ORLANDO- Orlando Magic’s president Alex Martins was named the Rotary Club of Orlando Outstanding Business Professional of the Year. Martins’ impact on the Central Florida community, work ethic and philanthropic efforts made him the lead candidate for this honor.

 “Martins’ vision, leadership, creativity and integrity took the Orlando Magic to new heights in 2010,” said Eric Schrek, committee chairman for the award selection process.  “Not only has he taken that organization to the next level, but he’s continued to show his commitment to the Central Florida community through participation in many local organizations and worthy causes.”

The Rotary Club of Orlando is not the only organization to recognize Martins for his impact on the Central Florida community this year. Orlando Magazine ranked Martins #11 in it 2010 “50 Most Powerful People” list and the Orlando Sentinel ranked him seventh on its annual list of top power players.

ORLANDO, Fla. — Dwight Howard had a message for the one voter who had the audacity to completely leave the Orlando Magic center off the ballot for NBA defensive player of the year.

“Thank you,” Howard said Monday, when asked for his reaction to the slight. “I’ll do better next year.”

That mission will be difficult to accomplish for Howard, who on Monday became the first player in league history to win defensive player of the year for three consecutive seasons. Howard led the league in double doubles and also averaged 14.1 rebounds, 2.3 blocks and a career-high 1.3 steals this season.

Although Howard focused on making strides in his offensive game, his defensive dominance remained intact for the Magic, who were fourth in the league in both defensive field-goal percentage and points allowed. Orlando led the league in defensive rebounding.

Howard received 114 of a total of 120 first-place votes and accumulated 585 points.

Boston Celtics forward Kevin Garnett finished second with one first-place vote and 77 points while Dallas Mavericks center Tyson Chandler was third with 20 second-place votes and 70 points.

Howard found a bit of humor in being left off the one ballot, and also took a playful jab at teammates for always allowing him to keep his defense sharp. Only Ben Wallace and Dikembe Mutombo have won the defensive player of the year award four times. Howard also acknowledged several other great post players, including Hakeem Olajuwon and Magic assistant coach Patrick Ewing, for helping him develop his game on both ends over the years.

“Just to be in the same sentence with those guys, they’ve paved the way for me,” said Howard, who at age 25 is in his seventh season. “It’s my job to keep it going. I’m going to try to do the best I can on the defensive end to dominate and to change the game. It definitely is a honor to be considered one of the best defensive players to play the game, and I’m still young. So hopefully, I can keep it up.”

Howard said there are still areas in his game where he needs to improve defensively. He mentioned cutting down his personal fouls — “less silly fouls,” he said — and learning how to draw charges as the next phases of his defensive development.

Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said there isn’t much more room for Howard to grow defensively. He wasn’t too bad on the other end of the court, either. Howard averaged a career-high 22.9 points and shot 59.6 percent from the field this season.

“He doesn’t have a weakness,” Van Gundy said. “In a league that has this much talent, to be able to do anything like that, that nobody else has done before — that’s incredible. The one thing that’s probably under-appreciated about him is that he’s the smartest big guy I’ve ever been around.”

Otis Smith, Orlando’s president of basketball operations, took the praise of Howard a step further.

“It’s nice to be doing this for the third consecutive year for probably the most dominating basketball player in history right now,” Smith said. “We’re hoping [to] come back here with another trophy in a couple of weeks.”

Smith was alluding to another major award for which Howard is in top contention: MVP. That trophy will be handed out in the next couple of weeks, with Howard, Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose and Miami Heat forward LeBron James considered the front-runners. James was named league MVP the past two seasons, but Rose is the overwhelming favorite to win it this season in a poll of ESPN analysts and former players, many of whom have cast official NBA ballots.

Howard, who was flanked by the three trophies during Monday’s news conference, picked up his latest defensive honor two days after the best offensive game of his career. He had a playoff career-high 46 points and 19 rebounds in Orlando’s 103-93 loss to Atlanta in Game 1.

The Magic have spent the past two days making defensive adjustments after allowing the Hawks to shoot nearly 73 percent from the field over the decisive second and third quarters of Saturday’s game. Howard insisted his team would have a better defensive effort in Game 2 on Tuesday.

As far as making room for additional awards hardware, Howard said he’s got plenty of space.

“I have a lot of space in my two-bedroom house,” Howard joked. “I think I’ve had a great year. If I do win MVP, it would be a great honor. It’s something I’ve been working toward — one of my individual goals I put above my bed every year. I want a Finals MVP. I think that’s better than the regular award.”

Michael Wallace covers the NBA for ESPN.com.

Follow Michael Wallace on Twitter: @http://twitter.com/WallaceHeatNBA

ORLANDO, Fla. – The Atlanta Hawks’ dominance over the Orlando Magic this year is not just a regular-season phenomenon.

For now, it also includes the postseason.

Joe Johnson scored 25 points, Jamal Crawford finished with 23 and Atlanta beat Orlando 103-93 in Game 1 of their playoff series on Saturday, overcoming a monster night by Dwight Howard.

Atlanta was eliminated by Orlando in last year’s playoffs in the most lopsided four-game sweep in NBA history, but this one was much different. The Hawks led by as many as 18 points while running multiple bodies at Howard all night, and the rest of the Magic failed to step up.

“It’s a seven-game series and anything can happen,” Hawks coach Larry Drew said. “All I wanted us to come in here and do is play hard and maintain our composure. … I could tell our guys were ready for tonight’s game.”

Howard tied a career high with 46 points, to go along with 19 rebounds. Jameer Nelson had 27 points but no other Orlando player reached double figures.

The Hawks had five players with at least 13 points, earning their fourth straight victory against the Magic and erasing the sting of a six-game losing streak to close the regular season. Al Horford scored 16, Josh Smith had 15 points and eight rebounds and Kirk Hinrich added 13 points.

Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is Tuesday night in Orlando.

“I think we just had to be excited about where we were,” Johnson said. “We understood that we played this team four times this year and we won three of them. We’re a confident group. I think the last six games of the season people kinda looked down on us because we lost all six. But now we have a plan. It’s coming to fruition and we just have to go out and play together.”

After shooting a dismal 36 percent in the first quarter, the Hawks connected on 30 of their final 52 attempts from the field. They also shot 6 of 14 from the 3-point line.

“No question it’s different (from last year),” Horford said. “We’re a different team this year. This year we feel much more confident.”

Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said Atlanta’s strong shooting was too much to overcome and will be the focus of his adjustments going forward, along with reducing turnovers. The Magic had 18 giveaways that led to 21 Atlanta points.

The Hawks were in control throughout. They carried an 85-71 lead into the final period and caught a break when Howard was whistled for his fifth foul with 10:58 to play.

But even with Howard playing less aggressively underneath on defense, Orlando put together a 10-1 run that cut it to 92-83 with 4:40 left.

Howard banked in a hook shot with under two minutes remaining to make it 98-90. But a steal by Smith and 3-pointer by Crawford put the Magic back into scramble mode and Atlanta was able to play keepaway the rest of the game.

The Magic came out with some renewed offensive spirit in the opening minutes of the third, cutting Atlanta’s lead to 57-53. The Hawks responded with an 11-0 run, aided by a string of Orlando possessions that produced either fouls or turnovers.

To compound matters, a few trips later Howard was hit with his fourth personal and a technical foul at the 5:37 mark for pulling Zaza Pachulia to the floor on a rebound attempt. Three straight free throws by the Hawks made it 71-54.

Nelson kept the Magic close, scoring Orlando’s next 15 points to trim the edge to 80-69 with under two minutes to play in the period. He said there are no quick fixes to their woes in Game 1.

“I can’t really put a finger on it right now,” Nelson said.

The Hawks took a 55-48 advantage into the break, relying on hot shooting to keep them out in front for most of the half. Atlanta shot 55 percent overall, including a 14 of 17 from the field in the second quarter alone.

Howard went 16 for 23 from the field and 14 of 22 from the free-throw line, but he also had eight turnovers. Howard and Nelson combined for 26 of Orlando’s 34 field goals.

Howard scored the Magic’s first 12 points of the game and had 31 in the first half. His fellow starters and reserve Ryan Anderson combined to miss their first 10 field-goal attempts.

Hedo Turkoglu finally broke the scoring drought for Howard’s teammates with a free throw at the 1:20 mark in the first quarter. And J.J. Redick picked up the first non-Howard field goal of the night a few trips later, dropping in a reverse layup off a behind-the-back pass from Gilbert Arenas in transition.

“It’s frustrating that we lost,” Howard said. “But it’s the first game. … We just need to keep playing.”

NOTES: Howard’s 31 points in the opening 24 minutes was a new first-half scoring high for the season. His previous best was 26 in the first half at Portland on Dec. 9, when the Magic lost 97-83. … The 38 points the Magic gave up to the Hawks in the second quarter were the second-most points scored by an Orlando opponent in a half this season. … During one stretch in the second and third quarters, Atlanta hit 18 of 24 shots from the field.

ORLANDO, Fla. – The Atlanta Hawks’ dominance over the Orlando Magic this year is not just a regular-season phenomenon.

For now, it also includes the postseason.

Joe Johnson scored 25 points, Jamal Crawford finished with 23 and Atlanta beat Orlando 103-93 in Game 1 of their playoff series on Saturday, overcoming a monster night by Dwight Howard.

Atlanta was eliminated by Orlando in last year’s playoffs in the most lopsided four-game sweep in NBA history, but this one was much different. The Hawks led by as many as 18 points while running multiple bodies at Howard all night, and the rest of the Magic failed to step up.

“It’s a seven-game series and anything can happen,” Hawks coach Larry Drew said. “All I wanted us to come in here and do is play hard and maintain our composure. … I could tell our guys were ready for tonight’s game.”

Howard tied a career high with 46 points, to go along with 19 rebounds. Jameer Nelson had 27 points but no other Orlando player reached double figures.

The Hawks had five players with at least 13 points, earning their fourth straight victory against the Magic and erasing the sting of a six-game losing streak to close the regular season. Al Horford scored 16, Josh Smith had 15 points and eight rebounds and Kirk Hinrich added 13 points.

Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is Tuesday night in Orlando.

“I think we just had to be excited about where we were,” Johnson said. “We understood that we played this team four times this year and we won three of them. We’re a confident group. I think the last six games of the season people kinda looked down on us because we lost all six. But now we have a plan. It’s coming to fruition and we just have to go out and play together.”

After shooting a dismal 36 percent in the first quarter, the Hawks connected on 30 of their final 52 attempts from the field. They also shot 6 of 14 from the 3-point line.

“No question it’s different (from last year),” Horford said. “We’re a different team this year. This year we feel much more confident.”

Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said Atlanta’s strong shooting was too much to overcome and will be the focus of his adjustments going forward, along with reducing turnovers. The Magic had 18 giveaways that led to 21 Atlanta points.

The Hawks were in control throughout. They carried an 85-71 lead into the final period and caught a break when Howard was whistled for his fifth foul with 10:58 to play.

But even with Howard playing less aggressively underneath on defense, Orlando put together a 10-1 run that cut it to 92-83 with 4:40 left.

Howard banked in a hook shot with under two minutes remaining to make it 98-90. But a steal by Smith and 3-pointer by Crawford put the Magic back into scramble mode and Atlanta was able to play keepaway the rest of the game.

The Magic came out with some renewed offensive spirit in the opening minutes of the third, cutting Atlanta’s lead to 57-53. The Hawks responded with an 11-0 run, aided by a string of Orlando possessions that produced either fouls or turnovers.

To compound matters, a few trips later Howard was hit with his fourth personal and a technical foul at the 5:37 mark for pulling Zaza Pachulia to the floor on a rebound attempt. Three straight free throws by the Hawks made it 71-54.

Nelson kept the Magic close, scoring Orlando’s next 15 points to trim the edge to 80-69 with under two minutes to play in the period. He said there are no quick fixes to their woes in Game 1.

“I can’t really put a finger on it right now,” Nelson said.

The Hawks took a 55-48 advantage into the break, relying on hot shooting to keep them out in front for most of the half. Atlanta shot 55 percent overall, including a 14 of 17 from the field in the second quarter alone.

Howard went 16 for 23 from the field and 14 of 22 from the free-throw line, but he also had eight turnovers. Howard and Nelson combined for 26 of Orlando’s 34 field goals.

Howard scored the Magic’s first 12 points of the game and had 31 in the first half. His fellow starters and reserve Ryan Anderson combined to miss their first 10 field-goal attempts.

Hedo Turkoglu finally broke the scoring drought for Howard’s teammates with a free throw at the 1:20 mark in the first quarter. And J.J. Redick picked up the first non-Howard field goal of the night a few trips later, dropping in a reverse layup off a behind-the-back pass from Gilbert Arenas in transition.

“It’s frustrating that we lost,” Howard said. “But it’s the first game. … We just need to keep playing.”

NOTES: Howard’s 31 points in the opening 24 minutes was a new first-half scoring high for the season. His previous best was 26 in the first half at Portland on Dec. 9, when the Magic lost 97-83. … The 38 points the Magic gave up to the Hawks in the second quarter were the second-most points scored by an Orlando opponent in a half this season. … During one stretch in the second and third quarters, Atlanta hit 18 of 24 shots from the field.

The Magic host Joe Johnson and the Hawks tonight at 7 p.m. in Game 1 of the playoffs. (Photo by Curtis Compton/The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

The day is finally here, as the Orlando Magic take on the Atlanta Hawks tonight to begin the playoffs. In today’s links, we once again preview the series from every angle, including Jason Collins’ impact on Dwight Howard, the Magic’s inability to make threes against the Hawks this season, and the trivial trash talk between Jameer Nelson and the Hawks.

1. Dwight Howard’s Superman and Jameer Nelson’s Mighty Mouse try to save the day for Magic, Brian Schmitz, Orlando Sentinel

The Buzz: Howard and Nelson have teamed up to turn this organization around.

2. J.J. Redick practices with Orlando Magic, is on track to return Saturday, Josh Robbins, Orlando Sentinel

The Buzz: Redick is planning to play tonight against the Hawks.

3. Atlanta Hawks will follow familiar plan against the Orlando Magic, Josh Robbins, Orlando Sentinel

The Buzz: The Hawks plan to start Jason Collins, who will get physical with Howard.

4. Jameer Nelson: ‘They can take it how they want to take it’ Zach McCann, Orlando Sentinel

The Buzz: Nelson responded to his comment that irked the Hawks.

5. Hawks will give Magic all they want in first round, Mike Bianchi, Orlando Sentinel

The Buzz: Bianchi predicts the Magic will win the series, but it won’t be easy.

6. The enigmatic and erratic Orlando Magic, Eddy Rivera, Magicbasketball.net

The Buzz: Which Magic team will show up for the playoffs?

7. Top storylines of 2011 NBA playoffs, Zach Lowe, SI.com

The Buzz: These playoffs are very important for Howard’s future in Orlando.

8. Orlando Magic vs. Atlanta Hawks Playoff Preview: Three-Point Shooting a Question-Mark for Orlando, Evan Dunlap, Orlando Pinstriped Post

The Buzz: The Magic are shooting poorly against the Hawks this year.

9. Hawks vs. Magic matchups, Michael Cunningham, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The Buzz: On paper, the Hawks are stronger than the Magic at three of the five starting positions.

10. Atlanta Hawks: Judging Joe Johnson, Michael Cunningham, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The Buzz: Against the Magic last year in the playoffs, Johnson infamously disappeared — and that’s something he’s trying to undo this year.

ATLANTA (AP)—Jason Collins(notes) spent all but 6 minutes on the bench when the Hawks were swept by the Orlando Magic in a lopsided second-round playoff series last year.

With Mike Woodson as coach, Collins saw no action in two games and barely was on the floor long enough to work up a sweat in the other two as the Hawks lost four straight by an average of 25 points.

Collins has played a much larger role as a part-time starter this season under first-year coach Larry Drew. He was especially important when starting each of four games against Dwight Howard(notes) and the Magic, helping the Hawks win three of the four.

It’s no wonder Drew was so encouraged to see Collins, who missed the last four regular-season games with a sprained left ankle, return to practice Thursday.

“Jason participated in everything we did,” Drew said. “He was moving around real well. I was really happy to see he didn’t show as if the ankle was bothering him or anything. He looks like he’s back.”

Collins likely will start Saturday in the opening game of the first-round series in Orlando as the Hawks try to atone for last year’s playoff loss. The Hawks also are trying to recover after closing the regular season with six straight losses, their longest losing streak in three years.

“I was a little disappointed with the way we finished that last week out, which was a concern of mine, particularly after we locked up the fifth spot,” Drew said. “I know some of the guys were expecting some games off and some guys did take some games off. I’m confident this team is going to flip that switch back.”

Drew, who was an assistant under Woodson, rested his starters down the stretch. The five starters combined for only 20 points, with none playing more than 25 minutes, in Atlanta’s 96-85 loss at Charlotte on Wednesday night.

Collins, a 7-foot center known for his defense, started 28 games this season. He had modest averages of 4.5 points and 3.3 rebounds in the four games against Orlando, but his defense helped hold Howard to 43-percent shooting.

The addition of Collins to the lineup allowed Al Horford(notes) to move from center to power forward. Horford averaged 16.8 points and 8.8 rebounds against the Magic. Overall, he averaged 15.3 points while making his second All-Star team.

“It does help me as far as offense,” Horford said. “I’m able to roam around more freely as opposed to being down on the blocks.”

The big lineup also worked well for forward Josh Smith(notes), who averaged 17.5 points and 10.5 rebounds in the four games. He had 26 points in the Hawks’ most recent game against Orlando, an 85-82 win in Atlanta on March 30.

Marvin Williams(notes), the starting small forward in Drew’s normal lineup, comes off the bench when Collins starts.

Horford didn’t hesitate when asked why he is confident the Hawks won’t suffer a repeat of last year’s brutal playoff showing against Orlando.

“Just the lineup change,” Horford said. “Having a bigger guy guarding Dwight has made all the difference. That’s why we are so confident.”

Collins won’t be asked to take on Howard alone. The Hawks plan to use their depth at center with Collins, Zaza Pachulia(notes) and Horford.

“We definitely need to make this a physical series,” Collins said. “We need to use our fouls. We’ve got a lot of big bodies on this team.”

Horford said the six-game losing streak doesn’t reflect the team’s postseason chances.

“Ideally, you want to go in with some momentum from the regular season,” Horford said. “But as a team, I think we’re there. Once we clinched that fifth spot, I think we mentally were ready to go.”

Collins said the Hawks moved past last year’s playoff loss with their first game against Orlando this year, a 93-89 loss on Nov. 8. After that, the Hawks won the last three games of the regular-season series.

“Our first game down there this year, we closed the book on last year,” Collins said. “And we want to keep it closed.”

ATLANTA (AP)—Jason Collins(notes) spent all but 6 minutes on the bench when the Hawks were swept by the Orlando Magic in a lopsided second-round playoff series last year.

With Mike Woodson as coach, Collins saw no action in two games and barely was on the floor long enough to work up a sweat in the other two as the Hawks lost four straight by an average of 25 points.

Collins has played a much larger role as a part-time starter this season under first-year coach Larry Drew. He was especially important when starting each of four games against Dwight Howard(notes) and the Magic, helping the Hawks win three of the four.

It’s no wonder Drew was so encouraged to see Collins, who missed the last four regular-season games with a sprained left ankle, return to practice Thursday.

“Jason participated in everything we did,” Drew said. “He was moving around real well. I was really happy to see he didn’t show as if the ankle was bothering him or anything. He looks like he’s back.”

Collins likely will start Saturday in the opening game of the first-round series in Orlando as the Hawks try to atone for last year’s playoff loss. The Hawks also are trying to recover after closing the regular season with six straight losses, their longest losing streak in three years.

“I was a little disappointed with the way we finished that last week out, which was a concern of mine, particularly after we locked up the fifth spot,” Drew said. “I know some of the guys were expecting some games off and some guys did take some games off. I’m confident this team is going to flip that switch back.”

Drew, who was an assistant under Woodson, rested his starters down the stretch. The five starters combined for only 20 points, with none playing more than 25 minutes, in Atlanta’s 96-85 loss at Charlotte on Wednesday night.

Collins, a 7-foot center known for his defense, started 28 games this season. He had modest averages of 4.5 points and 3.3 rebounds in the four games against Orlando, but his defense helped hold Howard to 43-percent shooting.

The addition of Collins to the lineup allowed Al Horford(notes) to move from center to power forward. Horford averaged 16.8 points and 8.8 rebounds against the Magic. Overall, he averaged 15.3 points while making his second All-Star team.

“It does help me as far as offense,” Horford said. “I’m able to roam around more freely as opposed to being down on the blocks.”

The big lineup also worked well for forward Josh Smith(notes), who averaged 17.5 points and 10.5 rebounds in the four games. He had 26 points in the Hawks’ most recent game against Orlando, an 85-82 win in Atlanta on March 30.

Marvin Williams(notes), the starting small forward in Drew’s normal lineup, comes off the bench when Collins starts.

Horford didn’t hesitate when asked why he is confident the Hawks won’t suffer a repeat of last year’s brutal playoff showing against Orlando.

“Just the lineup change,” Horford said. “Having a bigger guy guarding Dwight has made all the difference. That’s why we are so confident.”

Collins won’t be asked to take on Howard alone. The Hawks plan to use their depth at center with Collins, Zaza Pachulia(notes) and Horford.

“We definitely need to make this a physical series,” Collins said. “We need to use our fouls. We’ve got a lot of big bodies on this team.”

Horford said the six-game losing streak doesn’t reflect the team’s postseason chances.

“Ideally, you want to go in with some momentum from the regular season,” Horford said. “But as a team, I think we’re there. Once we clinched that fifth spot, I think we mentally were ready to go.”

Collins said the Hawks moved past last year’s playoff loss with their first game against Orlando this year, a 93-89 loss on Nov. 8. After that, the Hawks won the last three games of the regular-season series.

“Our first game down there this year, we closed the book on last year,” Collins said. “And we want to keep it closed.”

A breakdown of the Hawks-Magic first-round series:

Story line: It’s been a weird season in Atlanta, where the Hawks promoted Larry Drew to head coach, altered the offense, started the year on a six-game winning streak, added Kirk Hinrich at the trade deadline … and still finished with 44 wins (with one to play), compared to 53 last year. It’s been just as weird a year in Orlando, where the Magic blew up the roster in December and brought in Hedo Turkoglu, Jason Richardson and Gilbert Arenas … and still have just 51 wins (with one to play), down from 59 last year. For both teams, this postseason will be an attempt to salvage two equally odd years.

Stars: The Magic revolve around MVP-candidate center Dwight Howard, who is averaging 23.0 points and 14.1 rebounds this season. Atlanta has been especially physical with Howard in the teams’ last three meetings, and it has worked—the Hawks won all three games, with Howard averaging 16.7 points on 15-for-38 (39.5 percent) shooting. In their last meeting, the Hawks started center Jason Collins, and Collins manhandled Howard as much as he could, something a clearly frustrated Howard complained about when asked after the game. Atlanta All-Star guard Joe Johnson will be a handful for Orlando shooting guard Richardson.

Role players: The Hawks will start Collins in order to move Al Horford—who is not big enough to defend Howard—to power forward and Josh Smith to small forward. Those are tough matchups for Orlando, with 6-8 Brandon Bass on Horford and Turkoglu trying to keep pace with Smith. This will also be the time for Hinrich, acquired from Washington at the trade deadline, to prove his worth at point guard. The Hawks wanted better defense at the position, and they’ll need it against speedy point man Jameer Nelson.

Benches: Despite a significant dip in shooting, Jamal Crawford is one of the most potent sixth men in the league, and starting Collins gives the Hawks the added benefit of bringing Marvin Williams off the bench. Zaza Pachulia normally plays a limited role, but against Howard, he will bring six hard fouls to each game. The Magic bench has been in flux much of the year, but Ryan Anderson is a good shooting big man. Arenas has a history as a scorer, but he has been a non-factor off the Orlando bench.

Xs and Os: The Magic want to spread the floor to create space for Howard inside and allow him to kick it out to the perimeter for open 3-pointers. But Atlanta battles that by knocking Howard around, frustrating him and trying to keep Orlando out of its comfort zone. The Hawks want to play as many games in the 80s as they can—that’s their best shot at this series.

Number that matters: 8. That’s a pretty good barometer of the Magic’s 3-point shooting. Through 81 games, when they have made at least eight in a game, the Magic are 41-19. When they haven’t, they’re 10-12.

Outlook: There will be elbows, there will be bruises, there will be complaints about the refereeing, there will be technical fouls. This series will be tucked away among the least-attractive television time slots, but it could be the tightest matchup of the first round in the East. Atlanta will make things ugly, but they can’t hold Howard down in every game, and Orlando has enough outside shooting to make the Hawks pay for giving Howard too much attention. Magic in six.

Stan Van Gundy and the Orlando Magic play the Toronto Raptors tonight at 6 p.m.

A rapper tries to persuade Dwight Howard to play for the Knicks, Stan Van Gundy talks about his plan to rest players down the stretch and we talk defensive player of the year in today’s links.

1. Magic players are growing beards, but what about Magic fans, Mike Bianchi, Orlando Sentinel

The Buzz: The Magic’s ‘Fear the Beard’ campaign is in its second week. Is confidence growing?

2. Rich DeVos recovering after serious fall, Brian Schmitz, Orlando Sentinel

The Buzz: The team’s rampant injuries extend all the way up to the owner.

3. Stan Van Gundy: Days off more important than minutes (video) Zach McCann, Orlando Sentinel

The Buzz: Van Gundy gives some insight into how he plans to rest his guys before the postseason.

4. Rapper says he’ll recruit Dwight Howard to New York Knicks, Shannon J. Owens, Orlando Sentinel

The Buzz: A rapper says he’ll try to influence Howard to play for the Knicks, in addition to Chris Paul.

5. Two weeks to go, the playoff picture is clearing, Royce Young, CBSSports.com

The Buzz: The Magic are pretty much locked in to play the Hawks in the first round, as has been the case for a while now.

6. Turkoglu excelling in second tour with Magic, David Steele, FoxSportsFlorida.com

The Buzz: Turk looks very similar to the player he was two years ago with Orlando.

7. An Upset Winner For DPOY? Sekou Smith, NBA.com

The Buzz: Smith talks about the candidates for the NBA’s biggest defensive award.

8. Cohen Answers Popular Questions, Josh Cohen, OrlandoMagic.com

The Buzz: Here’s a rundown of the Magic’s biggest concerns heading into the final two weeks of the season.

9. Rose comes through vs. Raps, Nick Friedell, ESPN.com

The Buzz: Rose, like he has before, carried the Bulls in a win over the Raptors Saturday night.

10. 76ers to playoffs, Wizards to record book, ESPN.com

The Buzz: The Sixers clinched a playoff spot, solidifying Doug Collins as a coach of the year candidate.

Instead, the Magic produced perhaps their best defensive performance of the year, while Jameer Nelson swished maybe the team’s best shot of the year. Magic-Nuggets photos

Nelson hit a game-winning 3-pointer as time expired and the Magic stifled the Nuggets’ high-powered offense to win a 85-82 thriller at Amway Center.

“We just dug it out,” Van Gundy said. “That’s the thing I like. I like to get wins like that where we’ve just got to fight for them.”

With the score tied 82-82 with 5.7 seconds remaining, Van Gundy gave Nelson just one directive: create or take the last shot.

Nelson received the inbounds pass from Hedo Turkoglu, elevated at the top of the arc with 2.2 seconds left and sent a high-arcing shot just over the outstretched left hand of Denver’s Ty Lawson. The ball sailed through the hoop, touching nothing but net.

Van Gundy raised his right hand. Dwight Howard did a fist pump. And the rest of the Magic swarmed onto the court from their bench, encircled the diminutive point guard at midcourt and started jumping up and down. When Nelson emerged from the scrum, he ran to the scorer’s table and waved his arms up to spur on the announced crowd of 19,113, who were already on their feet.

“It was up to me to make a play for myself or for somebody else,” Nelson said.

“It felt good when it left my hand. I knew I had a great chance. You all know I don’t shy away from the last shot at all. [I'm] definitely willing to take the last shot, make or miss, and live with the results.”

Couldn’t argue with Friday’s results.

Or the Magic’s defense either.

Denver entered the game leading the NBA in points per game (107.8) and was ranked third in field-goal percentage (.477).

The Magic held the new-look Nuggets to 35.9 percent shooting and limited the Nuggets to their lowest point total since the trade of superstar Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups on Feb. 22.

“We did a great job on the defensive end tonight,” said Magic center Dwight Howard, who scored 16 points, hauled in 18 rebounds and blocked five shots.

“I’m so happy with the progress that we made tonight on the defensive end. From shootaround to tonight’s game, it just shows guys’ effort and energy — how much we really want to win.”

Those performances helped the Magic overcome 18 turnovers — the fifth time in seven games the team has had at least 18 turnovers.

The Magic produced some nice hustle plays throughout, a welcome sign for a team that has struggled at times to maintain a consistent energy level.

Chris Duhon took a charge. Ryan Anderson attempted to take a couple of charges, with one of the plays resulting the ball going out of bounds off of Danilo Gallinari. Turkoglu dropped to the parquet floor to collect a loose ball, forcing a jump ball against Chris Andersen.

Turkoglu finished with 15 points, nine rebounds and eight assists to almost record his second triple-double of the season.

“Both teams played very, very hard,” Van Gundy said. “I thought it was a terrific defensive effort that our guys had tonight.”

That’s what it took to win.

That and Nelson’s buzzer beater.

jbrobbins@tribune.com. Read his blog at OrlandoSentinel.com/magicblog. Subscribe to our Orlando Magic newsletter at OrlandoSentinel.com/joinus.