(S)...Otis, you've had more than a week to digest the second round of the playoffs and the season that was. What are your thoughts about the big picture of the 2007-2008 season?

(O)...I think we made strides as a club. I think we have a little ways to go to understand how hard and how disciplined you have to be in the playoffs in order to win games, but I think we definitely made strides. Our guys, as late as last Friday, were still really hurting from the loss to Detroit, so that's encouraging in a way to know that they, to a man, think that we should be still playing right now.

(S)...This team's accomplishments this year are many: 52 wins, a divisional title, a playoff series win over Toronto. But, in this league, you're only as good as your last game. So what, if anything, did the series vs. Detroit reveal to you about your team?

(O)...Number one is that Detroit's been there before. The Pistons are a veteran team. We didn't take care of the ball and we didn't make shots. All the things we did during the course of the season, we didn't do particularly well during the playoffs. We all know the game slows down a bit during the playoffs, so we have to figure out ways to score points. Our better players, Dwight, Turk, Rashard and Jameer, have to figure out ways to improve as well. We just have to continue to improve and add a few pieces for us to get better to give us a chance to win a championship.

(S)...Dwight Howard was amazing this year. What have you told Dwight about what he has to do to get this team to the next level?

(O)...It's more of what Stan has told him, and I echo Stan's thoughts. He needs to do two things. The first is free throw shooting. He has to be able to shoot free throws at a better rate than he did this year. The second part is that he has to develop something to get away from double teams, whether it's a turn around jump shot or a hook or something on the box that's gonna give him a chance to be effective throughout the course of a game when double teams are coming. Our assistant coach, Patrick Ewing was a master at that for years. But Dwight's free throw shooting is the biggest thing.

(S)...Rashard had a forgetful game five in Detroit, but on the whole he had a fantastic year. Did you get what you expected from Rashard this season?

(O)...I think so. We asked him to do what he's done his entire career, and I think he did just that. We asked him to play the power forward position when Tony went down and, to his credit, he did that on both ends of the floor playing against some of the better players in this league at that position. Rashard has to continue to get better and attack the basket, don't become just a perimeter shooter. And we have to do a better job of getting him more opportunities on the block. Those are some of the things that he's taken advantage of throughout his career and I think as time goes on we'll take advantage of his strengths.

(S)...What about Jameer Nelson? I thought he kicked it up a notch in the playoffs. What are your thoughts about Jameer and how he played this season?

(O)....Well, Jameer's gonna continue to grow. My concerns with Jameer are twofold. First, he has to take care of his body. Small guys have a tendency to get hurt because of where they are on the floor. They have to work harder to compete, so he has to take care of his body. Secondly, in the area of leadership, I always harp on our better players to be leaders. He has to continue to improve there. If he continues to shoot the ball well and make the decisions that he's capable of making on the floor, he'll continue to grow and flourish as a player.

(S)...The NBA Draft Camp comes to Orlando this week. What's the plan?

(O)....You evaluate and continue to evaluate the prospects and see what unfolds. We're picking 22nd. I do think that it's gonna be a deep enough draft to where we can get a player that we really like because of all the underclassmen that have declared so that makes the draft more attractive.

(S)...What are you looking to get in the draft?

(O)...I am not really one of those guys who goes into a draft saying that I need to have that position covered and this position covered. As many free agents we have in our back court, I probably am more apt to say that we need the best player on the board, regardless of position. I think that player will be there. Whether it's 1-5, I think you have to take the best player on the board.

(S)...Knowing you don't have salary cap room this off season, is it safe to say that you will not be a major player in free agency this summer?

(O)...I don't think it's THAT safe to say. I think there are three big time players in free agency: Philly, Memphis and Seattle. The rest of us are right around the mid-level. So I think everyone will be players. The difference this year is that there are more players that have the potential to become available through unrestricted free agency and opt outs than there is money to spend. So that makes available players a bit more attractive. You just have to do your best sales job, identify your player or players and kinda stay on that path.

(S)...There's been some talk about Hedo Turkoglu. He had such a great season. But knowing the economics of the game, knowing that he will likely opt out after next season and knowing the fact that he and Rashard play the same position, does the possibility exist that Hedo is not here next season??

(O)...You always look at how to improve your team. But Turk is such a big part of what we do and he allows us to be what I call flexible as a team. We're able to play him at the three or the four. Perhaps you can envision playing Turk some at the two, Rashard at the three, when Tony comes back at the four-spot. So, the flexibility of our roster has been one of the things that's been intriguing about our team. But you're still trying to make your team better and that's how you have to look at the off season.

(S)...You will have a share of your own free agents to deal with: Keyon Dooling, Maurice Evans and Carlos Arroyo to name a few. What's the plan with your own guys?

(O)...They all had good years. Maurice probably had his best year as a pro. Keyon had a good year for us. Carlos was big for us especially when Jameer was down. We're gonna look at it and talk about it and talk about the economics of it all. We're gonna figure out how it all fits. We like all those guys and we have to figure out how to get our team better.

(S)...I know this is a sore subject...but is there any chance whatsoever that Fran Vazquez, your first round pick from 2005, come over and play next season in Orlando?

(O)...If I had to put a percentage on it, I'd say less than two percentage points. A lot of it depends on him at this point. I think we've done a good job as an organization of letting him know how important he is to us. But he has two years left on a contract that has a buy out that's roughly around $10 million. There would have to be concessions on his part to say ya know what, I'm gonna come over and take a little less and I'll pay out my buyout and come over and play. That's the concession he has to make as a pro. He likes the idea of being in a Magic uniform, but financially, I think it might be tough for him.