Posts in month: April, 2009

I’m a huge Antawn Jamison fan. He’s a classy dude, I’ve nicknamed him ‘The Gentlemen’ (hasn’t caught on), and the women folk say he’s got eyebrows for days.

Jamison is the current patriarchal cornerstone of the franchise. This year’s team MVP? Unquestionably. He possesses the never-quit attitude that should be infecting the locker room via leadership by example … Jamison is quite the opposite of past clubhouse cancers, like Christian Laettner.

But sometimes, everyone needs to be questioned, Jamison being no exception.

Jamison’s struggles on defense are no secret. He has aging lateral movement, and as discovered this year, he’s not an adequate substitute for Brendan Haywood‘s post defensive communication. Are we to just accept Jamison’s “unique” scoring ability, rebounding numbers, and minimal turnovers as big pluses? Or should Flip Saunders seek improved defense out of the starting lineup?

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It was like that part in Hoosiers when Coach Norman Dale discretely asked the ref to kick him out of the game so that Shooter the Drunk could take over with a chance at redemption. Last night against the Lakers, there was no drunk, the Jazz just had their final run squashed, and Jerry Sloan asked the ref to kick him out by calling him a mutherfucker. Could Sloan’s coaching career be over? Not like Hoosiers at all.

@ Mohawks Meeting Swarth

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Well, the Flip Saunders era “officially” begun today (yesterday, meant to get this posted then, but blogger was acting funny) with a short and sweet press conference. Yep, seems like the Wizards franchise is ‘Determined to Deliver’ four c-words to fans next year. Keep reading for quotes and commentary from the presser.

images via www.washingtonwizards.com

Ernie Grunfeld Quotes:

“Start of a new beginning.”

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Today, 4-23-09, is the official Flip Saunders press conference day … ready to put the ‘O’ in Official … I’ll try to listen to the 3 pm presser and blog down some thoughts later.

But in the meantime, why not bag on Cleveland?
(via a hilarious video made by someone from Cleveland that I could probably make about DC, via joeposnanski.com, via Google share with Chris Needham)

Wiz Run-Down:

Flipping Gil
“The thing about Gilbert is, no coach is ever going to have a problem with how much he loves the game. He puts in an unbelievable amount of time working on his game. He’s a competitor and he wants to be great.

“You don’t ‘control’ players. No coach does. Phil Jackson doesn’t control Kobe Bryant and he didn’t control Michael Jordan. What you do is put players in situations where they can be successful. And I think I’ve always done that.” Read more »

The 2009 NBA Draft is on June 25th, an important day in so many ways. For one, it’s my birthday….the onset of my last year in my 20s…..but it’s also the day that the Wizards will be selecting Blake Griffin with the #1 overall draft pick (hopefully).

And while Griffin might not be a franchise changer like Tim Duncan, Yao Ming, Dwight Howard, LeBron James, Shaq O’Neal, Hakeem Olajuwon, he certainly isn’t a Kwame Brown or Michael Olowokandi.

Griffin won’t magically propel the Wizards to the cream of the crop, but he can certainly be a key cog on a potential contender while keeping the ‘Zards poised for the future.

June 25th is a pretty big date…potentially (Dikembe Mutombo will also turn 43 in beyond-human years on 6/25)….but May 19th is much more important. That’s when the order of the NBA is decided via a lottery.

Let’s learn more about the numbers and Wizards/Bullets relatedness surrounding May 19th…and yes, I pretty much about to get carried away.

May 19th…. 5/19/09
The Wizards had 63 losses.
6+3 = 9
The 09 NBA Draft

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I recently contributed to HoopsDaily.com with an assessment of the Wizards for their “Blogger Knows Best” series.

The questions I was posed are below, click through to read the answers.

1. Based on preseason expectations, how would you grade this season? Please list your team’s top three accomplishments.
2. How would you assess the competency of the team’s current GM and scouting staff?
3. Which young players (if any) can step to the forefront in the future?
4. Time to play fantasy GM: what move that was made the past few years would you undo and what move would you currently make for the team to assess immediate or long term needs?
5. Best case scenario: where would you realistically like to see your team at this time next year?

Blogger Knows Best: Inside the Washington Wizards

HoopsDaily also has a ‘Value Board Ranking’ which “defines the value of a player by a combination of his talent, age, potential, character, and ability to win multiple championships……If you were going to build an NBA team from scratch, who would be most valuable to you?”

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Caron Butler is happy that Gilbert Arenas has seen the light … or stepped up in “that” light … or claimed that he’s going to be more serious. If Tuff Juice is expected to play more in the flow of the game and not force the offense for a losing team, he’ll need Gil on that line.

The Washington Times and Post acted as the microphone for the attention getting Agent Zero last week, and he used the platform to let everyone know that next year will be “totally different,” and that the team will be “approaching the game seriously.”

Along the lines of taking the eccentric 27-year old with a grain of salt, big talk from Arenas is naturally comes with doses of skepticism. That’s why over on NBC Washington, I wrote, “Arenas’ Talk More Affordable Than Cheap.” I’d also recommending reading “Gilbert Arenas Can’t Be Serious,” from Stet Sports.

Such talk from Gil, much less an NBA star in general, is nice to hear. It provides Wizards fans with a lot more hope for the future than negative talk we so often hear from the usual spoiled/pampered NBA brats.

New coach Flip Saunders once told Arenas that the “Ball Don’t Lie”….let’s hope that Arenas isn’t lying to his fans, or himself.

Suggested Reading: Read more »

adidas is opening a new store at the Tysons Corner Center tomorrow and Agent Wacky Pants Zero will be on hand to christen the digs.

Arenas will be signing autographs, competing with the fans from the free-throw line, and generally doing his thing.

The store ribbon cutting will be at noon, Gil has the floor for the next hour, which will surely breeze by, and then some D.C. United soc-cer players will be around from 2-3pm.

Normally, I might head to the festivities, take some pictures, perhaps heckle Gilbert some….nah, not really…..but since Tysons Corner is waaaaaay on ass out there (map below)……and I’m one of those cats who is from DC, DC….and I live sans auto (and loving it, plus I can tell the ladies I’m going green)…..and the Caps will be throwing down with the Rangers in their second playoff game at 1 pm…..I won’t be making the trip.

[BTW...the Wizards should be taken to task for being so ignorant about the Capitals....put on for your city and show them some support! - via DC Sports Bog]

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Whew. It’s over. Should have figured that the end would involve the Wizards blowing a lead. I hacked out my initial thoughts on NBC Washington, some more are below, and I’m sure there are more reflections to come.

Historically, most will point to injuries and youth and say that the 08-09 Wizards were destined to fail. Some will also tell of interim coach Ed Tapscott “biting the bullet” and “taking one for the team.”

Not saying that Coach Tap didn’t try his best, and by all accounts, including my observations of his interactions with the media, he’s a respectable and intelligent guy….he’s just not a basketball coach.

The fact is that the Wizards regressed under Ed Tapscott, evidenced by youth such as JaVale McGee, Nick Young and Andray Blatche overtly expressing me-first attitudes in wanting to get theirs. Whatever happened to working on your game, sharing with your teammates, and playing as a team (even in the face of losing)?

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Well, here we are…..finally, the last game of the season. I’d like to be gearing up for the playoffs, but even in the years of futility in the red, white and blue uniforms of Lez Boulez, I would be filled with regret and sadness at the season’s end.

But this year, I’ll probably only be letting out a sigh and a “well, that’s that” after the Wizards-Celtics game tonight.

Hope no one else gets hurt….including the last man standing. Arenas and Jamison aren’t playing, so I guess that’s a good thing (even though Gil only playing in two games is a WTF? situation to me…..sure hope it’s not because of hidden knee issues….the pessimist in me, cultivated by simply being a fan of this franchise, can’t help itself).

You’ll probably be watching the Caps playtoff game tonight, and rightly so. But if you feel like drowning yourself in the sorrows of other Wizards/Bullets fans, you can head over to the game thread on Bullets Forever.

I’ll actually be watching both games on two TVs……could be a dual volume situation, with the Caps taking precedent. And if Twitter is your thing, then I’ll be there too.

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As the dust settles from the “it’s a done deal” to the “it’s official” phase of hiring Flip Saunders as the next coach of the Wizards, I find it hard to form a solid opinion on perhaps the most important aspect of transforming this team from mediocre to championship contender (aside from health of course).

I still subscribe to the thought that players are on the court, playing the games, and thus hold the ultimate responsibility for winning and losing. But a good coach…well, he can be a difference maker.

Not to say I’m apathetic towards the hiring of Saunders. If I had to rank, I suppose he would have been my number one choice, with Mark Jackson being a sleeper pick (he is a minister, and could surely preach on it….plus, his NBA analysis on ABC/ESPN is on point….but he lacks significant coaching experience).

I might have taken Avery Johnson over Jackson…but over Saunders? I’m not so sure…..in fact, I doubt it. So Saunders it is, and I’m okay with that….but not exactly thrilled. Then again, the stink of this season hasn’t been laid to rest, and that certainly has something to do with my mundane attitude.

Michael Wilbon, whom I’ve taken to task before because of generic columns, when it comes to the Wizards, that scream lackluster effort of trying to cater to the masses instead of a knowledgeable fan base, actually wrote an astoundingly astute column on the Wiz coaching situation. However, I don’t exactly agree with his sentiment.

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Just over three minutes left in a close game, Wizards up by one point against an almost equally bad team, the thought crossed my mind….do I hope they lose?

I knew the Clippers and Kings, two of the other top three worst teams in the league, were playing each other last night. It would be “nice” to have better chances in the draft.

But just as quickly as the thought entered my mind, it left. All along, I’ve been against “tanking” or even hoping for more losses just for the possibility of maybe having a better shot at the top pick/Blake Griffin. It just doesn’t seem like good basketball karma, not like it matters with the Curse O’ Les Boulez anyway. But still, we’re talking principles…..principalities.

So eff the lottery it was, I was pulling for my Wizards to win, because that’s what fans do. And a win is what I thought we were getting when Juan Dixon squirmed for a layup with 47 seconds left, putting the Wiz up 96-90.

But nothing ever comes easy. Two straight Raptor threes later, the few of us on the Bullets Forever game thread were screaming for the ghosts of Anthony Parker, Michael Ruffin and Mo Peterson to be exercised.

So Juan Dixon, as the third option, hit an off-balanced fader in the lane with 19 seconds left….he probably traveled….Wiz up two. Game winner? Nope. Jose Calderon was allowed to saunter right down the lane for a lay-up…..splendid. At least the Wiz would get the last shot, one of the Dagger! variety.

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If the Wizards’ play on the court wasn’t indication enough that this wretched season has long been over, causing some to yearn for the remaining games to be put out of their misery, then planned ‘End of the Season’ “celebrations” before, well, the actual end of the season, are a sure sign that it’s in the books.

Yes, the Wizards’ own model of concentration, hustle, and professionalism, Andray Blatche, will be hosting his “End of the Year” party…excuse me, “celebration”… this Sunday, April 12th, at “Josephine UltraChic Lounge“ in DC.

Oh, did I mention that the last home game of the year is the next day against the Raptors, with the finalé in Boston on the 15th?

Not sure how much “celebrating” of the season Andray will be able to accomplish, but if memories get him down, he can always head to his old Thomas Circle stomping grounds, literally a hop, skip and a fast-break travel and/or turnover away from Jospehine’s 1008 Vermont Ave. address, for some late night relief from a street walker….or undercover cop.
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The Wizards were out of the game before it even started, and I really wish I had bet online. They came out lacking a ton of focus and turning the ball over….key ingredients to a disaster pie.

Cleveland was also aware of everything the Wiz wanted to do offensively before they did it. Javaris Crittenton would come down the court tapping his chin and Mo Williams would do the same. Guess the “intricate” offense (simplified for the youth, I know) of Ed Tapscott and Wes Unseld, Jr. won’t fool many.

To make matters worse, Washington was always a second behind on open passes, a telltale sign of the team going through the motions….a “we got this team in DC, so who cares about Cleveland?” type attitude.

Not to belittle the effort of some individuals, but as a team, it sucked a big one last night….what’s new? The game was no where close to the final 12 point margin.

Enjoy the screen shots.

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I really don’t care for Reggie Miller…..the television commentator. I certainly appreciated Reggie when he took down the hated Knicks with playoff heroics, once giving ol’ Spike Lee the choke sign, telling him to shut the eff up.

But Reggie on TV is just a spiraling, gangly, screeching, whiny sac of hot mess, and he’s often wrong too (well, maybe not often, but surely much more than should be allowed for someone in his position).

Reggie is no Mark Jackson, Doug Collins, Hubie Brown, or even his sister, Cheryl Miller, who is much, much better at her job.

I’ve heard some refer to Reggie as a “turd” and a “weenie bag”…and that’s just the censored opinion of the one person audience who is the tenant of my apartment.

Reggie Miller has frustrated many before, and he lived up to his reputation this past Thursday as the Cavs and Wizards matched-up on TNT.

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