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Oct

8

Tonight in the NBA Preseason

The NBA Europe Live Tour got the professional basketball preseason kicked off this weekend, and three preseason games took place back in the States tonight. The matchups included a battle of two young and intriguing teams in the East, aging conference finals foes, and a battle of has-beens in the Atlantic Conference.

The young and exciting Atlanta Hawks (1-0) knocked off Stan Van Gundy’s Orlando Magic (0-1) with a 94-93 victory as steady rookie Acie Law IV from Texas A&M hit a go-ahead, fast-break layup with 25 seconds left. Law IV, the eleventh pick of the 2007 NBA Draft, had seven points, five assists and three steals in 29 minutes but was clutch (like when he was an Aggie) when it mattered the most, at the end of the ballgame. Atlanta’s other rookie to watch, third overall pick Al Horford, notched nine points and seven rebounds in 23 minutes while Josh Smith, still looking for a contract extension, paced Atlanta with a team-leading 22 points and 11 rebounds.

In the preseason debut of Van Gundy, Dwight Howard showed his new coach where it all begins and ends in Orlando. Ready to be the most dominant big man in the Eastern Conference and possibly the NBA in his fourth season, Howard had 30 points and 11 rebounds. Big free agent acquisition Rashard Lewis shot a disappointing 3-10 from the field en route to eight points in 23 minutes while second year guard J.J. Redick had 10 points, including 1-for-3 shooting from downtown. Redick’s Duke teammate, second-year Hawks forward Sheldon Williams, had only two points and two rebounds in 16 minutes, far from what the former Blue Devils used to accomplish at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

In a rematch of the 2005 and 2006 Eastern Conference Finals, the Detroit Pistons (1-0) put it to an aging Miami Heat (0-1) team playing without Dwyane Wade and Shaquille O’Neal. The Pistons 103-86 victory was marked by the new-and-improved Detroit bench providing some punch, with first-round draft picks Rodney Stuckey and Aaron Afflalo scoring 15 and 11 points respectively, and underrated free-agent acquisition Jarvis Hayes adding nine points. The Heat, also missing Antoine Walker, Udonis Haslem and free-agent pickup Smush Parker, were led by Marcus Slaughter, an undrafted forward from San Diego State who notched an efficient 17 points on 7 of 10 shooting in only 19 minutes. With it time for him to step up, Miami’s 2004 first round draft pick Dorell Wright had nine points on 33 percent shooting in 31 minutes.

In his debut with the New York (1-0), talented southpaw forward Zach Randolph had 17 points while shooting at a 70 percent clip from the field (7 for 10 shooting) during a 101-92 victory against the Philadelphia 76ers (0-1), likely the worst team in the Eastern Conference. David Lee, another Knickerbocker lefty, had 18 points while steady veteran Andre Miller paced Philadelphia with 17 points. Continuing his strong play from the summer, Louis Williams notched 16 points in 23 minutes. Lottery selection Thaddeus Young of Georgia Tech had seven points on 2 of 7 from the field for the 76ers.