From termination to redemption to probable extension.

See Stan Van Gundy's progression over the past week or so. It's representative of his Magic's unlikely revival.

Be it through radio, print, message boards or text messages, Orlando's resident "master of panic" has been villified and second-guessed to the point where it seems like his always-sour disposition knew all this venom was coming and was just surly in preparation. Despite 59 regular-season victories and a second straight division title, Van Gundy was still mentally dragged out on to many a Magic fan's front lawn and left out there for Waste Management to collect. Similar to what they did to Dean Smith back in the day, when Carolina fans hung their coach in effigy on campus in 1965, many of the Orlando faithful were ready to build pudgy, mustached, frown-wearing dolls and stack them out by the mailbox.

Now, as a result of a 101-82 Game 7 road win in Boston, those same Van Gundy dolls are going to be exalted and given a prime spot at the kitchen table.

The Orlando Magic are through to the Eastern Conference finals. A bunch of weak-minded, trigger-happy choke artists will be out there against Cleveland starting Wednesday.

No matter what happens from here, the franchise has made the necessary progress to validate the work of the current brain trust.

GM Otis Smith has had his critics, from people who felt he overspent for Rashard Lewis and Mickael Pietrus the past two free agency periods to those who hated re-signing Jameer Nelson when the diminutive point guard was struggling with the intricacies of the position at the pro level. Say what you will, but his decisions, including picking up Rafer Alston at this season's trade deadline, have the Magic in the conference finals.

Van Gundy may be a lunatic on the sidelines who is unsettling to Marcin Gortat, but boy if he doesn't get his Magic to respond when it needs to. Cognizent of his whiny, needling ways, his team does whatever it can to please him, ramping up to the energy level they need to sustain in order to be successful.

After venting his frustration with Van Gundy after an infuriating night in Boston early last week, Howard praised his coach on Sunday, calling him a "great mentor and coach for me."

"He's always found a way to motivate me and try to keep me and my teammates in line," said Howard, who dominated the game with 16 rebounds and five blocks, never worrying about his touches, just like coach asked.

Howard claimed he'd never seen Van Gundy as happy as he was Sunday night, but he did manage to turn curmudgeon long enough to express his displeasure of the inference that he and his team were a bunch of choke artists.

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"As far as vindication, you get vindication in the coaching business until Wednesday night," Van Gundy said after chastizing the media for making it seem like his Magic were down 6-0 in the series and had blown leads every game. "If I don't have my team ready to play then I'm back to being an idiot."

Not so, Stan.

Although it would be unfortunate if Orlando gets swept and embarrassed, the fact is that it's making progress in reaching the NBA's final four. Last year, in beating Toronto in the first round, the Magic ended an 12-year run of postseason ineptitude. This season, reaching the franchise's first conference final since 1996 ensures that that steps forward are being taken.

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Howard is learning something new each day. He'll be playing in the highest stratosphere of basketball he's ever seen, getting adjusted to an even larger layer of pressure. He alluded to wanting to win his championship now and remembering that everyone laughed when he talked title back in training camp, but he will soon understand that all this is a process.

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If he listened to Paul Pierce and Ray Allen on the podium preceding his appearance, Howard could've gained a better understanding of how fleeting success can be, and how so often the hunger in this game is provided by the unmistakable pain in falling short.