‘Vin-Sanity’ descends on Orlando after trade

The Orlando Sentinel

ORLANDO, Fla. — It will take a few more weeks and several dozen more phone calls with agents and general managers before he can exhale. But Orlando Magic General Manager Otis Smith is starting to breathe easier about how his roster will look next season as the Magic retool for another championship bid.

There may be a few questions about how he will fit in, but Thursday’s addition of Vince Carter and his “Vin-Sanity” go-to scoring ability made many Magic observers go from screaming for Hedo Turkoglu’s re-signing to shrugging, “Hedo Turko-Who?”

“I think when you lose in the NBA Finals, you look at the team that beat you,” TNT and NBA TV analyst David Aldridge said of the trade. “The L.A. Lakers beat Orlando, or Orlando looked at how and why. Kobe Bryant is now going to cover Vince Carter and vice versa. Orlando didn’t have anyone who would even bother Kobe, so I think their trade has to do that.”

Even with the unknowns of the rest of free agency, what is established is that the Magic will begin 2009-10 with four all-stars in their starting lineup in Dwight Howard, Rashard Lewis, Jameer Nelson and Carter.

What isn’t as clear is what Smith will do the rest of the summer to fill the holes created on the Magic’s bench [with Rafer Alston and Tony Battie’s departure] and by giving up athletic up-and-comer Courtney Lee.

That’s because as good as the Magic’s core might look now, without players behind them it could be tough for them to duplicate this past season’s run.

“It’s just getting pieces around pieces,” Smith said. “Make sure we fill out our roster with guys that are able to step in and play when you need them to. We’ve had a solid start to the summer, but we still have some more work to do.”