Orlando Sentinel previews the game

["j.hironaka" <j.hironaka@unesco.org>]

The following is from the Orlando Sentinel. Look for rookie 7-footer Steven 
Hunter to start and for Mike Miller to play in place of Grant Hill, who 
will sit out the next two games.

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WHAT TO WATCH FOR: The Magic have been promising a more inspired defensive 
performance. The McGrady/Pierce matchup will be worth watching closely.

ETC.: The Magic have beaten the Celtics the past six games in Orlando. A 
victory by the Magic would push them past the Celtics in the Atlantic 
Division. . . . The Magic are averaging eight points more per game than the 
Celtics. . . . Watch for Don Reid to start seeing playing time again, 
especially if the Magic continue to struggle around the basket. . . . The 
Magic's game Saturday in Washington has been moved to 6:30 p.m. for 
national television (NBC, WESH-Ch. 2).

PROBABLE STARTERS: Magic -- F Mike Miller (6-8), F Horace Grant (6-10), C 
Steven Hunter (7-0), G Tracy McGrady (6-8), G Darrell Armstrong (6-1). 
CELTICS -- F Antoine Walker (6-9), F Paul Pierce (6-6), C Tony Battie 
(6-11), G Joe Johnson (6-8), G Kenny Anderson (6-1).

BROADCAST: TV -- Sunshine Network. Radio -- 580 AM (WDBO) in Orlando, 
Spanish-language coverage on 1440 AM (WPRD).


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Below are the relevant portions of Tim Povtak's article.

By Tim Povtak
Sentinel Staff Writer
November 29, 2001
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/templates/misc/printstory.jsp?slug=orl%2Dsptcupcakes29112901nov29

It's time to start kicking sand in some faces.

The Orlando Magic begin the softest seven-game stretch of their season 
tonight, hoping to use it as a springboard to turn an uninspired start into 
the season they were expecting.

If they can't win consistently now, then winning consistently this season 
may be out of the question.

"The next 10 days to two weeks will tell us a lot about where we are going 
this season," veteran power forward Horace Grant said. "We still have 
60-some games to play, but it's time to start showing what we can do."

A victory tonight quickly could turn into a seven-game domino effect, which 
would upright a ship that is beginning to take on water.

"This is an important stretch of games, a very important stretch," Magic 
Coach Doc Rivers said. "It's a stretch we should already be in, but we're 
not. You want to give yourself a cushion before you go out West. But if we 
screw around now, drop a couple more, go West needing to win four of five, 
then we're in trouble."

The Magic have made this stretch considerably more difficult than it looked 
a week ago. Grant Hill is out again with a troublesome left ankle. Although 
it not considered serious this time, he likely will miss the next two games.

The Magic also have been struggling defensively. Although they lead the NBA 
in scoring (103.5 points per game), they have rebounded and defended 
poorly, causing three close losses at home.

In their seven victories this season, the Magic have allowed an average of 
91 points. In their eight defeats, they have allowed an average of 108.5 
points. The difference has been dramatic.

"Who we've got coming up doesn't really matter if we don't improve the way 
we've been playing," Grant said. "But if we play hard, aggressively, then 
we'll win the games we're supposed to win. It's pretty simple."

The Magic spent the past two days working almost exclusively on defense, 
going back to basic drills that some of their players hadn't seen since 
college or high school.

"We talk about it every day," guard Tracy McGrady said. "Defense, or the 
lack of defense, is killing us. It's killing this team right now.

"I haven't seen some of this stuff since high school, but if that's what it 
takes, I'm all for it. I really believe these last two losses were the 
wakeup call. You'll see a different team in these next 5-6 games, and it's 
going to start with me."

The Magic lost back-to-back games at home against the Charlotte Hornets and 
Detroit Pistons. In both losses, McGrady had a chance to tie the score with 
a late shot, but both times he missed. Neither of those opportunities, 
though, bothered him as much as the defensive lapses that came before.

The Magic may have picked a tough assignment to start their move up the 
Atlantic Division ladder. Boston guard Paul Pierce (26.9 ppg) and forward 
Antoine Walker (24.3 ppg) form the best one-two scoring punch in the 
Eastern Conference. They combined for 61 points in Tuesday night's victory 
in Miami. No one else with the Celtics scored more than six points. They 
didn't need to, with Pierce and Walker dominating the action.

McGrady will go from guarding Pierce tonight to guarding Michael Jordan in 
Washington on Saturday. If he can slow down both of them, then the Magic 
should be successful.

"The bottom line is that we shouldn't be 7-8 right now. We're a better team 
than that," McGrady said. "It's going to turn around. I'm the leader, and 
I'm going to make sure of that."

Rivers has been critical of the defensive effort throughout his lineup. 
Grant particularly needs to do a better job in the frontcourt, while 
McGrady has to become a better defensive leader on the perimeter.

"It's not that we can't do it. We're a great defensive team for 12 seconds, 
the best in the league, but the last 12 seconds is killing us," Rivers 
said. "We still have to make a run now. This isn't the way we planned it. 
It's not going to be as easy as we thought.

"But it's out there. I can see the light. It's just a long tunnel we need 
to go through first."

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