Magic at Spurs
THE STORY: The Orlando Magic are reportedly doing everything in their power to make Dwight Howard happy. If what he really wants is to win games, they’re starting to do that with some regularity as well. With Thursday’s trade deadline looming, the Magic went out on Tuesday and knocked off the Miami Heat, 104-98, in overtime behind 24 points and 25 rebounds from Howard. The final game before the deadline is Wednesday, when Orlando faces the San Antonio Spurs. Tony Parker has been hot lately but the Spurs have struggled against winning teams on their current homestand.
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, SUN (Orlando), FSSW (San Antonio)
ABOUT THE MAGIC (28-15): Rumors swirled on Tuesday morning that Orlando, in an effort to placate Howard, would allow the superstar to decide the fate of both the coach and general manager. And Howard, after Tuesday’s win, said to the press, “I’ve been telling these guys for the past two or three weeks now that I want to stay and finish the season.” Of course, the whole point in trading him is so that the franchise is not left empty-handed should he choose to leave over the summer. On the court, the Magic have won three straight - all over fellow East playoff contenders.
ABOUT THE SPURS (27-13): San Antonio has beaten up on the likes of Washington, New York and Charlotte on its current seven-game homestand while falling to playoff teams Chicago, Denver and the Los Angeles Clippers. Parker sat out the 120-108 loss to the Clippers with a quad strain but returned to the lineup on Monday and dominated, putting up 31 points on 13-of-18 shooting against the Wizards. The Spurs were 13-1 at the AT&T Center before the current homestand.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Howard’s effort on Tuesday marked his eighth 20-point, 20-rebound game of the season.
2. San Antonio F Tim Duncan moved past Clyde Drexler into 25th place on the all-time scoring list Monday.
3. San Antonio has taken three of the last four in the series.