--F Brian Cook, who has been seldom used, gained some respect from All-Star Dwight Howard when he came to his defense after Howard was knocked to the floor with a hard foul against the Clippers on Monday. Cook was in the game only because Tony Battie had asked out with soreness of his surgically repaired shoulder. Cook was the one who quickly got in the face of Zach Randolph, who was called for a flagrant foul, and he was the one who knocked down Clippers star Baron Davis a few minutes later. "I liked that," Howard said of Cook's reaction.
--The three-point shooting that has keyed the Magic's fast start this season should be no surprise. When it made 10 three-pointers in Monday's victory, it marked the 104th consecutive game (spanning parts of three seasons) in which the team hit at least four three-pointers. --C Dwight Howard, still the youngest player (23) on the Magic roster, really seems to enjoy visiting children as part of the team's community relations program. "It's just fun to be around kids. I used to be a doctor. They called me 'Dr. Giggles.' My job was to make sure all the kids had smiles on their faces before I left. I actually got my PhD in being a comedian. That's my second job."
QUOTE TO NOTE: "No question, we were lucky there at the end," said Magic Coach Stan Van Gundy, talking about the Magic's come-from-behind victory in Portland. "But we gave ourselves a chance to get lucky. That's what I was really proud of."
