ORLANDO MAGIC POD SQUAD: ALL STAR BREAK, TRADE DEADLINE & NATIONAL TV RECOGNITION

ORLANDO MAGIC POD SQUAD: ALL STAR BREAK, TRADE DEADLINE & NATIONAL TV RECOGNITION

And welcome everyone to another edition of Orlando Magic pod squad Dante marelli George galante Jake Chapman here with you lots to get to this Orlando Magic team now sitting here at 28 and 24 at the time of this taping three games left before the All-Star break you win game

One of a four game home stand stand a big home stand coming up uh meaningful games here the last three big night coming up with Shaquille O’Neal getting his jersey retired we got lot to get to and we’ll do it here on this edition of uh of Orlando Magic pod squad the trade

Deadline has come and gone what looks like what what do does it look like for the final 31 games of the season for the Orlando Magic as they make their playoff push magic sitting in a great position and we’ll recap all of it here for you but first of all All-Star plans Allstar

Plans for everybody George you have an Allstar in Paulo Bano but from what I understand you will not be anywhere near Indianapolis which is probably probably a good move did you get out of that one I well I think it just is tenure tenure got me out of all-star weekend and I

Really have no other uh excuse other than that listen I I love the festivities yes grand It’s a grand event for the league um but I I’ve said it on this uh format before that for an employee that has to go to all-star weekend and and God bless Trish

Wingerson she’s going to be doing she’s taking it for she’s taking it she’s taking one for the team okay got you she’s going to fall on the made um for Allstar Weekend and and now it’s like you know we’re so excited that Paulo is in the game obviously absolutely so it’s

And and we’ll get to that it’s but now he’s in the skills Challenge on Allstar Saturday night he is in the rising stars event on Friday I thought you know he would pull maybe back off the rising stars event since he’s now GNA play in the game but that means Trish’s got to

Get up there on Thursday oh no she so she she will be busy Friday night she will be busy Saturday night she will be busy Sunday night and then I asked her I said well what time she said I got a 5:30 a.m. flight out Monday

Morning I got to get out of there and uh it’s just it’s a long for even if even if he’s not in all those events it’s a busy night with him just anyway right going to going to all the appearances and everything he’s going to have he’s

Going to have a media circuit to go through uh which is great you know and it’s going to be great for he’s going to get to do some things he’s never done before and uh he’ll be excited and everybody will be excited in his Camp it’s his first time there there’s

Nothing like going there for the first time uh it’s uh but I plan on being nowhere near Indianapolis I plan on being here in Orlando my kids will still be at school the lacrosse season Dante has started oh yeah okay okay okay we’ll be doing that you’re in the busy season

Well Jake just so you know when we go to Indianapolis to play the Pacers he doesn’t stay stay in Indianapolis anyway he stays in Chicago and then drives over special exemption special exemption about you Jake Jak Jake you get a chance to decompress a little bit right with

That what almost 10-month old I do I do we’re gonna I’m not sure if decompress is the way to describe it we’re gonna go on our first plane flight with uh with with little Josie she is second really oh that’s big news hitting nine months and we’re going to go to Philadelphia

See my sister my parents are drive from Cleveland to Philly so just a few days we’re going to fly out on Friday and come back on Monday then hopefully get a beach day on Tuesday or Wednesday hopefully the weather’s good enough because we we need one of those you may

Get less rest you may get less rest than Trish right exactly exactly on the flight alone just on the FL yeah exactly that’s George that’s busy I mean that is that is a lot of work and I’m I’m gonna tell you this right now as soon as you

Sit down everyone around you goes oh boy oh yeah I I I I am going to have my you know when you walk on the plane I I’m not somebody who puts my head down and walks forward my eyes are dting around I I always make eye contact with people

When I get on the plane just see what see what I’m working with and of course you always identify the first potential crying baby and now that’s going to be me it’s gonna be me and Kelly our daughter walk on the plane going to identify one of these things as soon as

We walk by hey what what can you do right I figured philadelph is a good it’s a good what two hours in a little change flight it’s not too bad not going to Seattle um and you know we’ll try to time it up you get a bottle you get a

Nap in there and absolutely see how it works she’s kids cry kids cry everybody understands right George the crying kids you sometimes you just can’t it’s it’s the ones that make no attempt to stop it is where you have the problem right it’s the parents that say okay it’s fine hey

You know what it’s a crying baby I’m not going to do anything do everything you can to get the baby to stop and if she doesn’t she doesn’t and but but you gotta you got to give it an effort and I know you will that’s exactly and and

We’ve we’re already taking the proper precautions we went to the doctor to make sure she didn’t have an ear infection we get her flu flu booster listen don’t worry she’ll get she’ll have one when you get back no problem you will have a raging ear infection when you get back the doctor

By the way I this is why I love her doctor she literally said keep her in bubble wrap before until you get on the plane we got we got a week in the meantime so but we’re ready I’m excited for a’ all done it you’ll be fine’ll

Toally fine’ll then you wake up and she’s sucking on the armrest and you’re like okay this is not going to be good this is not going to be good but you’ll beine C they’re not sterilized you’d be surprised there’s not a thorough cleaning process on on those planes oh that’s great you’ll have

A great time I’m not going anywhere I’m not I feel like we’ve been uh we’ve been around enough so we’re just going to we’re just going to hunker down and enjoy a couple of days off and be ready to go here for the last 30 what I guess

27 at that point 27 games of the Season as they make their playoff points probably not a huge surprise guys um the NBA trade deadine line came and went and not a huge uh not any moves not a single move for the Orlando Magic but you didn’t know that there would be they’ve

Got a full roster and uh you know I’m sure you know as we know with Jeff Wellman he’s making calls he’s Fielding calls and if there was something out there that that made sense for this uh Magic organization he would have done it he we’ he’s SE we’ve seen in the past

He’s not afraid to make a move if one is there um but I’m not privy to to a ton of insight more than that but George I guess we can surmise without the deal without a deal being made that there wasn’t something he feel he felt comfortable pulling the trigger on and

Of course it always takes two to tango so so you need someone else to help you as well and maybe partly there’s the feeling that with these with this roster that we have now if we’re fully healthy with 30 games left let’s see what we can

Do here with the guys that we currently have on the team I you basically just took everything I was going to say and and and already said it so yeah Jeff is not going to be one to sacrifice something for the future uh just to try to accomplish something

Short term now that’s not to say that he’s not interested in you know like everybody else here making the playoffs and and making that push and and doing everything we can I think we have to always kind of take a step back a little bit and look where we are and right now

Like you said we’re what are we we’re four games over 500 if somebody would have told you I know training camp the before training camp that listen at the All-Star break you’re going to have the chance to be SI you know anywhere from four to seven games over 500 at the

All-Star break there is not one person in Central Florida or anybody that wears magic blue in the world correct correct that would have signed that would have said sign me up for that sign me up for that and a half a game out of six let’s

Let’s just add that to the mix too yeah you can’t control you can’t control the other teams right like you can’t control what they’re doing you can only control what the what what you’re doing and and if you would have said that you can be anywhere from four to seven games or

Over over 500 at the All-Star rate I’m there is not one person that would have said H we we we should be better than that right correct not a chance and so um I think the magic are are very happy with where we are I I think that and

That’s not to say that Jeff didn’t try to improve the roster he’s always looking and the B basketball operations staff is always looking to find ways where they can improve um but it’s not going to be at the sacrifice of something where you know you’re looking

Two years down the road and oh crap we shouldn’t have done that move so sometimes and we’ve seen it in other places Sometimes the best move is no move and only time will tell whether that was the right decision to make I do think that the magic are now looking at

Their roster and and seeing we have a full healthy roster for the first time all season our schedule does lighten up uh after the All-Star break and we’ve already accomplished what we’ve accomplished in the first 50 plus games with having guys in and out of the lineup with being very Road heavy two

West Coast trips two very long East Coast Midwest trips I I think the magic can we we Cann be in any better of a situation than we are right now and if we can get say two of these final three games in this home stand before we go to the all-star break

I think everybody in Magic Nation should be very happy with where the TEAM stands going into the home stretch well that have a chance to be four or five games over 500 going into the break very realistic if not better going into the All-Star break which is phenomenal uh

Then you look at that Jake and the other part of that is this team is seven and four with the starting lineup that we saw last night okay so that’s three games over 500 that that’s that’s kind of your difference right there but it’s been 11 games you’ve had that group

Intact in the starting lineup for 11 games right so let’s see right so it it I guess one way to look at it just to kind of piggy back on what George said and again there’s always magic fans that say why don’t you take the expiring contract of whoever and turn it into

Buddy heels or why don’t why you know why didn’t you trade Admiral scoffield and go get de jonte Murray well it doesn’t work that way right but that’s what magic fans do right they they look and say okay well there there must be scenarios where we can add to it first

Of all I don’t think you anyone should ever expect that there would be a wholesale change right if anything it would have been minor deal maybe to add some shooting or or things like that then you watch them last night they knocked down what they shoot 59% from

Three and you think okay maybe maybe they’ve got it in them maybe there’s enough in the tank to get through the final 30 games but maybe your moves are simply Jake you’ve got a fully healthy roster that was 11 times you’ve had that starting lineup last night let’s see

What they can do for the final 31 Dan you think about the bench all of a sudden you’ve got 10 guys who you know we envisioned as your rotation at the beginning of this season and and it’s been 12 games or whatever that we had

You know from 1 to 10 the guys in the in the spots that we envisioned for them um I think you know I I I think there was a thought that you know we know they’re not a great shooting team can we add some shooting but like who who in that

That top 10 is going to slide out we have shooting there it’s just hav who you have at the same time we’ve got 12 Road games left for cing Outlet I mean you talk about how how um how topheavy and front heavy the schedule was and and and and here we are so

Basically everything George said I agree with I just don’t understand especially because we were the fourth youngest roster in the NBA on opening night like we have a majority of our roster best basketball is in front of them you can make the argument that everybody on a

Roster their best basketball is in front of them you don’t want to trade away a guy too early and then all of a sudden it’s two three years from now and you’re going boy that would be nice and to me it’s George the the way George put it

Like you got to kind of stick to the timeline Paulo’s in year two fron is in year three when those guys are at the height of their powers is when we want the flexibility to be able to make that one move that we think puts us over the

Top and you got to keep all your chips in in in in in your corner for that moment and it might be a big move bring in a you know a perfect third compliment or it might be a small move at that point you tried a couple twos but

Oklahoma City did that and then they’re able to make a move and whether or not we think Gordon Hayward is the one to put him over the top Oklahoma City was in every conversation yesterday Sam presy could have done almost whatever he wanted to because he nailed the draft

For a few years and because he added all those assets and resisted the urge to make a small move for a few three or four wins this season you always have to have and this is what I love about Jeff welman in the front office you always

Have to have that sort of long-term Vision um in mind because you want to build something sustainable and you know prove positive is the Atlanta Hawks they mortgage their future for jante Murray he’s a good player he wasn’t enough to make them a championship Contender not

Even close um so I think the idea of of of sort of putting it all in when you’re early on in the timeline and Paulo in year two was first Allstar appearance just doesn’t make a ton of sense it’s very listen I it’s very hard if because

If it was me I I would be like yeah let’s go get whoever like let’s go get whatever Allstar now like the problem is is that it’s not fantasy basketball right we’ve all played fantasy basketball and we all feel like we know what we’re doing and we all know you

Know I can trade this you know this super you know this these two guys for a superstar um it’s good that we have guys in our front office that can look bigger P I am not one of those people I I want to I want to win now I want to win every

Day yes absolutely exactly not and not that they don’t it’s it’s a just a I want to play Isaac 45 minutes I’m with you I know just it’s really in in in January I want to do that in January exactly there has to be bigger picture

Thoughts when it comes to how this team is going to go and Jake hit it right on the head I think we are setting this up for when and that’s not again this is not to say we are not going to go try to get a playoff spot this year it’s not to

Say we’re going to go try to win a playoff series or two this year of course we’re going to do that but you do have to have bigger picture in mind and like you said when FR I love that when fron and Paulo hit their super superpower time yeah exactly exact

Listen then that hopefully you have set this up correctly uh Oklahoma city is in a different place than we are as much as we want to try to compare ourselves with them listen they’re in first place in the west absolutely Absolut first place in the west the magic are not so you

Can’t you can’t it’s not it’s not a parallel road with us in oklah with somebody like Oklahoma City um our time will come and again we’ve played 12 13 games with our full roster out of 52 and now we have it again and now from in a stretch between March and April

We’re going to have 10 of 11 home games against teams that are sub 500 which we’ve done very well at especially at home this schedule will let let up and we are poised to have a nice Strong finish to this season and then maybe we can make some noise in the playoffs well

I’m I’m all for that and and listen you look at the guys you’ve got and I think I think the thing that frustrates some magic fans is this is the second round is the second round picks that you get something to fill a need right I think

That’s when you look and say okay well you got this guy for just a pick you didn’t even have to lose a player but then and I think to to kind of you guys’ point as well well who does that person replace in your lineup right because

You’re kind of Rolling Along right now everybody kind of understands their rle you look at a guy like Gary Harris and I think everybody thought maybe with that contract you know that would be a desirable thing for other teams and I I’m looking at it you’re 19 and 12 when

Gary plays you’re 19 and 12 in games when he plays you’re 17 and six when he hits a three one three that the the difference for this team if somebody can step up from time to time and make an additional three that means all the world to this team right they’re they’re

One of the top third in the NBA in clutch games that they’ve been in decided by five points or less you’re you’re one or two made baskets away from having a completely different record right and that that’s just that’s just one guy who’s playing about 17 18

Minutes listen I I called you yesterday after for the deadline and we just had a chat like we normally do and I said to you like we don’t even need let’s just take Gary and Joe for example right I don’t even need them to hit a three

Correct well that’s to I just need them to be on the floor to take a guy 18 inches off the block I don’t I don’t we I don’t need I don’t need the magic to be to shoot 39 it’d be kickass and amazing if the magic get you 39% from

Three but just the fact that those guys are on on the floor and can be on the floor and I think that goes to the numbers you just said and being healthy being whole and so I think we are set up in a in a great place down the stretch

Here no I I yeah I no I completely agree so that I think that you factor all that in and those are just a couple of small examples that you look at if you’re the front office saying all right well let’s roll with what we got right we don’t

Know what the future looks like for Marquel we don’t know what the future looks like you know for for some of these other guys on the roster but we’ve got to this point we’re going to have them for the rest of the for the rest of the duration let let’s see what they

Look like here down the stretch right so I’m knocking on every piece of wood around here I know me too me too that right on everything now that being said you haven’t had a record of Health for these guys so it is hard to bank on that

For the final 30 games but hey we’re in a good position as as far as that goes there might be a couple of back-to-back scenarios where you may not have a guy or two you know for for a handful of games but for the most part this is the

Roster you have intact so that I think we would all agree right so that the trade deadline comes and goes maybe those are some of the factors that went into it and this is what we’ve got for the duration not forgetting anything right we we we think we think we’ve

Covered all that I think so it is the last thing I was goingon to add is like when I was sitting there and going through okay who are guys who might be available who who might be a good fit I was basically naming other teams version of Gary Harris and Joe Engles right

Right we’re g to bring in a veteran who defends well you know at the point of attack doesn’t need the ball in his hands in a good spacer for Paul and France oh wait a second we have that guy he’s just de with injury issues so far

This year so if he is if he is locked in and healthy coming down the stretch it’s that that’s the perfect example of of when you see it in another uh in another Jersey you’re going oh we need him we need that guy Emanuel quickly when everybody was talking about he was

Available from the Knicks and I and I see all this discourse on Twitter I’m going we have aanuel quickly his name’s Cole Anthony you know like everybody it’s always it’s always kind of the grass is greener over there we’ve got we I think we have the roster in place here

Um and they’ve proven it so far without health and with the tough schedule as we mentioned here we are four games above 500 we’ve had a lot of conversations over the years all of us with other teams you know broadcasters PR staff whatever where we look at somebody from

Afar and like wow we’d really like to have that guy and then you have a conversation with that guy and they’re like oh you you can you can have him like that guy you can’t say and it’s people like people would have no idea the the caliber of of of Stars even

Where you’ve had a conversation and you’re just like man he’s got to be great you know like I’d love to have him and they’re turn around being it’s just like you said The Grass Is Always Greener somebody else another girl’s always prettier like it’s not necessarily the case so uh listen let’s

Ride with what we have let’s let’s let’s let’s let well and if you want to make a move you can do it this summer you’re two months away right you’re two months away from the you know from the playoff starting so you can go you can pursue

Anything you want you haven’t given up any any you haven’t given up any assets any draft compensation and I guess the last part of this I I will piggy back on guys can say they don’t worry about the trade deadline all they want guys can say they don’t care coach can say you

Know control the things you can control and all that and that’s right that that’s how you have to approach it but there was a different feeling in that locker room yesterday before the game knowing that okay this is everybody’s here there were a lot more Smiles it was

A lot less tense you went out and had one of your best offensive games of the season I think guys weren’t pressing I think that’s another part of it right the final 30 games and we’ll touch on that next you know guys got to play better there are some guys that got to

You got to shoot better you got to play better you got to protect the ball better um and that’s what happens you need that in the playoff push anyway but don’t you feel like okay this is this is what you got and it looked to me like it

Was a it was just the weight was lifted off a lot of guys shoulders last night but Jake you were at shoot around yesterday I mean there were a lot of guys it’s it’s it’s human nature we we were all on our phones we were all on

Our phones as guys started to do media availability yesterday and that’s when a couple of the you know a couple of the Nick steals went down or and they they you know it’s just it’s w bomb after Shams bomb after W bomb yeah right right

And we’re not the only ones that do that I mean like J Jaylen came out to do an interview for me and the first thing he said was he’s like whoa crap you see you know see the Knicks just got you know bed on and it’s like they’re all looking

At it and but the pro the difference between me and them is they could go at any minute yeah true yeah has to be that has to be an unnerving feeling absolutely uh for for a young guy like that’s that’s on his own for a guy that

Has a family like it’s a very nervous time for all the players uh no matter who you are because it’s been proven over the years that nobody is is untradeable Right nobody’s untradeable so it’s and to Jeff’s credit with all that being said am I gonna pull the trigger

Am I going to do something just to do something right and uproot someone for something that I’m not convinced is going to is going to be that much better than what we’ve already got and you don’t know how it’s going to affect the other guys in the lock yes

AB a may be really tight with player B and player B goes and that messes up player a that’s what that’s what I was going to say George it’s it it would never be the reason you wouldn’t make a deal because we want to keep our locker

Room together but we have talked all season long about the chemistry and the vibe within that locker room and it is unique I think we’ve been around long enough to know that not all teams are built this way and and and chemistry is chemistry you take away one piece and

You have no idea how it impacts let alone who are we bringing in are they going to take shots away from the guys who we need to still be developing there’s just so much more added in how many years are on their contract um you know who who represents them there are

So many layers to all of this when you make a move like that and and and we are not in the situation where the Detroit Pistons are where it’s like this clearly isn’t working we need to do stuff like they needed to do stuff for the sake of

Doing stuff because very clearly what they were doing was not working we we we feel like we’re we’re uh we’re on to something here and even those small minor moves can sometimes have big impacts now don’t get me wrong I would have liked to had buddy healed for a

Second round pick but but that deal wasn’t out there right takes two to tango it takes two to tango you’re exactly right that was that was a prominent thought that prominent thought on Magic Twitter yeah buy healed for like the bottom three guys of our roster yeah sure that it’s not gonna

Happen gonna happen team has to want that too so it’s not the way I did like I did like the tweet from Bill Simmons we need to we need to we need to rethink if Detroit should be allowed to make moves I thought that was brutal the way

They just blew that whole thing up my goodness so now the electricity in that building last night was Sensational I think one of the things that stood out to me was Jonathan Isaac uh rejecting the the dunk attempt by Victor wanyama he’s caught a couple of people and at

Some point people are going to stop uh trying to attack Jonathan Isaac right you know Jeff says it on the broadcast think twice think twice and then they’ll shoot and he’ll SWAT it away Jonathan Isaac the final 30 games right as you sit here now with 30 games left the

Minutes will start to creep up we’ve seen games where he finishes the entire fourth quarter right he he he’s he’s going to be a secret weapon or or an xfactor for this team uh if they’re going to move up in the standings and ultimately clinch a playoff spot what

Does it look like for him as as we look at minutes as we look at where he’s going to be potentially at the end of the season because he’s a Difference Maker and that was unbelievable that’s a 74 guy trying to throw it down over the

Top of you and you sent it into the stance it’s got to be really hard for Jamal Mosley to to keep him I mean you seen at Dante where he kind of always peeks over and asks you know you or me or Joel glass how many minutes is ji at

Because what do we say and what do we tell him I tell him four even if it’s the fourth quarter and he’s played at least 20 minutes I’m like that four minutes like got four minutes you’re all good everything’s he’s clear no but you still have to listen you know

The All-Star break is not where we want to get with Jonathan Isaac March 1 is not where we want to get with Jonathan Isaac we want get to May with Jonathan Isaac you’re right I mean we we and and and a full healthy Jonathan Isaac the

More he plays the more he can get through games you know with a slight tick up in in his minutes the more the more mentally healthy he has to be too to be out there as well and I think that’s a big thing with Jonathan is you

Know he he starts off slow he plays 10 minutes a game and all right my legs are good I can I can get through that now now we’re up to 15 now we’re up to 20 I’m not saying by the time we get to May he’s going to be playing 35 minutes a

Night that’s not going to happen because this is guy that’s been you know suffered through so much so we can’t can’t go ahead and do that to him but as as the season progresses here and he does what he did I mean last night was a

Was a master class I thought by Jonathan Isaac just and and on the offensive end too he’s he’s hitting the grass he’s running the floor I mean he runs like a gazelle nice pullup jumper yep he had a really good allaround game last night and and you’re right I don’t think I

Don’t think he’s going to surprise anybody everybody knows who Jonathan Isaac is um it’s a matter of him staying on the floor and it gives us so much versatility uh with lineups the things that Jamal has already I mean you’ve seen it with uh the end of game lineup

That he’s been thrown out there sometimes where you have frons at basically at the two uh where you have 610 610 610 7 foot I mean that’s a that’s a hell of a lineup it really is um and can just he can do so many more

Things Jamal when I say he knowing that Jonathan is is healthy and available remember last year when we were all excited about bub and moamba and and all the seven Footers this is the practical application of that this is the one that works when you go uh

Giant down the stretch I pulled the numbers the other day ji has played 20 or more minutes five times this season and teams are averaging 101.4 points per game against us in in those games it’s just a matter of getting them on the Flor and and I think what’s frustrating

Or the I think the reason that sometimes fans can’t figure out why he isn’t playing 28 30 minutes a game is because he’s not like a a shooter sitting in the corner who can’t move anymore and this is all he’s able to do he is one of the

Most athletic amazing freaks in in the league when he’s out there he’s one of the only guys who you could even consider in the same class with a guy like wanyama because he’s able to move his feet on the perimeter he can switch he can do absolutely everything you want

From an NBA Defender into 2024 um but there is that history and so you know a lot of it is being cautious if if the playoffs were tomorrow maybe you could get away with 28 minutes depending on how he feels um but but they’re not and so we need to be careful

You know sort of inching his way in but we see it I mean when coach Bosley has 12 minutes in his back pocket headed into the fourth quarter of a of a close game that’s a secret weapon man and and he is I mean he just absolutely wrecks

Um wrecks offensive game plans for opponents it’s going to be really big just keeping them right and and look I don’t if we need if he needs to skip a back to back here and there or Miami where he play 10 minutes God bless because come the back end of April

Hopefully we’re gonna need your big fell we’re gonna need your big fell but also and I’m not saying he’s going to shut these guys down but he’s going to make these guys work in a first round playoff series you start sizing up who you could match up with right if you end up

Getting eighth and you play Boston they have the ability to to to put 20 minutes of Isaac on Tatum at least make him work for it right you haven’t had that right for for the last couple of years walk with Yannis right you start sizing up

Fre absolutely Absolut but but a lot of the a lot of the iron at the top of the conference are are exactly who he would guard right so I think you start at least to give yourself a chance right to to to at least try to slow down a guy

Like that as much as humanly possible if they can be slowed down so I think he be he becomes critical and I think we saw when fron Vagner was out we saw the usage rate climb up for Apollo banero and you wonder okay at some point you

Got to ease off of that guy right and we’ve seen it here the last couple of weeks I think the All-Star break is going to be good for him not that not that he’s going to get a ton of rest but it’s not going to be hard on his legs

He’s not going to be out playing competitive basketball games the rising stars challenge the skills competition the All-Star break I think he’s you know you don’t go hard in those things and then he’s going to have the four days off after uh one of them being a travel

Day to get up to Cleveland so I think that’s going to be a break whereas conversely if fron vogner hasn’t had a break in three years right since he’s come to the NBA with feba and all that stuff so I I think those eight games off

That he had with the ankle he probably needed three days off with the ankle but you decided to give him a little extra rest and I think that’s why the last couple of games we’ve seen 38 34 last night against San Antonio I think that guy’s fresh and I think that’s going to

Help him here going down the stretch the thing I love and and and you and Q touched on it postgame last night after the Spurs game this team is just built to where let’s take Palo bank right he had a street going last night of 17 games in a

Row or eight I’m sorry 18 games in a row with 20 and five assists 20 points and five assists and he was close to it last night but he knew fron had it going and and he doesn’t you know it’s all about they’re so team oriented and it’s

Correct and it’s great that your top two players are team oriented like they fron does not care if he scores 12 and Pao goes for 35 Pao does not care if fron is going for 30 and he’s only got 14 it’s all about who has more points at the on

The scoreboard at the end of the night and uh it’s just I really refreshing it’s refreshing very refreshing we’ve seen it the other way where somebody’s got to get theirs and listen that’s why this team is having success again if you if you would have told me we would be in

This position in August you’d all have taken it everybody would have taken it and I think it just goes back to how this team is shaping up I agree Bon is hitting his stride I mean FR we knew fron wasn’t going to shoot 19% from three for the whole year right water

Usually settles and he’s gonna he’s gonna tick that back up to I’m not gonna lie I thought we might as a team but but I’m not gonna lie to but but you’re right but but I knew it wouldn’t be him but we’re s we’re coming out of that too

Which is nice and maybe you’re right maybe those maybe that was a little you know and not it’s not to say those guys don’t work hard when they’re out because they’re working hard to get back on the floor um but everything has looked better for fron not to say he was

Playing bad before the injury because he was averaging 20 but the three is starting to look better it’s got a little more arc on it he he he looks fresher like you said his legs maybe got a little break where we wouldn’t have anticipated that in January now listen

Two more things I just want to touch on the on the last 30 games of the Season kind of what that looks like and then all-star weekend right with Paulo and and all and the magic are well represented which is going to be pretty cool but at at the time of this right

The Magic by the way are are fighting off a Chicago Bulls team that seems to have caught life right so Chicago’s right behind you three games behind you Pro you know Atlanta is Catching Fire too although they’ve lost two in a row uh they have the ability to to catch

Fight so those two teams aren’t going anywhere you’re going to have to fight them off the rest of the way but you’re tied with Miami right so you you you lose the tiebreaker because they win the season series um but you’re you know so you’re tie you’re half a game out of six

With Indiana who you’ve beaten twice you played them two more times but you’ve already beaten them twice and now you start looking at things guys listen anything’s possible here in the Eastern Conference you have to win it all starts with what you do in this locker room and

I think the big thing is you’ve got what 30 games left you have 17 games against opponents that are 500 or under right so that should be setting up finally you haven’t had that we just came through that 22 game stretch where you’re hoping

To be above 500 at the end of it and you are you’re now four games over 500 so so the schedule should lighten up for you here down the stretch your home game Heavy you’ve got got an eight-game home stand now you start thinking and again

You don’t want to get too ahead of yourself but he say he smiles Jake you’re three games behind Philadelphia who knows what Philadelphia looks like with the Joel embiid situation right you don’t know when or if you’re going to get him back uh but they’re free falling right

Now we assume that New York is going to get these guys in take off and I think they will I I think they will because Jaylen Brunson is just on a mission right now um but but what if it doesn’t work what if it doesn’t work with New

York and then the last part of it is anyone convinced that Milwaukee is going to take off right they’re one in five since they’ve hired Doc Rivers I don’t think it was all Adrien Griffin’s fault I don’t I’m not saying this is Doc’s fault but clearly there’s something that

Just isn’t quite working with Milwaukee you’re one and one against the Bucks and you play them two more times at the end of the season now that terrifies me I think Milwaukee’s going to figure it out and ultimately get second in the Eastern Conference but we don’t know we don’t

Know you could go potentially as high as fourth Maybe maybe even third in the Eastern confence if you get red hot so the overarching theme of the this edition of pod squad is we’re going to be the second best team in the year we’re gonna win the East we’re gonna

That’s that’s we just we just went from trying to battle for six seven and like Dante is like hey you know what screw it we’re winning the East every everything’s I sit down with Josh I sit down with Josh Cohen and he goes you know I kind of ran some of the numbers

And I don’t know what that means I don’t know what that means but I know especially when Josh is saying ESP from orl magic.com but I know I know 97% of of his life is crunching the numbers so I don’t doubt what he says that’s true

And he said there is a path you know if everything plays out how it should and this team beats this team and this that the magic could get fourth in the Eastern Conference right the numbers if we go 29 and one over the last 30 Games shot but I don’t doubt I don’t

Doubt that he’s got the lights off in his room and he’s got a black light and he’s writing on the walls and he’s crunching the numbers he’s got it all figured out why is he doing it in Black I don’t know why he’s doing it that’s just just how I imagine he

Crunches numbers Jake talk to him about that he can’t be doing that in blacklight while he’s developing the film in the back he’s got exactly it works better he’s got the guy’s a multimedia M for crying out loud he’s got to the madness believe me but I but

Anyway I look at it I say there there’s so I don’t we don’t know what the East is gonna look like so could I yeah I think at the bare minimum this magic team should be fighting like heck to get to avoid play in I think there’s a real

Possibility you could grab six maybe even go as high as as four or five in the East yeah I when you look at who’s playing well right now you mentioned Chicago it seems like they found something I’m not particularly worried about them they also lost Zack LaVine

For the rest of the year um but you know it’s it seems to have helped them is what I was just gonna say yeah well but but I think long ter that’s fine and by the way Kobe white I think we should probably be talking about the year that

That guy’s have and he’s been light out and V is playing really well as of late and they did I think the fact that they sat on their hands at the deadline probably tells you that they feel okay about themselves either that or they think that’s the best chance to not get

Everybody fired which is probably more more likely the case self-preservation you know you gotta get to that point this time of year um Boston is Boston the Cavaliers have been insane you’re right about Milwaukee like there was something wrong there and and I don’t care if you bring in Greg papovich you

Can’t fix it like that immediately no coach has that much power um so we’ll see I mean Milwaukee’s got more talent and just about anybody but it but there’s there’s clearly like some issues there and it’s mostly on the defensive end I I’m scared of New York to be

Honest with you I think they made yesterday abolutely they’re redot beyond that so I just did Boston Cleveland and New York I think are are are playing the best in the conference and I think catching any of of those three I aside from that I could see a free fall for

Any of these teams Indiana doesn’t scare me at all um and the Sixers is going to be really interesting to see can Tyrese Maxi slide into into that role and carry a team for 30 games and and kind of tread water until potentially and beat plays again I have a feeling we won’t

See him again this year it just doesn’t the door open but with with how cautious they are with him for sure I I could certainly see worth it yeah I don’t I don’t think so so you’re right like like and that’s where we are right now and I think that’s one of the

Reasons you don’t make a move and mess with it because you do look ahead and say look if we just kind of keep doing what we’re doing right now I mean even if we you know even if we tread water the rest of the way and we’re sitting

There four games above 500 at the uh at the end of the season or heading into April that could be good enough to be out of the playin depending on what teams like Philadelphia and Indiana uh end up doing so uh I think you’re in a

Good spot and and it it certainly helps that we have so many darn home games coming up that eight game home stand in March is a godsent I mean it should anyways listen that could put you in a good spot I’m well aware we wouldn’t be

Saying any of these things if if we lost to San Antonio last night so so this thing comes and go comes and goes game by game right but right now it’s set you you’re hand you’re you’re winning the games you’re supposed to win that’s all you especially the three of us can you

Imagine if we lost that game last night and then we we jump on here today would be no podcast I told you guys to go pound s we’re not doing a podcast tonight there’s no there’s no chance we’re doing a podcast but you but you but they do what they’re supposed to do

They they you know they’ve struggled at times but they’ve beat some of the best teams uh but they’re beating the teams are supposed to be and and that that’s all you can ask for here down the stretch real quick before we get out of here the magic are going to be well

Represented next week and next week on pod squad Jake Chapman and I are going to catch up uh with with Pete delandro in the front office for the Orlando Magic so that’s going to be fun and salary cap we’ll kind of get into some numbers and you should have Josh Cohen

On with the black light with Pete on that on that episode I want to compare I want to see how he crunches numbers as opposed to Josh Cohen can I just say real fast a prame media meal with Josh Cohen that is that is that’s perfect

That is the perfect way to get ready for a broadcast because I come out of there smarter no matter what that dude is non-stop info I need one of you two to ask that should be Pete your first question to Pete is does he crunch the

Numbers for the cap and with a black light do that I think that would uh that would set the tone for the podcast next week would be I think like the number like the movie 23 and everybody’s just writing on the walls and just obsess with numbers but that’s probably not how

It is that’s probably not how it is for all not for all analy people the magic are going to be well represented during all-star weekend this is going to be cool guys with with Pao banero obviously in the big game the rising stars challenge you’re GNA have mck mclung

With the Oola magic I think that I’d love to see that guy get a chance with the Orlando Magic at some point the problem is it would come at someone’s expense and I that’s hard to look and say who who you want to get rid of

Because because uh but you want the guy to get an opportunity he’s who do you want to get rid of say it who do you want to get rid of oh boy don’t do that no you can’t no that’s the thing that everybody joking you’ve got you’ve got

Two or three guys that can I think can really help you but can’t even get on the floor you know because you’ve got guys in front of you that are just offer more right now green go started to combine like 70 games or something this year that’s the thing you’ve got guys

Waiting in the wings that are very good NBA players that just can’t get on the floor right now so um so if you even if you added M MCL it’s not like you could add him on to the floor I hope an NBA team gives him a chance cuz I think he’s

An NBA player but he’s going to be represent in the Oola magic in the slam dunk contest we know how electrifying he was last year Jaylen Brown will be a part of the dunk contest this is going to be cool guys to see the magic heavily represented you’re going to get some

National attention with Shaquille O’Neal having his jersey retired in your building that’ll be the first jersey to go up in in the magic Rafters kind of some fun national attention coming Orlando’s way finally here coming up next week playing his first nationally televised game yes and he’s already been

Named in allar is that that’s right right like that’s I mean yeah trust me I’ve had lots of con I had somebody call me from the NBA the other day and and say something about Paulo at Allstar and and doing some Media stuff or whatever

For for ESPN or TNT and I was just like why why why am I in a hurry to help them out boy and I was kidding I was I was well I was half kidding I had my tongue and cheek but they know they know that

Every time they bring up national TV or something to do with the national Affiliates that they’re they’re before I agree and say yes which I which we do I’m always going to kind of give him a little jab for yeah you know we haven’t been on national TV very much in the

Last 12 plus years we have the number one pick he was almost the unanimous Rookie of the Year and you still only gave us one I but I digress now see you’re getting me all riled up this is but but but the counter to that is we

Have not been four games over 500 on February 9th since 2012 in a long time in a long 2012 it is hard to look it’s hard to look and say boy we got to have that team on on national TV but but we’ve had better we have had we have

Certainly been more deserving than no games I would like I would like to hope that as teams you know we see it all the time games get flexed out as the year goes on right um there’s there’s a long stretch here where I do think there’s a

A good possibility of us getting pick you know getting games picked up here along the way as they if we can keep doing what we’re doing and heading into the playoffs I we’re going to be hard to ignore pao’s going to be at All-Star Weekend the guy is is so deserving I

Mean everybody’s seen the the night where he got you know where he finally got the nod and and the reserves were announced just that feeling for him and the team and and everybody involved uh very excited for pao very excited for the magic listen this is what we’ve been

Wanting right this is what we’ve been craving for years and it just this is the light at the tunnel it this is what we’ve been hoping for and you can see it now from a distance and it’s a very very exciting time and I get magic fans

Pushing for you know dant w why aren’t you pushing for nationally televised games I don’t work nationally televised games we don’t broadcast those so when it’s on TNT we we don’t we have the night off which is cool once in a while it’ be awesome on Tuesday for the Sha

Thing but you’re never going to hear me push I I like when the games are on Bley Sports Florida uh when we we can go up against ESPN but for those that don’t know you know we we we are not it’s an exclusivity TNT has the rights and it’s

Not like we broadcast simultaneously but I love the exposure we got to get the exposure and we’re in the conversation now it’s coming absolutely absolutely and there’ll be more and more games and I I don’t think we can hide from it next year for sure and we’ve earned it right

We we we’ve earned it and we’ll be and and Jake will be with Josie on Jet Blue looking on the plane right watching watching the highlights coming back it’ll be uh it’ll be a lot of fun here next week all right guys well good stuff

We we got 30 games to go and good luck to us it’ll be a lot of fun here the last two months we’ve not had probably been about 10 12 years since since we’ve had that kind of this excitement goinging into the final two months of a season uh let’s enjoy it

Let’s uh let’s avoid the play in let’s grab a playoff spot here in the next two months I’ll do my best Dante all right do your best do your best that’ll do it for this edition of magic pod squad we’ll see you next time with Pete

Delandro will join Jake and I next week you don’t want to miss that on Magic pod squad I

Listen to the latest edition of Pod Squad where the group talks all-star break , trade deadline recap and more!

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