RealGM

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 5:56 pm**

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/playoffs2 ... ons-080418

The Magic get love from ESPN. Check it out...

Detroit is barely ahead of Orlando in the Power Rankings, and the Playoff Odds give Orlando nearly the same odds of winning the conference. Since that doesn't seem possible, let me explain.

When I first saw this, I presumed it was because the Pistons have been biding their time playing their scrubs for the past month and a half. That sounds plausible, but actually Detroit played really well over the final three weeks -- the Pistons went 10-3 with a scoring margin of 8.7 points per game in their final 13 games. The real problem was what they did in the month prior to that, when they went 11-8 and got waxed by 18 by the Magic in their own building.

The other half of this equation is the Magic, who had a scoring margin of 10.0 points per game in the final quarter of the season. That's truly impressive, even if it came against a bunch of bad teams, and it's why Orlando is a surprising seventh in the Power Rankings.

Nobody really paid attention to the Magic's finishing kick because their playoff spot was sealed -- and because it wasn't accompanied by a great win-loss record (they lost three times by a single point). But check this out: All 15 of their wins after February were by double figures. It was a total non-story, but Orlando played as well as any team in the league over the final quarter of the season.

All of this is a roundabout way of saying that I think the second-round series between the Magic and Piston will be much, much better than anticipated. I wouldn't bet on Orlando, but should we expect a hard-fought, nail-biting series? Yes.

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 6:00 pm**

Lol at the end he talks about the second round matchup between Pistons and Magic. Total disrespect to Philly and Toronto, haha.

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 6:03 pm**

i love it...a love being under the radar

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 6:10 pm**

Dude thats because everyone knows beside the homer raptor fans that their team just isnt that good.

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 6:40 pm**

No first round games scheduled for ESPN = no love...

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 6:46 pm**

Did you see Wil Perdue on Mike and Mike this morning? I don't even think he could mention the word Magic, much less give them any love!

Did the Magic wrong him when he left?

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 7:40 pm**

hey guys hope the playoffs go well, don't really have a lot of time only 15 min for internet cost 1.5 euro so............. gotta go but cheers to the magic!!!!!

PS. AMSTERDAM IS AWESOME!!!

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 7:49 pm**

not only did he insure us in the 2nd round but he basically said we can also beat the Pistons, thats why there estimated "chance" to win the Eastern Conference is weaker than expected

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 7:59 pm**

Yeah, I always like his statistical approach to the game. It's not quite as solid as what the stat heads create for baseball, but it is fun and informative in its own way. The Magic have a lot of strengths that only number guys pick up on. Also, I am so sick of hearing how bad our point guards are when by all the math it is our SG's that really come up short. Look for Meer to ball in the 1st round. EDIT: My venting about the disrespect given our PG's has nothing to do with Hollinger by the way. It was from the Dime tv broadcast.

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 9:13 pm**

I don't like how a lot of people are now just putting us in the 2nd round...

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 9:27 pm**

LOL love the sig man
lets hope CB4 can be superman for us during this series

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 9:56 pm**

LBPTarHeel27 wrote:I don't like how a lot of people are now just putting us in the 2nd round...

When did Tony give his nickname to Botch (as pronounced by Matty)?

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 10:00 pm**

RapsFuturePG#26 wrote:LOL love the sig man
lets hope CB4 can be superman for us during this series

I just saw the sig on the Raps board and liked it...I take no credit.

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 10:52 pm**

Statistically, the Magic are an above average team, and they on paper will crush Toronto. But Detroit is on paper quite a bit better stat wise than Orlando.

Detroit is the #2 winning team in the NBA this year, for gosh-darn sakes!

Posted: **Fri Apr 18, 2008 11:50 pm**

Stephen A Smith and Jalen Rose both picked Orlando just now. Smith said the Raptors are too soft, like cottonelle.

RealGM

Love from ESPN?

Love from ESPN?