The injuries also took a toll on his
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Magic fans will get a glimpse of the present and a possible future Friday when Orlando hosts the Los Angeles Lakers. Centre Dwight Howards preseason trade request left fans bracing for the worst at the start of the regular season. Howards agent Dan Fegan is permitted to explore trades with the Lakers, New Jersey and Dallas. That puts a bigger spotlight on the matchup, given the Lakers Andrew Bynum has been the subject of speculation around a Howard trade. Magic general manager Otis Smith remains adamant hes in no rush to deal Howard by the March 15 trade deadline. Smith said he and Howard havent gotten in-depth about his trade request since training camp. Smith expects Howard and Bynum to have their minds on the court and nothing else. \"I think both of those guys are probably the best two centres in the business right now and will be competing against each other, so I dont know if its anything bigger than that,\" he said. Howard said hes focused on improving the Magics 10-4 record. \"This game is not about me and (Bynum), its about our team trying to get better to win,\" Howard said. \"That was a problem back when Shaquille ONeal played. \"People tried to make it about me and him. Thats not the case. Were just trying to play basketball and trying to win. The only thing that matters is who wins the game.\" Provisions in the new CBA give the Magic the ability to offer Howard US$30 million more than any other team. Orlando can offer him a five-year contract extension with 7.5 per cent annual raises, while other teams are tapped out at offering a four-year pact with only 4.5 per cent raises. So the Magic could keep Howard through the deadline or sign and trade him to the team of their choice. \"Or he could still walk...with a $30-million dollar haircut,\" Smith said. Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said he thinks Howard and Bynum are more than equipped for the trade spotlight. He noted Howard has dealt with it all season and Bynum handled it when Bryant flirted with a trade request in 2007. Howard said hes focused on his job. \"I think most people wouldnt allow whatever their situation is -- especially whats going on with me -- to stop them from playing their normal way,\" he said. \"Its just getting on the court and putting aside everything thats going on outside and what people are saying, trade rumours or what team Im going to...Just put it away and go play basketball. \"So when I get out there on the court, its go as hard as I can for as long as I can and trust my teammates when I get out there.\" Smith said the real pressure may be on teammate Jameer Nelson. Howard previously noted a desire to play alongside other point guards, including Chris Paul and Deron Williams. Nelson and Howard are friends, both entering the league in 2004. But Nelson has struggled this season, averaging a career-low 8.3 points and shooting career-low 38 per cent from the field. \"He has to play better, of course. But through all of this, he is the one taking the pounding,\" Smith said. \"Right now, hes justifying the pounding because hes not playing well. But sometimes we forget in professional sports that theyre people. \"Regardless of what we talk about, theyre still human beings.\" Smith said Nelson is injury-free, other than foot issues hes dealt with for several seasons. \"So as tough as he wants to be on the outside, on the inside -- all of them -- hes just a 30-year-old kid,\" he said. \"He still has to work through the mental aspect of him taking a pounding. \"No, the centre didnt come out and directly say its on Jameer, but basically he has.\" Even with needed improvements, Smith said he likes the direction so far. \"A real good team has to overcome a lot of things,\" he said. \"A good team has to overcome a good player not being on par, a good team has to overcome a guy getting to the foul line a bunch of times and missing a lot of foul shots. \"So I imagine if we clear up those things, well be a much better basketball team.\" Matt Duchene Camo Jersey . 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Homan and her Team Canada (1-0) rink from Ottawa scored four in the eighth end for an 8-3 victory over Manitobas Chelsea Carey (0-1) on Saturday night at the Maurice Richard Arena.DUNEDIN, Fla. -- Jonathan Diaz is easy to spot in the Blue Jays clubhouse. Just look for a big smile atop a compact five-foot-nine, 155-pound body. The 28-year-old Florida native is also hard to miss on the field -- an elegant, mobile shortstop with a slick glove. A career .230 hitter in the minors, Diaz is not likely to stick with a major league club that already has a superstar at shortstop in Jose Reyes, the versatile Ryan Goins at second base and Maicer Izturis as a utility infielder. But his skills are appreciated and have been on display again in the Blue Jays organization after a one-year stint with the Boston Red Sox and former Jays manager John Farrell. \"Id heard about them,\" Toronto manager John Gibbons said of Diazs fielding talents. \"Everybodys always said youre not going to find a better shortstop or defender, period. You can put him anywhere out there and hes definitely shown that this spring.\" Diaz has appeared in the infield and outfield this spring, often as a late inning replacement. He has turned heads with a nifty double play and scored the 10th-inning game-winner on some aggressive base-running in a 4-3 victory over the Baltimore Orioles last Sunday. As of Wednesday, he was hitting .077 with one hit in 13 at-bats this spring. He knows defence is his ticket in baseball. \"Ive always love to be out there making plays and doing acrobatic things,\" he said. \"Luckily thats kept me in the game for as long as it has.\" He was given No. 1 to wear by the Jays, the same number as former great Tony Fernandez. \"Its a honour to be wearing that number,\" he said. \"He was an unbelievable shortstop.\" A 12th-round pick -- 360th overall -- by the Jays in the 2006 draft out of North Carolina State, Diaz is happy to be back in the Toronto fold after his year away. \"It feels like I never left,\" he said. \"It feels like home. I was here for seven years and then I took a little hiatus with the Red Sox for a year.\" Boston had its moments, however. He was called up to the majors for the first time, \"which was amazing,\" he said. He saw action in five games, with four at-bats. He had no hits but scored two runs. \"I was there for a week .dddddddddddd. Fortunately Im going to get a World Series ring and all that so Im really excited about that. It was a good time,\" he said. Coincidentally, Diazs debut in the majors came against Toronto and he threw out Reyes from third in Torontos first at-bat. He also scored the winning run against the Jays. These days his locker is just down the row from Reyes in a largely Spanish-speaking neighbourhood of the clubhouse. With a Dominican father and Puerto Rican mother, he grew up with Spanish as his first language. \"This is my corner. These are my people,\" he said with a grin. Diaz says he tries not to think of where he might end up. The goal is the big leagues and the plan is to play as well as possible. After that, que sera sera. \"Make sure youre healthy and just try to be ready when the time comes,\" Diaz said by way of summary. \"Im just out there trying to show I can help the team in any way possible.\" Away from the field, Diaz is married with three daughters -- 10, eight and 16 months. The family makes its home in Dunedin with his wife and daughters joining Diaz \"wherever Im at,\" when school breaks for the summer. \"By now, theyre used to it ... Its a crazy fun life,\" he said. But it has not always been fun for Diaz. In 2011, he was one of the final cuts out of the Jays major league camp. He went to double-A ball and then triple-A in Las Vegas. \"I was doing really well,\" he said. \"I went to have dinner, took a cab and woke up in a hospital.\" There was an accident and Diaz suffered a concussion, lost some hearing and his two front teeth, among other injuries. His wife, then his fiancee, was on the side of the cab that got hit and took the brunt of the impact. She suffered broken ribs, a torn spleen, separated shoulder and cuts. \"It was pretty ugly,\" he said. \"But luckily were healthy now.\" The injuries also took a toll on his playing career. \"That took me out of it for a couple of months,\" he said. \"That window, I felt like, was a good chance of being called up at the time.\" Two false front teeth have not impacted Diazs smile. He seems to savour every baseball moment. Cheap Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China ' ' '