MyTenSense.com

Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy blamed himself and center Dwight Howard laid his head in his hand as they fielded the press’ questions about a 1-point loss to Cleveland after LeBron James’ buzzer-beating 3-pointer to tie the Eastern Conference Finals series at 1-1.
Sure, Van Gundy could have had a defender contest the Mo Williams inbound pass that led to James’ last second shot and he could have put two men on LeBron.
But the Magic shouldn’t be second-guessing themselves. After all, the Cavs were the ones in need of a little magic after giving up double-digit leads at home in Games 1 and 2, and it took the “biggest shot” of James’ career to keep Orlando from returning home with a 2-0 series lead.
Charles Barkley was one of the few NBA analysts who picked Orlando to win the Eastern Conference, and now he looks like a genius.
And I must admit I was like everyone else, hoping for an NBA Finals featuring No. 23 (James) vs. No. 24 (Lakers guard Kobe Bryant).
The ball is now literally in the Magic’s court with Games 3, 4 and 6 in Orlando’s Amway Arena, where Orlando is 2-0 against Cleveland this season, including a 29-point regular season victory, the Cavs’ worst of the season, early last month. Plus, the Magic is battle-tested after outlasting Philadelphia and Boston in six- and seven-game series, respectively, unlike the Cavs who cruised to eight consecutive double-digit victories to sweep their first two playoff opponents.
If the Magic actually puts together a complete-game effort instead of these second half comebacks, we may see Howard’s No. 12 vs. No. 16 (Lakers center Pau Gasol) or No. 31 (Nuggets center Nene) competing for the NBA championship.

By Teneshia LaFaye
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