Orlando Magic

Starting Five		Player Rating
C	Tony Battie	5
PF	Dwight Howard	5
SF	Grant Hill	7
SG	Cuttino Mobley	7
PG	Steve Francis	8
		32

* Player Rating on a 1 to 10 Scale. 10 denotes best at position in the NBA with no weaknesses, 5 would be average player who holds his own etc.

Reserves		Position Rating
C	Kelvin Cato / Andrew DeClercq	4
PF	Anderson Varejao / Britton Johnsen	4
SF	Hedo Turkoglu / Pat Garrity / Keith Bogans	7
SG	DeShawn Stevenson	4
PG	Jameer Nelson	4
		23

* Ratings based on ability of bench to fill in a position. More than one backup at a position would influence the rating as would one player's ability to play multiple positions.

Sep '04

Drew Gooden for Tony Battie? Did Gooden really turn off the folks in Orlando that badly in one year? He had the potential to contribute especially in an up-tempo game with Francis and Mobley. Battie's main contribution will be defensively. That may be a good thing as the entire backcourt loves to shoot but this team will have no post presence whatsoever unless Howard develops ahead of schedule. Even he has shown more defensive prowess than offensive.

The other big news for Orlando is that Hill is supposed to be healthy. Even if he returns at 70%-80%, he would be a great addition as his passing ability would complement Francis' lack thereof. Not sure where that would leave Turkoglu though.

With Hill back, this team is as good as any in the league at the smalls but the upfront Orlando may be the worst in the league. Howard is going to have to play right away, expect him to log 20+ minutes per night. Anything less and Orlando is in big trouble. If Anderson Varejao can contribute too, this team could be better than expected.

It would take a whole lot of "Ifs" to work out, but a healthy Grant Hill and a reasonable contribution from Howard could see this team squeak into the playoffs. If Howard is more Kwame than Stoudemire and Hill's ankle gives way again, they will be flirting with Atlanta at the bottom of the table again.

 

Old Post -- July '04

Needs:
First off, I'm going to assume Grant Hill is out for good. If he's not, he may just be the perfect complement to Francis and Mobley -- an SF with a good handle and passing ability. Especially if he's willing to let his own numbers take a back seat as his offense is probably going to be a couple of levels below his pre-injury level. With no Hill, this team is in trouble. They have no playmaker, no experience, no size in the paint. Their best option may be to start Jameer with Francis as two-guard and move Mobley for some size. A package deal of Mobley and Gooden to Boston in a sign-and-trade for Blount and a pick may be a good idea for both teams.

Outside of Francis, this team doesn't have much this year. Assuming Nelson and Howard pan out, then their top needs would be Center and Small Forward. Another point worth noting is that there are no strong defensive players at any position on this team.

Centre
A big body to take pressure off Howard would be welcome.
Potential Candidates: Mark Blount, Erick Dampier

Small Forward
A perimeter defensive specialist who can run with Francis would be ideal. Talent would be a nice addition to this team...
Potential Candidates: Rodney White, Bruce Bowen

Prediction: The right trade may get this team over 30 wins but Howard would have to have an Amare-like season for this team to sniff the playoffs.