Orlando Sentinel

October 3, 2007
by Marcus Thompson II

Orlando Magic's Adonal Foyle Takes Pride In Playing Ugly
The center will back up and play with Dwight Howard and is known for tough defense and shot-blocking

No one grows up wanting to play basketball like Adonal Foyle.

It just happens out of necessity.

"It's an ugly game I play, doing things that you don't write home to your parents about," Foyle said. "It's in the trenches. It's pushing, shoving, elbowing. It's not the glorious side of the game, but all the good teams usually have someone to do it. I'll happily do it here.Ó

The Orlando Magic signed Foyle on the cheap this summer to play behind center Dwight Howard.He might be playing alongside him.

The absence of Tony Battie, who likely is lost for the season, and the desire of Howard still to play some at power forward, has added to the importance of Foyle, whose love of the low-post, dirty-work duty has made him an increasingly attractive option for Magic Coach Stan Van Gundy.

Howard/Foyle together was one of the lineups used during a scrimmage session this week at training camp, giving the Magic something to ponder.

"I think Coach is going to try a lot of stuff. Against a big team, he'd be able to play us together. I can concentrate on the other team's big guy, and Dwight can have a field day against some forward. If he can play the four [power forward], it's clearly a mismatch in our favor."

Foyle, 32, has spent the past 10 seasons playing defense with the Golden State Warriors. At 6 feet 10, 270 pounds, he is considerably heavier than Battie, which allows him to handle even the biggest NBA centers. And he is a much better shot-blocker, averaging 1.78 blocks in only 19.1 minutes, giving Howard a co-anchor defensively.

The Warriors had little use for him, though, last season. New Coach Don Nelson favored a helter-skelter, small-ball style of play, in which the defense was making a steal to create a fast break.

Foyle averaged only 10 minutes last season, but he also averaged one block in those short stints. For years, he was the NCAA all-time blocked shots leader (492 blocks) at Colgate.

"This is a great situation for me. It's a new start with a team that wants, really wants, to play defense," Foyle said. "A lot of teams say they want to play defense, but after two days, it fades. I don't see that happening here. Not with all the time we spend on it in camp. And that's to my advantage."

The Magic previously pursued Foyle as a free agent in 2004, but he re-signed with Golden State. It's why the Warriors were scheduled to pay him $8.9 million this season and $9.2 million next season. Both sides agreed to a buyout instead this summer, saving the Warriors a few million but allowing him to become a free agent again. The Magic signed him for the $1.2 million veteran's minimum, which could become a bargain.

"The No. 1 thing we're going to get from him is great defense, shot-blocking and rebounds," Van Gundy said. "He also brings great energy and consistency. What has been surprising are his offensive skills. He has shown some nice moves around the basket. That would be a nice bonus."

Foyle never has averaged more than 5.9 points per game in his career, showing little offensive consistency. Playing him alongside Howard could be a problem for the Magic if opponents don't have to guard him outside the lane. Battie, conversely, had a nice 12-foot jump shot to keep defenses honest.

"I think people will be surprised with my offense, which is a good thing. Just because you haven't seen it, doesn't mean I don't have it," he said. "It's been percolating beneath the surface all these years. It's like a doctor who has to go to school for quite awhile before he can practice medicine."

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