornets are one injury to Chris Paul away from being the Bucks. The Warriors can't compete against any team that has a dominant inside presence in the half court. The Blazers have passed their peak, and now they are back to earth. People are still waiting on San Antonio to flip the switch, but I don't think it's a guarantee.

Including the surging Rockets, I think there are 8 great to elite teams in the west (LA, Utah, Den, SA, Dal, Pho, Hou, NO) and 5 great to elite teams in the east (Bos, Det, Orl, Cle, Tor). Yes, the Finals were an embarassment, but Gibson hits some shots, and Larry Hughes plays half as good as he did against us, that series could go the other way. Teh Cavs were a great defensive team that just fell apart in the Finals. It happens, ask the Mavs. If Gil is healthy, and Kirk Hinrich doesn't play like Luke Ridnour that makes seven in the east. On the flip side, if Chris Paul goes down, and Houston hits another slump, that drops theWest to 6. I don't think that the West just has awesome teams and the East is the minors, its actually a pretty close matchup depending on who gets hurt and when.

[mfishy]

Not too many waould have guessed 50 W's.

But first, the Magic have stayed healthy.

And secondly, the East is horrible again.

As of this morning, the Magic would be the 9th seed in the West based on winning percentage. Not sure about the late games, if any though.

Every sportsbook in Las Vegas had the under/over on Magic wins at 47 or 47.5 going into the season so actually most thought they would be somewhere around that range. 50 certainly was not a huge stretch.

Yes, the west is sort of ridiculous. Lot of quality teams.

[Happyfoosball]

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True, but we are the third best team in the East and is there a single West playoff team that you can say, without hesitation, that we would beat on any given night? My answer to that is no. I think Detroit and Boston, in that order, are the best teams in the league right now, but after that, it gets a litte dicey. All you have to do is look at the records. The East has three playoff teams that are below .500. I don't know what the East's winning percentage against the West is, but you have to figure it's somewhere around .300.

There aren't any good teams out West that Orlando would play and be the heavy favorites, but there isn't any team out west that Orlando can't beat either. Obviously the Lakers with a healthy AB and a healthy Kobe might be too good, and the Spurs come playoff time might be too good but right now they are not.

[Happyfoosball]

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First, the mavs don't suck every year, they were 2 wins away from a championship two years ago. They just caught a bad matchup last year. It happens. Also, the Nuggets are the 5th best defensive team in the league and the 3rd best in the west. Don't compare them to us.

Yeah, the east is pretty bad, but a lot of it is unexpected. the east has 4 teams who can win 50 games this year and match up with any western team including Cleveland who hasn't really been at full strength the entire first half of the season. The 5th team, Toronto, could still catch fire if TJ and Andrea come back and play well down the stretch. That's five eastern conference teams who I think will are good enough to make the playoffs if they were in the west. That doesn't include Chicago, who decided to take the year off, New Jersey, whose best player decided to quit on them back in December, Atlanta (now that they have another shooter, and a real point guard) and Philly (check their last 10 games), who will both surge in the second half, or the Wizards who have been without their best player all year. If Gil and Caron are healthy this half, they are another team that could surge, The only truly bad teams in the east are Miami, New York, Milwaukee, Indiana and Charlotte.

As for the west's superiority, I think it may come back to earth in the second half. Kobe needs surgery, and whether or not he has it, determines whether or not they remain the favorite. Any game now, I am waiting on someone to accidentally hit it. The lakers won't be as good. the Jazz are gettign hot right now, and I think they can make the finals. the Hornets are one injury to Chris Paul away from being the Bucks. The Warriors can't compete against any team that has a dominant inside presence in the half court. The Blazers have passed their peak, and now they are back to earth. People are still waiting on San Antonio to flip the switch, but I don't think it's a guarantee.

Including the surging Rockets, I think there are 8 great to elite teams in the west (LA, Utah, Den, SA, Dal, Pho, Hou, NO) and 5 great to elite teams in the east (Bos, Det, Orl, Cle, Tor). Yes, the Finals were an embarassment, but Gibson hits some shots, and Larry Hughes plays half as good as he did against us, that series could go the other way. Teh Cavs were a great defensive team that just fell apart in the Finals. It happens, ask the Mavs. If Gil is healthy, and Kirk Hinrich doesn't play like Luke Ridnour that makes seven in the east. On the flip side, if Chris Paul goes down, and Houston hits another slump, that drops theWest to 6. I don't think that the West just has awesome teams and the East is the minors, its actually a pretty close matchup depending on who gets hurt and when.

Dallas only made it because the Spurs were banged up. Any team that can play defense will beat Dallas in a series. It's always been that way. And if Denver were such a great defensive team then how come they needed 120+ to beat Boston? You can throw stats out the window because they can be skewed 10x over. Denver's not a good defensive team, they are not tough at all. They won't go past the second round. Dallas and the Nuggets, Rockets too are pretenders. The West will come down to the Spurs and the Lakers.

And btw, there are no elite teams out west right now. Just a lot of paridy and a lot of really good teams. For a team to become elite they have to step out and seperate themselves from the rest of their conference like Detriot and Boston have.

[Idunkonyou2]

I said the Magic would win 55 to 60 games this year. They will win 50 and they have a shot at winning 54 to 55 with the way the schedule looks.