Be mad that Alonzo Gee is no longer a Washington Wizard. The justification is there. Once again, the brain-trust of franchise has failed its fan base by putting dollars over sense. Or rather, considering the meager amount the team would’ve had to pay to equal the more tempting offer of the San Antonio Spurs, perhaps leading Gee to decide to stay in Washington, call it cents over sense.
Fingers are pointing directly at team president of basketball operations Ernie Grunfeld. And they should be. But don’t forget, you have more fingers that can point at more people. I can’t profess to know how various transactions during this current state of ownership limbo affects the remaining 66-percent transition from the Abe Pollin Estate to Ted Leonsis and Lincoln Holdings, but I also can’t forget that until it is complete, Grunfeld still reports only to the Pollins. He won’t let us forget either, reminding us in his press conference this past Saturday, just as he did in mid-February.
Maybe Leonsis would’ve granted approval for the same move of non-retention. And maybe Grunfeld is operating without the need to seek formal approval from those to whom he currently reports. Perhaps he’s working under a general edict where his actions are determined by a word that has been associated with 
the Pollin legacy before. Yes, that’s right. Cheap.
Now, there might be other variables in place aside from cost. But when the team’s reason, or excuse, for not retaining Gee revolves around saving cap space for next season while the San Antonio Spurs, a championship organization vastly unmatched by the Washington Wizards, sees enough value in Gee to further go into luxury tax territory, something is amiss. And that something should be called out.
Of course, calling the Pollins cheap, throwing out accusations of them looking out for their own agenda and not that of the fans during this transition does not necessarily paint an accurate picture. But if true, the idea still doesn’t absolve Grunfeld from shouldering most of the responsibility for the current laughing-stock state of the team. But compartmentalizing recent transactions since the team fell into the depths of the gutter, one must empathize with Grunfeld and how the controlling ownership puppeteer has caused him to ball his fists so tight that he could squeeze blood from a stone. Ernie is recycling dental floss these days. He’s washing paper towels in the Verizon Center sink and hanging them to dry for later reuse. Anything to save a buck.
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