ralaw

Coming into the season, are the expectations for the Orlando Magic to high? Going around boards and various websites, I've noticed people looking at the Orlando Magic as the next in line to make the jump to being a powerhouse in the East. They point to the maturation Dwight Howard, Darko and Jameer Nelson as the next great core of players. I for one love Dwight Howard, but I also don't feel like he'll absolutely dominate like many believe. I believe he still has a ways to go as for as his basketball skills. As for Darko the jury is still out for me. I believe I know what he can bring to a team, but with Darko it's more about his confidence. As for Jameer, I believe he'll make the biggest jump from last season of the big 3. What are your thoughts on thre expectations? I understand most of us here are Magic fans, but try to answer this honestly. Do you think the expectations are too high?

Hairy Midget

I think nearly all of the expectations for this team are 6th to 8th seed. Seems about right to me. I don't believe anyone thinks we're gonna be a powerhouse until at least 2 to 3 years from now.

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ralaw

Yes, but do you feel even those expectation are too high? Do you feel the expectations of the trio (Howard, Darko and Nelson) are to high? Do you feel this team is ready to sustain a consistent level of play for an entire season in order to become a 6-8 seed? A couple of years ago the Golden State Warriors finished the season strong as Orlando did last year and everyone was praising the team; however, as we know the team never became much.

lw32

I've seen some predict we'll give Miami a run for the division.

As for expectations, being an Orlando fan I've learnt we usually end up with a worse record than predicted. Unless Armstrong is around. I'll say we're on the fringe of the playoffs again, in a tight race for 6-8. I'll be pleasantly surprised if we finish in the top 5.

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MickyEyez

IMO expectations aren't that high. expectations from fans are playoffs. 6-8 seed isn't a high expectation, it's a reasonable one. Writers (ESPN, CBS Sportsline) are saying that the Magic are improving but aren't going to be much better than last year.

As for the expectations of reaching the playoffs (no matter what seed), doesn't seem far fetched. As long as the Magic can continue to work together and feed off of each other like they did at the end of last year, there is no reason that they can finish 6-8.


edit: I forgot to mention that we were real close to making the playoffs last year, so anything less than playoffs would be low expectations.

patrick_wandalowski

40 wins and maybe playoffs...that should be the expectations

JNice

I don't think 6-8 seed expectations are too high. It should be expected. And I do think there are differences between Orlando's late run and Golden States. For one, GS's hopes were relying heavily on Baron Davis - perenially unhealthy and inconsistent. I would never feel too good about any run that is relying heavily on him. Also, not sure about GS, but Orlando had very few giveaway games in that late run. Most of the games they played still meant something - to Orlando and to the teams they were playing.

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