Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy tried everything from playing without a point guard in Game 2 to moving Hedo Turkoglu around at the 1, 2 and 3 spots.
The end result was another loss to the Lakers, leaving the Magic trailing 2-0 in the best-of-7 series.
“I’m not sure I got another lineup to throw out there that you haven’t seen now,” Van Gundy said. “What do they say, just keep throwing stuff at the wall and hope something sticks.”
Turkoglu scored 22 points and committed five of the Magic’s 20 turnovers. Dwight Howard had 17 points, 16 rebounds and seven turnovers in the 101-96 overtime loss.
“Dwight was patient, throwing the ball out and creating open shots and then in the fourth quarter I think he wanted to do it,” Van Gundy said. “He wanted to do it and be the guy and it forced him into some bad plays and some turnovers and some really difficult shots. So we went away from that.”
The Lakers capitalized on the Magic’s turnovers, leading to easy baskets.
Lakers coach Phil Jackson is expecting a rowdy atmosphere at Orlando’s Amway Arena. The Magic will be hosting their first finals game since 1995.
“It’s going to be a big event for their town. We know there’s going to be a lot of energy that’s surrounding their team,” he said. “We’re going to have to use all our centers, foul situations, and that’s where they’re going to be best at running and fast-breaking and the transition game. We’ve kept that to a minimum at this point, and we’re fortunate because of it.”
Magic battling history
History, not just the Los Angeles Lakers, is against the Orlando Magic.
Just three teams have ever come back from an 0-2 deficit to win the NBA Finals. In 1969, the Boston Celtics did it against the Lakers in seven games. In 1977, Portland trailed Philadelphia before winning four consecutive games. In 2006, Miami dropped the first two games to Dallas before winning four in a row.
Sunday night’s game was the first to go to overtime since Game 5 in 2006, when the Heat beat the Mavericks 101-100 behind Dwyane Wade’s 43 points.
Just like Orlando, the Celtics, Trail Blazers and Heat lost the first two games on the road. The Magic lost 100-75 in Game 1. The series resumes today.
“The Lakers did a good job of protecting their home, and now it’s our turn to do the same thing,” Dwight Howard said Sunday night. “We’ve been in some tough situations. We’ve just got to fight our way out.”
Nelson’s reduced minutes
Magic point guard Jameer Nelson played just seven-plus minutes in the fourth quarter and sat out overtime.
“Whenever we get our minutes, no matter who it is, we go out and play. Nobody’s complaining about minutes or moping,” Nelson said. “It was coach’s decision. Everybody wants to be out there and everybody can’t. I’m not complaining it.”
J.J. Redick played 27 minutes for the first time since the Eastern Conference semifinals, when the Magic beat Boston. Nelson totaled 16 minutes Sunday.
Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said all his guards struggled.
“Our guards were six for 26. L.A.’s defense was good, but I thought our guards for the most part had very good open looks,” he said. “For the most part, we just couldn’t knock anything down.”
TV ratings down for Game 2
Television ratings for Game 2 of the NBA finals are down slightly from last year.
ABC said Monday that the Los Angeles Lakers’ 101-96 overtime win over the Orlando Magic on Sunday night earned an 8.2 fast national rating. That’s down less than 4 percent from the 8.5 for last season’s Game 2 between the Lakers and Boston Celtics.
Ratings represent the percentage of all homes with televisions tuned into a program.
Nash to report to Letterman on NBA Finals
Steve Nash has a new job during his offseason.
The two-time NBA MVP will serve as a correspondent for CBS’s “Late Show with David Letterman” at Game 3 of the NBA finals today. He will appear on Wednesday night’s show to present his report on the game.
Nash’s season with the Phoenix Suns ended early when they missed the playoffs.
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