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We had Penny Hardaway emerge as a "serious contender" for the Orlando job. Then it was Wes Unseld Jr. who became the supposed leading candidate. Last night ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Dallas Mavericks assistant Jamahl Mosley was the new front runner for the Magic job and the team was moving closer to getting a deal done.
Mosley is considered a rising star among NBA assistants and has developed a reputation for working with younger players and building relationships- qualities the Magic are looking for based on where the organization is at.
Mosley has spent the last seven seasons in Dallas and played a key role in helping Luka Doncic adjust to the NBA game.
I have said for years and multiple hires, I don't care who the Magic hire. I just want the Magic to get it right. Mosley seems like a decent hire and I hope he leads the team out of the rebuild and into contender. Jacque Vaughn was an assistant for two years before he got the Magic job and was handed a roster that had no chance to win and despite having young talent never could get over the hump and the losing drained everyone.
The best scenario for Mosley is for Jonathan Isaac and Markell Fultz to be healthy and effective in their return. Chuma Okeke, Cole Anthony and RJ Hampton must improve and the Magic must hit on at least one of their draft picks. The team needs a star to build around.
As my friend Kevin Clark at the Ringer suggested, I hope Mosley brings Darrell Armstrong to be part of his staff. Why? Because it would be fun. I like fun. Armstrong has been on the Dallas staff since 2009 and a little "Heart and Hustle" is something we all can use.
The guy hired to get through the rebuild rarely gets to be around when the team is ready to contend. I hope Mosley is the right hire. Magic fans deserve good seasons. If this doesn't work I may call for Stuff to be shipped out. Why? Why not?...
Friday notes(Larry King style):...On Thursday's radio show, I asked producer Scott Harris how many starters choosing to skip the MLB All-Star Game would bother him after Mets pitching star Jacob deGrom announced he would skip the mid-summer classic and rest for the second half of the season. He said three would be the number. Yesterday, two all-star reserves announced they too were skipping the game. Houston's Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa said they also wanted to rest and be ready for the second half of the season. And with that, the MLB All-Star Game is jumping the shark- in a way. My guess is this will be more common and more players will choose to take the days off then play the meaningless game. But the question is what can MLB do to force players to play? I am not sure if they can do anything. The baseball all-star game has been the best of all but times have changed and I truly wonder if the game will be around in 20 years...I'd like to get a game of dodgeball but only if we are using the traditional red playground ball we used in elementary school and someone was going back to class with a red welt on the side of their face...Admit it, if Lightning star Nikita Kucherov showed up at your house shirtless and holding the Stanley Cup and he wanted to party, you are dropping whatever you are doing and welcome him inside...ESPN's Andrea Adelson has a great piece on North Carolina football players talking about the proposed college football playoffs and their concerns over the number of games that might be played. She also wrote that players think the P5 champions and best G5 champion should get automatic berths into the 12-team tournament. That's cute because there are G5 champions who wonder why some P5 champions think they deserve automatic berths, including the program with three 10-win seasons in the last quarter century...I don't think it's possible for me to sit with a blinking 12:00 am on my VCR like we all did 30 years ago and not freak out...How is it possible that Tom Brady truly looks younger and better looking?...If you don't like soccer it's hard to explain but this weekend the rest of the world has two can't miss matches as England hosts Italy for the European championship and rivals Brazil and Argentina play for the Copa America title. Aside from the World Cup, they are two biggest international tournaments in the world. If you think the Super Bowl draws a big TV audience, both of these games are bigger...Nothing makes me feel more dumb than watching early teenagers spell words I have never heard and will never use in my lifetime...
Final note: Why are they called deviled eggs? It has nothing to do with the guy breathing fire holding a pitchfork. The "deviled" part is a culinary term that dates back to the 1700s and meant to cook using anything spicy.