[Mr. Versatility]

During Hinrich’s introductory presser at the Verizon Center this past Monday, Chris Marks of Prince George’s Community Television asked him what position he thought would best fit him in DC.  Hinrich responded with a laugh:

Well we’re going to figure that out. I don’t know exactly.  I probably feel more comfortable playing the one, it’s a little easier.  But I feel I’m very capable of playing both positions and I think starting in training camp that’s going to be a challenge, trying to figure out exactly where I fit in and what I need to do to help the team.

This of course begs the question: Where does the Wizards’ factotum fit? (And is he a better PG than a SG?)

I headed over to 82games to find out.

The first metric I looked at was Win%, defined as the chance of winning the Chicago Bulls had with Kirk Hinrich on the floor.  During his time in Chicago, Hinrich gave the Bulls a 46.8% chance of winning.  Hinrich’s highest Win% was 60.3% in ’06-’07 and his lowest was 30.3% in his rookie season.  That number is respectable, but is a cold, indurating indicator that Hinrich is not a gamechanger.  To put this statistic in perspective, LeBron James’ career Win% is 67.8%.  (His career high is 82.7%; his low is 54.4%.)

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The return of Josh Howard is unexpected, surprising and baffling. It’s also smart. And it’s the topping on a dessert of questions … I’ll get to that in a bit. First, let’s go through some reasons why it’s an agreeable move, without protest.

First, Howard comes relatively cheap — $4 million for a year with incentives, as reported by the Washington Post’s Michael Lee. He’s a player with the potential to show above average skill in a wide range of categories. In 2006-07 he had a PER of 20.0 and the tenth lowest turnover percentage in the NBA.

Second, he needs to get his knee healthy. The team doesn’t expect him to be ready by the start of the season. Howard’s camp says he’ll be full speed in October and that he is “ahead of schedule” — of course, Howard has been saying that he’s ahead of schedule since before last season was over (Good to know he’s still on track). Nevertheless, the knee, in a sense, was a blessing … selfishly for the Wizards.

Sure, it was essentially inevitable that the team would decline to pick up Howard’s $11.8 million option for 2010-11. But was it inevitable that he would re-sign with the same team for $7.8 million less (minus incentives)? Maybe, maybe not. In speaking with him before the end of last season, it was clear Howard understood that his option would not be picked up and that he’d be willing to come back to the Wizards. Still, that’s a lot of change to swallow and to re-sign for just a single season with the team that just forced you to chew.

Perhaps Howard felt the Wizards wanted him, as he said after the trade that brought him to D.C., and thus decided the best course of action is to stay put for a bit — to follow through with loyalty to the team that acquired him and to stick it to the team that traded him away. OR, maybe offers from the Bulls, Celtics and Cavaliers, franchises reportedly interested in Howard, just weren’t up to monetary snuff heading into a potential lockout.

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[Links and a D.C. picture ... keep scrolling ...]

[Skate or Door -- 500 block of Florida Avenue, NW - Washington, D.C.]

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Links!

First … Josh Howard is back in D.C.! Michael Lee of the Washington Post reports the details, and Mike Prada puts down some thoughts on the signing at Bullets Forever. I’ll have some more in-depth thoughts soon … but until then, I’ll say I love the move (especially at $4 million for one year).

Second … 17th pick Kevin Seraphin has signed with the Wizards after a buyout agreement was reached with his team in the French pro basketball league.
[Wizards Insider]

Joe Glorioso of Wizards Extreme wonders where Gilbert Arenas has been and thinks that Arenas should be making a public apology to the DMV during this basketball dead period. I’d have to agree.
[CSN Washington]

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Team USA has been whittled down to 15 players and JaVale McGee, along with Gerald Wallace, OJ Mayo and Tyreke Evans, has been sent home. ESPN’s Chris Sheridan is calling the omission of McGee a mistake. I call it inevitable, but Sheridan has a point. He writes:

He brought a unique skill set to a team hurting for size, he was an insurance policy in case Tyson Chandler (who missed 68 games the past two seasons due to injuries) gets hurt or gets into foul trouble, and he was the perfect 12th man candidate in that he might be needed for only 5-6 important minutes during the entire World Championship, but those could be the very 5-6 minutes that make or break this team’s fortunes.

Still, the method of cutting McGee makes sense. When I broke down McGee’s performance in the Team USA scrimmage last Saturday, I speculated he wouldn’t make this round cuts so that Coach Mike Krzyzewski and team director Jerry Colangelo could evaluate more talented players, on the perimeter where the abundance lies this go-around, before deciding which 12 players would compose the final roster.

Without the big guns this summer, Coach K needs the best players, and not necessarily those with the current basketball discipline level of McGee. Yes, JaVale brings unique skills to a potentially high-need area. But there are more unifying factors amongst the talented that might benefit Team USA in the long run.

Kevin Durant and Rudy Gay, from the announced intent of Coach K, might have to play out of their element at the four spot. Chauncey Billups will have to slide over to the two. It’s all about sacrifice, the clear theme that’s arisen since Krzyzewski took over coaching duties for America’s international basketball program.

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[Okay sneaker heads, last time we checked out what some of the Wiz kids were wearing for summer league. Now here's the first part of what players from other teams wore in Las Vegas.]

Bill Walker, New York Knicks

[via Kansas State, Washington Wizards (draft, 47th overall in 2008), Boston Celtics (trade), Main Red Claws (D-League)]

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[Editor's note: Below is third piece Arish Narayen has written for TAI. He first broke down the Wizards' small forward situation in early July, and then wrote about the Wizards' third summer league game against the Mavericks. -Kyle]

If you haven’t had a chance to read this study linked on TrueHoop Monday, check it out. In the piece, Neil Paine of Basketball-Reference.com analyzes how NBA players performed against above and below average defenses in 2009-10.

Paine begins by ranking each team’s defense by using a defensive version of the Simple Rating System, taking into account margin of victory, strength of schedule, and home-court effects. Taken from the article, here are the relevant bits about the Wizards:

First, the good news. Last season, the Washington Wizards’ defense ranked 20th in the NBA using Paine’s DSRS metric. Take that, New Orleans and Phoenix. Read more »

[Top links from 'round the web, along with a D.C. picture I took ... ShareBullets]

[Street Computin' - U St. between 12th & 13th NW]

Mike Prada on Bullets Forever writes that Kirk Hinrich is a real pro.
[Bullets Forever]

Hinrich’s demeanor reminded me of something I wrote back during the year.  When Antawn Jamison left for Cleveland, I wrote this post discussing what I felt was the difference between being a leader and being a pro.  Jamison was a pro, but he was miscast as a leader because he tended to get frustrated when people didn’t listen to him.  The Wizards, at the time, had pros (Caron Butler, Jamison, Darius Songaila, Mike Miller, Randy Foye, etc.), but needed a leader, and Jamison wasn’t the right guy.

But now, the tables have been turned.  The Wizards have a leader, and his name is John Wall.  It’s pros that they need who will set a good example and shun the spotlight.  Kirk Hinrich provides that.

The Washington Post’s Michael Lee writes:
[Wizards Insider] Read more »

After a showing in front of the media on Monday afternoon, Kirk Hinrich was escorted from the press room to the main Verizon Center court, no critters were spotted en route by the way, to greet some Wizards basketball campers. Hinrich gave a brief hello, told the campers to have fun in whatever they do, and then the floor was opened up for questions.

On astute youngster asked Kirk if there were any similarities between Derrick Rose and John Wall. Hinrich said:

They’re similar because they’re both very athletic, and they’re point guards. Their athletic ability is hard to find in this league. I feel like John has the ability to be a superstar and I feel like Derrick is on his way there. I loved playing with Derrick and he is a good friend of mine, and I’m excited to get to know John and do the same.

Then came the pressure free-throw….

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At his introductory press conference almost a month after he was traded to the Washington Wizards, Kirk Hinrich reiterated that he was “shocked” and “blindsided” by the pre-draft maneuver which sent him packing from his one and only NBA team, the Chicago Bulls.

Now, he’s turning those lemons into lemonade in the form of a proclaimed fresh start.

“It’s like coming into the league again. I’m very motivated and excited to play great basketball,” said Hinrich when speaking with the media after his official press appearance.

When asked if he had a chip on his shoulder after being dealt in a salary-clearing move which he also said he, “didn’t see coming,” Hinrich paused and carefully chose his words before saying, “Maybe a little bit, but more in a sense of just excited to have a fresh start.”

There goes that ‘fresh start’ thing again. And it’s likely easy for Kirk to say. He’s that type of selfless guy, as well as one who realizes that he really doesn’t have a choice but to keep a stiff upper lip, move on and hope to have some basketball fun.

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[Team USA Men's Basketball played an intra-squad scrimmage on Saturday night. Below is a recap/assessment of the instances where JaVale McGee had an impact on the game.]

JaVale McGee’s presence at USA Basketball camp hasn’t come without skeptics, mainly Rob Mahoney of ProBasketballTalk and the ESPN TrueHoop Network Dallas Mavericks blog, The Two Man Game.

Mahoney also contributes to Hardwood Paroxysm, a general NBA blog on the TrueHoop Network. On Friday, Mahoney wrote on HP:

Honestly, I’m not sure what JaVale McGee would bring to the World Championships. McGee, impressive Summer League dunker though he may be, isn’t a very good rebounder, defender, or even a consistent offensive threat. He can’t create his own shot, and aside from picking up blocks, really isn’t to the point where he can contribute defensively against top-flight competition. McGee may be a center, but it’s not like he’s going to be some great interior defender. He’s still a bit too lean and too jumpy for that.

Worth noting that Mahoney doesn’t endorse Tyson Chandler either, instead advocating for Brook Lopez as ‘the’ center on Team USA and smaller support (Kevin Love, Lamar Odom, and even Gerald Wallace) — the path of the unconventional in trying to orchestrate the composition of a jigsaw puzzle to display a unique, winning work of art without all the pieces.

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Antawn Jamison doesn’t get Twitter. Neither does my 70-year old dad (okay, he’s 69, will be 70 next June).

He, my dad, was recently in town and Twitter came up in the dinner conversation. I tried to justify its relevancy by citing how it provides those in the media, bloggers, such as myself, the ability to extend personal branding (as HRO would call it), and even more so, how it’s great for late-breaking news, especially in the sports world. I trailed off and cut the list of merits short after seeing the look on my dad’s face, not mentioning how I’ve actually made friends with people via Twitter.

My pops, mind you, is not completely tech oblivious. He does have a ‘net book’. And I suppose Antawn is in the same boat.

Tom Sorenson of the Charlotte Observer has the first Antawn Jamison, ‘Here I Am’ article of the summer. Sorenson recently caught up with the Gentleman Jamison at his basketball camp in North Carolina. You should read the whole piece, but here are a couple select quotes:

But the Cavaliers crashed and burned in the Eastern Conference semifinals against Boston and crashed and burned again two weeks ago when LeBron giddily announced he was leaving Cleveland for the Miami Heat.

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Lester Hudson acquired the nickname “Mini-Vinnie” from Washington Wizards team personnel while playing for their summer league team in Las Vegas … as in Vinnie “The Microwave” Johnson. The great Detroit Pistons bench player is listed at 6’2″. Hudson’s pre-draft measurements list him at 6’1″ (other “official” listings boost him up to 6’3″). We’ll call it about even. The combo-guard is still trying to latch on with an NBA team, but the Memphis native has already accomplished far beyond what was ever expected of him.

Hudson’s story comes from the same setting as Baltimore Ravens offensive tackle Michael Oher, subject of Michael Lewis’ book, The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game. The former gym class star, where he was discovered in ninth grade, not playing organized basketball, comes from a tough neighborhood in the Home of the Blues. “It’s hard coming out of Memphis because most everybody is from the projects and struggling trying to make it,” he told me after the last Wizards summer league game.

Maybe a rich, white family didn’t take him in, but Hudson did have a coach, Andre Applewhite, who fought tooth and nail to get him to overcome his academic struggles as a kid. Having repeated the ninth grade and already 19-years old, he was declared ineligible for his senior season of high school after playing just one season of competitive basketball as a junior. Hudson tried to stick around for class, but eventually dropped out of Memphis’ Central High without a diploma. This according to a December 2007 profile of Hudson by the Washington Post’s Eric Prisbell, the same writer who authored the most accomplished profile of John Wall to date.

Applewhite then pushed Hudson to Southwest Tennessee Community College, where he had to earn a GED during his first semester to keep attending. Hudson didn’t graduate from Southwest Tennessee CC, which ultimately forced him to sit out a year before he could play for a D-I program. Obviously some schools backed off recruiting him because of this. Hudson eventually wound up at the University of Tennessee-Martin, where he turned 23 before ever stepping on the basketball court.

Prisbell’s article was written just nine games into Hudson’s career at UT-Martin, one where he accomplished the first quadruple-double in NCAA D-I history (25 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 steals) in just his third outing. He stayed with the Skyhawks for two seasons, testing the NBA waters in between, and averaged 26.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 2.6 steals and 45.6% shooting from the field (37.2% from deep) for his career. In 2008-09, Draft Express ranked his 33.5 PER sixth in the nation.

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[Jerome Randle, meet Omar Samhan. He's now going to box you out.]

Thinking about summer league, and I have more posts to come regarding, but if there’s a regret I’ve paid for, it’s not talking to Jerome Randle. He’s fun to watch. He’s nice (in a basketball handles sense). He’s 5’9.25″ without shoes.

And I honestly believe he’ll be in the NBA someday (he was also the 2010 Pac-10 POY, BTW). Out of him I saw flashes of a jumper, aggressive defense, and the ability to lead a team. If he improves in each of those areas, especially the jump shot, my belief will come true.

In lieu of all that, I present some pictures of Jerome Randle, performing sweetness.

>>>

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[Cartier Martin shoots a jumper near the onlooking Ernie Grunfeld and Flip Saunders.]

One thing I’ll take from being around Cartier Martin is that he’s an earnest guy. No frills. No shadowing of his persona. Just a guy named Cartier.

He was out there communicating with his summer league teammates, trying to be leader … not because such acts make him look good, but because they make the whole team look good. This point was driven home when I spoke with Martin about what he would’ve done differently since pursuing a pro career after college.

“I picked up the work ethic kind of late,” he readily admitted, something many players wouldn’t be so willing to shed light upon. He said it took being away from his family and the unideal pursuit of basketball money overseas to realize that he needed to work on his intangibles.

Martin’s best summer league game came in the Wizards’ third outing against the Mavericks, where he served as the perfect compliment to John Wall.  Twenty-three points (6-11 FGs, 3-5 3PM, 8-10 FTs), five rebounds, an assist, a steal and a turnover later, my friend Mr. Townsend was getting all Buddhistic about The Cartier Affair.

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Prior to last week’s Wizards-Mavericks summer league game, in what had to be one of the shortest, most unconventional interviews ever, I talked to Omar Samhan about his matchup with JaVale McGee.  I knew that Samhan was stronger and more skilled in the low post, but I also understood that McGee was longer, more athletic and more experienced in terms of how the NBA game is played.

I asked Samhan, via Blackberry Messenger of all places, what his approach to guarding McGee would be. He typed:

“Try to outsmart him. Be physical with him.”

Unfortunately for Samhan, me, and the fans who watched both on television and in person, that classic, low-post type battle never materialized. And McGee took full advantage.

McGee finished with 18 points on 9-of-10 shooting, most coming via alley-oop dunks. Offensively, he and John Wall seemed to really connect for the third consecutive game. However, McGee only had four rebounds (three offensive), and he failed to make an appearance at the free throw line.

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