picture credit: Adam McGinnis

Sporting an oversized polo shirt and fuzzy facial hair, Anthony Bennett sheepishly strolled over to the gathered media for his interview at the Verizon Center last Thursday. The NBA prospect looked like a deer in headlights. Bennett immediately admitted to being shy, an unenviable characteristic when having to face a hoard of cameras and journalists. Washington, D.C. is not Chicago or New York in terms of sports media, but this is not the Mountain West, either. By the end of the 11-minute session, the 20-year-old gradually opened up about his fear of heights, poked fun at his own shooting stats, and told a funny story about a fan locating him in the lobby of his Chinatown hotel. A college player being green in these situations seems pretty routine, and Bennett didn’t have the benefit of working up a sweat beforehand. Due to surgery on his rotator cuff in mid-May, Bennett did not actually work out for the Wizards, but the UNLV star out of Ontario, Canada, revealed that his recovery was progressing on schedule.

“It is going pretty well. I spoke with Dr. Altchek—he is the one that did my surgery—I spoke with him yesterday and he said everything is going fine,” Bennett said. “The first week of August, I should be 100 percent, full contact, back into the game of working out.” Dr. David Altchek should also be noted because he helped determine the nature of John Wall’s stress injury  last September. CSN Washington’s Ben Standig previously reported that Bennett was about eight weeks out from full contact but has been cleared to do some basketball things.

“[Altchek] said light shooting. I can dribble and do all that but no contact. Nothing crazy. No dunking or anything,” Bennett confirmed.

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[ShareBullets -- Wizards-related links from 'round the web.]

Bradley Beal enjoys the Santa Monica beach sand with his girlfriend. Oh, young love. [via Instagram]

Links.

The NBA Draft rumor machine is fired up and ready to go with speculation swirling over Washington’s third pick. Ex-Wizards head coach Flip Saunders is now running the Minnesota Timberwolves, and reports have them looking to move up from their ninth position in the draft, dangling 2011 second overall pick Derrick Williams as bait. Ben Standig breaks down this potential deal.

[CSN Washington]

TAI’s Kyle Weidie digs into the latest scuttlebut of the Wizards possibly packaging their third overall draft pick for Milwaukee Bucks forward Ersan Ilyasova, aka, “Ghostface Ilya.” Bucks blogger KL Choulnard provides evidence of Ilyasova’s defensive struggles.

[Behind the Buck Pass]

Set your Google Calendar alerts for Friday, June 14th. This is date that Georgetown’s Otto Porter will reportedly be working out for the Wizards at the Verizon Center.

[Washington Post]

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[Brandon Jennings and Nick Young]

This past Saturday LA’s Toxic Day Party, seemingly the place to be every Saturday in LA, was more turnt than ever. From Draya and her “Fine Ass Girls” crew to Fabolous, Hit Boy, The Game and NBA ballers James Harden, Nick Young and Brandon Jennings, Toxic Day Party at Lure Patio was Hollywood’s hottest summer hang out this past week.

DJ Drama had the crowd going wild as he had LA native Problem perform his smash hit, “Like What,” while Nick Young popped endless bottles of Ace of Spades Rose’ to celebrate his birthday. On any given Saturday you can find Karrueche and Christina Milian sitting pretty, as Teyana Taylor dances and toasts with friends. NFL player DeSean Jackson, Justin Combs, Too Short, Eva Marcelle, and Kevin McCall were also amongst the celebs who joined in on the fun.

Kenyon Martin and Dorrell Wright also partied it up with Swaggy P. Photographer Cassy Athena documented the good times with money shots.

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[Wizards 2012-13 Player Reviews from the TAI crew are going down; let's reflect---index so far:
Jannero Pargo, Jason Collins, Shaun Livingston, Shelvin Mack, Cartier Martin, Earl Barron,
Jan Vesely, Chris Singleton, Trevor Booker, Garrett Temple, Emeka Okafor, Trevor Ariza,
Martell Webster, A.J. Price, Jordan Crawford, Kevin Seraphin, Bradley Beal, Nene, John Wall.]

Kevin Seraphin

6-9 : Height
275 lbs. : Weight
23 : Age
3 : Years NBA Experience
1 : NBA Team

Drafted 17th overall by the Chicago Bulls in 2010 and traded to the Wizards along with Kirk Hinrich and cash for Vladimir Veremeenko on draft night.

Time as a Wizard in 2012-13

79 : Games
8 : Starts
1,721 : Minutes

1.56 out of 3 stars

Average Truth About It.net DC Council Game Rating
{Seraphin evaluated over 26 games} 

10.3 PER

NBA historical PER contribution equivalent:
maybe Joel Anthony for the 2011-12 Miami Heat (10.3)
maybe Francisco Elson for the 2008-09 Milwaukee Bucks (10.3),
maybe Johan Petro for the 2011-12 New Jersey Nets (10.3)

.004 Win Shares/48 Minutes

NBA historical WS/48 contribution equivalent:
maybe Isaac Austin for the 2001-02 Memphis Grizzlies (.003),
maybe Stacey King for the 1994-95 Minnesota Timberwolves (.003),
maybe Othella Harrington for the 2006-07 Charlotte Bobcats (.003)

With Kevin Seraphin on the Court…

The Wizards offense scored 5.0 points less per 100 possessions (OffRtg)
The Wizards defense allowed 1.0 point more per 100 possessions (DefRtg)
Plus/Minus per 48 minutes: minus-7.4

Numbers : Per 36 Minutes

15.1 : Points
7.2 : Rebounds
1.2 : Blocks
0.5 : Steals
1.2 : Assists
2.7 : Turnovers
4.4 : Fouls

0.80 PPP

Seraphin had 888 offensive possessions with the Wizards that ended with a FGA, TO or FTs, and he scored 0.80 Points Per Possession (PPP) on those, ranked 371st in the NBA (via Synergy Sports Technology). Defensively, he allowed 0.86 PPP over 385 possessions, ranked 171st.

Shooting

46.1% Field Goals (330-716)
69.3% Free Throws (61-88)

[stats via NBA.com/stats and Basketball-Reference.com]

#13

Kevin Seraphin in 2012-13 with the Wizards: #KevinSeraphinLife Heads Off Track

by Adam McGinnis (@AdamMcGinnis)

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[Wizards 2012-13 Player Reviews from the TAI crew are going down; let's reflect---index:
Jannero Pargo, Jason Collins, Shaun Livingston, Shelvin Mack, Cartier Martin, Earl Barron,
Jan Vesely, Chris Singleton, Trevor Booker, Garrett Temple, Emeka Okafor, Trevor Ariza,
Martell Webster, A.J. Price, Jordan Crawford, Kevin Seraphin, Bradley Beal, Nene, John Wall.]

Garrett Temple

6-6 : Height
190 lbs. : Weight
27 : Age
3 : Years NBA Experience
6 : NBA Teams

Signed by the Wizards as a free agent Dec. 25, 2012.

Time as a Wizard in 2012-13

51 : Games
36 : Starts
1,156 : Minutes

1.20 out of 3 stars

Average Truth About It.net DC Council Game Rating
{Temple evaluated over 40 games} 

8.8 PER

NBA historical PER contribution equivalent:
maybe Bimbo Coles for the 2001-02 Cleveland Cavaliers (8.8)
maybe Hubert Davis for the 2002-03 Detroit Pistons (8.8),
maybe Morris Almond for the 2011-12 Washington Wizards (8.7)

.049 Win Shares/48 Minutes

NBA historical WS/48 contribution equivalent:
maybe Mike D’Antoni for the 1974-75 Kansas City-Omaha Kings (.049),
maybe Kenny Smith for the 1987-88 Sacramento Kings (.049),
maybe Nick Van Exel for the 2004-05 Portland Trailblazers (.049)

With Garrett Temple on the Court…

The Wizards offense scored 1.0 points less per 100 possessions (OffRtg)
The Wizards defense allowed 0.5 points less per 100 possessions (DefRtg)
Plus/Minus per 48 minutes: minus-0.9

Numbers : Per 36 Minutes

8.2 : Points
3.8 : Rebounds
0.5 : Blocks
1.6 : Steals
3.6 : Assists
1.9 : Turnovers
2.9 : Fouls

0.78 PPP

Temple had 334 offensive possessions with the Wizards that ended with a FGA, TO or FTs, and he scored 0.78 Points Per Possession (PPP) on those, ranked 393rd in the NBA (via Synergy Sports Technology). Defensively, he allowed 0.90 PPP over 405 possessions, ranked 277th.

Shooting

40.7% Field Goals (105-258)
32.5% 3-Pointers (26-80)
70.3% Free Throws (26-37)

[stats via NBA.com/stats and Basketball-Reference.com]

#17

Garrett Temple in 2012-13 with the Wizards:
Unsung Warrior, Blogger Mea Culpa

by Adam McGinnis (@AdamMcGinnis)

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[Wizards 2012-13 Player Reviews from the TAI crew are going down; let's reflect---index:
Jannero Pargo, Jason Collins, Shaun Livingston, Shelvin Mack, Cartier Martin, Earl Barron,
Jan Vesely, Chris Singleton, Trevor Booker, Garrett Temple, Emeka Okafor, Trevor Ariza,
Martell Webster, A.J. Price, Jordan Crawford, Kevin Seraphin, Bradley Beal, Nene, John Wall.]

Cartier Martin

6-7 : Height
220 lbs. : Weight
28 : Age
5 : Years NBA Experience
3 : NBA Teams

Signed by the Wizards as a free agent on Mar. 28, 2012.

Time as a Wizard in 2012-13

41 : Games
3 : Starts
694 : Minutes

1.71 out of 3 stars

Average Truth About It.net DC Council Game Rating
{Martin evaluated over 12 games} 

9.7 PER

NBA historical PER contribution equivalent:
maybe Mike Miller for the 2010-11 Miami Heat (9.7),
maybe James Jones for the 2011-12 Miami Heat (9.7)

.047 Win Shares/48 Minutes

NBA historical WS/48 contribution equivalent:
maybe Harvey Grant for the 1998-99 Philadelphia 76ers (.047),
maybe Fabulous Fabricio Oberto for the 2009-10 Washington Wizards  (.047)

With Cartier Martin on the Court…

The Wizards offense scored 0.9 points less per 100 possessions (OffRtg)
The Wizards defense allowed 0.5 points more per 100 possessions (DefRtg)
Plus/Minus per 48 minutes: minus-3.3

Numbers : Per 36 Minutes

14.0 : Points
5.2 : Rebounds
0.3 : Blocks
1.0 : Steals
1.0 : Assists
1.7 : Turnovers
3.0 : Fouls

0.91 PPP

Martin had 297 offensive possessions with the Wizards that ended with a FGA, TO or FTs, and he scored 0.91 Points Per Possession (PPP) on those, ranked 210th in the NBA (via Synergy Sports Technology). Defensively, he allowed 0.94 PPP over 158 possessions, ranked 365th in the league.

Shooting

38.1% Field Goals (96-252)
39.7% 3-Pointers (58-146)
71.4% Free Throws (20-28)

#20

Cartier Martin in 2012-13 with the Wizards:
Last Gasp for the Good Guy

by Adam McGinnis (@AdamMcGinnis)

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[D.C. Council: setting the scene, rating the starters, assessing the subs, providing the analysis, and catching anything that you may have missed. Unlike the real DC Council, everything here is on the table. Game No. 82, Washington Wizards at Chicago Bulls; contributors: Kyle Weidie and Adam McGinnis from the District.]

Had to end somehow. But hey, the #Wizards season had to end somehow… vine.co/v/bUqd6WUlLKP — Kyle Weidie (@Truth_About_It) April 18, 2013 Que?

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[D.C. Council: setting the scene, rating the starters, assessing the subs, providing the analysis, and catching anything that you may have missed. Unlike the real DC Council, everything here is on the table. Game No. 80, Washington Wizards vs Philadelphia 76ers; contributors: Adam McGinnis and Kyle Weidie from the Verizon Center, and Conor Dirks from the state of Georgia.]

A minute with Randy.

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[D.C. Council: setting the scene, rating the starters, assessing the subs, providing the analysis, and catching anything that you may have missed. Unlike the real DC Council, everything here is on the table. Game No. 78, Washington Wizards at New York Knicks; contributors: Sean Fagan, Adam McGinnis and John Converse Townsend via television sets.]

Melo Watching [Original photo via Jason Szenes for The New York Times]   Yep, that Carmelo super-quick hesitation move vs Chris Singleton gets Vine’d. #Wizards-#Knicks vine.co/v/btOrgXOVvDu — Kyle Weidie (@Truth_About_It) April 10, 2013

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[D.C. Council: setting the scene, rating the starters, assessing the subs, providing the analysis, and catching anything that you may have missed. Unlike the real DC Council, everything here is on the table. Game No. 74, Washington Wizards vs. Chicago Bulls; contributors: Dan Diamond and Adam McGinnis from the Verizon Center, and Sean Fagan up I-95 in Brooklyn, N.Y.]

One Jedi to Another Captain Kirk Kicked to the Curb Captain Kirk, tossed by referee Sean Corbin. #Bulls-#Wizards vine.co/v/bIUdLPwMTq3 — Kyle Weidie (@Truth_About_It) April 3, 2013

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