Orlando Magic vs. Celtics

ORLANDO 110 @ DALLAS 105

DALLAS (AP) -- Vince Carter scored 21 points in his Orlando debut and Brandon Bass added seven of his 13 points in the final two minutes to lift the Magic to a 110-105 victory over the Dallas Mavericks in the preseason opener for both teams on Monday night.

Carter, who was acquired by the Magic in an offseason trade with the New Jersey Nets, scored 15 points in the third quarter. Bass was a key reserve for the Mavericks the past two seasons before signing a free-agent deal with the Magic during the offseason.

Dallas held a 101-99 lead with 2:41 left before Bass powered inside for a three-point play with 1:50 left that put Orlando ahead for good.

On the Magic's next possession, Bass drove hard to the basket and converted the ensuing free throw for another three-point play that gave the Magic a 105-101 edge.

Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki scored 23 points, including going 17-for-19 from the free-throw line.

Drew Gooden, an offseason free-agent pickup by the Mavericks, added 18 points.

Orlando's Dwight Howard had 17 points and 11 rebounds before fouling out with 4:31 left in the third quarter.

Rashard Lewis added 18 points for the Magic. Lewis is suspended for the first 10 games of the regular season for violating the NBA's anti-drug policy but can participate in preseason games. Lewis tested positive for a banned substance that was found in an over-the-counter supplement he was taking.

The Mavericks carried an 82-80 advantage into the fourth quarter, with Nowitzki and Gooden scoring 12 points apiece in the third.

Dallas shot 33 percent from the floor in the first half but held a 47-45 halftime lead at the break behind J.J. Barea's 13 points.

Shawn Marion had been set to make his Mavericks after being acquired in an offseason trade, but Marion was held out with what the team termed a slight right calf strain.

Mavericks swingman Josh Howard will miss the early preseason games as he recovers from offseason surgery on his left ankle. Howard has been doing some light running, but is being held out of 5-on-5 scrimmages.

Coach Rick Carlisle said Howard is "progressing'' and "hopefully he can play the latter part of the exhibition schedule.''

Good luck this year. Hope to see you in the Finals again.

Originally posted by StOnEy333:
Good luck this year. Hope to see you in the Finals again.

Yeah, me too.

Lakers/Magic Finals w/ a different result

Originally posted by jrg:

Originally posted by StOnEy333:
Good luck this year. Hope to see you in the Finals again.

Yeah, me too.

Lakers/Magic Finals w/ a different result

Good luck with that.

Originally posted by StOnEy333:

Originally posted by jrg:

Originally posted by StOnEy333:
Good luck this year. Hope to see you in the Finals again.

Yeah, me too.

Lakers/Magic Finals w/ a different result

Good luck with that.

Yeah, we'll see.

Most will just call me a homer, but I think these moves we made may have put us over the top.

Hey phat, in case you have forgot already..this is the Orlando thread...not the Laker thread.

Thanks.

I think that Orlando's success is going to be tied to how well Vince Carter can adapt to not being the "man", but one of several scorers. Even when he wasn't the best player on the team, the best guy was someone who was absolutely great at putting VC in a position to succeed. (Kidd) It's a little different in Orlando.

That being said, I think he will do fine. He can run the pick and roll with D12 just like Hedo did, but he's a much better finisher, and while he's not the passer that Hedo is, he's underrated in this respect.

But I still think that Boston is the kryptonite if they're healthy. D12 has issues with Kendrick Perkins guarding him because he can't outmuscle him (as much), and now the C's have added the main guy responsible for the old struggles that Orlando had with Detroit. (Sheed) Howard's gonna have a guy on him that gives him problems 48 minutes per game. Also, KG eats up Lewis because he's athletic enough to keep up with him and is stronger as well. The key to that series would be how well VC & Nelson can do against Pierce & Rondo, both of whom are excellent to great defenders. BUT, there's no guarantee that Boston remains healthy.

Anyway...I think Orlando gets the #1 seed in the East. 64-18.

Vince Carter is going to have a MONSTER year.

Originally posted by crzy:
Vince Carter is going to have a MONSTER year.

In what respect(s) do you think?

Originally posted by LA9erFan:

Originally posted by crzy:
Vince Carter is going to have a MONSTER year.

In what respect(s) do you think?

I think that the Magic are going to ask Vince Carter to be the primary option on offense and that he'll excel because defenses will be geared more toward stopping Dwight.

Anything Hedo Turkoglu can do, Vince Carter can do better.

Quote:
"I don't want him stepping on the court thinking about fitting in. He can fit in, in the locker room. We didn't bring him here to be a guy who is just moving the ball,'' Van Gundy said. "We want him attacking. I want the guy who has been so good all these years. I want all his greatness."

Of course, Dwight Howard should getting the most shots in Orlando, but everyone knows that's not going to happen while Ron Jeremey is in charge. The Magic are a jump shooting, perimeter-oriented team and Vince is their best perimeter player.

Vince/Rashard will probably have games where they have poor shooting performances and the media will question why D12 isn't getting more touches....it will be a constant theme throughout the season.

[ Edited by crzy on Oct 6, 2009 at 10:14:51 ]

Originally posted by jrg:
Hey phat, in case you have forgot already..this is the Orlando thread...not the Laker thread.

Thanks.

You're welcome.

Give us an "Official" tag