[Orlando Sentinel] Cato sees a big season for Magic

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Cato sees a big season for Magic
Published August 28, 2005

Orlando Magic center Kelvin Cato might not look the same this season.

And that's a good thing.

Cato, who turned 31 on Friday, is going into the final year of his contract (paying him $8.2 million), knowing that a big season could turn him into a Grade A free agent next summer.

Shoulder surgery in June to repair a torn rotator cuff and a mild dislocation will restrict his contact work early in training camp, but it had Cato brimming with confidence last week after a recent session in the training room.

"We're going to be good this season. Getting into the playoffs is only the minimum goal," he said. "If we stay healthy, which we didn't last season, we should be a major factor in the Eastern Conference."

Cato spent most of last season moving in and out of the lineup, playing with that bad shoulder. It was painful, both physically and mentally, especially as a promising start slipped slowly into a major disappointment.

He hurt his shoulder Dec. 6 in Denver, just as the Magic were hitting stride and he was picking up speed. They went into that game with an 11-5 record, and in the four previous games, he had averaged 10.8 points, 13.5 rebounds and 1.75 blocked shots.

In the following 10 games -- with Cato out of the lineup -- the Magic went 4-6. And when he returned, he was never the same. He missed a few more games with a sprained left ankle, then a sinus infection, but he kept playing with a much-weakened shoulder.

"By playing the rest of the season, I probably hurt the team more than I helped it," Cato said. "Looking back now, I probably should have had the surgery right away. Being a professional athlete, though, you are taught to play hurt, play through some pain. I tried to give it 100 percent, but my body just didn't do 100 percent."

Cato has been in Orlando doing his rehabilitation for the past few weeks. He expects to be here until training camp opens Oct. 4. He's shooting and running, but doctors told him not to begin the contact work -- the serious wrestling around the basket in scrimmages -- until the second week of October.

"It's going to feel good to play healthy again," he said. "I'm really excited. We were much better than we showed last season for a number of reasons."

Cato already has met twice with new Coach Brian Hill. They had lunch together. They talked about last season, and what is expected this season. Although they've never worked together before, Cato sounded impressed.

"Every coach I've ever had has an agenda to win. It's just that sometimes it doesn't work out that way," he said. "He [Hill] is a proven coach, a proven winner, and you can't ask for much more than that."

Cato's agent asked the Magic this summer to extend his current contract, but the Magic declined, which was understandable considering his play last season after the early injury. He averaged seven points and 6.7 rebounds. There were times he looked good, but other times he looked uninspired.

They are hoping his contract status sparks him to his finest season as a professional. If that happens, the season could get real interesting.

Cato has averaged 5.7 points and 5.6 rebounds in his career. A season like that, and free agency won't be much fun for him next summer, forcing him into a pay cut. But with the lack of quality NBA centers, a season of 10 points and 10 rebounds will turn him into a very hot commodity, earning him another lucrative deal, even by NBA standards.

"I feel good," he said. "And it's going to be a good season."

Bitter pill for Porter

It's a strange feeling that Terry Porter is feeling today. Porter unexpectedly was fired from his head-coaching job in Milwaukee this summer -- only six weeks after the Bucks picked up the $1.5 million option on his contract and assured everyone he would return.

"In 20 years, I've never gone through a fall not having to worry about training camp, either as a player or a coach," he told the Portland Tribune in Oregon last week. "I'm looking forward to getting reacquainted with my kids."

Porter was 41-41 in his first season with the Bucks, pushing them into the playoffs as an overachieving team. Last season, though, they finished 30-52 and were beset by injuries. The Bucks got the No. 1 pick in the draft and took center Andrew Bogut. They also signed free-agent forward Bobby Simmons.

"I'm bitter at not getting the opportunity after they reloaded. I thought I warranted that opportunity," Porter said.

Around the Rim


Denver Nuggets Coach George Karl isn't the best-liked coach in the league -- his humor sometimes rubs people the wrong way -- but he discovered he had more friends than he knew after his prostrate cancer surgery in July. He received about 2,000 get-well e-mails from fans and an estimated 100 get-well cards. "There were a lot of nice words,'' he said before a recent charity golf outing in Dublin, Ohio.


Magic Assistant General Manager Otis Smith is getting plenty of questions from fans wondering why more changes aren't being made to a team that didn't reach the playoffs last season. He keeps preaching patience. "We've had so many changes the last couple of summers. That's part of the problem,'' he said. "A little continuity will be good. We need to develop what we have. Just give Brian [Hill] a chance with this team.''


Cato isn't the only Magic player working for his next contract in the upcoming season. So is backup power forward/center Tony Battie.


The new NBA drug testing policy, which allows veterans to be tested randomly four times during the year, is going to get complicated. Just under the category "Steroids and Performance Enhancing Drugs,'' 84 different drugs are listed.


Cleveland Cavaliers forward Anderson Varejao, acquired from the Magic along with Drew Gooden in a trade last summer, dislocated his right shoulder playing for Brazil in a World Championships qualifying game last week.

A Final Thought: For 2 teams that missed the Finals by just one round, the Suns and the Heat made a lot of changes.

Tim Povtak can be reached at tpovtak@orlandosentinel.com.
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