The Vampire Trade Will Not Go Away\ Why I Love Orlando: Trip Preview Part 3

You know it is slow as far as news when the only notable thing is that Denver waived it's backup PG. Excitement central!!!!!!! Woooooo!!!!

Why is this even being discussed? Well, some people are hopping onto the idea that Denver waived Anthony Carter because it is a precursor to a possible trade involving the Magic. This trade, of course, is the expiring deals-for-Reggie-Evans-and-maybe-JR-Smith deal. This Reggie Evans deal shall be heretofore referred to as "the vampire" because no matter how many times a bullet is shot at it and it is deemed dead...it comes back to life. I have a feeling people will be talking about this deal in hushed tones right up until training camp and possibly after. What am I thinking? Our GRANDCHILDREN will be spending much of their days wondering if the trade will go through, searching for how Evans' stats would help our frontcourt while they zip around in their Jetsons-like hovercars.

Obviously, I am not optimistic about "the vampire trade" going through, and think that anyone who gets their hopes up for the deal to happen will wind up with two figurative giant puncture marks in their neck. In my opinion, Anthony Carter's cut most likely is just a way for the Nuggets to shed the a smidgen of the bajillions they have to unload to get under the cap.

This whole trade hoopla brings to mind something I've been contemplating lately: While the idea of getting Evans is certainly attractive, the idea of NOT getting him is also pretty darn good when you consider that we can use the money from the expiring deals next summer or (even better) trade them before the trade deadline for extra help at a problem of need before the playoffs. Either way, it's a win-win and the addition of Foyle gave us some much needed breathing room.

Continuing our week-long glance at the beautiful city of Orlando that I am visiting next week, we come upon something very important to my preview of the trip and this site as a whole: my history with the Magic in Orlando. While this blog is typically more objective and news-oriented, I'm using this week to get more personal with the readers to provide some insight into what makes this blue skull tick.

While I do not have sensational stories of hanging out with players, going to every game, or beating the crap out of Stuff The Magic Dragon, as many Orlando residents do, I have some pretty fond memories of the team. When the Magic first came into existence at the tail end of the 80s, I was really happy because my favorite city to visit finally had a team to support. The fact that I was enamoured with Epcot translated into even more interest when the team revealed it would have the Disney-esque name "The Magic". It was healthy amount of attention paid to a local city staple, but not too much to be considered a pansy team (like the Anaheim Mighty Ducks. Sorry, Ducks fans, but any team that conjures images of what might be Emilio Estevez's 5th best movie is a hard sell).

One of my earliest memories of seeing the Magic in Orlando was for a game with my father during the heyday of Shaq and Penny. They were playing the Knicks, a team that was the primary competition back when the Magic were in the Atlantic division. I went into the game expecting a close game, and hoping the team would show me something special since it was my first time seeing them live. They did not dissapoint. The Magic utterly DESTROYED the Knicks, at one point actually leading by well over 40. We made friends with several Orlando residents in the stands, frequently high fiving them after big plays. The game's 4th quarter devolved into a slam dunk competition, with Nick Anderson and Shaq going bezerk. Subs like Joe Wolf (with the loudspeakers' trademark "Awoooooo!" wolf howl) came into the game as to not embarrass the Knicks too much.

-That is, until the loudspeaker guy made one crucial announcement, one that enshrined the Magic as the team I would follow for the rest my days on this planet:

"Just to remind fans, if the Magic happen to score over 130 points in a game, McDonalds has offered to give everyone in the stadium a free Big Mac."

The crowd went nuts. It was like the loudspeaker guy just announced that everyone had won a car. The score was something like 120-85 (like I said, it was a blowout) and there was less than a minute left. Almost on cue, the Magic inexplicably threw all of their starters on the floor. This game was about more than just winning now. With every possession that the Magic had in that final minute, they threw the ball out to Dennis Scott, who would jack up a three pointer. He wound up making three in a row, with only 1 point seperating the entire stadium from free food. With about 10 seconds left, Dennis Scott shot his 4th consecutive three pointer, and made it easily. The stadium erupted into a frenzy unlike anything I had ever seen, with music blaring and all of the screens announcing proudly "MAC ATTACK!", a clever pun on the popular "Shaq Attack" slogan. The players laughed and celebrated, the clock ran out, fans hugged and wept. It was a damn good day to be a Magic fan.

Afterwards, I remember going to "The Orlando Magic Fan-Attic", a hut that sold only Magic and Orlando Solar Bears (the perfectly-named minor league hockey team) merchandise. I bought as much as I could afford and left a proud man. Later, as I ate the free Big Mac I had won simply by choosing a good team, I reflected on how good life truly was and called it a day.

Now that the Orlando Magic have a new stadium deal in place (God-willing Darth Rosen doesn't bungle it all up), I can look forward to one day having a son and bringing him to a Magic game.

-And I'll be damned if we don't eat Big Macs afterwards.