Welcome to Presto in the Paint, a FanSided blog and affiliate of the Sports Illustrated/CNN Digital Network.  Presto will focus on providing you up-to-date news and stories on the Orlando Magic, but also the NBA at large.  Our staff is devoted towards giving our men in blue & white their due, while also making sure to stay abreast of league news with all the Magic’s rivals.  We look forward to interacting with our readers here at Presto, so please feel free to comment on any pieces that provoke your thoughts.

-Presto Staff

Brett David Roberts, Lead Editor – Original Magician

Brett David Roberts (@BDRHoops) is a life-long Orlando Magic fan who’s been attending games since the 1989-90 season.  A hoops enthusiast, Roberts played from a young age and eventually played for NCAA D-3 program Centre College in Danville, KY.  Roberts began as editor of Hardwood Houdini in May of 2012, before taking over the Orlando Magic blog late in the 2012-13 season.  In response to those who lambasted him for his decision to choose San Antonio Spurs tickets over Bulls tickets while divvying the season tickets as a kid, he tweeted in defense:  ”No Bulls, No Jordan, a bad decision?  But I wanted to see Admiral And Elliot, rip nets with precision.”

Hanz Medard, Senior Staff Writer – Lakers Life

Hanz Medard (@HMedard33)  is an FSU graduate with a M.A. in School Psychology.  This should serve Medard well in describing the actions of men-children like those in the NBA, and his particular course of study has been forming a thesis on the behavior of the Lakers’ Metta World Peace.  Medard is a former writer for FanSided’s Saving the Skyhook in addition to having written for Celtics blog Hardwood Houdini.

Andre Herring III, Writer/Resident Draft Expert – Seeing Red 

Edward Andre Herring (@AndreHerringIII) comes from a long line of basketball players, and is said to have a silky smooth game reminiscent of Sam “Smooth” Perkins.  Herring specializes in talent evaluation and served a talent evaluator for NBA Draft Experts leading up to the 2011 NBA draft.  Herring is a graduate of Lewis University, where he served as an assistant coach to a team which featured his younger brother Evinn.  When Bulls sharpshooter Craig Hodges met Dre, it was Hodges who was nervous, after having been coached by Edward Herring, Sr.

Pratith Mehta, Staff Writer – Honorary Heatle

Pratith (Pronounced: Prah-teeth) Mehta (@nbablogger95)  is an incoming freshman at Villanova in the fall of 2013.  Mehta is young, but he’s a burgeoning writer with a mature voice.  He’ll focus often on the Miami Heat, and happens to look a little like No. 6 himself.  Mehta featured a “There Can Only Be One” split face picture on his Facebook, which drew rave reviews and comments ranging from the height of his ears to those who told Mehta he would never be LeBron.  Well, Mehta has news for them:  He is already dropping triple doubles in the NBA journalism world.  Mehta is another Hardwood Houdini import who came with Presto’s editor on the exodus to form this blog.

Rick Curtis, Staff Writer – Beantown Balla

Rick Curtis (@RickCanMixIt) is a DJ and culture enthusiast who dapples in the world of basketball by providing us with offbeat insight and league-altering trades he concocts on ESPN’s Trade Machine.  Curtis once made a sound blip he put on Facebook which featured him talking about the Super Bowl in a “cat voice,” which he called “cute.”  Once you can get past that, Curtis writes some pretty stellar work, particularly about his Boston Celtics.  Curtis actually left the Celtics blog to come here; again, the sanity thing.

Contact Info

FanSided Network Contact Info:

For all editorial and marketing/advertising inquiries, contact senior editor Adam Best at[email protected]. For all business and technical inquiries, please contact business director Zach Best at [email protected].

Presto editor Brett David Roberts can be contacted at [email protected]

Disclaimer

This site is strictly for informational and entertainment purposes, and is in no way affiliated with the Orlando Magic or the National Basketball Association. It also claims no rights to the trademarks of either the Magic or the NBA.