The Hornets may have put on a show last night in terms of embarrassing the Magic, but what’s great about the NBA is there is very much a hierarchy and the hornets are very much closer to the magic on that pole than they are any of the top teams. I still can’t believe there is a team that Gordon Hayward is the vet for. What the fuck is this guy teaching these dudes? This nerd is doing nothing in terms of the future and this charlotte team is going to feel the effects of it with the stalling and regression this franchise will have over the next 6 years. The best part about the hornets is that there guards can’t play any amount of defense and they have a decent pace, so the excitement level in these games are incredible and watching them get ran out of the gym in the playoffs is the best this team can give. And as long as you achieve your ceiling you can sometimes call it a success. I very much can’t wait until it comes to the point where it needs blown up, and they have to Choose which undersized guard will continue them on the journey of mediocrity.

There have been a lot of things over the last month that has really just pushed me away from even wanting to pay attention to the magic. Now, have I been secretly? Sure. A lot? No. It’s nice that Fultz has came back and played with a lot of confidence, and Franz Wagner has been the biggest steal it would seem from this past years draft. Still though, from RJ Hampton being such a huge middle of the road pick up, to CA just having this freedom that is overly abused, and having the defense just actually not exist, there has been plenty to be negative about, and although I don’t want to be online, I find that to be dumb of me. Being down, mean, and awful to deal with because of your sports team is more funny than trying to just be positive all the time. Plus who even enjoys positivity unless you’re the absolute best? It’s pointless, and a waste of breathe. So I’m done quitting being negative, I’m back on the good life.

Having guys combine for 2-12 from the arch is not a stat you should look at and think that these guys can shoot them selves out of it. This shit should be addressed. It’s everything Mitchell Robinson talked about. Move the damn ball, get people involved. Make the defense work. As simple as iso ball can look, the rest it can provide people on the defensive end is an absolute waste. The magic are slowly really getting some pieces. Franz Wagner has high IQ. Is so smart with the basketball. Now does he get a little inactive at times off the ball, sure, but it’s the heads up on offense and the ability to keep his feet firmly under him that make him valuable. Markelle Fultz has incredible poise, and for as quick as he plays, it feels like he sees things at a different speed than what he’s operating at. The magic might not be in a perfect spot, but they atleast feel like they have some footing in a halfway decent location.

Quick side note, I am note sure what or why caused the pacers to just blow up what they had going, but the kings didn’t do too bad for themselves really to look to get closer to winning now. Halliburton is great, bur Sabo I felt like was a piece that should thrive in Indy for as long as he would be there.

The magic and west coast trips are an all around beat down. Whether it be going from the losing, to the having to fight to stay up late, to generally falling asleep on the couch and finding the score out after a shitty midnight nap that after seeing the score shots you a jolt of frustration. It feels like a punishment to me as a fan when these games have to be played and honestly my punishment feels incredibly unjust on top of everything and at this point it’s to the point where you question where is the value in being a loser. Where is the enjoyment? It’s not even cool or fun to watch 7 footers shoot threes really. I damn near enjoy watching lazy college players more at times. But I’m just hangry and ready to bitch so this will go away.

I really thought the magic were going to be on the tail end of the blazers coming together to give an ass kicking after a bad trade. I was all in and nothing could have ever felt more right. Good on the magic for being able to weather the storms the blazers could muster up. The magic showed alot of poise last night and showed a lot of maturity in terms of playing with a lead. Now does happiness mean more than money? Literally no, and the fact I cannot get a read on these mother fuckers and every time I feel a side I couldn’t have anything more than a thorn in my side just fucking kills me. This magic team better not get the kings treatment because I can’t be more on the side of this being something working up here. Again, still can’t believe the magic did a lot more than damn covering.

WCJ played what really could have been the perfect game yesterday. He should be handcuffed to 15 feet around the basket and in offensively, but honestly that aggression and IQ was incredible last night from him. Accounted for 18 rebounds and also was disruptive in a lot more. When mismatches can be properly taken advantage of, it really is a beautiful thing. Now the magic might be the worst team in the East at this point, but honestly does that ranking stuff matter anyway? They are letting a million teams in the playoffs it almost feels like the magic still have a shot. What’s most important, is that one road available to success is found and taken. There’s something here with this group, they have something looming that’s something fairly special. Experience and development is so crucial at this point. If this hasn’t been the true test of what it means to be a fan at this point sticking by this team, then I wouldn’t know what is.

I am so happy to be done with Vucci for the year. The bulls last night showed the magic what a contender looks like. Now do I believe the bulls will do anything in the post season what so ever? No, that loser city is capable of having 0 true success in the post season of any sport that means anything. I know, I know WNBA, but that goes against my point so I can’t be on board for the time being. WNBA can be back, next week. The magic at this point though, are what they are, and rushing this season along is not going to happen fast enough. These back to backs are killer as well, this scheduling is an absolute joke and fixing it should be a priority.

It’s so hard after a weekend of winning to come out and be the negative one, but at this point there’s always things that need to be said and sadly at this point they just aren’t positive. Cole Anthony doesn’t need 16 shots at night, not against anyone, not in any setting. Cole is great, great for energy, great IQ, for some reason has a knack to shoot it like he’s the only scorer. TRoss goes from shooting 7/11 to getting 5 shots total from game to game. There’s a lot like to like about come and the way he can lead an offense is something that can be used. At this point, especially with guys poised to return, his role should not be a volume scorer. There are too many guys who can create for themselves and get the ball in the net. At a level I believe is better than what he is capable of. The magic aren’t in the perfect scenario, but these steps being taken forward feel better than they ever have before.

At this point, there are a lot of things that the magic can look to be excited about. Truthfully, a lot of guys have stepped in ways this year that were more than expected and there have been glimpses of the possibilities this team has to fully blossom into. The thing about this point, they have for to learn to stop playing the two bigs at the same time. There’s nothing beneficial to lose the speed on the floor that the magic has a times to run these broken ass sets that generally lead to a clunky three from not the best shooter. Obviously there’s no possibility for everything to be perfect in the course of a month. Change can only happen once at a time, and focusing on things and hammering them out is probably the most effective solution, at the end of the day it’s just frustrating to feel like it’s the most simple things that need fixed time in and time out. Now, the magic impressively enough did a wonderful job to try and control the game and play their flow, and for a time got away with it. True development is turning these performances into wins, and it feels soon enough we will be there.

Jalen Suggs winning over the internet makes a lot of sense. As hard as I’ve been about bitching on these dudes after loses, there’s been a lot of moments that make you believe this magic team has heart like you read about in Rudy. As far as playing hard goes, this magic group has been second to none over the last 10 years. Team defense has been a struggle but solo performances on guys have happened from time to time and it’s all off the muscle. There’s a lot of things you can coach, like 100,000 if I had to try and guess. One thing you can’t teach is evoking guys to play with their emotions. Get them to have a fire of competitive drive for the team on the front. It’s fun when you find the right mix of young guys who have the fire to try and show the league what they are made of, and then they are not only in the mindset, but have the ability to come out and make life tough. They can come out and play a style that can lead them to success at times against some of the heads of their conference. The longer this season goes along, the more and more my interest meter for the team on the court very much grows. December and January have really been some eye opening months in terms of what the future really has available. I hate roller coasters because they make me want to cry, oddly enough I’m going to be invested in the magic and this rollercoaster will Inevitably make me cry as well.