http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050709/NEWS/507090425/ 1002/RSS01&source=RSS Published Saturday, July 9, 2005 T-Mac Rockets Back to Delight Auburndale Fans By Lisa Coffey The Ledger AUBURNDALE He may live in Houston now, but his hometown and his heart are still in Auburndale. Friday night, so was he. Tracy McGrady, the former Orlando Magic star who is now the pivotal player for the Houston Rockets, was back to give his hometown fans a show at the high school gym that bears his name. McGrady led Team T-Mac to a 79-60 win over the Miami Horsemen in the "What Does It Take To Be No. 1" Tournament. The gym, packed with Auburndale fans, gave him plenty of love back, jumping on the floor and generally going crazy as the hometown star brought down the house with a 360-degree jam during the game. "No matter how big I get or how far I go, this will always be home. I'll never forget that," McGrady said after his game Friday. "I feel for my people here and I want to give back to my community. It's a beautiful thing to come home where people love you and have respect for what I do and see familiar faces. All the support I have here is unbelievable." The event, which ends today with a championship game at 6 p.m., benefits the Tracy McGrady Foundation. As for the Magic, McGrady wants to leave his Orlando past right there -- behind him. He had asked to be traded to a team where he could play with another AllStar. Alongside center Yao Ming, McGrady took the Houston Rockets to the NBA playoffs where they lost in seven games in the first round to the Dallas Mavericks. It was the opportunity McGrady had been waiting for, having waited in Orlando for four years to play with a healthy Grant Hill. "It was great," he said of the change. "It was probably the best move I've ever made. They have a great coach. I was embraced by a great city. They have beautiful people. The people there are extremely nice." When asked if he was bitter about the move, McGrady said, "No. I wanted out and then again I didn't want out. I was 30 minutes from home. Everything was great." Except for reaching the playoffs. The Rockets fell out of the first round with the most lopsided Game 7 in NBA history. Still, it was a unexpected run, according to McGrady. "The way we started, we weren't supposed to be there in the first place," he said. "For us to win 51 regular-season games and go seven games with Dallas. . . I felt Dallas was one of the top two teams in the West. Seven games was pretty amazing to do." He pointed out it was an especially good finish since the team was playing without an injured Juwan Howard. Playing with Yao Ming was what he had been looking for. "He's a great guy," said McGrady. "He's a guy I truly respect. He loves the game and he wants to be great. We are both young and unselfish players who will be good for a long time. I love to be around him. I'm excited about our future." --

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