Magic @ Nets Preview

In order to to preview tonight’s home opener against the Orlando Magic, I sat down with Don from Magical Hoops.  Enjoy!

Best thing you saw out of the team in the preseason and first game

For all the roster turnover in the offseason, the pieces seem to be fitting just fine. The biggest problem this team will have is keeping everyone happy and there appear to be at least 10 guys who deserve significant minutes. Opening night against Philly was a perfect example of how fun this team is to watch when the threes are raining down.

Definitely the progress of the rookie and second year players. Brook Lopez and Terrence Williams were fantastic in the preseason and both looked just as good in the season opener against the Timberwolves. And Chris Douglas-Roberts was the most impressive player in the preseason for the Nets, but got off to a slow start out of the gates. Depending on how much rope Lawrence Frank will give CDR, I think he could be a huge part of this year’s team and along with Lopez and Williams.

At this early point in the season, how do you see the trade working out for your team?

Carter will work out just fine – I have no issue with him and any slow start he had is simply him trying to fit in. I expect him to take over when he needs to. If Ryan Anderson keeps up the scoring and overall contribution to the team, the Orlando area will forgive the loss of Courtney Lee and may even start to forget.

Well, it’s difficult to gauge the trade from the Nets perspective. The Magic want to win a title this year and the Nets were simply looking to clear cap room for this Summer. So until we see if New Jersey can bring in a big ticket item with all of their cap room, it’s hard to have any real opinion about the trade. Carter needed to move on and Lee is a nice little player, but until next Summer I am looking at the trade as an incomplete.

Your prediction for the game

Orlando was 2-1 against the Nets last year with all three games happening in the second half of the season. The loss came in the 80th game, when the Magic had pretty much settled in the #3 spot – Howard and Turkoglu only played 26 minutes and Rashard Lewis did not play at all. Lewis won’t play in this game either but the Magic will try to continue their hot streak. I’m going to conservatively say Magic by 10.

New Jersey was dominant for three quarters on opening night, so we got a glimpse of what the team is capable of when they are firing on all cylinders. But remember they were playing the Timberwolves, not exactly a team with the kind of talent the Magic will run out on the court. And there’s the 4th quarter in that opening game in which the Nets looked like the lottery team most experts expect them to be this year. Even without Lewis in the lineup, I just don’t see New Jersey matching up. Magic should easily win by double digits.

Finally, a fantasy slant: is there a matchup that will allow a player to outplay the expectations of him?

I actually like Brook Lopez in this matchup. He averaged 13 points and just shy of 10 rebounds last year, which was two more rebounds than he averaged all year. Unless he picks up early fouls trying to ward of Howard, Lopez should be good for a double-double here. On the other side, the playing time situation between Jameer Nelson and Jason Williams bears watching. Williams is proving to be a much more effective backup than Johnson was last year and could sap some minutes from Nelson.

Maybe not outplaying expectations, but after a poor performance in the opener, Devin Harris should deliver a game that meets the high expectations assigned to him in the preseason. Jameer Nelson is a good little player and Jason Williams looks like he has life left in his game, but Harris should be able to put up big points against both of them. After a poor shooting night against Minnesota and only scoring 14 points, look for Harris to get up near 25 with 10 assists.

Tags: Brook Lopez, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Devin Harris, Orlando Magic, Terrence Williams