To truly put Troy Hudson's rapid rise and game-saving, 26-point performance in Game 2 of the Orlando Magic's playoff series into perspective, you must flash back to his lowly status a year ago.
When Orlando played Milwaukee in the playoffs last season, Magic head coach Doc Rivers had such little faith in the reserve point guard that Hudson barely played 14 minutes a game and scored just 17 points the entire four-game series. Rather than playing Hudson, the Magic reluctantly had to leave a battered and gimpy Darrell Armstrong on the floor an average of 42 minutes a night.
Now, fast-forward to this postseason, one in which Hudson has remarkably zoomed to the forefront with his free-wheeling, furious style of breakneck basketball. He took a major portion of the scoring burden off Tracy McGrady's ailing back in Tuesday's Game 2 by pumping in 26 points, a career best in the postseason.
Hudson's surprising boost allowed the Magic to split the two games in Charlotte and control homecourt advantage as the two teams prepare for Game 3 Saturday afternoon in Orlando. Hudson now being cast a playoff hero is a fitting ending to what has been one of the NBA's most remarkable turnarounds of the season.
"Last season when I'd make a turnover or take a bad shot, I'd look over to the bench and see a grimace on Doc's face," Hudson admitted. "But now, he just tells me to keep attacking. That gives me the confidence to stay aggressive. That's the way I like to play. When I have that freedom and don't have to worry about mistakes, that's when I'm at my best."
Hudson's best this season has been a welcome relief to a Magic team that was close to giving up on him last year. Not only did he double his scoring average (11.7 compared to 4.8), he improved in nine statistical categories this season. He didn't win the NBA's Most Improved Player award -- he finished tied for seventh behind winner Jermaine O'Neal -- but few players have come farther in one season's time than Hudson.
"Coming from where I was last year," Hudson said with a sigh, "just being nominated for the award is like winning to me."
With Mike Miller hobbled by a sprained left ankle, Hudson came to the rescue Tuesday and provided the Magic with a reliable second scorer behind McGrady. When McGrady went to the bench midway through the second quarter, Hudson took control of a see-saw game that had featured 11 lead changes. He battered Baron Davis and David Wesley with 10 points off a flurry of quick-release jumpers. His scoring keyed an 18-4 run that allowed the Magic to build a 15-point lead by halftime.
Hudson's obvious aggression and oozing confidence were factors that were missing in Game 1, when he had taken just seven shots and played passively. Rivers impressed upon him before the game that if he didn't attack in Game 2 he wouldn't keep him on the floor.
On Tuesday, Rivers rewarded Hudson's revived spark with playing time when the game mattered most. He was on the floor for the entire fourth quarter and overtime. In all, he made 10 of 18 shots, including a key jumper in the extra period that put the Magic up five.
"We want him to be as aggressive as possible, but also under control," Rivers said. "There was one stretch there in the third quarter where he got out of whack a little bit, but we let him play through it. We had to because he's the only guy other than Tracy who can break their defense down and get his own shot."
McGrady, who played through the back injury and had 31 points and 11 rebounds in Game 2, might have been the most delighted player to see Hudson's improvement.
"That's what we've got to get Troy," McGrady said. "Basically you've got them all keying in on me, so there's a lot of pressure there. But if a guy like Troy is able to play free, he's going to burn defenses. That a huge help to me."
Hudson, a 6-foot-1, 170-pounder out of Southern Illinois University, was little help to the Magic last season when he was signed as a free agent to back up Armstrong. A shooting guard in college, the Magic tried to turn him into a traditional point guard. But he struggled mightily with his decision-making, turning the ball over repeatedly in crucial times. And with his confidence at an all-time low, Hudson's shot (33 percent from the floor, 20 percent from 3-point range) also left him. He was benched for long stretches and was hardly a factor in the playoffs, when Armstrong was playing on a badly strained groin muscle.
But quite possibly the turning point in Hudson's career came in January of this season when Rivers called him into his office prior to a road game against the Memphis Grizzlies. Basically, Rivers admitted that his plan of making Hudson into a point guard had failed and he was issuing him what the two now refer to as "The Freedom Act."
"We were in Memphis and he just told me, 'I've been on you hard for more than a year now and I think it's time for you to go out and play your style. I want you to play free and put some big numbers up for us,' " Hudson recalled. "I kind of was shocked. Going through the season I did last year, I never thought I'd get the freedom and the green light I've gotten this year."
That night in Memphis, Hudson responded with 18 points, setting the stage for his stellar play down the stretch. For the year, he topped 20 points 12 times compared to just four times last season. He led the Magic in scoring six times compared to just once last year. And the freedom to shoot produced 48 double-digit scoring nights compared to only eight last season.
"Doc always told me last season he knew I could really score," he said. "But last year helped me because I've learned to play point guard better. Now, my game is a better combination. If I need to run the team I can. If I need to score I can. Before, I could just score and now I can do both."
Financially speaking, Hudson's timing couldn't be better. He is a free agent at season's end and is making the veteran's minimum of $590,850 this season. He'll surely command some interest from other teams this summer and will likely get a contract offer worth $3-4 million from the Magic.
Said Rivers: "It will be tougher to keep him now, but we're going to fight to keep him. I'd really be surprised if Troy isn't here. I think he'll be here next year."
For now, Hudson is simply concerned with repeating his Game 2 performance in Saturday's Game 3. With Charlotte's Davis slowed by back spasms, Hudson said he has no plans of backing off his aggressive, free-spirited style of play.
"I may not hit shots, but as long as I'm aggressive, I think I can cause a lot of havoc," he said. "I can hurt Charlotte by pushing the ball up the court and getting to the basket. I won't stop being aggressive."