Report: Orlando Magic's Center Dwight Howard Wants Changes To Roster

[Josh Dhani]

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The Orlando Magic had a good off-season last year, having a highlight of adding small forward Vince Carter after Hedo Turkoglu left.

 

Adding Carter and couple of other players seemed good enough for an NBA championship in Orlando.

 

The Magic went on to win 59 games and sweeping the Charlotte Bobcats and the Atlanta Hawks in the first two rounds of the 2010 NBA Playoffs.

 

But it wasn't enough for the Eastern Conference Finals, as the Magic displayed a poor performance against the Boston Celtics and getting beat in six games.

 

After the Game Six loss, Dwight Howard said after the game that he wants changes to the roster.

 

"We've got to learn from our mistakes," Howard said. "Next year, we've got to have guys who are willing to give everything they've got to get wins."

 

He went on then about his Magic not having enough talent to challenge the veteran, but still bright, Celtics.

 

"In a series like this, it's not about skill or talent because it's the Eastern Conference championship. Both teams are talented and skilled. It's about who wants it the most, and who is willing to do it for a series. Those guys (Celtics) played like they wanted to win the championship. That's why they are in the position they are now."

 

Howard only played four games in this series, which doesn't seem right. He played miserable in Game One.

 

We've seen those commercials on television of Howard saying, "All we got to do is focus."

 

Well, he didn't focus very well in this series, that's for sure.

 

"There's no need to kick ourselves. We went down because we didn't play as hard as we could," Howard said. "You have to play as hard as you can for as long as you can, and everyone didn't do that."

 

Howard averaged 21.8 points and 10.8 rebounds per game in the series.

 

The part that was really disappointing were the performances of Rashard Lewis and Vince Carter.

 

Lewis came up big in last year's NBA Playoffs, but there was no hope for him this season; especially in the Eastern Conference Finals.

 

Vince Carter came in here to be a monster, but he acted like a mediocre slob.

 

Carter is getting older by the second, and at 33 years old, he doesn't deserve the money he is receiving now. I have a feeling he can't live up to expectations for next year.

 

And Lewis is largely overpaid after seeing his performance this year.

 

However, Jameer Nelson is a valuable point guard to this roster. The Magic look to add another to compliment him.

 

Man, do the Magic regret letting go of Courtney Lee and Rafer Alston. They were important pieces to last year's title run, but they weren't here for this year's.

 

Orlando is looking to pursue J.J. Reddick for a reduced amount next year. I guess we will see how that goes.

 

"This is as disappointing as it gets," said coach Stan Van Gundy. "Yeah, it's tough to take. I liked our talent. I liked our commitment throughout the year. When you have that as a coach, you feel like you should be able to get them over the top. It's disappointing that we didn't get the job done."

 

I hear ya.