Well, I’m not doing a game blog for the Wizards-Hornets match-up……which was soooo last year……because I actually attended the game. I’m down South visiting family for the new year, and my pops lives a couple hours from New Orleans (he’s a Hornets fan), so it was natural that we attended the game.
So in place of a game blog, me and my amateur photography skills present a photographic slide show of what I saw:
Game Observations:
- Gilbert Arenas was on the bench during the first half……I can’t remember if he was there for the 3rd quarter or not, but he was definitely absent for most of the 4th and down the stretch.
- Ivan Carter questioned Southeastern Conference loyalty when the local LSU fans booed players from Alabama’s football team in attendance (and then chanted “L-S-U! L-S-U!)…….but Carter forgot to mention that there’s more passion than usual between these two teams. LSU fans absolutely hate former coach Nick Saban with a passion (starting when he left the program to coach the Miami Dolphins). That hatred was magnified once Saban returned to the SEC to coach ‘Bama.
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After he walked (and played) in Gilbert Arenas’ shoes, and before he became a Washington Wizard, Javaris Crittenton played for the Los Angeles Lakers and the Memphis Grizzlies. My immediate reaction is that while I’m sorry to see Antonio Daniels go (I have love for him too), I like the idea of Crittenton’s youth, potential, and size (who doesn’t like a 6’5″ PG?).
But before I get into doing a bunch of research on the kid’s past, I wanted to asked some NBA bloggers from LA and Memphis their opinion about Crittenton. Thanks to Kurt of Forum Blue & Gold and Josh of 3 Shades of Blue for providing their thoughts. Read on…..
First from LA-LA Land.
Kurt from Forum Blue & Gold:
When the Gasol trade went down last season, the only twinge of regret for fans was losing Crittenton. Well, there was really no twinge of regret, but Lakers fans were sad to see Crittenton go. I haven’t seen him play in a year, but his game has potential with a capital “P.” He’s long, very fast, played hard on defense, was developing a shot, and he can get to the rim. He played a little out of control, especially for the rather controlled triangle offense the Lakers run, but that was a matter of youth and maturity. He could develop into a quality player in this league. He’s just in the weird spot a lot of young players are: He needs run to develop, but he can’t get run because coaches can’t sacrifice wins for experience. So he sits a lot.
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I’m going to get more down on Javaris Crittenton in the future, among others (Dee Brown, and of course, Antonio Daniels), in the wake of today’s big trade (well, maybe not “big” in the grand scale of all things NBA, or even your fantasy team….but big for the Wizards’ point guard situation), but wanted to post something quick in the interim. You can also go to Bullets Forever to join the trade discussion.
Crittenton is the big “get”…some are saying “steal”…for the Wizards. But until I’m able to do a more exhaustive write-up on the former Yellow Jacket/Laker/Grizzly/high school teammate of Dwight Howard, I wanted to remind everyone that Javaris Crittenton has once walked in the shoes of Gilbert Arenas, literally.
From a June 2008 story in the Washington Times, “Arenas’ shoes are on other feet” –
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Over the years, we’ve become accustomed to seeing Antonio Daniels put his body on the line in driving to the basket. And usually, he is able to draw a foul with his flailing, controlled recklessness. But against Ben Gordon and the Chicago Bulls, AD was getting no love from the refs, which led to the face below.
No, Daniels isn’t smiling as he almost appears to be, that’s a look of pain….pain caused by Gordon throwing his shit in the other direction. See for yourself.
Some have cried foul, but it looks clean to me. AD hobbled around the court for a bit after this incident and then left the game early with a bruised tailbone.
But the most important thing is that Daniels, a nagging injury aficionado, seems to be okay. Ivan Carter is reporting on Wizards Insider that Daniels practiced on Monday and should be good to go against Detroit on Tuesday.
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Q1
JaVale McGee starts off:
- Blocking a Gooden hook shot on help side.
- Blocking a Derrick Rose layup attempt and then Rose’s jump shot on a recovery.
- We haven’t played a minute yet.
10:37: Deng blows by Butler, slashing to the basket in transition. Caron, in my opinion, exerts a minimal amount of effort. 4-3 Bulls.
9:33: McGee closes out fast and gets a 4th block on Gooden’s jumper.
Halfway through the first quarter, the Wizards have gotten some decent looks, just not all of them are falling. The Bulls have made Washington pay in transition. At the six minute mark, the score is tied at 14 after Stevenson hits another long two near the Bulls bench……A guy with the 10th best PER on a team that is 3-15 has the gall to give Chicago’s bench a gnarly stare. Way to go DeShawn.
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We now know the scapegoat threshold on an NBA season in the District of Columbia: 10 losses against a solo win. As head coach of the Washington Wizards, Eddie Jordan is no more. If the WizzNutzz only had the foresight to include this among their Screaming Headlines…..
Someone had to take the fall. The Wizards crack medical staff? Well, they can’t exactly control the environment in which they work, but by most accounts, they are no medical staff of the Phoenix Suns.
The most glaring problem for the Wizards during Jordan’s tenure was bottom-of-the-barrel defense. Despite these facts surrounding the team’s stars: Gilbert Arenas, a bad defender; Caron Butler, a bad defender; Antawn Jamison, a bad defender; Antonio Daniels, a bad defender……when the pattern of defensive inefficiency creeps into its sixth consecutive year, the ultimate responsibility falls on the shoulders of the head coach.
All the tinkering and gimmicks in the world…..match-ups zones, doubling the ball off screens, the scheming of Randy Ayers (and to a lesser extent, Flip Saunders, who made a cameo in training camp as an instructor of zone defense)…….could not circumvent the fact that it’s easier to get rid of a coach than make roster adjustments.
Unfortunately, many Washingtonians are rejoicing with election night enthusiasm at their cubicles today. Can’t exactly blame them for doing so, it’s just unfortunate that it had to arrive at this point. I have been a staunch supporter of Eddie Jordan through and through, but was even beginning to wonder myself if Jordan getting Sam Cooke’d was the right move to make.
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I suppose I could go on some diatribe about the Washington Wizards and toughness, rebounding, offensive execution, and perhaps even coaching, but what’s the point? That’s not to say I’ve become languid about the team, or even the season. It’s just not always worth the effort to harp on the same ol’, same ol’.
I also don’t subscribe to Ivan Carter’s theory that everyone played out of their ass last year and are incapable of doing so again as individuals. Basically, his sub-prime loan comparison doesn’t hold water in my opinion.
The best way I could explain it was by comparing the team to a subprime loan. Follow me if you can. The Wizards lived above their means last season, meaning that they managed to make payments on a playoff house because they all played out of their minds. They got career years from just about every player on the roster — Caron Butler, Antawn Jamison, Brendan Haywood, Roger Mason, Antonio Daniels, DeShawn Stevenson, and even Eddie Jordan coached his tail off — and they survived and thrived without all star Gilbert Arenas.
Uhh…ok, so is the comparison to sub-prime loans or to the people who are doing the borrowing? I’ll assume it’s the borrowers since that’s the path Carter continues to go down in his post. It’s a reasonable assumption that when someone lives above their means, they are being reckless and irresponsible. The marks of sub-prime loans, for the most part, have checkered financial pasts. Thus, they serve as victims of predatory lending because they can only borrow money if the loan is attached to a bunch of ill-advised catches, such as high interest rates.
Carter’s sub-prime (or borrower) comparison doesn’t work because I don’t think any of the Wizards players came into the 07-08 season with bad credit ratings. On the contrary, they previously showed the potential for growth and built upon that. There’s no reason to assume that last year’s outstanding play of each Wizard was an anomaly that could not be repeated. Sure Jamison and Daniels are of age for a downturn, but you can’t say that Haywood and Butler are incapable of playing at the same level (Haywood’s injury notwithstanding). It also must be considered that Daniels is currently dealing with knee and wrist issues, and so far this season, Jamison’s PER is the highest it’s been in a Wizards uniform (2nd highest in his career).
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Well, well, well…..what do we have here? Are they about to go to church?
Oh….these two must be a couple candy salesmen….and I don’t know if they’re selling it or getting high off their own supply, but the garb of Gilbert Arenas and Antonio Daniels is sweet like bear meat.
Daniels with his pink on the inside, iridescent blue on the outside combo; and Arenas with the Burberry-Ascot get-up.
Well, at least somebody went to Miami prepared, because the Wizards sure weren’t ready to play against the Heat as they lost ugly by 20 points. Too bad their game wasn’t as pretty as those suits. Enjoy South Beach fellas.
Ok….I’m not one to throw in the towel, but I couldn’t help feeling as I watched the Wizards-Bucks game that a win would be a bonus, and not anything to expect. I don’t want to get into deep analysis on the game three loss, so here are some bulleted observations:
- Andray Blatche is getting his fair share of chances and is not taking advantage of them.
- He severely lacks blocking-out fundamentals — Somebody teach him….PLEASE!! Tony Massenburg? Wes Unseld?
- Blatche is trying to do too much — I’m not sure what needs to happen for Andray to let the game come to him.
The starters are not working out. Something needs to be shaken up, and the obvious answer is to start Nick Young. But that’s the conundrum….who sits? DeShawn Stevenson and his consecutive games started streak (along with his defense)? Or Antonio Daniels and his steadying game management presence?
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NEW FEATURE: Andray Blatche Threat Level Color Coded Alert System.
Ok….I’m glad they’re starting Andray Blatche (Etan Thomas is out with an ankle….Michael Redd is also out for the Bucks with an ankle). I still got hope for the kid and this time, it’s hope that this elevated status, and past poor performance of course, drive him to succeed.
If I could think of the perfect two words to describe Scott Skiles, it would be ‘piss ant’
Q1
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Flickr tells me that the above picture is none other than Walter Herrmann….and I have to believe it. Something tells me that old school Walter Herrmann would totally have a hair-doo like Guile from Street Fighter only to go with the ‘Fabio’ look we’re graced with today.
So a guy with a pony-tail goes off on the Wizards and everyone becomes a drama queen. I mean just look at the picture….the guy is about to dunk with a ball on f-ing fire! It’s no wonder that Herrmann was hitting trey balls and finger rolls on the Wiz. For all we know, he could be the Argentinian Chuck Norris.
Plus, the dude has been through a TON in his life that not many can imagine. In July 2003, Herrmann lost his mother, younger sister, and girlfriend all in the same car crash. Exactly a year later, he had one of the best games of his career, 38 points and 11 rebounds, in leading Argentina in the South American Championships. After the game, he found out that his father had died of a heart-attack.
So, from a guy who almost quit the game of basketball, but was encouraged not to by his older sister, to starring in the NBA today. If such a game had to happen against the Wizards, then so be it.
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As much progress the Wizards seemed to make in last Wednesday’s preseason win in San Antonio, on Friday in Cleveland it all came unraveled. I don’t take much stock in preseason results, losing by 28 points to the Cavaliers is nothing more than a meaningless number at this juncture. And as Caron Butler was quoted in the Washington Post, “It’s not necessarily about shots made and missed. It’s about energy and establishing some type of rhythm for the first group.”
All true. Through the first half of the second quarter in Cleveland, the Wizards starters, along with the initial wave of second unit players, led the Cavs 35-33. But with an intriguing lineup of Dee Brown, Nick Young, Caron Butler, Antawn Jamison, and JaVale McGee on the court, a Roots album title ensued (or Nine Inch Nails, or the literary inspiration, or the original poetic inspiration…depending on your flavor)……and things fell apart.
Cleveland closed out the first half on a 24-4 run, taking a 57-39 lead into the locker room, against a lineup that it’s reasonable to assume Eddie Jordan will be using this year, as opposed to him just tinkering.
The focus now shifts to the season opener against the New Jersey Nets on Tuesday. As with many NBA teams, there are still areas of concern. You can read the full preseason Wizards-Cavs game blog at Bullets Forever, but here are three observations which need to be addressed as the season grows:
- On back-to-back plays at the beginning of the 2nd quarter, Andray Blatche failed to display the most basic of rebounding fundamentals. A CYO player would’ve known to make body contact and box out, instead of standing straight up waiting for the ball to come to you. A 12-year old girl would’ve known to secure the rock with two hands instead of casually grasping for a board with one hand. Lorenzen Wright got offensive rebounds in both of the above scenarios and Blatche was benched for the rest of the game, only seeing a total of 3:49 on the court.
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Why am I pumped (or seised) about a preseason game tonight? Yea, well, got my DVR set up….and we’ve got the season’s starting lineup (Etan, DeShawn, Antonio, Caron and Antawn) ready to show….something.
What about Pop’s beard? Something he’s been needing to do for a while. The guy doesn’t exactly have the best…..complexion. And our buddy Haywoode Workman is refereeing again.
Q1
Possession #1: Tim Duncan gets an offensive board with both Antawn Jamison and DeShawn Stevenson right in front of him…nobody puts a body on somebody. 2nd chances are a killer, Spurs don’t take advantage…two Kurt Thomas misses.
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The guys at LA Ball Talk are hosting a Top NBA Team Blog Contest, click to check out the nominees. The voting polls are open, so go select your favorite blog for each NBA team and you will get a nice imaginary sticker. Don’t do it for me, do it for Nacho.
Slam Online
….has a great interview with Antonio Daniels, which includes a YouTube of AD throwing a two-handed dunk in AK-47′s grill (when he was with the Blazers).
AD Quotable: “Until we’re healthy our job is to continue to win basketball games. I’m not a prediction guy. Even if we were healthy I wouldn’t give a prediction. I believe in everybody in that locker room and I feel like we can accomplish a lot.”
Staunch Supporter: Picking up the details on Antonio Daniels
Hardwood Paroxysm
….has posted their preview of the Washington Wizards. What are you waiting for? Get over there and read it.
Best Line: “The Wizards are a collection of fierce competitors. But what makes this team so likable is not only the dynamism of their on-court style but the charm of their off-court antics. Beard growing contests, 80′s themed birthday parties and unashamedly opinionated blogging consistently remind me that professional sports, at the end of the day, should be about having fun. Winning is fun, but so is doing impersonations of players from around the league or developing a rating system for an opponent’s swagger.”
Hardwood Paroxysm’s 2008-2009 Season Preview: The Washington Wizards
Quote of the Day: “Eye, my a**! Is it permanent?” - Gilbert Arenas’ dad to his son, Gilbert
Gilbertology
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Preseason statistics and results should never be a reason to punch the panic button. Coaches are just tinkering in the lab, trying different lineups, offensive sets, etc., in an effort towards establishing refinement once the real games begin.
On the other hand, one could reasonably expect to draw a realistic indication of the future by observing a team’s preseason defense. Granted, zone defense is difficult to master, even when playing Randy Ayers’ simplified match-up zone system. But a team should not have a “cold” night on defense as they might when it comes to shooting the rock. If the D is failing, then signs tend to point to lacking desire and mental game slippage.
So, after allowing 66 total points between the first quarters of the last two games, is it at least worth flipping open the plastic cover protecting the panic button? It is worth nothing that the Wizards have looked their absolute worst in two consecutive games against a very good New Orleans Hornets team, which features a young point guard like no other. However, I would prefer to use performance against the best as a barometer rather than gaining a false sense of hope from seeing the Wizards shut down a mediocre team.
Going off what I suggested about preseason numbers, I’m not really worried that the Wizards are shooting 37.1% from the field and turning the ball over more than 20 times per game. I also won’t take too much stock in the Wizards holding opponents to 26.1% from three-point land (after giving up a league worst 38.6% from deep last year). Although, I am more impressed by the existence of the latter, as opponent 3-point shooting is a key area of needed improvement, than I’m concerned about not being able to correct the former. Bad offense will obviously give the opposition more chances to score. So once the Wizards gel offensively, I’ll assume that the defense will improve.
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