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Is this wizard killing the supposed curse on the Bullets/Wizards franchise?
If the team lands the number one pick tonight, should they keep the Wizards name?
I want the truth. I can handle it.
{via flickr/Rigphoto, sfist}
Oh yea, I also don’t believe in curses, but I am kinda/sorta superstitious.
This is the last time Irene Pollin made a public appearance representing the Wizards franchise. In this instance, the team out-scored Indiana 24-17 in the fourth quarter and won the game. Of course, that didn’t bode well for draft lottery positioning. If you’re a Wizards fan, you might want to grab some of that scotch or vodka in the background.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Whether you’ll be toasting or roasting during the late 8 pm (EST) hour Tuesday night, the results of the NBA Draft Lottery are up to a fate that will never be comprehended nor anticipated by the human mind.
On the DC Sports Bog, Dan Steinberg has a great, yet painful chronicle of all the times the Wizards/Bullets franchise has come away from lottery night disappointed and all the marketing gimmicks (mostly of the Susan O’Malley, absurdly goofy variety) that were made to favorably sway lottery luck. Even Flip Saunders bringing his lucky coin last May 19th was along these lines to an extent.
This year seems different. The Wizards will quietly send Irene Pollin, widow of the late owner Abe, from the swamp-like (well, marshy in some local areas) territory of Washington, D.C. to the even more swampy Secaucus, New Jersey to represent the team.
The Pick and Roll is a staple of many NBA offenses. The Wizards, in particular, starved when it came to defending P&Rs in 2009-10.
Once again turning to Synergy Sports Technology, we learn that as a team, the Wizards defended the P&R ball handler 1,128 times in plays that ended with a FGA, TO or FTA. This accounted for 12.6% of the team’s defensive plays. Defending these plays, the Wizards gave up 0.89 points-per-possession (PPP), which is tied for the most allowed in the NBA.
Against the Wizards, the P&R ball handler shot 43.2% on field goals and scored 42.9% of the time, which is the second highest scoring rate allowed in the league.
Conversely, the Wizards had to defend the P&R roll man 406 times and fared slightly better in the PPP department.
As you can imagine, the roll-man in a P&R is usually getting better looks at the basket. The Wizards allowed the roll man to score 49% of the time while shooting 49.5%. However, the one (1) PPP given up to roll-men ranks 7th lowest in the NBA. Read more »
On Friday I tweeted, “I am now the proud owner of a pair of autographed Juwan Howard shoes from when he played in Washington.” Now I’m here to share the pictures.
The shoes were won in a silent auction held at work created to benefit efforts in Haiti. My specific contribution went to Doctors Without Borders. The lady who donated them said her husband was an equipment manager for the team long ago.
Judging from this 2000-01 season basketball card where Howard is wearing the Nike Team Max Zoom, he probably wore these shoes in 1999-2000, which was statistically his worst season with the franchise and his last full one in Washington. Knowing that Howard was probably booed more wearing these shoes than any other pair/season in his career makes them extra historical, I’ll assume.
CNN’s Wolf Blitzer is a big Wizards fan — meaning that to celebrate his 20th year with the network, Wolf was given a custom Blitzer #20 Wizards jersey and presented a cake by G-Wiz, team mascot … who (or is G-Wiz a ‘which’ or a ‘that’) goes on to endorse Elena Kagan, Larry King and Nelson Mandela. Random, I know. Watch.
“As owners it is our job to build our teams around our stars. In the playoffs it is who has the best system, the best role players, and who creates the momentum and rides it ALL THE WAY to conclusion.” -Ted Leonsis
The pre-draft workout interview of Omar Samhan has been covered … time to get to the rest.
Below is a video montage of interviews featuring Damian Hollis (George Washington), Dominique Jones (South Florida), Landon Milbourne (Maryland) and Donald Sloan (Texas A&M) along with some clips of the players working out. I had to leave before Hamady N’Diaye (Rutgers) was made available. Enjoy.
Omar Samhan is most personable player in the draft. Having only met five potential draftees (I left before Hamady N’Diaye interviewed), I’m more than confident saying this. The kid can hold a crowd.
The best part about Samhan is that he comes across as genuine … or charming without arrogance. He took time to shake hands with each member of the media after his post-workout interview today, but didn’t come off contrived like a politician.
He sort of reminds me of Gilbert Arenas, whom Omar compares himself to at one point (“in some ways,” he says), but slightly more aware of the impression he makes. He’s glad to be candid, but he’s not a loose cannon. Surely some of this refinement comes from the fact that Samhan majored in sports journalism.
“As an athlete, it’s your job to entertain. It’s your job to bring the people in and be close with the community,” said Samhan when I asked him about the precautions he takes when it comes to his social media presence. But he also understands that it’s a fine line and that he needs to be careful, lest what he says might come back to haunt him.
Samhan will, however, leave D.C. disappointed. Even though he was recognized by strangers at the Verizon Center Chipotle, he was unable to procure a game of hoops with President Barack Obama while in town. “Barack, if you’re out there, I’m looking for that one-on-one game still,” Samhan proclaimed toward the end of his interview. He did say the highlight of his day was catching a lob from Sam Cassell, maybe that will have to serve as the next best thing.
Today the Wizards will host six prospects for the team’s first pre-draft workout: Damian Hollis, F, George Washington, 6’8, 215 lbs.; Dominique Jones, G, South Florida, 6’4, 205 lbs.; Landon Milbourne, F, Maryland, 6’7 205 lbs.; Hamady N’Diaye, C, Rutgers, 6’11, 235 lbs.; Omar Samhan, C, St. Mary’s, 6’11, 265 lbs.; and Donald Sloan, G, Texas A&M, 6’3, 205 lbs.
Samhan might be the most intriguing among the bunch, partially for his skills, partially for his personality. Let’s take a more in depth look…
Omar Samhan exploded on the scene this past March when his 10-seeded Saint Mary’s Gaels upset 7-seed Richmond and 2-seed Villanova to make it to the Sweet Sixteen of the 2010 NCAA Tournament. Samhan totaled 61 points in those first two games, but then the Gaels got handled by Baylor 72-49. He finished the game with 15 points and nine rebounds, but only had three points on 1-8 FGs and six rebounds at the half with Baylor already up 46-17.
Samhan is 6’11″ big man with a back to the basket game that can produce points with a number of creative post moves. He’s not known as a good athlete by any means, but did slim down after entering Saint Mary’s out of high school weighing 310 pounds. Most sites currently list him at 265.
A collection of mostly Wizards-related web links.
>> Andray Blatche is still looking for a wifey, or whatever. He made an appearance at the Shadow Room last Thursday (above pic: Andray is the guy on the left on whose knee that other guy’s elbow is resting).
[DC Fab]
>> Brendan Haywood says they handle things more professionally in Dallas than in D.C. So, break out your diary and classify bitching and moaning owners sitting courtside wearing a jersey t-shirt of the team they own as professional.
[DC Sports Bog]
>> Zydrunas Ilgauskas kept the Wizards #17 jersey that he never wore.
[Wizards Insider]
>> Finding a nickname for the Washington Wizards (that’s not the Sea Dogs).
Outside of wanting a return to the Bullets, people seem to like ‘Justice’ — which is not bad, but I’m not sold on it … and I feel the same way about ‘Diplomats’ — this is a tough one.
[Bullets Forever]
It’s tough to truly remember Antawn Jamison’s time in D.C., yet hard to do it enough. Wish I were around to cover him when times were good, but this year had to happen. Still, Antawn did it with dignity. He did it with class, emulating the owner he looked up to so much. An owner whose family is making a classy move with a free “Living for the City” Stevie Wonder concert for some of the people touched by Abe Pollin’s spirit for his community. Antawn was the Gentleman Jamison. He deserves an Unsilent tribute. Hence, Jack Kogod (aka Unsilent Majority) of Kissing Suzy Kobler, and occasional Wizards correspondent for Mr. Irrelevant, (not to mention that he sits in some really good season tickets for a ton of Wizards games), agreed to share his thoughts. Here’s what @Unsilent had to say:
I miss Antawn Jamison more than I thought I would. When the house cleaning commenced I thought it would be Caron Butler I missed the most, but I was wrong. Of course I’m wrong a lot. I was wrong in my belief that the Wizards should have held on to the fifth pick in the ’04 draft to select Luol Deng (although I couldn’t be too upset with any trade that sent Jerry Stackhouse packing), and I was wrong to think that Jamison wasn’t the right guy at the right time. It only took one season for him to prove me wrong. Jamison made his All Star Game debut in that first season, and he helped lead the Wizards on a fantastic turnaround. The Wizards won their first playoff series of my lifetime that year, and that wouldn’t have happened without Jamison.
A lot changed in the years between the ’05 playoffs and the ’10 trade deadline, but Jamison never did. Throughout his time in Washington he was the most consistent player on the team, and one of the most reliable performers in the entire league (defensive shortcomings notwithstanding). There is a reason why Abe Pollin considered Jamison to be the Wes Unseld of the modern Wizards, because he have all of himself to the organization. I hope for nothing but the best from Jamison, just short of winning a ring of course. Afterall, he is a Cav now.
Another time … when Tracy Morgan rubbed on Shaq.
You probably missed Tracy Morgan throw out the first pitch at recent Orioles-Yankees game. When it happened, you probably still had hope the Washington Capitals would win game seven against the Montreal Canadians.
Or, you’re here because this is supposed to be a Wizards blog and you don’t care about other DMV sports … and that’s fine. But it’s Tracy Morgan.
When I first moved to D.C. in 1990, I was just as much of a Baltimore Orioles fan as a Washington Bullets fan. For about 20 times a year for several seasons, my dad and I would make the trip up to old Memorial Stadium and later Camden Yards.
I went to games in both of Baltimore’s unsuccessful trips to the playoffs in the last 26 seasons, losing to the Yankees in the ’96 ACLS and to the Indians the next year. I went to the ’93 Home Run derby won by Juan Gonzalez over Ken Griffey, Jr. in a playoff and to that year’s All-Star game where Kirby Puckett was named MVP. I was in attendance on September 6, 1995 when Cal Ripken Jr. broke Lou Gehrig’s consecutive games streak.
Then one day, spawned by the ownership of Peter Angelos, and sealed by the arrival of the Nationals in Washington, I found myself not caring about the Baltimore Orioles. I wish them well/don’t see them as a rivalry, but I divorced myself from being an O’s fan long ago.
At least we know Gilbert’s kid has a sweet kid-SUV.
Today is Siete de Mayo, the day Gilbert Arenas was allowed to go from his halfway house to his wholeway house … at 7 am sharp. Or is it from half to full?
And of course … paparazzi pho-togs were on the scene at Gilbert’s house in an attempt to score a money shot of the elusive agent.
He didn’t wave like a goofball. He didn’t give the camera a middle finger (which is popular among athletes these days). He simply constricted the strings on his black adidas hoodie so tight that breathing probably wasn’t easy on a humid(ish) day in May.
A retreat. The old ‘Do Not Disturb‘ sign.
Which brings us to the question … how will Arenas once again re-establish himself with the media?
{via Ball Don’t Lie}
LeBron James likes wearing his own name-bearing shoes that fuel his ego. He wears MVP shoes. He wears New York Yankees shoes.
One upon a time Mike Miller wore LeBron James shoes to practice. This created a minor hubbub in Wizards Nation. In hindsight, the blog-worthy occurrence was probably a distraction. Not a distraction that amounted to much, but when added to everything else … exactly.
Sure, team captains Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler chimed in about not liking it. But DeShawn Stevenson … Mister 50/50, I Can’t Feel My Face … the Wizards’ protagonist in their rivalry with the Cavaliers (or antagonist depending on what side you’re on) … was the most vocal about Miller’s shoe selection, drawing scorn for his antics.
Of course, those were the days when the rivalry still had very faint signs of life. It’s over now. DeShawn Stevenson said so. Well, DeShawn in the past talking about a once unimaginable future.
Ok, so we’ve scanned JaVale McGee’s barcode tat and concluded that on offense, when he tries to do things himself, he fares poorly. But when he plays with teammates, he excels. I’m slightly simplifying … yet combining both stats and my personal observations from watching him all year and coming to a more than reasonable conclusion.
Now, let’s scan again to see what we come up with for McGee from a defensive perspective.
It’s no secret that JaVale needs to gain strength. Some of that will come if he puts in the work. Some of that will come naturally as he fills into his long frame. He also needs to learn more discipline in realizing that he can play better defense AND still be an intimidating shot blocker while not being so ready to leave his feet.
This site was able to chronicle from up close two specific instances, in two separate home games against the Atlanta Hawks, where McGee unnecessarily left his feet after an Al Horford pump fake only to find himself in a precarious position … in the air and committing a foul. Those pictures are at the bottom of this post … and they certainly don’t represent the only two instances where McGee bit on a fake.
What would be the readout from scanning JaVale McGee’s new barcode tattoo? I know the numbers on it represent his January 19, 1988 birthday. But if you ran him down a very long grocery store conveyor belt, what would be the output of the parallel lines of data on his back?
To find out, I transferred the barcode onto paper and printed it out. I fashioned and folded the paper, put a penny in it, and then threw the airplane out the window. A guy on a bike ran over it. I then went back to the computer and dialed up Synergy Sports Technology for some stats.
On Offense, JaVale’s catch phrase is “Drive, baby, drive” (somewhat akin to Sarah Palin’s “Drill, baby, drill.”) and occasionally, “Shoot it like a hot potato.” So, the barcode readout might be all of JaVale’s 2009-10 offensive possessions that ended in a shot attempt, a turnover or a free-throw attempt.
One of his strongest suits is offensive rebounding. Seems natural. McGee has shown the ability to get after the boards when he applies himself. Also, his endurance and consistency seemed to improve once he and the team found out he had asthma late in the season and were able to properly treat it.
Points from offensive rebounds accounted for 72 of his 407 total offensive plays, a leading 17.7%. His points-per-possession on these chances (PPP) ranks 76th in the league at 1.15. Almost all points from offensive boards are the result of hustle.
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