The Gilbert Arenas Hockey Assist: a screen-shot observation

Gilbert Arenas dribbles the ball up the court late in the third quarter with the game conveniently in hand, Kirk Hinrich prepares to set a ball screen for him.

Arenas comes off the screen and looks to make a move to the basket against Jose Calderon.

For whatever reason, it doesn’t really work and Arenas pulls it back — as you can see, the help defense is keyed in on Arenas and he likely knows this.

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With John Wall sitting out for the first time in his young career, Kirk Hinrich moved over to the point position and played 39 minutes of rock solid basketball against the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night in a Wizards 109-94 win. Displaying the attention to detail that allows him to impact games despite average athleticism and skill level, Hinrich routinely made the hard rotation, the sharp pass, and the clever read on his way to a double-double delight — a 13 point, 12 assist, four rebound and two turnover performance.

On back-to-back plays in the first quarter, just four minutes into the game, Hinrich made a pretty move to split two defenders and finish, then made a smart rotation and was able to give Reggie Evans a hard foul– preventing a dunk and sending the career 52% free throw shooter to the line (where he made one shot). The 20-second exchange summarized a night in which Hinrich made more flashy plays than usual, while also contributing the gritty, intelligent veteran plays that have kept him in the league.

Hinrich worked effectively in side pick-and-rolls, scoring three times by refusing the screen and either hopping laterally for a mid-range pull up or attacking the basket. In transition, Hinrich made a number of touch passes for easy finishes—he doesn’t replicate or even approximate Wall’s end-to-end speed, but the results were similar: two points for the Wizards. With the inexperienced Sonny Weems or diminutive Jose Calderon checking him for much of the night, the big veteran guard controlled the tempo throughout the game. The Wizards got off to a hot offensive start, in no small part because Hinrich was able to hand out four assists in the first quarter alone. Playing the awful Raptors’ defense didn’t hurt either.

Despite his enormous impact on the game, Hinrich’s subtle double-double is best understood by way of contrast to Nick Young. Young, who scored 20 points on 10-15 shooting, was the local broadcast’s interview subject at the end of the first half and in the locker room following the game. His impressive individual efforts on the offensive end were easy to appreciate. Young hit on a number of catch-and-shoot opportunities and even tossed in a couple of pull up Js before punctuating his night with a terrific fast break dunk. But in 30 minutes of run, Young contributed almost nothing other than hot shooting (well, he did pull down a career-high defensive six rebounds — Toronto’s woeful shooting made that pretty easy).

On a number of occasions, Young went over a screen he should have gone under, or got victimized by an aggressive, driving Raptor. Each time he received the ball, his one mission was to score, which he did well. However, with the Wizards passing the ball in the half court as well as they have all season, even Young’s successful individual forays seemed to stem the offensive the flow (he failed to notch even one assist). Simply put, his awareness level, both offensively and defensively, is atrocious. Despite his apparent contributions, the Wizards were minus-6 with Young on the court. I know plus/minus can be deceiving, but Young played 30 meaningful minutes in a blowout– this was no effect of a garbage time let down.

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First, thanks to all the Re-Tweeters who participated in TAI’s ticket giveaway for tonight’s Wizards-Raptors game. The lucky random winners were @tehbee (who will be attending her first Wizards game, second pro basketball game), and @TwiceDown, who has been a “Bullets” fan all of his life, but hasn’t been to a see a home game since Allen Iverson was with the 76ers (so about four years). TAI will have some more ticket giveaways (among other things) in the future, perhaps including some good seats for when the Miami Heat come to town on December 18th. So stay tuned …

Unfortunately …

Scenes like this will not be seen at the Verizon Center tonight:

It’s been reported that John Wall will not play tonight due to sprained left foot (nor will Yi Jianlian, also due to injury) — the kid, Wall, has evidently been walking around in crutches. Sorry ticket winners … I suppose there still is a good chance you will see JaVale McGee finish an alley-oop, just not one passed from Wall.

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On the surface, tonight’s game between the Toronto Raptors and the Washington Wizards just looks like a battle of two struggling teams.  The Raptors are 2-8 and in last place of the Atlantic Division, while the Washington Wizards are 2-6 and in last place in the Southeast.  Both teams have gone through major personnel changes since the ’09-10 season, and both were expected to have uphill climbs this season.

Of course, the major difference is that the Raptors lost the face of their franchise in Chris Bosh over the summer, while the Wizards welcomed their new future when they drafted John Wall.  The loss of Bosh without a significant player in return has basically ensured that the Raptors will struggle this season, and likely longer.  The addition of a young player in Wall means that the Wizards may struggle this year, but their future certainly seems to be in great and capable hands.

It is quite easy for me to make grandiose, sweeping generalizations about the Toronto Raptors, because I observe the team from afar (afar, meaning I have not watched them play an entire game all season).  So to get a better idea of what’s truly going with Raptors, I decided to reach out to my old editor, Mr. Ryan McNeill.

Ryan is the editor and founder of the site, HoopsAddict.com, and he has covered the Raptors with credentials for four years.  He has appeared on NBA XL, ESPN Radio, The Fan 590, The Chris Townsend Show and WSRQ 1220, and he is also contributor to SLAM ONLINE.

Rashad Mobley: The Wizards have some young players in Nick Young and JaVale McGee who have shown spurts of greatness, but have yet to put it together consistently.  The Raptors have young players in DeMar DeRozan and Sonny Weems, who have have been playing noticeably better this year.  Why do you think they are playing better this year?  And is there another young player I may have left out who is also playing well? Read more »

UPDATE: Congrats to @TwiceDown and @tehbee for winning the tickets … stay tuned because TAI will have more ticket giveaways in the future. -Kyle

[Gilbert Arenas had a breakout performance in Chicago on Saturday, dropping 30 points in just under 32 minutes (aided by 7-10 from deep). Will he do something similar at home against the Raptors tomorrow? You could be there to find out ... keep reading.]

Okay, so John Wall is currently day-to-day with a left foot sprain. Andray Blatche? His knee is a bit swollen and he’s also day-to-day. Add Yi Jianlian (bone bruise/hyperextended knee) to the list of walking wounded too.

The bangs, bumps and bruises of a young, rebuilding team early in the season — none of it means that you shouldn’t want to see the Wiz Kids in action, for free, and in great seats, right?

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On occasion, someone from Truth About It (usually Adam McGinnis or myself) is afforded the opportunity to sit on photographer’s row and capture the NBA game experience. One of those chances came last Friday when the Charlotte Bobcats came to town. Here are some select captures from that game.

Note sure if this is the epitome of something or just weird … but Kwame Brown, flexing his bicep, while on the injured reserve and barely in the NBA, with the Wizards logo looming in the background.

Kevin Seraphin talks with assistant coach Gene Banks before the game. Don’t take Kevin’s face to be a negative, he’s just a very expressive, goofy kid who is usually smiling otherwise. An interesting young character that Seraphin, sophomoric in every sense, yet a gentle giant who sets practice screens that make Kirk Hinrich cringe.

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This Player Lock investigates the battle between two starting NBA centers with similar skill sets and celebrity parents.

With just over four minutes left in the second quarter, Derrick Rose worked a pick and roll with Taj Gibson about 25-feet from the hoop. John Wall zipped around Gibson’s 6’9″ frame like a slalom skier around a flag. Easy. But Andray Blatche did little to contain Rose — in fact, did little more than shuffle his feet — in what played out to be a trademark foray to the basket. However, fortune was on the Wizards’ side when Speed (Rose) and Greed (McGee) reintroduced themselves above the rim; JaVale recorded his third block of the night.

And then, it was showtime.

John Wall scooped up the loose ball and took off on the break, with McGee matching him stride for stride. With a skip just outside the three-point line, Wall floated a pass in the direction of the rim. Kyle Korver, one of those walking-paradox types (you know, the unathletic professional athlete), made a concerted effort to prevent the inevitable. McGee flashed his otherworldly athleticism by snatching the ball away from Korver mid-flight and finishing the alley-oop.

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[Yi Jianlian procures an easy defensive rebound against the Charlotte Bobcats - K. Weidie]

It’s simplistic to look at average team rebounds per game and say the Washington Wizards are the worst in the NBA, but it wouldn’t represent the full story.

The Wizards average a league-low 38 rebounds per game. On the defensive boards they average 27.25, which ranks 28 out of 30; and on the offensive boards they average 10.75, which is tied with the San Antonio Spurs to rank 20 out of 30 NBA teams.

But as you know, rebounds are not soley a factor of the time it takes to play a game. They are also a factor of pace (how fast a team plays and thus how many possessions they are producing, the more possessions, the more available boards), and field-goal percentage (the more missed shots, the more rebounds).

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“YOU SUCK GILBERT!,” yelled a member of the attending audience who witnessed Gilbert Arenas’ 2-14 performance (1-9 from three-point land), right after the final buzzer sounded on a Washington Wizards loss to the Charlotte Bobcats on Friday night.

And Gilbert did suck, but getting impatient with his play right now lacks an understanding of how difficult it really is to score in the NBA … when the clock is ticking and the lights are on.

A lot of people can hit in practice. Regular guys, like this guy, go on shooting streaks by themselves, easily. Watch any NBA player, even a big man, in most non-game settings, and they are hitting shot after shot. Sure, hitting a baseball is probably the hardest thing to do in sports, so then shooting the rock in practice is the equivalent of Albert Pujols hitting countless dingers off a bullpen pitcher during BP.

“You always think he’s going to make the next one, that’s just the way he’s been,” theorized Flip Saunders on his streaky shooter after the game. “I hesitated because Nick [Young] made some shots, you know, putting him in. But the thing was, Gil’s the one guy that was actually rebounding for us in the second half. He was our second leading rebounder, and he was active as far as getting his hands on a lot of balls.”

And do give Arenas credit. He gathered six rebounds, skying high for an offensive board after a Kirk Hinrich three miss with 7:42 left in the game. That aggression led to an Andray Blatche layup, assisted by Arenas, that put the Wizards up 75-74. Arenas also, for a stretch in the second half, turned into a creator because he knew his shot wasn’t working (although four assists to four turnovers on the game is not a good ratio). It’s just that at the end of the game, Arenas was left wide open, and honestly, was the Wizards’ best chance to get hot and start sinking game-saving threes.

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[Flip Saunders at the moment of outrage over a questionable call.]

In some regard a basketball game can come down to a single play or a single call, in most it doesn’t.

A small fraction of the narrative for the Wizards’ 93-85 loss to the Charlotte Bobcats came with less than two minutes left in the game. Yi Jianlian, who had played measured, focused defense all night long — to the tune of six blocks in 32 minutes off the bench (although, only one defensive rebound in that time, more on that issue later) — saw Crash Gerald Wallace approaching the lane that he occupied. Yi planted his feet, outside of the restricted area, and absorbed the contact. One ref seemed to want to whistle a charge, another a blocking foul; the triumvirate conferred on the call.

NBA referee Rodney Mott emerged from the huddled discussion, looked in the direction of the scorer’s table/Wizards bench, gave a prolonged wry smile, hesitated, and then signaled Yi for a blocking violation. Not exactly the tact you’d like to see from a referee making a crucial call — almost making a mockery of a scene and a seemingly wrong call that the Wizards’ bench didn’t find too comical.

“Yea, it was a terrible call,” said Flip Saunders after the game. “Instead of it going the other way, now it ends up being an eight point game. There’s a difference when it’s two minutes to go and and it’s six.”

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[John Wall glides past each and every one of the Charlotte Bobcats, breezy.]

I chose to spotlight John Wall for Friday night’s home game versus the Charlotte Bobcats. It was a difficult decision — choosing between Wall and his seemingly favorable match-up versus DJ Augustin, or Andray Blatche in his intense battle of the ‘shapely’ four men versus Boris Diaw. I settled on Wall.

This was a typical Wizards-Bobcats game, the Wiz snatched defeat from the jaws of victory by falling apart over the last seven minutes of the fourth quarter. Gerald Wallace put in work on hapless Washington defenders (9-15 field-goals, 25 points and 14 rebounds) while shutting down Al Thornton so badly that Al left the game with a stomach problem. In general, the Wizards’ offense looked out of sync, as there was a lot of settling for jump shots and not enough attempts in the paint. The silver lining: the game was still relatively close despite an abysmal shooting night from Gilbert Arenas. Also, this is what an off-night looks like for John Wall: 6-16 field-goals, 13 points, four rebounds, 11 assists and four steals.

There is some bad news, though. John Wall’s inconsistent shot doesn’t concern me — clearly, that’s part of the growing pains of being a rookie in his seventh NBA game. What concerns me about Friday’s game is how, at times, Wall looked disinterested in defending Augustin.

Wall began the game by playing very far off of him, this would become one theme of the night.  Another theme, when the Wizards were on offense, it became very clear that Charlotte would go under every ball screen to protect the paint, basically leaving Wall open, as usual. Keeping with this concept, Wall attempted two three-pointers in the first three minutes of the game, missing on both. But he had no trouble finding his teammates early, once finding a trailing Andray Blatche on the right side of the floor with a sweet dish off the back of his palm.

In the first half, Wall seemed like he was toying with Augustin. On one occasion, Ted Leonsis’ Expresso breezed by Augustin on a pick-and-roll with Blatche and fed the big man for an easy basket. But that hubris on the offensive end seemingly affected Wall’s efforts on defense. On the ensuing possession, Augustin caught Wall flat-footed and got past him for an easy layup. Augustin would get a couple more easy scoring opportunities in the first half, as Wall was more interested in trying to be a ‘play-maker’ on defense by going for steals and double-teaming guys for no reason. Wall did continue finding his teammates though, evidenced by a couple sick alley-oops to Epic Vale past the midway point of the second quarter. But, before going to the bench with under a minute left in the half, Wall left Augustin wide open for a three (which he converted).

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[Shaun Livingston shows no fear going against the JaVale McGee tree.]

[Livingston ended up missing the tough shot ... but man, he and McGee are some lengthy dudes.]

Along with “no cheering in the press box”, and “no soliciting autographs from the players”, one of the rules of game-attending media says that we aren’t supposed to openly root for players. We are supposed to be as objective as possible so we can freely vacillate between criticism and praise, without worrying about offending our own sensibilities.

In three years covering the NBA, I think I’ve done a stellar job of obeying all of these rules.  I’ve slipped up a few times and pumped my fist, but I catch myself before anyone can see me.  I’ve  praised and criticized players and coaches (most recently Flip Saunders) with a clear conscience, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. And lest we forget, basketball writers tend to be basketball fans too.

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Whether you’re in the NBA or not, what you eat and how your body reacts is kind of a big deal … but especially if you are in the NBA, or any other type of athlete. Just this season, we’ve seen Al Thornton playing with more hustle and explosiveness, partially due to his summertime consumption change of cutting beef, chicken and pork out of his diet. On the other hand, we’ve seen Andray Blatche struggle to get in playing shape, seemingly more than he should be after suffering a broken foot in June, due to his dabbling in late-night snacks.

Gilbert Arenas is a third case on the team, at least in terms of playing weight and getting into full game shape. Most of Arenas’ setbacks can be attributed the groin and ankle tweaks he experienced in preseason, which also caused him to miss the first three games of the regular season. When asked about how his knee felt after Wednesday’s home game versus Houston, Gilbert scoffed, “I haven’t had a knee problem for a year and a half now, so I don’t know why people keep asking about it.”

But otherwise, as John Townsend noticed in his ‘Player Lock’ on Arenas, he doesn’t exactly look physically comfortable on the court just yet, and that’s to be expected … as Arenas himself has admitted that he’s probably about 10 pounds overweight.

“Gil’s still a long ways away,” said Flip Saunders after Wednesday’s game. “He needs to lose some weight and he needs to just get practice time on the court to get his legs under him. Because when you don’t shoot well, he’s not shooting well, you don’t have your legs under you as much. Give him credit, he worked hard on the defensive end –tried to work — so it’s going to be a work in process. But what we can’t do is we can’t put him in situations where we start playing him too many minutes because we don’t want him to have any kind of an injury.”

Before talking to him about pooping in shoes, which, believe it or not, is a result of what you eat, I briefly spoke with Arenas about losing weight. I started by asking him if he’s changed his diet to facilitate weight loss, Gil went in his own direction, indicating that he’s not completely willing to buy that he needs to lose weight, or that he’s overweight. And on regaining basketball shape, Arenas says he still doesn’t completely trust his ankle and is weary of it becoming a lingering injury.

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Before Wizards-Rockets match-up last Wednesday, I informally polled a couple of the more veteran Wizards on A) who has been the toughest guy for them to defend during their time in the league, and B) who in the league sets some of the hardest, toughest screens. Here are their answers:

Al Thornton

Toughest Cover:

“Definitely Kobe, Tracy [McGrady] … a couple years ago, Vince [Carter], there are a lot of guys. Rip [Hamilton], Tayshaun [Prince] …”

I asked Al if any guy really stood out to him: Read more »

[Note:  This is the second installment of "Player Lock", where we at Truth About It focus on one player for an entire game.  The first installment focused on Gilbert Arenas.]

Yi Jianlian had to be feeling the pressure Wednesday night.

It was Asian Heritage Night at the Verizon Center, which meant there was an increased number of Asian fans and media watching his every move.   Across the floor, there was a man from his native country in Yao Ming, who already draws his fair share of Asian fans wherever he goes, let alone in Washington D.C. on Asian Heritage Night.   To make things even more interesting, there were going to be millions of basketball fans back home in China, watching the country’s biggest basketball stars go head-to-head.

So I chose to dedicate this version of the “Player Lock” series to Yi, because I wanted to see if he crumbled under pressure, rose to the challenge, or was just indifferent to it all.  I got my first indication of how Yi was feeling about 35 minutes before game time when I saw him holding court in front of several members of the Chinese media.

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