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Tuesday, December 19
Updated: December 29, 12:03 PM ET
 
Simply no Magic without injured Hill

By Jeffrey Denberg
Special to ESPN.com

This is becoming the season of disaster for the contenders in the East.

First the Heat loses Alonzo Mourning for the season.

The 76ers' tandem of Eric Snow and Allen Iverson goes down for an extended period.

Now, Cleveland has lost Zydrunas Ilgauskas, probably for the remainder of the season.

But no loss has is confounding as the trials of Grant Hill, whose MRI reports are in the hands of top medical people around the country. He almost certainly will not play before the All-Star break and he may not suit up again this season if the decision is made to perform more surgery on his left ankle.

Grant Hill
The 2000-01 season is fast becoming a lost year for Grant Hill.

Having twice allowed Hill to call the shots on whether or not he plays, the Magic has at least contributed to the lingering weakness in his ankle that seen a $93 million commitment explode in their faces. Doc Rivers said the first week of the season that it might be wise to stop Hill until next season. The Magic should have listened.

Monday, NBC paired the Magic off against defending Eastern champion Indiana, a battle between two shell teams that have fallen on mediocre times. But while the Pacers were expect to rebuild through much of the season, the Magic anticipated sharp improvement after going 41-41 in Doc Rivers' first season.

They paid $93 million to get Hill and another $93 million to get Tracy McGrady. They gave up the role players who sparked them to mediocrity last season. Hill and McGrady had to be worth 10 wins right?

Not exactly.

Orlando had won three straight simply to get within two games of .500 before falling back Monday against the Pacers. At the same point in the schedule last season the Magic was 15-12. Reverse that today.

The entire sequence of events is a mystery.

  • McGrady left Toronto to clear Vince Carter's shadow. Now each of the cousins is the central figure on a mediocre team.

  • Hill left Detroit and got the same available deal in Orlando. With the Pistons he shared the spotlight with Jerry Stackhouse, who has bloomed as the centerpiece on his own mediocre team.

  • With Hill and McGrady, the Magic team figured to be only marginally better than the Pistons were with Hill or the Raptors were with McGrady.

  • Without Hill the Magic is in trouble. No real inside game, no strong alternative scoring threat. And bad timing.

  • The Magic are campaigning for $200 million to build a new suite-filled arena. That's like asking them to pay the salaries of McGrady and Hill -- and Hill is out.

    There are no real signs anyone cares all that much. Even with today's inflated crowd counts -- remember, the NBA counts tickets distributed, not fannies in seats -- and Orlando ranks 24th in the league with an average of about 13,500.

    Would Hill make any difference? Probably. But it may be next season before anyone knows for sure.

    Hill is in limbo, rehabbing as best he can, hanging out at home for the holidays. "There's no need (to go anywhere)," he said Saturday. "The pictures have been sent to every doctor in the country -- well, not that many -- but we're still gathering information, and the holidays have slowed down the process."

    The ankle may be immobilized in a light cast for at least a month. Surgery is a real possibility after specialists study the structure of four screws that hold two small ankle bones together.

    Rivers admits he is confused.

    "We've been playing a waiting game with him, and that's been difficult on the other guys to get them ready," Rivers said. "I already know too much about ankles now, way more than I wanted to know. Pretty soon, they'll be calling me doctor, and it's going to be true."

    Meanwhile, general manager John Gabriel isn't conceding that Hill can't play. He told the Orlando Sentinel last week, "Maybe this time we look at Grant keeping active by playing, taking pictures (X-rays) every week and playing minimal minutes. Maybe from the recovery standpoint, we could get a good blend there. Better than Grant watching TV and lifting weights and just doing nothing basketball-wise ... It's not an exact science."

    Maybe they could get a few minutes a night out of Hill. Maybe, like a thoroughbred he'd go out there and work through the hurt. Maybe, he'd reach for that little extra something. Maybe like so many thoroughbreds, he would go too hard and do serious damage to the ankle or a knee or a foot.

    With a talent like Hill, would you take the chance?

    Around The League

  • Cleveland was riding near the top of the Central Division when Ilgauskas felt something go in his left foot and took himself out of a game in Miami Friday night. The new fracture is in the same foot that cost him all of last season. It is his fourth foot fracture since being drafted, the third since signing a $70 million deal. Without his presence and his 11.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, the Cavs become a small, scrambling team and lose any chance to seriously contend.

  • Philadelphia is expected to lose Iverson for up to three weeks, but don't bet on it. The tattooed terror doesn't like to miss games. Chances are the 76ers won't fall far and in the mediocre Atlantic Division they can still be boss.

  • George Karl is a smart man. Even with his Milwaukee team rebounding into contention, he is unhappy with his players but unwilling to talk personnel. Clearly, George understands that an angry or frustrated coach has no business making personnel decisions. Maybe Larry Brown and Rick Pitino should listen.

    "I'm not a good guy to talk personnel with right now," Karl said. "I'm so angry that I don't know if I can see my team fairly. You have to be real conservative with in-season trades. You have anger, you have depression and it clouds your ability to make decisions.

    "There are 100 trades that I walk in on a Monday and say, '(Expletive), get that (expletive) out of here.' I'd trade him for anybody. Then a week later, he's my best player. So for me, the best way to go is coach them, make them better and not blame it on the players or change players."

  • Tuesday at the Meadowlands is an emotional night for young Roshown McLeod. The Hawks forward will be playing in front of friends and family for the first time since his mother died in October. After missing a month to deal with her loss, McLeod has moved into Atlanta's starting lineup, averaging 15.5 points in four starts. The ex-Dookie made the big shots in victories over Toronto and Indiana. Jeffrey Denberg, who covers the NBA for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, is a regular contributor to ESPN.com.





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