File photo by Chuck Burton, the Associated Press

• Best birthday wishes to Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy, who turns 48 today. In his first year with Orlando, The Man guided the Magic to their third-highest win total in franchise history, all without wearing a tie. I've yet to meet a single Magic fan who doesn't like him. We're glad to have Stan aboard and we hope he took at least today off from preparing for this season to relax.

• And belated birthday wishes to one Patrick Joseph Garrity, who turned 32 on Saturday. Garrity's career is probably over (although the team has not ruled-out re-signing him), but he spent the last nine seasons with the Magic, and, as such, will forever be identified with them. Thanks, Pat.

• Last week, I linked to a story that reported Jameer Nelson was hosting his Magic teammates in Philadelphia for a week of team-building exercises. That story has picked up some steam, and some people who aren't even huge fans of Nelson's game are praising him. From Empty the Bench:

  NBA players are under more of a microscope than any athletes in any other major professional sport, and when they screw up it's amplified ten times more than when, say, a football player beats and batters his girlfriend during the offseason. And even though this isn't going to change my views of Nelson's on-court game -- it'll take stats and wins for that to happen -- it's a great story and one that deserves some attention.

  Nelson's show of leadership like this is rare in any pro sport. Whether or not it actually amounts to anything remains to be seen, but either way it's the thought that counts.

  And from FanHouse:

  Every NBA team has a captain, but I guarantee no one takes the role more seriously than Jameer Nelson.

  [....]

  I'll be the first to admit, I've used this space in the past to give Nelson grief over the size of his contract, but the guy exudes leadership.

  I'm an unabashed Jameer lover, so I'm happy to see that a) he's taking the initiative -- again -- to help his team jell; and b) that he's getting recognition from non-Magic fans for doing so. Let's hope he continues to earn praise this season with his work on the floor.

• Hardwood Paroxysm recently hosted a roundtable discussion regarding the role of small-market teams in the NBA. I partook, as did bloggers representing Charlotte, Cleveland, Memphis, Milwaukee, Sacramento, and San Antonio.
• Nothing But Net passes along word that Dwight Howard's official basketball camp will take place this Saturday and Sunday at RDV Sportsplex. Visit DwightHowardCamp.com for more information.
• Indy Cornrows, SB Nation's Pacers blog, says the NBA has denied Indiana's request to use a red, white, and blue ABA basketball for a preseason game. The reason I mention that news here is because I recall the Magic and the Spurs playing a regular-season game with a red, white, and blue ball just a few seasons ago. Does anyone else remember that game?

Also note some changes around the network. The left sidebar of every SB Nation site includes a complete SB Nation blogroll, separated by league, which expands and collapses with a click. Below that, you'll find a subscription center which houses the feeds for the main page, FanPosts, and FanShots. Thanks to the SBN tech wizards for their hard work.

Team U.S.A. celebrates defeating Spain for its first Olympic gold medal since 2000.

Photo by Chang W. Lee, the New York Times

Congratulations to Dwight Howard and everyone involved in U.S.A. Basketball for their gold-medal-winning performance in this Olympics. Howard scored 8 points (3-of-3 from the field, 2-of-6 from the line) and grabbed 5 boards as the United States defeated Spain, 118-111, to win its first Olympic gold medal since the 2000 games in Sydney. The New York Times' recap notes that Howard, along with four other core players, has already said he would like to return to Team U.S.A. for the 2012 Olympics in London. Here's to hoping he does.

U.S.A.! U.S.A.! U.S.A.!

This ladies tank-top, adorned with real Swarovski crystals (?!), gives us a sneak-peak at what the Magic's new wordmark will be. We had seen it leaked before -- it's shown up on more than a few mock-ups of what the new jersey may look like -- but this tank confirms it. We also get to see the number font. So much for going back to the original one.

Pretty big news coming from New York, where Howard Beck of the Times reports that the Knicks have appointed former Magic general manager John Gabriel "the director of pro scouting and free agency, a newly created position." Beck continues:

Gabriel’s primary duty will be evaluating current N.B.A. players, with an eye toward future trades and free-agent signings.

Yeah, Knicks fans should be excited. John Gabriel gutted the Magic's roster in a hurry, clearing enough cap space for the team to sign both Grant Hill and Tracy McGrady to maximum-level contracts during the summer of 1999. Imagine if Rashard Lewis and Gilbert Arenas were free agents in the same summer. Now imagine the same team having enough money to sign them both. That's what Gabriel did.

Granted, he made his share of mistakes. His draft record, like that of every Magic G.M., is poor. But if there's anyone who can find a way to get the Knicks' books in the black, it's Gabriel. And there's no question whom the Knicks will target with their free-agency dollars in 2010: King LeBron James.

Be afraid, Cavaliers fans. Be very afraid.

• Monday morning, Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld reported the Magic are basically finished making moves this summer. A rumored Tony-Battie-for-Nick-Collison swap isn't happening, his sources assured him. Damn. Collison's the tough, rebound-centric forward the Magic need. I suppose they value Battie's defense more than they would Collison's work on the glass. Either that, or they love Tony too much to banish him to Oklahoma City.
• It's probably just as well the team's finished making moves, though; they'd hate to have to buy any new acquisition a plane ticket to Pennsylvania. Darren Heitner reported yesterday that Magic co-captain Jameer Nelson is hosting the team in Villanova, PA, for his third annual Building Magic program:

  Building Magic week's mission is to bring the Orlando Magic organization closer together in the offseason by having a week full of workouts, team-building activities, and other events.

  • UPDATE: More on this story from Matt Steinmetz (thanks to 3QC reader Susan for the email assist):

    Magic vice president of communications Joel Glass said Nelson and Howard, Orlando's captains, are the ones who deal with getting players together, and that the team has nothing to do with it.

    Glass said from what he understands the players work out together during the day, then go out to dinner, comedy clubs, etc., at night.

    According to Foyle, the Magic will be bowling, attending a Philadelphia Phillies game and heading down to Atlantic City over the course of the week. Who knows if Foyle will push for next year's bonding session to be in his hometown ... that isle in the Caribbean.

• Last week, the Magic released their preseason schedule, as reported in the Orlando Sentinel. 3QC member Marie noted in the FanPosts three weeks ago that the Magic will host CSKA Moscow in one game. CSKA Moscow employs former NBA-ers Trajan Langdon, Viktor Khryapa, Zoran Planinic, and Terence Morris (who played for the Magic three seasons ago). Former Bucknell standout J.R. Holden also plays for CSKA.
• Dwight Howard posted 6 points and 7 rebounds in Team USA's 116-85 win over Team Australia this morning. Howard played a decent game but -- surprise, surprise -- continues to struggle from the foul line, connecting on just 2 of his 5 freebies today. He also had one of his shots swatted and was late on at least one defensive rotation.
• We all knew the contract Rashard Lewis signed last summer was big. Well, Business Pundit puts it in a historical context, saying it's the 18th-richest sports contract of all-time. Hardwood Paroxysm remains flabbergasted.