25-year old center Dwight Howard is ready for what could be his last season with the Magic. Howard played in 78 games (all starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 37.6 minutes, 22.9 points, 14.1 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.4 steals and 2.4 blocked shots per game. Howard has now played in 567 games (566 starts) in his first 7 years with the Magic and he is averaging 36.0 minutes, 18.2 points, 12.9 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.0 steal and 2.2 blocked shots per game. Daniel Orton might get a chance to backup Dwight Howard. Orton didn’t get into any games as a rookie for the Magic last year. He did play in 2 games for the New Mexico Thunderbirds last year and he averaged 21.0 minutes, 10.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 blocked shot per game.

26-year old Brandon Bass and 23-year old Ryan Anderson teamed up to give the Magic outstanding production in 2010-11 at power forward and they hope that it continues in 2011-12. Bass finally got his chance to play a lot last year and he started to show what he can do. Bass played in 76 games (51 starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 26.1 minutes, 11.2 points, 5.6 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game. He has now played in 336 games (59 starts) in his first six years in the NBA and he is averaging 18.4 minutes, 7.7 points, 4.1 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. Ryan Anderson gave the Magic quite a jolt off the bench. Anderson has played in 64 games (14 starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 22.3 minutes, 10.6 points, 5.5 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game. Anderson has now played in 193 games (50 starts) in his first three years in the NBA and he is averaging 18.9 minutes, 8.6 points, 4.5 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. 22-year old rookie Justin Harper out of Richmond will be #3 in line at power forward for the Magic. They acquired him in a draft day deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Orlando Magic need 32-year old small forward Hedo Turkoglu to step up in 2011-12. He played in 81 games (72 starts) for the Suns & Magic last year and he averaged 31.4 minutes, 10.8 points, 4.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game. Turkoglu did shoot 41% from three point range last year and the Magic need him to shoot like that again this year while averaging 15 or more points per game in 2011-12. Turkoglu has now played in 833 games (515 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 28.5 minutes, 12.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. 31-year old Quentin Richardson will be Turkoglu’s backup once again in 2011-12. Richardson played in 57 games (19 starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 16.8 minutes, 4.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. He has now played in 734 games (484 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 27.1 minutes, 10.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.

27-year old J.J. Redick might finally get his shot to be a starter in the NBA this year for the Orlando Magic.  Redick played in 59 games (5 starts) for the Magic last year and he averaged 25.6 minutes, 10.1 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.  He has now played in 281 games (19 starts) in his first five years in the NBA and he is averaging 19.0 minutes, 7.7 points, 1.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.  Redick has shot 39.4% from behind the three point line so far in his career, so he will be able to help spread the offense and help open the paint more for Dwight Howard.  29-year old Gilbert Arenas will likely back up Redick in 2011-12.  Arenas played in 70 games (16 starts) for the Wizards & Magic last year and he averaged 25.7 minutes, 10.8 points, 2.7 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game.  He has now played in 535 games (455 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 35.8 minutes, 21.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 1.6 steals per game.

29-year old Jameer Nelson will be back as the starting point guard in 2011-12 for the Magic.  He played in 76 games (all starts) last year for the Magic and he averaged 30.5 minutes, 13.1 points, 3.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.0 steal per game.  Nelson also shot 40.1% from three point range last year, which is impressive.  Nelson has now played in 470 games (375 starts) in his first seven years with the Magic and he is averaging 28.0 minutes, 12.5 points, 3.0 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 1.0 steal per game.

29-year old Chris Duhon will be Nelson’s caddy again in 2011-12.  He was terrible in his first year with the Magic.  He played in 51 games (5 starts) last year for the Magic and he averaged 15.2 minutes, 2.5 points, 1.0 rebound and 2.3 assists per game.  Duhon has now played in 497 games (301 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 27.1 minutes, 7.2 points, 2.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game.  The Magic need Duhon to earn his paycheck in 2011-12.

51-year old head coach Stan Van Gundy keeps getting his team close but he hasn’t gotten a cigar yet. The Magic were 59-23 (72%) during the regular season last year and they were 10-4 (71.4%) during the post season. Van Gundy now has a 170-76 (69.1%) record during the regular season in his three years in Orlando and he is 28-20 (58.3%) in the post season. The Magic have been the best team in Florida since the day Van Gundy took the job. But his old team (the Miami Heat) and the guy who replaced him in Miami (Pat Riley) are a threat to that crown. I still think the Magic are a better team than the Heat because the Heat has no answer for Dwight Howard. Stan Van Gundy now has a career record of 282-149 (65.4%) and he is 45-31 in the post season (59.2%). I look for Van Gundy’s team to make a deep run in the playoffs and be a serious threat to win it all.

25-year old center Dwight Howard is the best the NBA has to offer as his position. He plays with power and speed as he is a elite defensive player and rebounder. Howard played in 82 games (all starts) for the Magic last season and he averaged 34.7 minutes, 18.3 points, 13.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 2.8 blocked shots per game. He has now played in 489 games (488 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 35.7 minutes, 17.5 points, 12.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 2.1 blocked shots per game. The only weakness in Howard’s game is his free throw shooting as he has only made 59.9% of them in his NBA career so far.

26-year old Marcin Gortat is one of the best back up centers in the NBA. Gortat played in 81 games (0 starts) for the Magic last season and he averaged 13.4 minutes, 3.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game. He has now played in 150 games (3 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 12.8 minutes, 3.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game. Gortat is a great defensive player and rebounder who would be starting for a lot of teams in the NBA.

20-year old Daniel Orton was the Magic’s first round pick in the NBA Draft. He is a project as he is nowhere near ready to play in the NBA right now. Orton played in 38 games in his only year at Kentucky and he averaged 13.2 minutes, 3.4 points, 3.3 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE MAGICS CENTERS IN 2010-2011: A+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

31-year old Rashard Lewis has a small forward’s game but the Magic keep playing him at power forward. Lewis played in 72 games (all starts) for the Magic last season and he averaged 32.9 minutes, 14.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He has now played in 849 games (760 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 34.4 minutes, 16.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Lewis has hit 39.2% from three point range in his career as he is by far the best shooting power forward in the NBA. Still, 4.4 rebounds per game from a starting power forward in the NBA is pretty darn pathetic.

25-year old Brandon Bass wants a bigger role with the Magic and he might just get it this year. Bass played in 50 games (3 starts) for the Magic last season and he averaged 13.0 minutes, 5.8 points, 2.5 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. He has now played in 260 games (8 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 16.2 minutes, 6.7 points, 3.7 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. Look for the Magic to use Rashard Lewis at small forward a little bit this year in an effort to get Bass more P.T. this year.

22-year old Ryan Anderson played in 63 games (6 starts) for the Magic last season and he averaged 14.4 minutes, 7.7 points, 3.2 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game. He has now played in 129 games (36 starts) in his first two years in the NBA and he is averaging 17.2 minutes, 7.6 points, 4.0 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. Anderson, like Bass, probably could use some more P.T. this year.

32-year old Malik Allen is also on hand for the Magic this year. Allen played in 51 games (3 starts) for the Nuggets last season and he averaged 8.9 minutes, 2.1 points, 1.6 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. Allen has now played in 460 games (125 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 15.4 minutes, 5.0 points, 2.9 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game. He will likely be sitting at the end of the bench for the Magic this year.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE MAGICS POWER FORWARDS IN 2010-11: B-

Matt Barnes is gone (he signed with the Lakers) but the Magic have replaced him with Quentin Richardson. This move will likely upgrade the offense a tad for the Magic this year. Richardson played in 76 games (75 starts) for the Heat last season and he averaged 27.4 minutes, 8.9 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. Adding Q-Rich gives the Magic another solid perimeter player as he hit 39.7% of his shots from three point range last season. Richardson has now played in 677 games (465 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 28.0 minutes, 11.2 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game. Richardson will likely play slighty over half the game for the Magic this year.

28-year old Mickael Pietrus is back to share time with Q-Rich. Pietrus played in 75 games (24 starts) for the Magic last season and he averaged 22.5 minutes, 8.7 points, 2.9 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. He has now played in 439 games (136 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 21.7 minutes, 8.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game. This pairing of Q-Rich & Pietrus could be very productive for the Magic in 2010-11.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE MAGICS SMALL FORWARDS IN 2010-11: C

33-year old Vince Carter is back to start at shooting guard for the Magic in 2010+2011. Carter played in 75 games (74 starts) for the Magic last season and he averaged 30.8 minutes, 16.6 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. He has now played in 852 games (844 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 37.1 minutes, 22.9 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game. Carter’s game is starting to slip quite a bit but he still will likely help the Magic for at least one more year.

26-year old J.J. Redick got a huge offer in free agency from the Chicago Bulls but the Magic matched it. Redick played in 82 games (9 starts) for the Magic last season and he averaged 22.0 minutes, 9.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. He has now played in 222 games (14 starts) in his time with the Magic and he has averaged 17.2 minutes, 7.0 points, 1.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. Redick has hit 39.2% of his shots from 3-point range in his NBA career and that’s what makes him so valuable on the Magic.