Hey everyone, here is your roundup of stories in advance of tonight’s games. I will hopefully be able to do this before every game and post them 2-3 hours before the game. Enjoy!
-Orlando has been through a lot of adversity already through this early season, but is preparing for its usual December West Coast swing. The Magic, though, feel at home on the road, Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel writes.
–Rashard Lewis is not known for his defense, but there has definitely been a marked improvement to Orlando’s defense since his return from suspension.
–Warriors coach Don Nelson will be coaching his last game for a while as he has not fully recovered from a pneumonia he contracted a few weeks ago, Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chrnoicle reports. The Warriors will depart for a five-game road trip of their own after tonight’s game.
–Golden State’s close loss to Houston a few nights ago has several fans questioning Don Nelson’s coaching decisions.
-Two former Magic men came up big for their new teams last night. Courtney Lee hit three crucial 3-pointers to help the Nets get their first win (I know all Magic fans are happy to see that streak over, no one likes seeing anyone lose that many games in a row. If you watched the team during 2003-04 season, you understand how bad it is). And Hedo Turkoglu hit another game-winner, this time for the Raptors in Washington.
-In the preview for tonight’s game on Golden State’s official Web site, they believe the Warriors can hang with the Magic if they use their athleticism and play at a frenetic pace. If that doesn’t work, at least the Warriors Dancer Swimsuit Calendar is being released at Oracle Arena tonight.
-Tom Ziller of NBA FanHouse maps out the NBA by 3-point shooting. The Magic, not surprisingly, shoot a lot of threes. But somewhat surprisingly the Magic are not a very efficient team from 3-point range.
-Former Golden State Warrior Mickael Pietrus has been an important part of Orlando’s rise to the NBA’s elite, writes OrlandoMagic.com’s John Denton.
