ORLANDO — It's been a long time since Magic coach Stan Van Gundy came
off the court high-fiving everyone in his path.
That's the kind of night it was.
This was now his kind of team.
And center Dwight Howard was nowhere to be seen.
"I'm going to really enjoy this one," said Van Gundy, the embattled
Magic coach who likely sealed his fate earlier this month by antagonizing his
franchise player. "It was great. It's not about one or two guys. There are
no agendas. It's about a team. I've been saying all season, 'this is how we
need to play.'"
The Magic (36-25) beat the Philadelphia 76ers 113-100 on Monday, playing with
the kind of energy and enthusiasm and unselfishness that Van Gundy has been
preaching but rarely seeing.
It happened in Cleveland on Sunday when five players scored in double figures
and the Magic clinched their sixth consecutive postseason berth. It was even
more pronounced Monday when six players scored at least 10 points, and the
Magic moved into a three-way tie for the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference.
"What we've been the last two nights is a team," Van Gundy said.
"I love the way we've played — a tremendous team effort. And I'm going to
enjoy that."
Playing without Howard may kill them defensively – he is the three-time
Defensive Player of the Year — but playing without him now has ignited an energy,
a focus and an offensive freedom that has been lacking for much of the season.
It brought a smile to everyone else on the court. Van Grumpy was transformed
into Van Happy with these back-to-back wins.
"It's about trying to get ourselves to play on a level that we need to
play at in the playoffs," he said. "Especially the level of
competitiveness and energy. This was it."
In a tumultuous season that started with Howard's trade demand, continued with
his waffling over free agency before the trade deadline, and peaked with his
request for a new coach, the Magic have played through a nightmare of
distractions.
They don't have their star for now, and they won't go anywhere in the playoffs
without him, but there was a lesson to be learned here for his anticipated
return.
Howard was diagnosed Friday with a herniated disc in his lower back and is
expected to miss the rest of the regular season. The Magic have played seven
games without him, and won only three, but they scored 119, 100 and 113,
respectively in those three.
"We're not counting on Hedo (Turkoglu), or Dwight for the rest of the
year, including the playoffs," Van Gundy said. "If we get one, or
both back, that's a bonus. Right now, we're taking the approach that these are
our guys, and we have to get ready for the playoffs. We're not sitting here
waiting for Dwight to get back. There are no guarantees with anyone. This is
our team."
On Monday, they also were without sixth-man Glen Davis, the backup center and
power forward who had played so well in Howard's absence until he sprained his
right knee Sunday.
Ryan Anderson led everyone with 26 points and 16 rebounds. Jameer Nelson had 16
points and 13 assists. Reserve Earl Clark, who is lucky to play when everyone
is healthy, had 14 points and 11 rebounds.
It was impressive that this was against the Sixers, who have the stingiest
defense (88.3 ppg) in the league, fighting for their own playoff lives.
The Magic shot 53.3 percent from the field and 61.1 percent from 3-point range,
a far cry from Friday night's dreadful loss to Atlanta.
"I watched their game the other night. They couldn't hit a bull in the
butt with a hand full of rice against Atlanta," Sixers coach Doug Collins
said. "Tonight they made them. They played as hard offensively at the end
of (the shot) clock as any team in the NBA."
By beating Philadelphia, the Magic all but assured themselves of a sixth seed or
better, avoiding a potential first-round embarrassment against the Miami Heat
or Chicago Bulls.
The absence of Howard, along with the injury to Davis, brought second-year
center Daniel Orton out the deep freeze, where he has been since the Magic made
him the 29th pick of the 2010 Draft.
Orton made his first NBA start Monday — the first start since high school —
and gave the league a taste of what he could do. Orton, who played one season
at Kentucky but never started a game, had six points and six rebounds Monday.
"It's a different game now. We're not stagnant anymore," said
Anderson. "Without Dwight, we're forced to play differently. Everyone is
forced to play harder because we have to."
Without Howard dominating in the post, the Magic use more pick-and-roll plays.
They used J.J. Redick coming off screens. They used Jason Richardson slashing
to the basket. The ball moved, and no one stood around waiting for Howard to
make his move.
"It's fun to play like this, but it's always fun when you win,"
Richardson said. "When he comes back, Dwight will adjust, and we'll adjust
to him, but I think we're onto something here. This works."
