Denton: Carter Expected to Return Tonight
By John Denton
January 15, 2010
Note: The contents of this page have not been reviewed or endorsed by the Orlando Magic. All opinions expressed by John Denton are solely his own and do not reflect the opinions of the Orlando Magic or their Basketball Operations staff, partners or sponsors. His sources are not known to the Magic and he has no special access to information beyond the access and privileges that go along with being an NBA accredited member of the media.
PORTLAND, Ore. – Vince Carter went through the Orlando Magic’s morning practice and the star shooting guard expects to play Friday night against the Portland Trail Blazers.
Carter hasn’t played since last Friday when he suffered a mild shoulder separation following a collision with Washington power forward Andray Blatche. Carter, who has been rehabilitating his shoulder the past six days while missing three games, reported no soreness during Friday morning’s workout with the team and even said he enjoyed a good shooting day.
``I just wanted to get out there and see where I was because I was tired of sitting around and not being able to play,’’ said Carter, who practiced Friday morning with a pad taped across his shoulder. ``I just want to give it a shot and we’ll see tonight. I practiced and we’ll go from there.’’
Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said Carter will start and play his normal minutes. J.J. Redick will shift back to the bench as the reserve shooting guard.
``I do expect Vince. He looked fine this morning and went through everything in 20-to-25 minutes of live work,’’ Van Gundy said. ``You never know until right before the game, but the word is he should be fine.’’
The Magic (26-13) are 1-1 so far on their eight-day, four-game roadtrip. Following tonight’s game against the Trail Blazers (24-16), Orlando has two days off to gear up for Monday’s showdown against the Los Angeles Lakers in a rematch of last spring’s NBA Finals.
Portland could be without guard Brandon Roy tonight because of a strained hamstring. The Magic beat Portland 92-83 back on Dec. 19, a game in which Roy poured in 33 points.
Carter, whom the Magic acquired last June in a draft-day blockbuster trade, has been mired in a terrible shooting slump most of the season. About to turn 33 years old in a week, Carter is shooting a career worst from the floor (39.2 percent) and his 3-point shooting (30.9 percent) is his worst since his rookie season in the NBA.
Carter showed signs of breaking out of his recent slump last Friday in Washington. He got to the free throw line six times in the game’s first 10 minutes and converted a tough basket in traffic. But he went down in a heap when he hit his shoulder on the hip of Blatche while trying to fight over a screen.
Tonight, he hopes that the rest he got on the rest of his body will help him break out of his shooting slump.
``There’s still some soreness there, but we’ll see how it feels later on,’’ he said. ``I actually made more shots today than I have in a while. If I’m on the court, I have to play my game and there will be no excuses.’’
John Denton writes for Orlandomagic.com. His Magic ``Behind the Scenes'' segment can be heard each week on ESPN 1080 AM. Submit questions to John for his "Ask J.D." mailbag feature that will appear every Friday at AskJD@orlandomagic.com.
By John DentonJanuary 15, 2010
Note: The contents of this page have not been reviewed or endorsed by the Orlando Magic. All opinions expressed by John Denton are solely his own and do not reflect the opinions of the Orlando Magic or their Basketball Operations staff, partners or sponsors. His sources are not known to the Magic and he has no special access to information beyond the access and privileges that go along with being an NBA accredited member of the media.
PORTLAND, Ore. – Vince Carter went through the Orlando Magic’s morning practice and the star shooting guard expects to play Friday night against the Portland Trail Blazers.
Carter hasn’t played since last Friday when he suffered a mild shoulder separation following a collision with Washington power forward Andray Blatche. Carter, who has been rehabilitating his shoulder the past six days while missing three games, reported no soreness during Friday morning’s workout with the team and even said he enjoyed a good shooting day.
``I just wanted to get out there and see where I was because I was tired of sitting around and not being able to play,’’ said Carter, who practiced Friday morning with a pad taped across his shoulder. ``I just want to give it a shot and we’ll see tonight. I practiced and we’ll go from there.’’
Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said Carter will start and play his normal minutes. J.J. Redick will shift back to the bench as the reserve shooting guard.
``I do expect Vince. He looked fine this morning and went through everything in 20-to-25 minutes of live work,’’ Van Gundy said. ``You never know until right before the game, but the word is he should be fine.’’
The Magic (26-13) are 1-1 so far on their eight-day, four-game roadtrip. Following tonight’s game against the Trail Blazers (24-16), Orlando has two days off to gear up for Monday’s showdown against the Los Angeles Lakers in a rematch of last spring’s NBA Finals.
Portland could be without guard Brandon Roy tonight because of a strained hamstring. The Magic beat Portland 92-83 back on Dec. 19, a game in which Roy poured in 33 points.
Carter, whom the Magic acquired last June in a draft-day blockbuster trade, has been mired in a terrible shooting slump most of the season. About to turn 33 years old in a week, Carter is shooting a career worst from the floor (39.2 percent) and his 3-point shooting (30.9 percent) is his worst since his rookie season in the NBA.
Carter showed signs of breaking out of his recent slump last Friday in Washington. He got to the free throw line six times in the game’s first 10 minutes and converted a tough basket in traffic. But he went down in a heap when he hit his shoulder on the hip of Blatche while trying to fight over a screen.
Tonight, he hopes that the rest he got on the rest of his body will help him break out of his shooting slump.
``There’s still some soreness there, but we’ll see how it feels later on,’’ he said. ``I actually made more shots today than I have in a while. If I’m on the court, I have to play my game and there will be no excuses.’’
John Denton writes for Orlandomagic.com. His Magic ``Behind the Scenes'' segment can be heard each week on ESPN 1080 AM. Submit questions to John for his "Ask J.D." mailbag feature that will appear every Friday at AskJD@orlandomagic.com.
