ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -Never one to shy away from a question, Orlando Magic coach Stan Van Gundy didn’t back down at all during his news conference before Game 4 of the NBA finals on Thursday.
Van Gundy called the NBA’s age-limit rule a “shame.” He said the NCAA is “the worst organization going,” and he told reporters he could predict what the story would be depending on the outcome against the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Magic coach has always said he doesn’t like the NBA’s much-maligned rule that a player must be one-year removed from high school before he enters the league. That rule has only been magnified during the finals, with five of the 10 starters skipping college, including Orlando’s Dwight Howard and Los Angeles’ Kobe Bryant.
But Van Gundy added a new twist about an hour before the start of Game 4.
“To me, it’s a sham,” he said of the rule. “But I don’t want to get going in this press conference on the NCAA because I think that’s about the worst organization going.”
he knew what he would be reading depending on who wins and loses. Asked what the story would be after Game 4, he gave reporters a lesson based on the Lakers’ 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.
“Well, this one, the Lakers are 6-0 coming off (losses), so if they come back and win tonight, basically the story is if they win tonight you guys are all going to write the series is over,” he said, sarcastically. “And if we win, it’s about our toughness and resilience, and you guys all knew this was going to be a series all along.”
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ON THE BENCH: Magic backup point guard Anthony Johnson has suited up for every game in the NBA finals, waiting for coach Stan Van Gundy to signal that it’s his turn to play.
That call might never come.
As reliable a reserve as there is in the league, Johnson only missed two regular-season games and saw time in every game in the playoffs before the finals as a backup.
All-Star Jameer Nelson returned for the finals after a shoulder injury kept him out since February, and with Rafer Alston starting, that pushed Johnson to the bench.
Johnson, in his 12th season in the NBA, hasn’t complained or pouted. He’s just cheered his team from the bench, but he admits it’s been tough to accept.
said. “But at the same time, we’re three wins away from achieving a championship. I’m just allowing that to be our focus right now and trying to put aside the fact that I’m not playing. Trying to be a supportive teammate, a good teammate.”
Alston was acquired from the Houston Rockets at the trade deadline to take Nelson’s spot. Despite having a significant role with New Jersey in two previous finals and being a solid contributor for the Magic this season, Johnson likely won’t get off the bench in the finals.
Van Gundy said as long as he’s going with the Alston-Nelson rotation, Johnson is “probably not” going to play. The lineup has shown no signs of changing, although teammates said they can sympathize with Johnson.
“We talked about it among ourselves,” Nelson said. “Whatever minutes are given to us are given to us. One thing we understand is coach is going to go with who’s got it going.”
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SOCCER STAR: Following practice Wednesday, Lakers backup point guard Jordan Farmar grabbed the basketball and dribbled up the court – with his feet.
Turns out, Farmar was quite the soccer player while growing up in Los Angeles.
“That was my first sport,” he said. “Loved it.”
Using a head fake to get past an imaginary defender and then juking past a cameraman, Farmar showed a wicked crossover step, and deftly moved the ball in front of him with his heel.
moves,” he said, passing the ball. “I used to set guys up.”
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BIG BROTHER’S WATCHING: When a coach in a future NBA finals accuses his players of poor rebounding or defense, he’ll have a new way of proving he was right.
The NBA and STATS LLC are testing a new manner of statistical collection during the finals using six high-definition cameras placed around the arena. The cameras will track the 10 players on the court, the three officials and the ball. A dot placed over all of them can measure the heights and distances of their movements, allowing a coach to see, for example, how far a defender was from the player he was supposed to be covering.
“Player tracking is the heart of the new NBA stats collection,” NBA executive vice president of operations and technology Steve Hellmuth said.
Hellmuth said teams are particularly interested in the program as a way to monitor defensive performances.
Hellmuth and STATS vice president of strategic planning Brian Kopp demonstrated how the system could also be used to evaluate the judgment of the officials by replaying a goaltending call against Orlando’s Dwight Howard in Game 3. It showed the height of the ball in meters, and the number was reducing by the time Howard swatted it away, meaning it was on its way down and the call was correct.
asset to the teams involved and the broadcasts.
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MAGIC SINGER: The Magic again brought out their lucky charm for Game 4.
Orlando was 6-0 in the playoffs – 7-0 on the season – when 7-year-old Gina Marie Incandela sang the national anthem before a game. Thursday night was her sixth straight appearance before a home playoff game.
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AP Basketball Writer Brian Mahoney and AP Sports Writer Tom Withers contributed to this report.
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