No Magic Left In Orlando Offense With Scott Gone
Who figured the loss of Dennis Scott would hurt the Orlando Magic? But beyond Anfernee Hardaway, the Magic just can’t score, averaging 88 points a game in the exhibition season.
Said coach Chuck Daly: “It’s a problem we’ll have to address, but I don’t sense any easy solution. Somebody has to make a shot, and we’re not making them. I’m not sure this won’t be a persistent problem all year long.”
One problem is Nick Anderson. Moved to small forward with Hardaway installed at shooting guard, Anderson is continuing his slump from last season, shooting 30.5 percent in the first six exhibition games. He hadn’t attempted one free throw and had drawn Daly’s wrath for lax play on defense.
“I don’t know what it’s all about,” Daly said. “Either you’re a basketball player or you’re not. He’s getting every opportunity to perform. The defense is what bothers me. If you can’t do something offensively, do something at the defensive end.”
Anderson, trying contact lenses this season, isn’t fighting Daly.
“I figure he wants the best for me. People who don’t know this game take it out of context and say, ‘Well, he doesn’t think too much of Nick Anderson.’ He’s going to challenge me,” Anderson said.
Jazz owner disses Malone
Karl Malone, trying to soothe a negative community reaction from preseason comments about feeling disrespected by the team, invited more than a dozen reporters to his home for an explanatory session.
Malone said he felt betrayed when owner Larry Miller didn’t back him after he criticized teammates for being out of shape.
“I’m disappointed Larry said I was just spouting my mouth off,” Malone said. “That showed me no respect. It should have been, ‘I agree with him.”’
All of this, though, seems to come down to contract problems. The Jazz re-signed six players after last season, and Malone said they never talked to him about an extension. He might look to move when his deal is up after the 1998-99 season.
Around the league
The Spurs are talking about dealing Will Perdue again. With the quick development of Tim Duncan, who’s already outplaying David Robinson, they think they’re a scorer away from getting to the Finals…. With the season opening Friday, the biggest names available are Cedric Ceballos in Phoenix and Mitch Richmond in Sacramento. There’s talk the Lakers might try to move Eddie Jones for Richmond.
The Nuggets are expected to release point guard Sherman Douglas, whom they just got from Cleveland for Greg Graham. Why the deal? The Nuggets had to take Graham from Seattle to get rid of Dale Ellis. Douglas has just one year left on his contract and Graham has two…. New Jersey Nets forward Keith Van Horn, the No. 2 pick in the NBA draft, will be sidelined for 3-4 weeks by a badly sprained right ankle.