From NBA.Com.
From NBA.Com.
Denton: Pietrus Having Big Impact
By John Denton
December 2, 2010
ORLANDO – Early in the season, Orlando Magic small forward Mickael Pietrus was in a danger zone of sorts. He was not only playing just 14 minutes a night, but he wasn’t playing especially well and he had just gotten pushed out of the rotation.
He exchanged heated words with Magic coach Stan Van Gundy along the sideline, was benched for two games and quietly wondered if his future was still in Orlando even though he had previously enjoyed two of the best years of his NBA career with the Magic.
Knowing full well that his season could likely head one of two ways – sulk and play himself out of Orlando or stay focused and get back in the good graces of the team – Pietrus poured himself back into his work. The straying, after all, was surprising because Pietrus had been one of Orlando’s best players in the preseason and seemed poised for a big season.
Pietrus doesn’t always fit the NBA mold with his happy-go-lucky nature and his carefree attitude. The Guadeloupe native has an free-flowing island sense about him and never is there a sense of entitlement. He openly talks about his love for Orlando and his blessings to be playing in the NBA, and he said he owed it to his teammates and his supporters to play his way back onto the floor.
``I love every single person in this locker room and every person in this organization so I would never disrespect anyone by not working as hard as I could. I had to stay ready,’’ Pietrus said. ``Not playing early on was hard for me, but I fought through it, stayed focused and look where I am now.’’
Where he is now is being one of the Magic’s most pivotal reserves once again – even though a nasty stomach bug knocked him out of Orlando’s 107-78 throttling of the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night. Pietrus is expected to return Friday night when the Magic, co-leaders in the Eastern Conference at 14-4, play the Detroit Pistons (6-13) in Auburn Hills, Mich.
Just two nights ago, Pietrus showed his worth to the Magic by scoring 13 points, grabbing five rebounds, hitting three 3-pointers and swiping two steals in Orlando’s home 90-79 defeat of the Pistons in Orlando.
Pietrus’ defense on both Tayshaun Prince and Richard Hamilton was key in the Magic allowing just 35 percent shooting and 34 points in the second half. And offensively, he nailed a 3-pointer, assisted to J.J. Redick for a 3-pointer and sank a baseline jumper late in the fourth quarter that basically sealed the win for the Magic. Pietrus was so good that the Magic were a plus-18 in point differential while he was on the floor.
The game was telling of just how far Pietrus has come this season. Once a forgotten man and all the way out of the rotation, Pietrus played Tuesday’s entire fourth quarter. And some 30 minutes after the game, he couldn’t quit smiling when he thought of being on the floor with the game on the line.
``I’m not going to lie to you, I love being out on the court in the fourth quarter,’’ Pietrus said back on Tuesday. ``In that situation my blood pressure goes from 160 to 400 and my heart is racing because I love being in games like (that).’’
He’s in there because he’s doing much more these days than just heaving corner 3-pointers. At 6-fot-6 with supreme athleticism, Pietrus is expected to be an above-average rebounder for the Magic by Van Gundy. The coach has also pushed Pietrus to defend aggressively without fouling and to bring bubbling emotion and energy off the bench.
``He had five rebounds (on Tuesday) and seven the other night and that’s something that we’ve been encouraging, to get on the glass more,’’ Van Gundy said.
``He had a couple of assists and didn’t turn the ball over (against Detroit earlier in the week). So that’s about everything you could ask for from that position. To me, that’s an outstanding night.’’
Pietrus has had more of those kinds of nights of late. Four times recently he’s grabbed at least four rebounds in a game. And three other times, Pietrus has hit at least two 3-pointers in a game. And he’s done all of that while guarding the opposition’s best players – as in LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Manu Ginobili, Rudy Gay and Danny Granger.
Sometimes, star players get the best of him (like Ginobili did last week in San Antonio), but more often than not Pietrus gives them fits with his quick feet, rangy wingspan and willingness to give up his body by taking charges.
``I want to be out there at the end of games not just because of offense, but also defensively,’’ said Pietrus, who is averaging 7.4 points and 2.6 rebounds a game this season. ``For me, being able to stop somebody defensively at the end of a game is so much fun. And then still having the energy to contribute offensively, too, that’s what I want to do. I just love being on the floor at the end and having fun. That’s what winning and playing for the Magic is all about for me.’’
And he’s quite proud of himself for fighting human nature and keeping himself ready when he was on the outside of the rotation looking in early in the season.
``I could have laid down, but I wasn’t going to let that happen. It could have been, `I’m not playing so why should I even pay attention.’ I was going to make sure that when my name was called again that I was ready and showed how important that I am to this team,’’ Pietrus said. ``It was hard for me not playing after going through all the work in the summer and in training camp. But when Stan came to me and told me that I was back in the rotation I was so happy. Then, it was just all about helping my team win.’’
John Denton writes for OrlandoMagic.com. E-mail John at
jd41898@aol.com. Submit a question to John for his mailbag segment at
AskJD@orlandomagic.com.
