Score

Washington Wizards 76 at Houston Rockets 103 [box score]

Stat of The Game w/ Kyle Weidie

The Wizards committed 24 turnovers that turned into 41 Rockets points. That’s an astounding number. Randy Wittman wanted his team to play fast — increase the tempo — wonder if he knew they were going to become so effortless after giving the ball away (because turnovers are bound to happen but you have to forget about them). In two games under Wittman, the Wizards have committed 47 total turnovers. And I guess that’s the difference between the Rockets and a bad team like Charlotte. The Bobcats only scored 17 points off 23 Washington turnovers last Wednesday. Hey, guess what! The Wiz play the Cats again tonight!

Scene of the Game

What next, Wizards?

Losing their heads, screen shot via Comcast SportsNet Washington.

D.C. Flag 3-Star Ratings w/ Sam Permutt, John Converse Townsend and Kyle Weidie

<***> Rating the Starting 5, Bench & Coach out of 3 stars.

John Wall
	KYLE WEIDIE: Wall started the game with passion and jet fuel. He had a couple of unbelievable darts to the basket over the full distance of the court. In a span of 11 seconds in the first quarter, Wall nailed a layup, teammate Chris Singleton blocked a shot on the other end, Wall grabbed the defensive rebound and disappeared. Before you knew it, he was flying to the rim with a dunk and all poor Kyle Lowry could do is bask in its glow. Wall was hungry early, that’s for sure. In the first 9.5 minutes of the first, before Shelvin Mack subbed in for a winded, hustling Wall, the second year player had 8 points (4-7 shooting) 5 rebounds and 2 assists. Unfortunately, with that hunger came a plate of food that was defecated upon by some of his teammates… and Wall had to begrudgingly eat what they gave him. Over the rest of the contest, 23.5 minutes played, Wall scored 9 points (2-6 shooting) with 3 rebounds, 4 assists, and committed all 5 of his turnovers. Otherwise, Wall still has the tendency to go too fast. Measured pace must come slowly as part of his NBA point guard education. 1.25 Stars (out of 3)
	PERMUTT: His first quarter was pretty great. Defensively, Wall seems to bother a lot of smaller, penetrating-oriented point guards (Lowry, Lawson). The point guard is the floor general, though, and the Wizards looked like a confused battalion. 1.5 Stars
	TOWNSEND: John Wall looked every bit of the can’t-miss NBA prospect early vs. Houston, dishing, dunking and leading the Wizards to a 20-17 lead after the first quarter. But Wall’s shoulders weren’t quite wide enough to carry the Wizards, despite being on another triple-double watch. 1.5 Stars
	TOTAL: 4.25 out of 9 stars

Nick Young
	KYLE WEIDIE: 15 points on 17 shots with 3 turnovers, 0 rebounds and 1 assist. For a player who can score so well, Nick’s offensive game is severely limited in two ways: his dribbling is sub-par, especially in the open court, and he has a lot of trouble creating good shots for himself when he has to freelance… but in the offense, he can hit nicely. Houston’s Chase Budinger, who beat Washington in a number of ways, dunks, hustle, and threes — 21 points, 8-14 FGs, 4-6 3PT, 8 rebounds in 25 minutes off the bench — is everything that Nick Young is not. Too bad for Washington. 1 Stars (out of 3)
	PERMUTT: Nick has been strangely consistent of late. Double-digit points, double-digit shot attempts, at least two “Come on, ref!” per game. Not sure it’s the consistency Wizards fans want to see, but it’s something. 1.25 Stars
	TOWNSEND: Sometimes I wonder whether Nick Young takes the floor loaded with sedatives; he can be incredibly slow to react to loose balls. Young did well in stepping toward the point guard when Houston attacked in transition, effectively stopping the ball and preventing easy scores — a pleasant surprise in a game where the final result was decided in the first half. 1.25 Stars
	TOTAL: 3.5 out of 9 stars

Rashard Lewis
	SAM PERMUTT: Rashard is having some difficulty shooting his wide-open corner threes anywhere near the basket. Shooters who can’t hit the rim are not players that you want in your starting lineup. Rashard looks like he’s lacking confidence, or focus, or both. It’s not just on the offensive end; defensively, he jumped for several Chandler Parsons pump fakes (really?!?), combining his slow veteran feet with silly rookie mistakes. Watching him work in the low-post is okay, though, since he’s definitely the best low-post player on the Wizards team. For real. 0.5 Star (out of 3)
	TOWNSEND: Rashard Lewis looked great… when matched up against Kyle Lowry, who is about a foot shorter than Lewis. Otherwise, Lewis was doing little else besides robbing Chris Singleton (and other Wizards) of minutes. 0.5 Star
	WEIDIE: Rashard Lewis has twice gone through the sticker shock of being a Washington Wizard — once when he was traded for Gilbert Arenas, and a second time when he thought he was going to be amnestied this summer — and this is the best reason I can think of for why his jump shot has regressed so much. Sure, it could be his legs… the platelet-rich plasma injections he’s gotten for his problematic knees… missing two games with sore knees, i.e., a reported dust-up with assistant coach Sam Cassell… but I’m not sure I’m buying it. He had a wide-open three from the corner in his hometown of Houston… it missed off the backboard. 0.5 Star
	TOTAL: 1.5 out of 9 stars

Jan Vesely
	JOHN CONVERSE TOWNSEND: Jan Vesely is hypertalented in some areas (like slipping screens, cutting to the basket off the ball, running the open floor, and defending the pick-and-roll), but is rather useless in others (setting screens, creating his own shot and banging with bigs on the low block — most noticeable in the third quarter when Luis Scola gave Vesely the business on three straight possessions). Despite his limitations, Vesely’s instincts, unselfish nature, versatility, and intensity make him one of the better and more consistent Wizards on the court. 2 Stars (out of 3)
	PERMUTT: Played hard, made some good hustle plays, gave his body up for screens, pick and roll defense.  Refreshing to see someone working hard and playing with intelligence, but still has a ways to go as far as developing his skills. 2 Stars
	WEIDIE: Vesely, surprisingly getting the start for Andray Blatche, had some trouble guarding Luis Scola — the 31-year old Argentinian simply had more power than the 21-year old Czech. That’s okay, he’ll get there… at least Vesely sets very solid screens (when he’s not getting called for moving — the refs pick on the foreign rookie instead of a, say, Kevin Garnett). Also, he’s already the best Wizards big man at defending the pick-and-roll, and is constantly all over the court. Jan only has the polar opposite of the hustle and gumption of Blatche and JaVale McGee… you know, no biggie. 2.25 Stars
	TOTAL: 6.25 out of 9 stars

JaVale McGee
	SAM PERMUTT: After watching the game, I couldn’t help but think that one of his teammates slept with Momma McGee. My money’s on Jordan Crawford. (Kidding!) If the Wizards were under scrutiny, analysts would be questioning JaVale’s psyche, his underlying motivational issues, why he seems to be wilting from the pressure. But instead, there is no pressure. JaVale is simply a bad player on a bad team. He got close to his averages (9 pts, 11 boards, 4 blocks), but watching his body language and effort told a different story. To say he played half-heartedly would be an exaggeration. No help defense, no running back in transition, no helping his teammates — no heart. 0 Stars (out of 3)
	TOWNSEND: Well, it didn’t take long for JaVale McGee to get back to his old ways after Flip Saunders’ departure. The good: a 50-foot bounce pass that hit John Wall in stride and ultimately led to an alley-oop to Nick Young. The bad: a coast-to-coast sprint that ended with a knee to Chase Budinger’s sternum (and a blocking call… he got bailed out). The ugly: just about everything else. 0.25 Stars
	WEIDIE: He has turned the blocked shot into a selfish act (okay, not always… but you catch my drift), and his highlight plays that gain recognition are more of a result of athleticism than any sort of honed skill. Must’ve had a good AAU coach. On the court McGee’s effort is wildly inconsistent. One minute he’s running up and down the court to get dunks, blocks and boards, the next minute or several he’s standing straight up in half-court defense, arms at his side and ball watching. 0.5 Stars
	TOTAL: 0.75 out of 9 stars

The Bench
	SAM PERMUTT: The bench got thoroughly outplayed by the Rockets bench, led by Chase Budinger and Jordan Hill. The Wizards were led by Jordan Crawford and Trevor Booker, with Crawford taking relatively good shots (and making them) and Booker wowing the 473 Rockets fans in attendance with his athleticism and physicality. The Wizards bench had 9 turnovers (4 by Crawford, who struggled to run the offense) and completely folded at the beginning of the fourth quarter.  Chris Singleton seems to have lost his edge; he is no longer playing with the air of toughness and confidence that had everyone raving about him early on. 0.75 Stars (out of 3)
	Sub Man of the Game: Trevor Booker
	TOWNSEND: Sam Cassell might just be the Wizards best weapon off the bench — it’s a shame he can’t take the floor. On the brighter side, the Rest of the Rotation was able to do something the starters could not: make a three-pointer. How u, Roger Mason? 0.5 Stars
	Sub Man of the Game: Trevor Booker
	WEIDIE: There was a Mo Evans sighting and he got his shot blocked by Hasheem Thabeet. That’s about all you need to know about this game. The bench play was uninspiring. I don’t feel great about giving the sub of the game to Trevor Booker with a team-worst minus-28. 0.75 Stars
	Sub Man of the Game: Trevor Booker
	BENCH TOTAL: 2 out of 9 stars

The Coach: Randy Wittman
	JOHN CONVERSE TOWNSEND: Wittman’s starting lineup impressed at the tip. The five-man unit of John Wall, Nick Young, Rashard Lewis, Jan Vesely (!), and JaVale McGee looked confident and played Houston tough, holding them to just 8 points midway through the first quarter. Things got ugly in the second quarter with Jordan Crawford and Trevor Booker taking the floor; Houston went on a 16-4 run. A Nick Young-for-Jordan Crawford swap stopped the bleeding, but all basketball sense had already been lost in the panic. Firing Flip Saunders might have helped the win-loss column, but that move was by no means a panacea. 1 Star (out of 3)
	PERMUTT: Rotations looked decent. Props for starting Jan. Nicotine addictions are tough, though. 1 Star
	WEIDIE: Whomever is coaching this team is teetering upon becoming a moot point with certain players on this roster. And has anyone determined if that method of locking a kid you caught smoking in a closet with a couple of cartons of Marlboro Reds and telling him that he can’t come out until he smokes them all works? And if it does work, how would it apply to the Wizards? Starting Jan Vesely over Blatche gets Wittman at least half of the three stars. 1.5 Stars
	COACH TOTAL: 3.5 out of 9 stars

Seen on the Screen w/ John Converse Townsend

The Wizards took the floor like a pack of crazed dogs, that succumbed to a fatal case of rabies faster than anyone could have expected. There were blocked shots and tip slams and alley-oops … all of which countered and outweighed by three-point shots that ricocheted off the side of the backboard, a glaring inability to box out (Chase Budinger finished the game with eight rebounds, five offensive; he is averaging just over three total rebounds per game this season), and more turnovers than Ina Garten would know what to do with. Oh, and Jordan Hill recording his third double-double of the season in less than 20 minutes of game time….

Top Tweets

@Abstract_cool: This Wizards team is making me so damn anxious for the Redskins offseason. Take me away from this bullshit.

@mattkremnitzer: In 32 minutes, Nick Young had 3 more turnovers than rebounds. He committed 3 turnovers.

@wzzntzz: How many cigs the Wiz gonna smoke after this one? We look like Doug benson on cover of “super High Me”

End Scene

QUOTE OF THE NIGHT:

“I don’t even know how to explain it. Lost concentration, I guess..”
-Jordan Crawford, via Michael Lee of the Washington Post

With just under two minutes left in the third quarter…

Jordan Crawford dribbles and drives baseline to the hoop. He wants to pass, can create for others… but, well not necessarily this way. Not the way of a jumping no look pass attempt to Jan Vesely with Rockets defenders encroaching. ”It wasn’t a good pass to being with, it hit Vesely in his shins,” said Comcast’s Steve Buckhantz. Indeed. The best part, however, is Vesely hip checking Kyle Lowry to keep the Rockets from getting more easy points in transition.

Other reads from Truth About It:

• January 30, 2012 -- DC Council Game 20: Wizards 102 at Bobcats 99: ‘W’ is for Wittman
• January 17, 2012 -- DC Council Game 13: Wizards 106 vs. Rockets 114: John Wall’s Big Day Brings No Rewards
• March 4, 2011 -- Losing With Flying Colors: Wizards Splattered Like A Jackson Pollock

Tonight the Wizards face a Houston Rockets team that they played fairly close about 10 days ago… Washington fell apart toward the end, per usual. But this game is different, new Wizards coach Randy Wittman, that dancing fool (as it IS ‘Dance Party Friday’ on Bullets Forever), will be facing off against friendly foe Kevin McHale. When the Washington Post’s Michael Lee attempted to pry some answers out of McHale about his old chums, Wittman and Flip Saunders, the Rockets coach said, “No thoughts. I’m pretty much not going to answer anything you’re asking on that. That’s usually a hint. If I don’t answer the first question, I’m not answering the second or third.” Then he offered Lee a dap. Whatever is clever… McHale probably just didn’t want to call the Wizards players dumb (since, after all, McGee did try that off-the-backboard dunk B.S. the last time these two teams faced). In any case, the drill is three questions, three answers, featuring TAI’s Rashad Mobley, Sam Permutt and John Converse Townsend. 3-on-3 starts now…

#1) Houston won just five of their first 12 games when they beat Washington on MLK Day, but overall won seven in a row before that streak was snapped by Milwaukee, in Houston, on Wednesday (the Rockets victory over the Wizards was win No. 2 in the streak). They now stand at 10-8, while the Wizards are 3-15, and normally you’d expect Washington to lose this game, but under a new coach, they might be a bit more hungry to get their first road victory. Which team comes out the aggressor?

MOBLEY: The Wizards. Unless you’re the Oklahoma City Thunder, and you’re trying to avenge a loss, no one is going to get up for the Wizards and come out aggressive, so the Rockets will start slow. The Wizards as a whole will be looking to continue their Randy Wittman-inspired momentum previously found against the lowly Bobcats. But more specifically, JaVale McGee SHOULD be motivated because a) he got dunked on by Chandler Parsons’ franks and beans in the last meeting, and b) he performed this ill-advised dunk.

PERMUTT: A coaching change can create a tryout-like atmosphere on a team. Players suddenly have newfound motivation to play unselfishly, to dive on the floor, to show their new leader (and minute distributor) why they belong on the court. Of course, the players are all familiar with Randy Wittman as an assistant. Nonetheless, expect the Wizards to be eager to please their new head coach in his first official game. Wait… the Bobcats are a real team?  That game counted?!? Never mind. But still.

TOWNSEND: It’s hard to imagine this group of Washington Wizards initiating hostilities at home, and even tougher to do so on the road where the team has lost all but three games over the past two seasons (0-7 in 2011-12), so I’ll take the Rockets. Houston should come out hot, looking to defend their court after having their twelve-game home winning streak snapped this week. To make matters even tougher, Rockets players have vowed to shore up defensively after allowing two consecutive 100-point games in the Toyota Center (Houston had held opponents to fewer than 90 points over its first seven home games).

#2) John Wall scored a career-high 38 points against the Rockets on Martin Luther King Day. When Wall has scored 20 or more points, Washington’s average scoring margin is minus-6.4 points (there are five such instances, and 20 points from Wall in an 18 point loss in Atlanta kind of skews the data); in all other games, their scoring margin is minus-10.2 points. So do the Wizards need a 30-plus point scoring game from Wall to win?

MOBLEY: Unless your name is Tiny Archibald or Allen Iverson, it is usually ill-advised for a point guard to score 30 points. If John Wall scores 30 points, and he’s taking Nick Young-like bad shots to arrive at that total, that’s not exactly a good thing. But if Wall is playing within the offense, taking shots that come to him AND he’s getting to the foul line 10-15 times (like he did against the Rockets on MLK Day), there’s a very good chance he’s controlling the tempo, which can only be beneficial for the Wizards.

PERMUTT: Because John Wall’s best offense so far is the transition flash (catch a rebound or outlet and run at the rim), these numbers suggest that high point totals on John’s part partially reflects poor transition defense on the part of the other team.  Though Wall does need to finish the close-range opportunities he gets on the break (which he struggled with early in the season), he does not need to score 30-plus for the Wizards to win.  He needs to make solid plays; drive and kicks don’t show up as points, but when he’s effectively reading help defense and creating opportunities for his teammates, the Wizards are at their best.

TOWNSEND: I don’t necessarily think the Wizards need John Wall to score 30 or more points to win tonight, but the Game Changer will have to do his best to find holes in the Rockets’ transition defense. The Wizards’ scoring margin with Wall as the primary scorer is more indicative of their futility offensively: it’s always easier to win games when points at the rim come easily, and if Wall isn’t getting to the hoop, he’s probably not scoring.

#3) Who is it more important for the Wizards to contain, Kevin Martin or Kyle Lowry? [UPDATE: Per @MrMichaelLee, Martin is our tonight with plantar fasciitis.]

MOBLEY: Kyle Lowry. If shooters like Kevin Martin get hot, chances are his other teammates are going to be standing around, which makes the usually-balanced Rockets a one-dimensional team — unless he scores 50-plus points, in which case you tip your hat and wear the scarlet L with pride. But when Kyle Lowry is on top of his game, he’s passing, he’s assisting, he’s scoring, and he’s stealing (see his stat line against the T-Wolves on Monday night). Coach Wittman will probably impress upon John Wall and Shelvin Mack that stopping Lowry is the first priority.

PERMUTT: Kyle Lowry. Most of this is simply because of their positions; Lowry is a true point guard, Martin is a true scoring guard. If Lowry is allowed to roam on the court freely, the entire team will operate well, including Kevin Martin. While Martin is an extremely efficient scorer, he’s not a dominant individual player; most of his points come within the flow of the offense.  Disrupting Lowry will serve to limit the number of easy buckets that the Rockets’ supporting cast gets.  It seems silly to ask if the Wizards can contain the offensively-limited Sammy Dalembert, but it’s a legitimate question (20 points, 9-11 shooting in the last meeting).

TOWNSEND: Kevin Martin will get his; the 6’7″ shooting guard has scored an average of 24.1 points in 11 career games against the Washington — he’s only averaged more points per game against one team, Memphis (25.8). And so the Wizards must contain the rest of the Rockets, beginning with Kyle Lowry, an underappreciated point guard capable of recording a triple-double on any given night.

Other reads from Truth About It:

• January 28, 2012 -- DC Council Game 19: Wizards 76 at Rockets 103: Remember Us? We Didn’t Get Fired.
• January 17, 2012 -- DC Council Game 13: Wizards 106 vs. Rockets 114: John Wall’s Big Day Brings No Rewards
• December 28, 2010 -- Wizards Fall To 0-15 On The Road In Houston

Score

Washington Wizards 106 vs. Houston Rockets 114 [box score]

STAT OF THE GAME:

In scoring a career-high 38 points, John Wall was 7-9 in FGs at the rim, 3-8 in FGs from 16-23 feet, a 37.5-percent rate that’s actually better than the 22-percent he shoots from that distance on the season. Furthermore, Wall didn’t attempt a three-point shot, where he is 0-7 on the season. Last year Wall averaged 1.7 three-point attempts per game (and shot .296), this season he’s averaging 0.6 per game. Since 1985-86, only 14 different NBA guards, on 41 different occasions, have scored 38 or more points without attempting a three pointer. The Washington franchise has seen the most of these instances with former Bullet Jeff Malone being responsible for 15 of them. [stats via HoopData and Basketball-Reference.com]

Scene of the Game

Before the McGee backboard dunk…

John Wall missed a close around-the-world scoop shot in the paint, the Wizards had to quickly get back on defense. Wall communicated with Roger Mason, missed completely cutting off Kyle Lowry, but bothered him into a miss without fouling. Trevor Booker actually came flying into the scene to grab Lowry’s attempt from mid-air, and before anyone knew what happened, JaVale McGee was throwing it off the backboard to himself for a dunk. Here is before that dunk…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Engw_N_3r4k

D.C. Flag 3-Star Ratings w/ Adam McGinnis, John Converse Townsend and Kyle Weidie

<***> Rating the Starting 5, Bench & Coach out of 3 stars.

John Wall
	JOHN CONVERSE TOWNSEND: John Wall scored a career-high 38 points versus Houston, his second career 30-plus-point game (the other being the 32-point outburst he had vs. the Clippers in March of 2011). Wall also dished out 8 assists, pulled in 6 rebounds, grabbed 4 steals and blocked a shot. Impressive. Really impressive. But what was most striking was the way Wall attacked the Rockets’ defense: off the dribble in the half court, something he hasn’t been able to do consistently in his short pro career. Wall used his speed and power to cruise by whomever was in his path—Kyle Lowry, Goran Dragic, Chandler Parsons included—and finish at the rim, often with contact. Wall’s 16 free throw attempts also tied a career high, and was far above his average attempts this season (5.5). The Wizards need more of the John Wall they saw on Monday afternoon. I’m not suggesting Wall needs to score more, but rather that he continue command attention when running Flip Saunders’ offense, not just in transition. 3 Stars (out of 3)
	McGINNIS: So you probably thought Wall’s phenomenal performance would quiet some of his detractors? Nope, haters gonna hate. 3 Stars
	WEIDIE: Wall looked pretty incredible, like a former first overall draft pick for the first time this season. I’m still weary of his body language, however. Case in point: the Wizards are on a 13-2 run when Wall gets a defensive rebound with 5:18 left in the game, Washington down 101-96. Pushing the ball around half court, Wall sees a small crease to throw a bounce pass to Jordan Crawford, but has a bad angle: turnover. Wall immediately throws his arms up in the air in frustration before he realizes that the Rockets about to score in transition. Wall had to do a better job living for the next play, focusing less on mistakes. 2.75 Stars
	TOTAL: 8.75 out of 9 stars

Nick Young
	ADAM McGINNIS: Young started the game strong by getting to the foul line on two drives, but his shot was not falling and he finished 3-12 from the field. Relying on the spin fade away instead of a dribble drive move is still a glaring issue with Nick’s game. One assist and zero rebounds is more the norm than exception with Young’s 2011-12 campaign. 1 Star (out of 3)
	TOWNSEND: Though Nick Young averages just 2.8 free throw attempts per game this season, he earned two trips to the line during the first six minutes and sank all four of his attempts. But, in classic fashion, Young spent the rest of the game taking (and missing) fadeaways. 1 Star
	WEIDIE: Still plenty of one pass pull-up jumpers and dribbling into double-teams. Look, the Wizards need Young to be aggressive on offense, but he clearly knows little about involving himself with the team while killing opponents with points. 0.5 Stars
	TOTAL: 2.5 out of 9 stars

Chris Singleton
	ADAM McGINNIS: Singleton was straight ballin’ in the opening stanza with rebounds, steals, and leading multiple successful fast breaks. He appeared to be out of position a few times on offense with bad spacing and missed a few open threes. He got subbed out two minutes into the second half and never saw the court again. 1.5 Star (out of 3)
	TOWNSEND: The rookie wing started the game off with a bang, turning two steals into three Wizards points. Singleton did a god job guarding Kevin Martin in the first half, but didn’t have a chance to make an impact in the second half, spending all but the first three minutes of the 3rd quarter on the bench. 1.5 Stars
	WEIDIE: Singleton provided a very nice spark to start, going end-to-end off a couple steals. He needs to improve his passing, and he only got 18 minutes of burn, but maybe that’s OK; his role as a rookie might not be to get a ton of minutes right now. As long as he’s starting, right? 1.5 Star
	TOTAL: 4.5 out of 9 stars

Trevor Booker
	JOHN CONVERSE TOWNSEND: This was a game to forget. Trevor Booker picked up two fouls in the 1st quarter which relegated him to the bench early in the game. And though Booker played inconsequential minutes early in the 2nd and 3rd quarters, he was twice pulled in favor of Andray Blatche. Booker may be in a funk right now, but he should remain in the starting lineup. 0.25 Star (out of 3)
	MCGINNIS: Cook Book got in early foul trouble and was a non factor while sitting out the entire 4th quarter. He missed a potential highlight oop dunk on a sensational pass from Wall. 0.5 Star
	WEIDIE: It felt funny that Booker got so little time after getting in early foul trouble, 11 total minutes on the night. Maybe Flip preferred to gamble with what Andray Blatche was providing scoring-wise. 0.75 Star
	TOTAL: 1.5 out of 9 stars

JaVale McGee
	KYLE WEIDIE: Aside from the illin’ dunk attempts, McGee at least got 10 rebounds, eight points and three blocks. He also had a team-worst plus-minus of minus-18. Oh, and three turnovers, zero assists; on the season McGee has provided 25 giveaways and has shared five buckets with teammates. What can you say? The guy is just way into himself. I said I didn’t care about making a big deal out of his dunk, but would certainly say that the attempt, amongst a plethora of other things JaVale McGee does, shows his youthful selfishness. So McGee’s antics give bloggable storylines, great, but is he growing up and learning from them? 1 Star (out of 3)
	McGINNIS: I am more troubled by the step-back jump shot attempt and McGee constantly losing his man on defense than I am about his backboard dunk that has produced so much overreaction. 1 Star
	TOWNSEND: JaVale McGee appeared to be pressing against the Rockets. McGee was taken out of the offense by his teammates, and the defensive focus and discipline displayed vs. Philadelphia seemed all but forgotten. 0.75 Star
	TOTAL: 2.75 out of 9 stars

The Bench
	KYLE WEIDIE: To Jordan Crawford’s credit—17 points, 7-12 FGs, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 turnovers in 29 minutes—he’s capable of finding open teammates, and has also been limiting some instances of egregious shooting. He also hustled on some key defensive plays, but still gets caught sleeping here and there. Crawford has ways to slash and get to the basket, he just needs to learn to put himself in better positions to finish. I wonder if bulking up would help him, I know it would on defense. Dare I say Andray Blatche was a pleasant surprise off the bench? He was feeling a couple nice jumpers, rebounding really well (11 and 12 in 34 minutes), but he still isn’t what the Wizards need. They need toughness at the power forward role. Hopefully Saunders keeps bringing Blatche off the bench in favor of Trevor Booker to drive home that message. Jan Vesely gave 26 very quality minutes, and his plus-minus of plus-11 led the Wizards by far. 2 Stars (out of 3)
	Sub Man of the Game: Andray Blatche
	McGINNIS: Jordan Crawford played more like the super sub that most fans expected coming into season. Blatche provided a spark for offense on second unit but struggled defensively at the center position. Vesely hustled, ran the floor and displayed explosive hops on offensive rebounds. Shelvin had a nice fade away step-back J. 1.5 Stars
	Sub Man of the Game: Jordan Crawford
	TOWNSEND: Andray Blatche, whose “severely sprained” shoulder was thought to require extensive rehab, looked no worse for wear in his unexpected return to action. He recorded 11 points on 8 shots, while limiting his jump shots, and also brought down 12 rebounds. Jan Vesely, the Wizards’ best pick-and-roll defender, all but shut down Luis Scola’s offensive game. Jordan Crawford had his first efficient outing in recent memory. Crawford is excitable and can be overzealous with the rock, but he has a lot of talent. Plus he’s a better teammate than he gets credit for. 2.5 Stars
	Sub Man of the Game: Jan Vesely
	BENCH TOTAL: 6 out of 9 stars

The Coach: Flip Saunders
	JOHN CONVERSE TOWNSEND: Flip Saunders has begun to trot out three-guard rotations featuring some combination of John Wall, Shelvin Mack, Jordan Crawford, and Roger Mason. At times, such a lineup works, spacing the floor and giving the point guard options around the perimeter. At others, the undersized five-man unit suffers on the glass and defensively. In the second quarter, small ball produced with unselfish ball movement and close-range shots. In the third, however, the Rockets punished Saunders’ three-guard lineup (this time anchored by JaVale McGee instead of Jan Vesely), going on a 12-4 run that sealed the Wizards’ fate. It’s nice to see Saunders innovate, in any case; creativity amid futility is always welcome. 1.75 Stars (out of 3)
	McGINNIS: Sitting McGee and riding Crawford’s hot hand were wise decisions but Singleton could have used more burn in 2nd half when team was unable to attain any stops. 2 Stars
	WEIDIE: Flip is getting real gimmicky with the lineups—he had one with Blatche, Vesely, Crawford, Wall and Mack at one point. And why not? In Saunders’ situation, you can’t blame him for seeing what lineups work, perhaps by trial and error. But that one I mentioned… it didn’t really work. 1.75 Stars
	COACH TOTAL: 5.5 out of 9 stars

Seen on the Scene w/ Adam McGinnis

• During pre-game shoot around, assistant coaches Sam Cassell and Ryan Saunders were lined up in the lane and Wall would attack the rim practicing shots between the two. The hard work paid off resulting in Wall’s career high.
• There were numerous Marting Luther King tributes played on Jumbotron throughout the game with several Washington players discussing what MLK means to them.
• Wall, Singleton and Kevin Seraphin all took time to sign autographs for fans before the afternoon tilt.
• In the locker room, Mack claimed his gaming skills in NBA 2K12 are legit.
• Kevin McHale admitted in pre-game presser to not watching any Wizards games until just recently and he blew off repeated questions about his Minnesota Timberwolves past with Flip Saunders. You were left with sense that there was some type of strained relationship between the two from McHale’s point of view.

Top Tweets

@abe_squad: Thunder @ Wizards on Wednesday…oh…F-word.

@NBA_Wiz: The McGee self-oop in a vacuum isn’t huge deal. Combined with other knuckleheaded moves, it does little to dispel notion of losing culture.

End Scene

QUOTE OF THE NIGHT:

“We’re the most self-inflicted team in the league right now. It’s like the team that’s the most penalized team in football, that’s what I feel like we are. Once we clean those things up, then we give ourselves chances.”

—Maurice “Mo” Evans, via Washington Examiner. 

JaVale McGee makes Kevin Martin pay
for pump-faking him.

Other reads from Truth About It:

• January 20, 2012 -- DC Council Game 14: Wizards 105 vs Thunder 102: From Subway To Chicken Wings
• January 28, 2012 -- DC Council Game 19: Wizards 76 at Rockets 103: Remember Us? We Didn’t Get Fired.
• January 11, 2012 -- DC Council Game 9: Wizards 93 vs. Raptors 78: Start Counting At One Win

John Converse Townsend:

When Houston last visited Washington, D.C. in November of 2010, Argentine international Luis Scola tore up the Wizards with 24 points (10-20 FG) and six rebounds. Scola, with the help of shooting guard Kevin Martin, combined to score the first 17 points of the 4th quarter that night, including seven unanswered points that gave the Rockets an 85-84 lead. While Houston lost that game 98-91, Scola made scoring on the Wizards look easy. That wasn’t the case today for Scola, despite the scoring 18 points (8-15 FG) and pulling in five rebounds. The main reason: Jan Vesely. As I pointed out on Twitter, Vesely has the speed, length and instincts to become a lockdown defender in the post. Vesely turned Scola into a passer for much of the final quarter on Monday, holding the Rockets forward to just two field goal attempts. The rookie just needs to get stronger to be able to maintain his defensive position when battling bigs in the low-post. When he does, look out.

Adam McGinnis:

With 1:43 left in the second quarter, the Rockets were up 58-49 and John Wall finally hit his first jumper of the game from the left elbow. After a Wizards stop on defense, Wall completed a bucket with the And One, cutting Houston’s lead to four. The Wizards would finish the half strong, down 58-54 at the break. Wall had an extra bounce in his step on Monday afternoon, attacking the rim at will and getting anywhere he wanted with ball. He effectively changed speeds and finished at the rim the best that he has all season, especially in the open court. Wall’s 16 attempts at the free-throw line (he made 12) were proof of the aggressiveness Wizards fans have been expecting out of him.

Kyle Weidie:

Late in the game Wall tried his hardest to inspire his team and fuel a big comeback — he had a career-high 38 points on the day after all. But Wall’s blazing speed and hustle were no match for the Wizards’ usual ills: turnovers, missed free-throws and defensive lapses, Wall contributing to each of those areas as well. The key moment came with 7:05 left in the third and the Wizards trying to chip away at a 66-60 Rockets lead. Wall tried to split gap defense, but the ball went off Kyle Lowry’s foot and Houston scored in transition. Wall complained to the ref that a kick ball, or a foul, or something should have been called, but was only awarded a technical foul for his efforts. Not 40 seconds later, Andray Blatche found his non-jumping ability stuffed twice by Samuel Dalembert under the rim. Blatche, also frustrated with the refs, earned himself a technical as well. Flip Saunders called a 20 second timeout, but he still couldn’t get his team to focus. Houston continued to score, thanks to a travelling violation and defensive lapse from JaVale McGee, and suddenly found themselves up 78-64 going into a second Washington timeout within 64 seconds.

Other reads from Truth About It:

• February 4, 2012 -- DC Council Game 23: Wizards 89 at Raptors 106: Wizards Head South, North of The Border
• January 31, 2012 -- DC Council Game 21: Wizards 88 vs Bulls 98: ‘Talking To Your Mom?’
• January 30, 2012 -- DC Council Game 20: Wizards 102 at Bobcats 99: ‘W’ is for Wittman

#1) Through 10 games, Houston’s point guard Kyle Lowry has a 24.6 PER, which ranks 11th in the NBA. He leads the Rockets with 17.8 points per game, and averages 6.9 rebounds, 9.3 assists and 3.5 turnovers. Comparatively, John Wall averages 13.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, 7.1 assists and 4.2 turnovers (PER of 12.4). How do you see the battle between these two playing out?

MATT MOORE: Lowry’s going to kill him. Lowry’s been on fire for about a year now, which mostly means he’s not so much on fire as he is just becoming one of the top point guards in the league. Meanwhile, Wall is the primary threat on the Wizards, every team knows it, and he’s regressed in his second year. It’s nothing to panic over, he just needs to slow down when he finishes at the rim and take his time to think through the play sets. But Lowry’s a physical defender despite his size, and should give Wall an exhausting day.

SAM PERMUTT: This could be a good match-up for John Wall. Kyle Lowry is able to use his quickness and speed to his advantage against most point guards in the league, but Wall should have him beat in those categories. Still, Lowry is a very intelligent player, so expect him to get his also. Both guards will have good games.

MICHAEL PINA: Just looking at the numbers, to this point it’s obvious Lowry is having a far better season. But with no other reliable player on his team, Wall’s playing tight right now. The shot selection of his fellow backcourt mates has been atrocious. When watching Wall, it seems like he’s trying to do too much, forcing shots at the rim and having just 10.2-percent of his total shots assisted (good for lowest in the entire league among regular starters). Wall is an athletic phenom, but Lowry has relished these type of match-ups this season. Should be one of the game’s focal points.

#2) How hurt was Houston by losing out on Pau Gasol when David Stern cancelled the Chris Paul to-the-Lakers trade? Would it really have improved a middling, currently 5-7 team? Was it more of a lateral move?

MOORE: Rockets fans are obsessed with the idea that if they had gotten Gasol, Nene would have come right along. That’s a pretty big if, but don’t tell them that. Meanwhile, the leftovers of that team would be pretty good, but look at it closely. You’re talking Lowry, Budinger, Gasol, Nene if they landed him, and then Patrick Patterson and…. uh… yeah. The Rockets need to trade for a legitimate star, not Pau Gasol. They would be better than they’ve been this season. They would not have been a title contender.

PERMUTT: Houston gets the most out of their guys. Their current team is mostly solid role-players who compliment each other nicely. But having an all-star post player, especially one as unselfish and versatile as Pau, would have made the team into a legitimate playoff squad.

PINA: In short, it was devastating. The Rockets had been biding their time to swoop in and grab one of the league’s 15 best players for a while, and it was expected that once they acquired Gasol, gobs upon gobs of money would be thrown towards Nene to form the league’s best starting frontcourt. Courtney Lee could’ve slid into the starting SG role, Lowry would remain running the point, and Houston’s starting five would have been one of the league’s most difficult to match up with.

#3) Houston is also a young team with two rookies (Marcus Morris and Chandler Parsons), two second year players (Jeff Adrien and Patrick Patterson) and five third year players (Chase Budinger, Jonny Flynn, Jordan Hill, Hasheem Thabeet and Terrence Williams). Who’s still around in five years achieving the most success?

MOORE: Patterson, Budinger, and Hill. The link between those three players and the rest (besides Parsons) is their coachability. Hill was an underwhelming rookie who has plugged and plugged away and is now producing. Patterson has a great all-around game, and Budinger is a legit starter. The rest have some talent outside of Thabeet, and could contribute, but the only ones I’m totally comfortable with are those three.

PERMUTT: I haven’t seen the two rookies play significantly yet, but Patrick Patterson is the best prospect of the other guys.  He’s versatile, plays hard, and seems to have gotten a lot better with experience. Most of these players are good enough to stick around the league (or big enough, in the case of Thabeet and Hill), but don’t expect any of them to be breakout stars.

PINA: With Adrien, Parsons, and Morris all serving as the only young players with guaranteed contracts next season — dirt cheap and manageable ones at that — Daryl Morey has incredible flexibility regarding where he wants to take this team. Due to their poor/non-existent play, Flynn, Hill, Thabeet, and Williams don’t figure to fit in with Houston’s future at all, but Parsons, Patterson, and Budinger are solid growing pieces who the Rockets would love to see stick around.

Other reads from Truth About It:

• January 28, 2012 -- DC Council Game 19: Wizards 76 at Rockets 103: Remember Us? We Didn’t Get Fired.
• March 31, 2010 -- The Streak Continues in Houston: 16 and Counting; Wizards Still Looking For a Win in March
• January 27, 2012 -- 3-on-3: Wizards at Rockets: The Randy Wittman Dance

First, TAI is giving away two tickets to Wednesday’s game versus the Pacers (courtesy of StubHub). The seats are good (Section 101, Row L … behind the Wizards’ bench) and John Wall is good (as in he’s back and should be playing). You can win these two free tickets by being the first to email the correct answer to the trivia question I will post from the @Truth_About_It Twitter account at 11 am EST on Wednesday, December 29. The answer must be emailed to truthaboutit@gmail.com.

Also note: The Wizards are pulling something out of the Miami Heat’s playbook to get fans to arrive to games early (not sure if the idea actually originated with the Heat, but they did do something similar earlier this year). Starting when the doors open at 6 pm for Wednesday’s game versus the Pacers until 6:30, the Verizon Center will be offering food and drink discounts outside of section 107. [via @WashWizards]

WIZARDS-ROCKETS.

I’m not sure if it was his intended effect, but the technical Rocket’s coach Rick Adelman drew was the real “Game Changer” of Monday night’s loss in Houston … well, that and Chase Budinger. Up 10 points with about 10 minutes left in the game, a minute later the Rockets were able to cut the Wizards’ lead to seven via a JaVale McGee goal-tending call against Aaron Brooks. John Wall responded by jetting up the court, pulling a crazy, falling spin move in the paint, and somehow finding Josh Howard in the right corner for a jumper, putting the Wizards up 84-75 at the 8:48 mark of the fourth. It was time for Adelman to take his stand. The coach stomped and yelled in the direction of the referee, instigating a technical foul. Maybe he thought it was a charge against Wall (television replay seemed to indicate otherwise), maybe Adelman wanted to get his team fired up. Whatever the case was, it worked.

Wall missed the technical, Howard lost Budinger on a curl in the paint and fouled him on a layup attempt, the Wizards were stagnant on their next offensive possession and Howard got blocked by Budinger in the paint trying to return the favor (which led to Rockets fastbreak points the other way), Andray Blatche hit a soft, fading jumper (keeping the Wiz up 86-97), Shane Battier drove the lane and hit a tough shot against Rashard Lewis, Lewis returned the favor by air-balling a fading shot versus Battier, Kirk Hinrich fouled Aaron Brooks on a 3-point attempt, more stagnant Wizards offense led to a “post feed” to Blatche and an 18-foot missed jumper, and finally, Blatche lazily helped Hinrich on a pick and fade between Brooks and Battier and Lewis was slow to rotate to Battier, who hit a trey ball to put Houston up 87-86 with 6:39 left in the game.

There were still plenty of chances for the Wizards to win, but they were already so deflated by the game’s quick turnaround that it was essentially over at that point. Mike Prada at Bullets Forever points out that the Wizards didn’t really execute down the final stretch, and I’ll add that in the run after Adelman’s tech, the Rockets manned up and decided to push their offense into the paint, while the Wizards settled for jumpers. Seems pretty typical for this team.

Oh, and Rockets blog The Dream Shake certainly recognized Budinger’s efforts in propelling his team to victory.

TWO BULLETS.

It’s not all good in Wizards World, but two things I’ll note:

• I commended Ernie Grunfeld and Tommy Sheppard for flying down to San Antonio on the day after Christmas to personally tell Andray Blatche and JaVale McGee of their suspensions. I’m not sure how much that specific act means in the grand scheme of things, but it couldn’t have been handled better.
• I criticized Flip Saunders earlier this year for his team’s lack of focus … and the fact that he likes to say, “You can’t coach effort.” Well, Flip has his team playing better lately and credit is due to him for that. They still aren’t winning, or rather, are still finding ways to lose … but they are competing more than they used to. Again, not sure what this means in the big picture, but worth a bullet point in a blog post nonetheless.

LINKS.

On Christmas Eve, I was the host over at ESPN.com’s TrueHoop and wrote two posts. One was on Gilbert Arenas’ first good game in an Orlando Magic uniform in a blowout of the San Antonio Spurs and the surrounding circumstances. The other post was about dunks and which players/teams are doing it the most this season. Go read them if you will.

Lang Whitaker has a good profile on John Wall.
[SLAM]

Someone recently challenged JaVale McGee to get a more mature Twitter name — not sure how much that matters, but McGee is no longer @bigdaddywookie anyways. He’s now @JaValeMcGee34

Shaun Powell lists Flip Saunders as one of eight NBA coaches potentially on the hot seat.
[NBA.com]

Wanna see what Andray Blatche and JaVale McGee were wearing the night they got into a fight?
[DC Fab]

You’ve probably read the touching story by Patrick Hruby about the boy who was helped and treated like a little brother by Gilbert Arenas after his family died in a devastating house fire. If not, go read it. As much as we, I, criticize or praise Arenas, he is a human too … a human who has always been more than willing to help out others.
[ESPN.com]

According to the reporting of the Washington Post, Arenas has evidently “cut off communication and funds” with Laura Govan, the mother of his three children, who is also supposed pregnant with his fourth child. The “report,” with sourcing from Govan’s “publicist” also says that Govan has not heard from Arenas for the entire month of December and that he left her with no money to purchase food or Christmas gifts. It all seems pretty strange (but not really considering the subjects), especially since the Govan sisters (Laura and Gloria, fiancee to Matt Barnes of the Lakers) were on hand at the Staples Center when the Wizards played the Lakers in Los Angeles on December 14 (GIF evidence at the bottom of this post). Of course, their attendance at the game doesn’t mean anything.
[Washington Post]

Kelly Dwyer with excellent stuff on LeBron’s contraction talk.
[Ball Don't Lie]

Antawn Jamison rolls around on the floor for what seems like an eternity after bumping knees with Jameer Nelson … turned out to be just a knee contusion.
[NBA Facts & Rumors]

Your favorite troll, Colin Cowherd, has been nominated by Sports Illustrated’s Richard Deitsch for the worst rant of the year … Cowherd also wins honorable mention in the same category.
[Sports Illustrated; H/T SB Nation DC]

Appreciating what might have been with Shaun Livingston through a nice no-look alley-oop pass he made in the present.
[Ball Don't Lie]

The Dallas Mavericks are fake-marketing Caron Butler’s Tuff Juice … but does Eddie Jordan get credit for coming up with Caron’s nickname?
[The Basketball Jones]

[The Govan Sisters - Laura Govan on the left, Gloria Govan on the right]

Other reads from Truth About It:

• August 24, 2011 -- ShareBullets: Earthquake After Effects & The Detriment of Gilbert Arenas’ Twitter Account
• February 5, 2011 -- So You Think You Can Rebuild A Team: The Gilbert Arenas Version
• December 5, 2011 -- ShareBullets: John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins Think About The Future

Some observations from the loss:

• Andray Blatche had a nice game, going 7-15 from the field and finishing with 17 points, 14 rebounds, and three steals. The rebounds were an encouraging sign, given Blatche’s seeming unwillingness to mix it up in the post against physical front courts. He also had a nice steal off an inbounds pass in the third quarter, which led to an easy layup. However, Blatche’s turnovers continue to be an issue: he had six TO’s last night, and is averaging close to three TO’s per game on the season. The bulk of these turnovers came on offensive fouls, as Rockets defenders simply stepped in front of several Blatche dribble-drives, and the contact (as usual) was not resolved in Andray’s favor after he put his head down.
• Blatche’s nightclub pal JaVale McGee had an uneven game. Epic Vale shot 1-5 from the field, and only played 24 minutes as the Rockets used a smaller, faster lineup in the second half. On one particularly miserable offensive sequence near the ten minute mark of the second quarter, JaVale secured the rebound after a Nick Young miss, missed a layup, grabbed his own miss, and then missed all of the rim on a second, fadeaway attempt. Phil Chenier called the last shot a “pass,” but I think he was being generous. But, McGee did work on defense and on the offensive glass; he had three blocks, altered several other shots, and grabbed four offensive rebounds. He also did a nice job staying in front of the Rockets’ guards when caught in the pick-and-roll.One ridiculous play: with about ten seconds left in the third quarter, McGee blocked an Aaron Brooks 3-point attempt, when it appeared that JaVale had no chance of closing out. Instead, McGee’s Wookie-wingspan prevailed. Also worth noting — JaVale led the team in plus/minus at plus-5.
• John Wall appeared to be unaffected by his ailing right knee, as he put a lot of pressure on Houston’s defense, both in transition and off the pick-and-roll. He finished the game with 13 points, five rebounds, six assists, and two blocks. Though he shot only 2-7 from the field, Wall got to the free-throw line 13 times. He also handled Kyle Lowry‘s physical defense well, countering with a combination of hesitation moves and pure speed. Wall’s defense on Aaron Brooks was solid, as Brooks did not look comfortable all night and only shot 5-15 from the field.
• Rashard Lewis started the game at small forward and led the team in minutes with 43. Lewis finished the game with 12 points, nine rebounds, and five assists on 6-16 shooting. He missed both of his 3-point attempts badly, but Lewis made some nice decisions with the ball, finding the open man with quick passes. Given the Wizards’ troubles with ball movement, the presence of experienced decision makers in Lewis and Josh Howard is encouraging.
• With regards to ball movement — it seemed to be a lot better last night, as the Wizards seemingly ran their offense quicker than in the previous two games. Note: Washington scored 80 points in each of the previous two games, so the bar was set pretty low.
• Kirk Hinrich turned in another good performance, with 19 points on 7-15 shooting and five rebounds. Fourteen of Kirk’s 19 points came in the first half. After it became abundantly clear that Nick Young could not guard Kevin Martin (Martin dropped 10 points on Nick in the first quarter), Kirk defended Martin fairly well. Martin finished with 20 points for the game. Outlier stat of the night: Hinrich had zero assists last night, this after averaging nine assists per game since December 15.
• Josh Howard (23 minutes) certainly looks to be taking over Al Thornton‘s (8 minutes) playing time. I can’t say this is a bad thing, given Thornton’s three-point shooting woes (3-20 from deep on the season) and inability to do anything other than shoot contested jumpers.
• Reason why the Wizards lost: they did not score in the last 2:40 of the game, and were outscored 32-20 in the fourth quarter. The three-point defense also failed down the stretch, as threes by Brooks and Martin sealed the game for the Rockets late.
• Only the Wizards’ team defense could make Shane Battier look like Kobe Bryant — Battier finished with 15 points on 6-7 shooting. Battier got into the lane repeatedly, and made several tough shots off the backboard. Somewhere, Daryl Morey was laughing his ass off.
• Kirk Hinrich’s black-eye is awesome. I wonder what color it will be next game.

Other reads from Truth About It:

• December 26, 2010 -- The Wizards Haven’t Partied In San Antonio Since 1999
• January 28, 2012 -- DC Council Game 19: Wizards 76 at Rockets 103: Remember Us? We Didn’t Get Fired.
• January 17, 2012 -- DC Council Game 13: Wizards 106 vs. Rockets 114: John Wall’s Big Day Brings No Rewards

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.

He was relaxed, he was smiling, and he did not look like he felt one iota of pressure.  As it turns out, that was a good omen for his performance on the court.

Yi entered the game with 4:16 left in the first quarter, and the crowd gave him a rousing round of applause. He immediately found himself defending Houston’s Luis Scola.  Scola attempted to body Yi and back him down, but he stood his ground and forced Scola to give up the ball.  This may not sound like anything significant, but JaVale McGee, who Yi replaced when he entered the game, frequently leaves his feet and finds himself in bad positions defensively.  This was a refreshing change.

About a minute later, Yi took a pass from Gilbert Arenas, and drained a 19-foot jump shot.  He ended the quarter by rotating away from Jordan Hill (who replaced the injured Yao Ming), and blocking a shot by Kyle Lowry.  It was yet another picture perfect defensive play, and clear to me at that point that Yi was motivated to play at both ends of the floor.

In the second quarter, Yi had every aspect of his versatile game on display.  He had a pretty assist to Andray Blatche, he blocked the shot of Chase Buddinger, he drove strong to the basket (even when he missed), and he grabbed rebounds.  He also had a goal-tending violation called against him, but that was highly questionable so he gets a pass there.

My favorite play of the period came with about 5:48 left in the second, when Yi took a pass from John Wall and nailed a 19-foot jumper.  Instead of just running down the court after he hit the big shot, Yi held his follow-thru hand up a bit longer than usual.   For a man who rarely shows emotion on the court, it was quite a demonstrative gesture.  He was subbed out of the game (not because of the gesture though) at the 4:38 mark to yet another standing ovation.

Yi only played about five minutes in the third quarter, but he continued to do little, but necessary things on the defensive end.  He played physical defense on Scola, he blocked Kevin Martin’s shot, and he grabbed a couple rebounds as well.  His aggressive defense seemed to boost his confidence on the offensive end as well.  He went 3-for-5 in the third, which was highlighted by a strong dunk on an assist from Wall.

Yi’s play on both ends of the floor was so stellar, Flip Saunders decided to play him the entire fourth quarter, leaving McGee relegated to the bench. He didn’t score from the field in the fourth, and his defense slipped a bit as Scola became more assertive on offense.  Yi did grab three rebounds and blocked a shot for the fourth consecutive quarter.  As he ran out of gas a bit, I kept expecting to see McGee by the scorer’s table, but it never happened.

Yi scored the last basket of the night for the Wizards (a free throw), and when the game ended, he had achieved season highs in points, rebounds and blocks, finishing with 13 points, seven and four.  After the game, Saunders and Andray Blatche both had nothing but high praise for Yi.

“I thought that Yi was huge tonight. He made big shots. You know he made big blocks. Unfortunately Yao couldn’t play most of the game, but Yi was the best player from China tonight.” -Saunders

“Yi is a great player…  He gave us some key shots that we needed and got some great rebounds so he played a solid game for us tonight.” - Blatche

Toward the end of his press conference, I asked John Wall about Yi’s play:

Yi not only performed well on what could have been a difficult, pressure-filled night, but he seems to have earned the trust of his head coach going forward.  Given the average play from the Wizards front line so far this season, that can only be a plus.

Other reads from Truth About It:

• February 2, 2011 -- Charting The Wizards’ Defense After Road Loss 25 In New Orleans
• December 28, 2010 -- ShareBullets: Charles Barkley Shake Weights Some Links
• December 19, 2010 -- Yi Jianlian Speaks On An Injured Yao Ming

[Yao Ming & Shane Battier - K. Weidie]

Sometime during the second half of the Wizards’ 98-91 victory over the Houston Rockets last night, Ishmael Smith drove hard to the basket and scored on a layup. Shortly thereafter, one of the Wizards fans I follow on Twitter, tweeted the following:

“I have never heard of Ish Smith before this game. Now I have. I don’t like him.”

The reality is that before starting point guard Aaron Brooks went down with a sprained ankle earlier in the week, not many Wizards fan had any reason to know about rookie Ishmael Smith.  In fact, before I started doing research for last night’s game, I had no idea who he was either. But I should have.

Back in March of this year, Smith and his Wake Forest Demon Deacons, took on John Wall and the Kentucky Wildcats in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Kentucky ran roughshod over Wake Forest, 90-60.  Wall had 14 points and seven assists, while Smith struggled with just two points and four assists.

Smith played much better in last night’s matchup against Wall (12 points, three assists and five rebounds), but once again he came up short as Wall notched his first NBA triple-double (19 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds).  Before the game, I asked Smith about playing against Wall in the NCAA tournament, Trevor Booker in the ACC, and his adjustment to the NBA.

Rashad Mobley:  Now I have to admit that I had to do some research on you prior to this game, and when I did, I saw that you and John Wall went to head-to-head earlier this year in the NCAA tournament.  What do you remember most about the game, and about Wall in general?

Ishmael Smith: “Well, first of all, that game was a blowout, so I really don’t want to remember too much about that game (laughs).  But as you know, Wall was the number one pick for a reason.  He’s a heck of  a player, he has tremendous speed, tremendous court vision, and what I remember most was that at 6’4″ he was able to finish at the rim and do things that small guards could only dream of, and he’s doing those things at this level too.  And he’s a true point guard.  But considering I’m about to go up against him, I’m not going to praise him too much.  Besides, Patrick Patterson (Wall’s former Kentucky teammate and current Rockets forward) teases me about Wall and that game all the time.”

RM:  Before that game against Kentucky, Wall was asked about you and your game, and he had nothing but praise. He said you were quick, tough to keep out of the lane, and you were tough on defense.  So based on that game, and any tape of him you’ve seen since then, how do you think you can make it tough for Wall on both ends?

IS: “He’s such a talented player, so it’s going to be tough to exploit any weaknesses that he has.  But it’s going to be a team effort, not necessarily anything I can do individually.”

RM:  Wall has been struggling with his shot and turnovers so far this season, what are some of the adjustments you’ve had to face so far?

IS: “The absolute biggest adjustment from college to the NBA is finishing over some of these taller players.  You may play against a few bigger players in college, but they aren’t as athletic as they are in the NBA.  These guys can jump, they can run, they are strong and agile, and it’s a huge adjustment.  Luckily for me, I can go up against the tallest guy in the NBA in Yao, so I get practice, but it’s tough. But the thing I admire about Chris Paul, Rajon Rondo and guards like that, is that they get in the lane and are just fearless.  I’m sure I’ll get to the point eventually, but the adjustment is tough.”

RM:  You also went up against Trevor Booker several times in the ACC, right?

IS: “Yes sir, that’s my guy.  Trevor is an athlete and an absolute beast man.  He had several highlights on us at Wake Forest, although we always seemed to get the best of Clemson in the win column.  But he’s a heck of a player, very deserving of being picked in the first round, and he’s a highlight waiting to happen.  I see he’s not playing a lot, but his opportunity will definitely come. I mean, look at me … I went from no one knowing who I was, to being a starting point guard, and you’re asking me questions.  You hate to get the opportunity just because of injury like I did, but you have to take advantage.”

Other notes from the Rockets locker room:

• I asked Rockets forward Luis Scola about the sudden retirement of his former Argentine national squad teammate (and former Washington Wizard) Fabricio Oberto:

Scola: “I was really in shock because I wasn’t expecting that at all.  During the offseason when he wasn’t able to find the perfect team and the perfect fit for him in order to continue his career, I thought maybe he’d retire then.  But then Portland came along, and I know he thought that was a perfect for him. Portland is a great organization, they had injuries on the front line, so they needed big men, and he was playing well.  So I thought he finally found a home, and then he had that heart scare and it was all over.  But I talked to him once I heard and I asked if he was angry, happy or sad, but he was okay.  He said it was just a scare, and he probably could have continued to play, but he decided it wasn’t worth the risk.  You know he’s won a gold medal for his country, and he’s won an NBA title, so he’s done everything–he’s a man at peace, and once I heard that, I was fine too.”

• Yesterday, Michael Lee wrote an article about the special relationship between Trevor Booker and Rockets forward Jordan Hill.  Prior to the game, I asked Hill if he saw that article and asked him to discuss his relationship with Booker.

Hill: “You know I glanced at that article because someone told me about it, but I didn’t read it all the way through.  But we had a great relationship you know, we did everything together and we played all sports, not just basketball, we just had fun.  It’s an amazing blessing that you go from playing around in the neighborhood to preparing for an NBA game across the court from one another.  If you read that article, I’m sure you know we both went through some things, but we kept our heads high and here we are.  I’ve been traded once and it’s taken me a minute to get comfortable, and he’s not playing as of yet, but it’ll come.  Some coaches don’t trust rookies, and they want to lean on veterans, so it’s a process.”

• Toward the end of the article, Michael Lee mentioned that Hill and Booker would have dunk contests, and Booker always had the upper hand.  I asked Hill about this, and he set the record straight.

Hill: “Damn he just put me out there like that huh?  But he’s right, he got the best of me man, he has hops out of this world, and he has that world-class speed too.”

• After the game, I could not help but ask Rockets forward Shane Battier about his impressions of Wall.  Battier has guarded some of the league’s toughest players in his nine-year career, so getting his take was a must.

Battier: “Man, I was very impressed, and blown away to be honest with you.  He plays with a maturity that is way beyond his years, he had a great balance of trying to impact the game with the ball and trying to get his teammates involved.  I think what makes him special is his transition game.  His vision is amazing and he knows how to finish, and it usually takes rookies awhile to develop those things.  You all are going to be writing about him for a long time, easily.  He’s a big guard, and on most nights he’s going to go up against smaller guards, which means opposing teams will have to use more men to help on him, and he’ll use his vision to find the open guy and exploit that.  There was a guy sitting court-side (Magic Johnson) who won championships exploiting those types of match-ups, and I don’t know if Wall can duplicate that, but the talent is there.  Ish (Ishmael Smith) and Kyle (Lowry) had a tough time out there. But to be honest, even Aaron (Brooks) would have had his hands full.  He’s just a talent.”

Other reads from Truth About It:

• March 11, 2010 -- With Houston, The Wizards Had Problems
• December 28, 2010 -- Wizards Fall To 0-15 On The Road In Houston
• September 9, 2010 -- ShareBullets: Josh Howard Wears A Very Josh Howard Outfit While Handing Out Big Checks

What’s that buzzing in your ear? Or rather, what ‘s that wondrous melodic tone?

That’s people singing the praises of John Wall, who achieved his first career triple-double, in front of Magic Johnson no less, and led his team to a 98-91 victory over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night.

Wall totaled 19 points, 13 assists, 10 rebounds, six steals and only one turnover, and perhaps Wizards fans should thank John Stockton for that, who was not in attendance at the Verizon Center for the game. Flip Saunders said he recently gave Wall a 45-minute tape of Stockton and that he’d been watching it over the past couple days.

“All he came back talking about was how John [Stockton] was so deliberate, and how he played more under control, and I think John [Wall] tried to make a more conscious effort to do that tonight,” said Saunders.

Wall certainly played his most controlled game as a pro, and that was reflected in the play of his entire team. Well, except for Gilbert Arenas (5 points, 3 assists, 2 turnovers, 1-7 FGs) and Kirk Hinrich (10 points, 3-9 FGs, 6 turnovers, 2 assists). Without much help from them, Wall showed he could maneuver the offense and carry his team without two-thirds of what’s been touted as one of the best backcourts in the NBA by team management.

But while the praises of the ‘Game Changer’ keep ringing in your ears, there’s an unsung hero you should be paying attention to, one who is responsible for the absence of the three-guard lineup.

“Al [Thornton], right now, no one’s talking about him. He’s kind of the silent guy. But from the beginning to the end, he’s probably been our most consistent player,” praised Saunders. “You know, the other day, he’s in there after we had the two practices, he goes back down to the gym and shot another 35-45 minutes. So he’s seeing that the hard work is paying off for him.”

Against Houston, Thornton had 20 points on 7-13 from the field with six rebounds, three assists and one turnover. Not the most intimidating stat line, but also one the Wizards don’t win without.

Saunders made the point about Thornton working hard that should serve as an example to others who cause Groupon ads for junk food to show up on this site. Thornton was able to lose a lot of weight this summer, as he was asked to do during his exit interview after last season, mostly because he changed his diet, striking chicken, beef and pork from his stomach’s record. For a Georgia boy who loves his barbecue, that’s no small feat, that’s a motivated man.

But diet isn’t the only switch that flipped for Thornton, he also trained hard, and Flip Saunders and his staff were there to make sure he followed through. Saunders visited Thornton in Los Angeles this summer, also sending out his son, Ryan, a Wizards assistant coach, to train him. The Wizards also worked with Thornton’s personal trainer, monitored his progress when he showed up in D.C. for the rookie & free-agent mini-camp in early July, even though he didn’t have to, and they worked Thornton out when he joined the team in Las Vegas later that month. Again, even though Al didn’t have to be out there.

“They did a great job in terms of checking on me the whole summer, and make sure I was on my game, make sure I was losing the weight. And I really appreciated that,” Thornton told me, indicating that he never received the same treatment from Donald Sterling’s Clippers organization. “It’s the most important year of my career, and they did a great job checking on me each and every day.”

Through six games this season, Thornton is averaging 16 points on 54-percent shooting. He’s grabbing 2.7 offensive rebounds per 36 minutes and 6.7 total rebounds per 36, both career highs. Thornton has made his mark running the floor and playing at the rim. Against Houston, he could be seen doing all of this and more … from grabbing offensive boards, to mixing it up in the paint with Rockets center Brad Miller, to being the available trailer for John Wall to find on the break during a late-game run.

According to HoopData, Thornton is averaging 12.3 field-goal attempts per game this season, 4.7 of those come at the rim and an additional 1.5 attempts per come from inside 10-feet. Thornton hasn’t seen that type of inside work since 2008-09, his sophomore year in the league when he averaged 5.3 and 1.3 attempts per game from those respective spots on the floor. That year, Thornton averaged 2.5 more total FGAs per game and had a PER of 12.6. Through six games this season he has a PER of 17.9.

“When we came out of camp, I talked to him — I remember him when he was a rookie, and coming out of Florida State was that the best thing he did was attack the rim, both off the bounce, dribbling, and rebounding-wise — and I said, ‘That’s you’re strength. Play to your strength.’,” noted Saunders. “So he’s come back and made a very conscious effort of doing that … great on the offensive boards, great at both ends.”

“I played the four in college, so I’m used operating down low, crashing the glass,” said Thornton. “I’m used to doing that. Basically, I’ve just been more focused on being aggressive in boarding the basketball.”

With just over a minute left in Wednesday night’s game, the Wizards, once down 85-84 to the Rockets at the 5:50 mark of the fourth period, were looking to build on an 8-0 run that started with a Thornton transition layup assisted by Wall. The fourth straight bucket in the run came courtesy of an Andray Blatche 16-foot jumper, his third field-goal in a row. Of course, Blatche’s score was of the turn-around, spin, pump-fake and fade-away variety — pretty much the worst shot he could have taken with a five point lead and 90 seconds left in the game, much to the chagrin of Saunders.

On the Wizards’ next offensive possession, holding a 92-85 lead, Blatche took another 16-foot jumper, and missed. The game wasn’t over. Houston’s Kevin Martin, who had 31 points on the night, grabbed one of his seven rebounds at the 1:08 mark and looked to make something happen quickly in transition.

John Wall and Al Thornton looked to make something happen as well. As Martin went to make a move, Thornton poked the ball away, Wall gathered the steal and shuttled it ahead to Al streaking down the court. At first it looked to be another one of the young Wizards’ careless mistakes. The pass from Wall went down the floor much too fast and it didn’t look like Thornton would be able to get to it, making it a costly team turnover.

But for an instance, Thornton put his head down, found a burst of speed deep down, gathered the ball and laid it in, giving the Wizards a nine point cushion with 60 seconds left.

After the game, I asked him if the old Al Thornton would have gotten that ball.

“No, the old Al probably would’ve been like, ‘hey, forget that’,” he said with a relieved chuckle. “With the pounds, there’s no way I would’ve been able to get to it. That’s why I shed off the pounds and I’m a little lighter, playing more explosive.”

From ‘Old Man Willie’ because of his old school game (and because his real first name is Willie), to ‘Juice’ because he evidently has an O.J. Simpson walk (whatever that means — that nickname is courtesy of Sam Cassell from their days as Clippers), to the latest of ‘Cowboy Al’ (thanks to the WizzNutzz), Thornton has plenty of nicknames to suffice.

But I think he’ll be just fine assuming the role of quiet, unsung hero.

Other reads from Truth About It:

• January 17, 2012 -- DC Council Game 13: Wizards 106 vs. Rockets 114: John Wall’s Big Day Brings No Rewards
• January 25, 2011 -- Losing on the Road: A Self-Fulfilling Prophecy For The Wizards
• December 28, 2010 -- ShareBullets: Charles Barkley Shake Weights Some Links

Sixteen losses in a row and counting. The Wizards showed some bright spots in Tuesday night’s loss to Houston, such as JaVale McGee. Actually, he was pretty much the only bright spot. Well, James Singleton played okay.

Andray Blatche’s 31 points, 10 rebounds, four steals, three assists and three blocks you say? Well, when you play 41 minutes and receive the ball ALL. THE. TIME. (he took 23 shots) you are supposed to put up those numbers. He still has too much Tin Man in him … no heart … especially when it comes to rebounding toughness.

The Wizards mostly showed that they did not deserve to win. I’m sure some are saying, ‘Hey, those guys competed without Foye, Thornton, Gee, etc.’ But the Rockets also competed without Kevin Martin, Shane Battier and Jared Jeffries. Plus, the Wizards were beaten by Chase Budinger. Enough said.

Nonetheless, below are the notes and observations I took/made as I watched the game on delay at my leisure.

Note: Starters: Livingston, Young, Miller, Blatche & Oberto — 25th different starting lineup, 21 wins … something to be said about that ratio.

{1st Q}

11:26 – The first time Nick Young touches the ball is when he picks up a loose ball steal and heads in the other direction in a 2-on-2 with Blatche. Likely learning from the Caron Butler school of confidence (at least when he was with the Wizards), Nick tries a poor hesitation move to the basket only to hold the ball down low, getting it caught against his leg and ultimately stripped and stolen by Jermaine Taylor. To make matters worse, Taylor beats Nick down the court and converts a transition bucket.

10:00 - To give Nick credit, Taylor receives the ball with five seconds on the shot clock and Nick moves his feet very well around a Scola pick and does not allow Taylor to get a shot off in time. Not a lot of awareness from Taylor here.

9:55 - Flip Saunders subs Quinton Ross for Young, but doesn’t allow Young to sit, rather coaches him and then sends him right back to the scorer’s table.

7:01 - Sometimes, as a point guard, you have to know when to call your own number. Shaun Livingston excellently does so here by taking the lane for a strong left handed layup with quickness, the Wizards’ 14th points in the paint. 14-8 Wizards.

The floor is spread, the Wizards are in transition … it’s the right tome for Livingston to use his length to get to the rack.

5:38 - Unexpected … a Nick Young assist. He receives a cross court pass in transition from Mike Miller. He’s almost backing into the right corner, but sees that Scola is coming to get him in the rotation, throws up a pump fake, drives, and when the help comes, finds Andray Blatche making himself available in the middle of the paint for a lay-up. 16-12 Wizards.

5:21 - However, on the other end Young allows much too much separation off the ball between him and Jermaine Taylor after an off-ball screen. By the time Taylor catches it, Young is in poor position to get around Scola’s on-ball screen at the top of the key. Taylor drives to the hoop for a bucket, his seventh and eighth points of the game.

4:54 - Nick’s first shot, a three miss …

4:12 - Young attacks the basket, misses a baseline layup long, but gets his own rebound, keeps his composure and when the Rockets defense falls off him, he hits the short baseline jumper from the other side.

Mike Miller misses two layups. I kinda miss his long hair. At least it was some sort of spectacle. On Miller’s third layup chance/cherry-picking opportunity, he makes –  And 1. 23-18 Wizards.

1:53 - Nick Young picks up his second foul.

Blatche has been very active by scoring in a variety of ways … and not all opportunities created for him, rather opportunities that he created for himself … such as tip-backs, etc.

Wizards: 22 points in the paint, 7 fast break points … up 30-27.

{2nd Q}

5:13 - I’ve noticed JaVale McGee getting more post-up opportunities this game. They haven’t always worked out, but those chances are certainly more preferable than him catching the ball on the perimeter, something that seemed to happen in the previous offense. Here, he catches the ball on the left block, without a ton of resistance from Jordan Hill mind you, gives one dribble/look toward the middle, then performs a classic right foot drop step move baseline. He’s so athletic that all he needs is just a little bit of space and one step to get a dunk. Again, the defensive physicality of Hill leaves a lot to be desired, but at least McGee is trying. 42-41 Wizards.

Phil Chenier commends McGee on moving toward the basket and not fading away.

On the other end, McGee does the right thing and gives baseline help to Boykins on the driving Aaron Brooks. However, after Brooks releases the shot, McGee just turns around and watches instead of finding someone to hit in going for a rebound. Hill glides in for the put back dunk.

Can’t get caught observing the action.

At this point the Wizards start to look a little lacking on defense … losing just a tad of focus/energy. We’ll see what the future holds.

3:28 - Nick Young is working to try to keep up with his man off the ball, but picks up his third foul on a minor hold… enter Cartier Martin.

2:40 - Martin closes out on Budinger who catches the ball at the three-point line on the right wing, but doesn’t really have his hands up … neither acting like he’s contesting the shot, but playing the drive, nor being active in the passing lane. Trevor Ariza sets a ball screen. Budinger beats Martin to the spot and is able to turn the corner. The newest Wizard commits a two-shot foul.

Meanwhile, Blatche is 8-11 on FGs and has 17 points. He had 15 points in the first quarter.

1:18 - Again, the Rockets looks to pick on Cartier. Ariza gets the ball on the left three-point wing and throws the ball into Scola in the post. Ariza then cuts toward the baseline to receive the hand-off from Scola. Martin, however, feel asleep for a second after Ariza initially dumped the ball into the post. This allowed Ariza to gain a big step advantage on his cut. Martin fouls him on the ground, but the Rockets are in the bonus.

This is a simple cut by Ariza that Martin should see coming;
off-ball defense is just as important as on-ball.

Wizards up 53-48 after two quarters.

Solid first half from Washington. Composed play. They took care of the ball. They tried to work the offense into the paint for points. And they weren’t completely terrible to watch, although it’s clear that these two teams are pretty bad.

Wizards: 52% FG, won battle of boards 22-19, assists even at 11, outscored Houston in the paint 30-24. Blatche with 20 points.

{3rd Q}

9:00 - The Wizards, still looking for their first points of the second half, swing the ball left to right, from Livingston to Young, who gets a ball screen from Oberto, splits the defense, and has a large lane to drive to the basket.

Unfortunately, Young has a one-track mind. Chuck Hayes, being an intelligent defensive player, and probably someone who scouts other players, has plenty of time to get in position and set himself in Young’s path. Nick barrels into Hayes … charging foul, #4 on Young.

Nick can’t believe the call … I watched it a couple times, it was totally legit … he sprawls some sort of move on the court, puts his head in his hands while laying on the ground, and then Mike Miller finally goes to get up off the ground.

No matter how many times Young seems to get these learning opportunities while playing, both in body control and reading the defense, along with his body language/getting down on himself issues, he never seems to, well, learn. Assistant coach/advanced scout Mike Wells talks to Young on the bench.

7:51 - I’m told by Steve Buckhantz that Flip Saunders was stomping his feet in frustration on his play. Miller gets the ball on the left wing and Oberto looks to be going to set a ball screen for Blatche at the free-throw line. Getting Scola switched on Blatche is preferable because of Chuck Hayes’ strength … he is always able to out-muscle Andray, usually causing him to take some crappy, off-balanced shot.

However, Blatche doesn’t go off Oberto‘s screen hard … he actually just kinda half-asses his way by. When the Rockets aren’t forced to switch, Andray does not even make an effort to post up against Hayes, which he is seemingly supposed to do as Miller is looking for him. Instead, Blatche, directing traffic, points for the ball to go in the other direction. It does, back to Oberto.

Confusion ensues … the Flip Saunders foot stomping commences. Miller goes behind Oberto and is actually able to receive the hand-off and get open for a shot, but misses.

Otherwise, way to go Dray … I could be wrong, but you broke the play because you were soft compared to the strength of Chuck Hayes.

7:19 – At this point Houston takes a 57-55 lead and Flip Saunders calls a timeout. The Wizards, as a team, are clearly not as mentally in the game as they should be. They have also only scored two points so far in the period.

4:58 - With the score tied at 60, and a very stagnant Wizards offense, I’m not sure what the goal is. Blatche gets the ball in the deep right corner with 19 seconds on the shot clock. He takes five dribbles over six seconds and only moves about four feet from where he started … but not toward the basket, laterally. He then fires a very lazy, crappy shot with 13 seconds on the shot clock that hits the highest part of the backboard first and then misses badly. With shots like that, you could comfortably accuse Andray of tanking himself and I would not argue. But then again, it’s Andray Blatche, that’s just the crap he pulls sometimes.

Why is it so often that lesser naturally talented players, such as James Singleton, have much more heart? I blame America’s player development system, from AAU to college.

2:39 - I wish it wasn’t getting so absurd, but it is. To start, see where Andray catches the ball in the below screen shot. At this point, he’s taken one post dribble, the previous double-team of Jordan Hill has departed, and Blatche is about to take a second dribble. There are nine seconds on the shot clock … plenty of time.

Somehow, Blatche picks up the ball after a second dribble, steps with his left foot far away from the basket, and takes an absolutely horrible fade-away … that’s also heavily contested by Scola. Airball.

What a horrid offensive possession.

On the other end, Blatche is called for a silly frustration foul, his third, and loses the headband. Watch out world.

1:01 – Also, Mike Miller has had a ton of open looks … he just can’t buy a bucket … 3-13 on FGs at this point. Could be  just a bad night, could be that his visible frustration has taken over and his head is not completely into basketball these days. In any case, his value heading into a contract summer has taken a hit.

But believe it or not, the Wizards and Rockets are tied at 65. With the Wizards play, I keep on expecting Houston to make a run to put the game away. Basketball seems like the furthest thing away from fun for a lot of these guys.

0:27 – Holy Moly … Blatche gets the ball on the left block and takes it against Hill, without a double team coming, for a baby right-handed hook shot in the lane. 67-65 Wizards.

{4th Q}

11:42 - Blatche goes back to working in the paint … so why the moments of apathy toward working hard earlier? Can’t afford to half-ass it on plays. Here he earns a trip to the FT line and makes both. 69-65 Wizards.

11:07 - Dray catches the ball on the left block with 10 seconds on the shot clock. He diddles around with some barley jab steps, etc. Chase Budinger comes to double with five seconds on the shot clock. Instead of being aware of the double and passing right away, Blatche tries to dribble out of it. Shot clock awareness bro … shot clock violation bro.

10:39 - Blatche has box out position on Jordan Hill, but gets out-worked for the board and Hill gets a put-back dunk. 69 tie.

9:09 - Mike Miller falls asleep against Budinger off the ball. He hits a two. 77-76 Rockets. Again, the focus is just not there for the Wizards. I’m not noticing everything Houston is doing in this same area, but the Wizards in no way deserve to win this game … from my perspective.

8:52 - But now, JaVale McGee has burned the Rockets, and Jordan Hill, for two straight baskets with And1s on both. He’s really using his advantage in length, but only after working to get closer to the hoop. McGee makes all free-throws, scoring six straight points for Washington. 80-77 Wizards.

7:42 – McGee continues to work hard … he’s making me happy with his play. He’s staying close to the basket and trying to keep his arms extended to get rebound tips on offense. He gets one here. 82-80 Wizards.

7:22 - Another rebound put back from McGee! Again, Houston is not being that physical with him … but hey, JaVale is doing what he’s supposed to do. 84-80 Wizards. He’s scored the last 10 points for the team.

5:39 - Weird play. Miller and Budinger go down for a loose ball near the baseline with the Wizards on offense. Both end up lying out of bounds on the baseline, but it’s unclear if either was touching the ball, or if the ball even went out of bounds, as it suddenly emerged within view rolling in-bounds along the baseline.

The refs blow the whistle with one second on the shot clock and somehow call a jump ball, but to the Wizards’ benefit, the shot clock resets for some reason. However, an educated guess would indicate that it should have been out of bounds on Budinger.

Nonetheless, the ball is jumped and Houston/Aaron Brooks controls (did you really think Miller was going to out-jump Budinger?) … but the worst part is that Budinger is allowed to freely streak down the court and Brooks ends up throwing him a lob for a lay-in. 86-84 Wizards.

5:11 - Andray Blatche hits a crazy, lucky, fading, free-throw line jumper off the glass against Chuck Hayes, And1. 89-84 Wizards.

3:55 - Blatche’s assignment, Luis Scola, gets a rebound while Dray is not worried about boxing out. Scola puts it back for points. 89-86 Wizards.

3:24 - McGee travels. On the dead ball, the Wizards fall asleep in getting back. Not Kyle Lowry, who sees an opportunity to quickly get the ball to the ref and ready to take it out of bounds. Houston suddenly had a two-on-one advantage … after a dead ball I remind you. Budinger gets the ball to Scola, McGee gets called for goal-tending. 89-88 Wizards.

3:03 – Wow, Boykins gets fouled shooting a three, but only makes one. 90-88 Wizards.

2:53 – Budinger hits a shot off a screen. He has a career-high 20 points off the bench and has been abusing fellow white boy Mike Miller. Steve Buckhantz says Budinger looks like Reggie Miller. Game tied at 90.

1:50 - The Wizards get two offensive rebounds on one possession. Houston then bails the Wizards out by fouling Earl Boykins with five seconds on the shot clock. He was losing the ball on a drive and had no where to go. Boykins makes both free-throws. 92-90 Wizards.

1:25 - Kyle Lowry ties the game at 92 with a crazy runner at the shot clock buzzer.

1:03 - A long jumper from Blatche over Hayes as he operates further and further away from the hoop misses. Yuck.

0:53 – But Lowry gets called for carrying the ball. Do either of these teams want to win?

0:36 - Blatche gets to the free-throw line against Hayes, but his old up-and-under move into an off-balanced fade-away doesn’t work again. Chuck Hayes pretty much owns Andray Blatche. Game still tied at 92.

Blatche goes into the timeout bitching about a foul. Sorry dude, no chance.

0:28 - Budinger jumper off the glass … against Mike Miller, again. 94-92 Rockets. Probably smart for Houston to play the 2-for-1 possession game too.

Lemme guess … the Wizards are going to futilely go to Blatche again.

0:12 - Coulda surprised me. The possession involves several dribbles from Boykins and a three-point miss by him. Budinger is fouled and makes both FTs.

0:05 - Nick Young misses a three, Mike Miller gets a tip-back, Houston calls timeout. Kyle Lowry fouled with 3.5 seconds left, he makes both.

The Wizards have no timeouts, they turn the ball over, and the losing streak continues at 16 in a row.

98-94, Rockets over Wizards.

Oh well, at least Friday night is Phil Chenier night.

Other reads from Truth About It:

• March 11, 2010 -- With Houston, The Wizards Had Problems
• April 17, 2010 -- Who Will Win The NBA Finals? The Washington Wizards Will Tell You
• January 28, 2012 -- DC Council Game 19: Wizards 76 at Rockets 103: Remember Us? We Didn’t Get Fired.

Okay. It’s not worth playing the “what if” game with Jermaine Taylor. You do remember Jermaine Taylor, right?

Jump back to June 25, 2009, the night of the NBA Draft and “this guy’s” (me) birthday. Oh yea, Michael Jackson died that day too.

Draft night was a bit anti-climactic for Wizards fans. They were already having paper goodness dreams of Randy Foye and Mike Miller teaming up with the Big Three, et al., also knowing that there was no way fan draft darling Ricky Rubio could slip to the departed fifth pick. Oh, wait …

In any case, pick #32 was worth paying attention to. Would the crafty Ernie Grunfeld, a man seemingly able to load his team with win-in-the-now veterans and promising youth (now with fleeting promise), find another second round gem a la Michael Redd?

“Anything is possible!!” Grunfeld screamed from the draft war room. “Loading up the pump, I’m loading up the Uzis, I’ve got a couple of M-16s, couple of nines, couple of joints with some silencers on them, couple of grenades, got a missile launcher. I’m ready for war,” said Grunfeld, quoting Kevin Garnett under the tutelage of Flip Saunders. [Note: Grunfeld did not say any of this.]

And as the picks passed, DeJuan Blair became that “OMG HE’S SLIPPING!!” possibility. After the Sacramento Kings selected Jeff Pendergraph, Wizards fans began to lick their chops, rub their hands together, pat each other on the back, and light celebratory cigars. Time to emerge triumphantly from the bunker boys, one of the best rebounders in the history of college basketball, an area where the Wizards so desperately needed help, was right there for the taking.

Nope. Huh? GASP! Who the eff is Jermaine Taylor? … went the emotional progression.

I still did want Blair and I was left disappointed. Those blasted, pesky San Antonio Spurs took Blair instead.

But back to Taylor … on March 18th, for the third time this season, he was assigned to Houston’s D-League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. But on Saturday against the Lakers, Taylor, back in the NBA, made his first career start for the Rockets, and is believed to be the first player ever from the University of Central Florida to start in an NBA game.

In 30 minutes of action, Taylor scored 15 points, snagged five rebounds and dropped three assists to only one turnover. Taylor also played some very physical defense against Kobe Bryant. Check out this breakdown of his highlights from the ESPN TrueHoop Network Rocket blog, Red 94.

Damn. I already like this guy’s game much more than Nick Young’s. In 221 career games, Young has only achieved five or more rebounds along with three or more assists once. Taylor did it in just his 24th game, his first time playing more than 25 minutes. Young has played more than 25 minutes about 46 times in his career.

Young has also never gone to war on defense … diving on the floor for a loose ball a couple times doesn’t count.

So as the Wizards get set to face the Rockets in Houston at 8:30 pm est, gunning for loss #16 in a row, if Kevin Martin is out tonight, Taylor will likely once again start in his place, and probably will play just a bit harder against the team that drafted then sold him.

Sure, as stated, it’s not worth getting caught up in the “what ifs” of Taylor. If the Wizards had elected to keep the pick, they likely wouldn’t have selected someone of his basketball position. And just like Alonzo Gee, Taylor’s chance of solidifying as an NBA player is a big unknown.

Still, one can only hope that Taylor gets matched-up against Young. It’ll be about as bastardly intriguing as it gets for Wizards fans.

Wonder if Houston resident Mike James will be at the game. Maybe some of the $2.5 million the Wiz got for Taylor went toward buying him out.

Other reads from Truth About It:

• March 31, 2010 -- The Streak Continues in Houston: 16 and Counting; Wizards Still Looking For a Win in March
• June 28, 2009 -- Point, Counter-Point: Why The Hell Did The Wizards Select Cash In The Second Round?
• June 27, 2009 -- Wizards Web Hits on The 2009 NBA Draft

And while there isn’t any adjusting I can personally do for this Washington Wizards basketball team, these screen-shot posts tend to focus on the negatives for the same reason outlined by Singleton. The positives are going to happen because that’s what the Wizards are trying to do. I want to know when they weren’t trying. And away we go…

“This” guy.

THIS guy.

Transition Defense

Here JaVale McGee takes the baseline route to go for the offensive board. Not sure if he was watching the flight path of a Mike Miller shot that seemed to be going short or not, but he is watching the ball carom off the rim and go toward Aaron Brooks’ hands. See Luis Scola? He’s already pushing off to run. He’s already got a step on McGee.

Scola beats JaVale down the floor … it’s not that McGee didn’t look like he was running, but I guess if you are going to tell me Scola is faster than McGee then so be it. Andray Blatche (top left), on the other hand, was most definitely “jogging” uphill on this Rockets transition possession. Lucky for Washington, Scola missed a layup (here Aaron Brooks is passing him the ball), and an offensive board which found its way to Kevin Martin’s wide open hands at the three-point line missed as well. And it’s not just Blatche and McGee, the whole team fails here. There are four Rockets past the red line of demarcation to just two Wizards.

Screen Switch Intelligence

Mike Miller seems constantly frustrated by JaVale McGee, especially in terms of the handling of defensive screens. People may ask why Miller was switching in certain instances, but it looked to be part of the game plan. Question the coaching decision if you will, but understand they are probably able to break down how to handle Houston’s offensive situations better than non-coaches. More than anything, know that McGee really, really, really needs to work on his floor positioning.

First, let’s see an example of how to do things the right way.

In a screen set by Scola, Miller points and Oberto steps up on the ball handler in the switch.

The switch is made and the elder Oberto guards/contains Martin much better than McGee could imagine … turning him toward the help and not giving him an angle to drive toward the middle.

Meanwhile, while the Rockets try to take advantage of the switch with Miller on Scola. Blatche communicates (you can hear him calling Miller’s name on TV) and operates a very clean switch just as Scola is receiving the ball.

Now, Scola goes on to score a baby hook, but this Wizards team defense seemed to follow the plan in terms of handling how the Rockets run their offense.

As opposed to …

This instance where Nick Young is chasing Kevin Martin around a screen from JaVale McGee’s man, Luis Scola. McGee never steps up to hinder Martin until Nick can get around the screen. He just kinda gives Martin a courtesy look as he’s done time and time before. Martin made the jumper by the way.

Expressive Frustration

Although he makes mistakes, Mike Miller is a smart basketball player. However, his body language lately, although he’ll be the first guy to dive on the floor for a loose ball or help up a fallen teammate, has become more exasperating, a likely indication that he will not want to re-sign with the Wizards next year.

Here, off a Houston miss, he brings the ball up the court and seems to want to get the Wizards into their early offense … but the next thing you know, Randy Foye is behind him, calling for the ball. Mike reluctantly gives the ball up and turns away, shrugging his shoulders, hanging his head and swinging his arms as if to say, “Whatever Randy … I guess you can initiate the offense since you’ve been doing such a ‘great’ job at it lately.”

Flip Saunders said before the Houston game that others might have to handle the ball, get the team into the offense … because it wasn’t always working with Randy. Guess this wasn’t one of those instances.

Uh oh Mike Miller … you took your eye off of Chase Budinger and he is cutting to the basket for easy points. Not sure how you could loose track of Powder.

Keeping Your Head, A Breaking Point

1st Q – 1:09: Earl Boykins turns down a Blatche pick, Dray rolls, is open to receive the pass, but seems to jump from too far out. Scola is able to smartly gain position and draw the charge. A borderline call that many Wizards personnel didn’t agree with, including Dray, who showed a lot of emotion afterward. Probably shoulda been a no-call.

0:58: The next possession, Dray is a little out of it on defense. Here he lets Quinton Ross get through the screen set by Jordan Hill, but is in no position to help on the dribbler (Trevor Ariza). Even worse, Dray let’s Hill go right by him, get inside position, which ultimately leads to an offensive board for Hill … and points.

On a side note, I used Comic Sans for the equal sign and question mark … Indicative of Dray or a shot at hoity-toity typographists?

0:44: The very next time down the court is the breaking point for Blatche. He receives the ball rolling off an off-ball screen he set for Miller, who’d just received the ball from Boykins up top, and Dray just mishandles the dribble out of bounds. The mental concentration is getting to him. He angrily tosses his headband to the floor and out of bounds. It is now the property of a fan.

This is Jordan Hill

Part of Hill’s success on the offensive boards derived from guys like Blatche (in the previous instance) and McGee simply not putting a body on him, allowing him to slip by and get position. Hill had four offensive rebounds and four defensive rebounds in 27 minutes of action.

Notice a certain local media personality in the background? Some have called that fellow the Brendan Haywood of the media. I’m not sure who those people are though.

The Lost Art of Blocking Out

What do you see here? I’ll tell you. You see a ball in the air with an orange ring around it. This ball is not your usual rebound, it’s actually a Kevin Martin airball. Airballs can be hard to anticipate and/or rebound, especially when ….

You also see three players under the rim, two Wizards and one Rocket, watching that ball in the air. You’ll notice that the one Rocket, Luis Scola  is untouched by either Wizard, Andray Blatche or JaVale McGee. If those guys “touched” Scola, or kept him from getting such great position, you would call that blocking out. They are not blocking out. Scola got the rebound, and a bucket, which served as points five and six of an 11-2 Houston run to start the third quarter.

Preparedness Is Next To Godliness.

This screen-shot captures just about the exact instance that the referee handed Shane Battier the ball for Houston’s out-under play. Almost before the referee releases the ball from his hand, Battier is passing to Aaron Brooks in the left corner. Battier is a smart dude, he knows the immediacy of getting the rock to a wide-open teammate while a young, fresh, fish-out-of-water team is not exactly paying attention … mostly Shaun Livingston with his hands at his side. Preparedness is next to godliness. Brooks hit the trey ball, which was the cap on the aforementioned 11-2 Houston run to start the third.

Blocking Out Again?

What ‘cha doing there Mr. Blatche? Watching the ball I see …. well, it’s hard to keep your opponent from getting the ball if you don’t put a body on him. Just sayin’ … Luis is just hanging out there under the rim, licking his chops for an offensive rebound.

Scola, of course, got the board and the bucket. He may have traveled in the process, the lack of a call for which Flip Saunders got a tech, but it doesn’t matter. Scola should have never been afforded the opportunity to get the ball in the first place.

And that’s about all I got. Whew … these stuff is exhausting.

That guy …

Luis Scola: 41 minutes, 23 points, 10 rebounds (but also 7 turnovers)

Other reads from Truth About It:

• March 31, 2010 -- The Streak Continues in Houston: 16 and Counting; Wizards Still Looking For a Win in March
• July 2, 2010 -- CHECK MY STATS: Kirk Hinrich, Sioux City Shooter
• October 22, 2009 -- Observations & Screen Shot Lessons In Defensive Fundamentals From Philly

No longer your daddy, just Battier.

Argentine Thoughts.

Things looking up for Hilton Armstrong?

Flippin’ David Andersen, mate.

Jordan Hill and balls.

This is Chuck Hayes.
Andray Blatche thinks he is a strong dude.
I will not argue.

Chuck Hayes WHAT?!?!

Chuck Hayes What-ever

Get Shots.

{Top Quotes}

[Michael Lee - Washington Post]

At some point, it disappeared. It could’ve been right when Josh Howard suffered his season-ending knee injury, or when the opponents on the Washington Wizards’ schedule changed to more teams jostling for playoff position. But the excitement, the adrenaline rush and hustle that propelled the Wizards to three victories in their first four games after the trade-deadline flurry is gone.

[Kelly Dwyer - Ball Don't Lie]

Andray Blatche needs to chill out, though I can’t blame him for having absolutely no idea what to do at this point in his career.

The guy’s been fantastic since the Wizards sent Antawn Jamison to Cleveland, but he also forces shots and really has no idea how to react when a wrench is thrown into the proceedings. It’s not that he’s being selfish when he makes up his mind before going into a move that he’s going to shoot the ball no matter what, it’s that he has no idea how to execute anything other than putting up a shot. He’s never had to deal with being the focus before.

[Craig Stouffer - Washington Examiner]

I’m not sure how we are supposed to feel about Andray Blatche anymore. In this new Wizards world, his 18 points and 8 rebounds certainly weren’t gawd-awful. But with 9 for 22 shooting and 5 turnovers, there’s still something significant missing, especially when he didn’t play down the stretch and wasn’t involved as the Wizards tried to make a comeback. And his over the shoulder pass straight into the first row in the third quarter was easily the one of the worst plays of the night.

[Michael Lee - Wizards Insider]

And, this really isn’t about what the Rockets did. It’s more about what the Wizards didn’t, or rather can’t do – score. I’ve harped on the limited scoring options for this team, and it was nice that Young finally broke from his slump to score 18 points. But in order for the Wizards to get more offense, those kind of games have to become the norm for Young, not the exception.

[Mike Prada - Bullets Forever]

In general, while the Wizards played relatively hard, they were outsmarted.  Just think of all the transition buckets Houston got in this game.  Their big men — Luis Scola, Jordan Hill and Chuck Hayes — should never outrun Blatche and JaVale McGee, but that’s exactly what they did.  Since Houston doesn’t have much half-court scoring capability, this was especially problematic.

[Joe Glorioso - Wizards Extreme]

On the team I’m building I’ll be more than happy with a 6′7 point guard who is happier distributing the ball than shooting it. And to say that he can’t score is not all that accurate either. Is scoring Livingston’s strong suit, absolutely not, but on this team a pass first point guard who doesn’t dribble the Spalding off the ball is not such a bad thing to have.

[Dave Johnson - CSN Washington]

It was not a beauty contest. The Houston Rockets only shot 38 percent from the field, but were more aggressive on the boards and made more free-throws to pull out a 96-88 win over the Washington Wizards.

The Rockets are the fifth-best offensive rebounding team in the NBA and it helped save them against the Wizards. The Rockets finished with 16 offensive rebounds and a 24-8 advantage in second chance points.

[Rashad Mobley - Hoops Addict]

When the Houston Rockets came to Washington D.C. to play the Wizards last season, the post-game locker room could best be described as chaotic.  Ron Artest was holding court in the back of the locker room, a group of reporters were waiting for Tracy McGrady to come out of the shower so they could interview him, and Yao Ming had the biggest crowd of them all with Chinese media, David Aldridge, Michael Wilbon and a host of others waiting to speak with him.

Last night prior to the Wizards/Rockets matchup the scene in the Rockets locker room was anything but chaotic.  Yao is still with the team, but was out due to injury, and McGrady and Artest have since left the team.   Current players like Aaron Brooks, Trevor Ariza and Chase Budinger watched film and quietly joked with one another, and I was the only journalist/blogger in sight.  I took advantage of this serene atmosphere, and struck up a conversation with newly acquired guard Kevin Martin.

[Ratat Huq - Red 94]

I realized why I’m so intrigued by [Jordan] Hill. It suddenly hit me during the game that he is the first rookie lottery pick that we have had the pleasure of watching since Yao Ming’s debut at the start of the last decade. More than mere escapism from a lost season, previously acclaimed prospects enable the imagination, allowing it to envisage a savior at the position, sans fear of inhibition of unreasonable odds; because he was the 8th pick, we actually don’t have to feel silly discussing Jordan Hill’s upside.

[Only_A_Lad - The Dream Shake]

Here’s what is important: clutch-ness is overrated. Good teams blow out teams like the Wizards. If you want to win lots of games, you can’t rely on any magical ability to come through in the clutch. And after seeing the NBA’s “WHERE CLUTCH HAPPENS” eight or nine times during the broadcast, I began to think about this in relation to the game (btw: why was Clutch the Bear not in that commercial???)

Anyways, the Rockets built an 18-point lead in the third quarter, and they rode that to victory. If you rearrange some of the scoring events, the Rockets would have the same outcome, but we’d be talking all about how the Rockets “came back” because of their “clutch play” or “iron will” or some shit. In reality, the Rockets are simply a better team than the Wizards, and they were able to overcome some late difficulties by playing really well earlier.

I guess that’s not particularly insightful or anything (gee, the Rockets won because they scored more points than their opponents), but I suppose it’s de-mystifying.

The author here, a self-proclaimed stat nerd, or at least among those who favor stats as an explanation over intangibles, makes an interesting point. However, in the process, he seems to deny the psychological difference between playing with the lead versus trying to make a comeback, on the road much less. This is obviously something stats cannot, and never will measure. The mentality of individuals is unable to be explained by numbers. Some stat heads have problems understanding this, and that’s unfortunate. And don’t worry, I’m not arguing about the Rockets  being a better team than the Wizards because they are.

Stats and observational analysis must go hand-in-hand. The next time you see a team make an amazing comeback, whether their opponent is presumed inferior or not, because, and excuse the cliche, all guys in the NBA possess a talent that you and I will never understand, bask in the mental/intestinal fortitude that it took for said team to make a comeback and don’t write it off as something that occurred just because they happened to be behind instead of ahead.

Other reads from Truth About It:

• November 11, 2010 -- From The Other Side: Meet Ishmael Smith
• March 31, 2010 -- The Streak Continues in Houston: 16 and Counting; Wizards Still Looking For a Win in March
• January 4, 2011 -- Marco Belinelli is ‘European Sneaky’, at least according to Nick Young

More to come …

Other reads from Truth About It:

• June 24, 2010 -- Grunfeld, Gilbert, and the Galácticos
• March 26, 2010 -- Notes On Wizards Unlucky Loss #13 In A Row
• July 2, 2010 -- CHECK MY STATS: Kirk Hinrich, Sioux City Shooter

The best part about Arest’s ejection wasn’t the quiet exit, but in the midst of slapping dejected fives to anything that moved, Ronnie tossed one the cheerleader’s way, via her pom-pom, and moved on in a matter of fact manner.

Other reads from Truth About It:

• May 9, 2009 -- The Anatomy of A Modern Ron Artest Breakdown: Part 1
• December 17, 2010 -- Pre-Game Faces: Wizards vs. Lakers
• February 1, 2012 -- Gilbert Arenas To The Lakers? What Nick Young Thinks

Instead, NBA refs get to be the ones sending messages. Is that what fans want? Doubt it.

So I’m watching Ron Artest, who was having a terrible ‘crazy pills = horrible shot selection’ Ron Artest kind of night in the first place, get kicked out of game three in Houston with a flagrant 2 for no apparent reason.

Hard foul on softy Gasol, no biggie … just a sharp knock of the ball out Pau’s hands, the Euro goes flop-flying, and all of a sudden it’s D-Day. Artest gets kicked out because there is less than a minute on the clock, the Lakers have the game in hand, and because he’s Ron Artest.

“I don’t think that was a flagrant …. You know, I’m an 80s baby, so that shoulda been two shots and be done with it.” -Kobe Bryant

Back to game two.

Ronnie Artest had an intentional break down which was over-reacted upon by the refs who tossed him from the game. Here is the anatomy of that breakdown:

Other reads from Truth About It:

• May 9, 2009 -- The Best Part About Ron Artest Getting Ejected
• December 17, 2010 -- Pre-Game Faces: Wizards vs. Lakers
• December 15, 2010 -- Lakers Have Style, Wizards Looking For Substance – Los Angeles 103, Washington 89

11:48: Andray v. Yao….Ming stars off with a fade away miss, Blatche played decent D on him the last time out.

11:00: Instead of staying with Battier,Young zones to Scola with the ball….Jamison is there, but could stand to be closer as Scola can shoot…..Who’s Your Daddy Battier is open in the corner for the swing pass…..three ball. 3-2 Houston.

10:46: Andray takes a college three (top of key) with 15 on the shot clock — don’t care if you’re open Andray — No, No, NO!!

9:50: Houston is letting Andray have the open 16 footer….and for good reason, he misses again.

8:48: James and Blatche run the pick and roll, but a finger roll attempt is not what you want to see your big guy do in that situation….miss.

8:03: Wiz in transition…..Nick Young pulls up for a short jumper….misses — would’ve liked to see him be more aggressive.

7:45: Backdoor cut in early Princeton gets Mike James a layup, pass from Jamison. 8-7 Wizards.

6:49: Mike James great hustling anticipatory steal…..cuts off McGrady to score the fastbreak layup. 12-9 Wizards.

So far…..Defense is…..better (as a team) — Jump shooting = very bad.

6:14: Young jumper miss – 2nd chance – Jamison jumper miss – 2nd chance – timeout – Jamison gets blocked out of bounds – Jamison jumper miss. :5:44

Wizards: 6 points in paint, 4 fastbreak points, 4 points off turnovers, 12 total points (other two came off Blatche FTs), 4-12 from the field.

4:17: McGuire hands in passing lane, steal….Wiz run….Nick Young misses corner three.

2:54: Nick Young travels — uh….maybe we should start Stevenson again?

Got a McGee, Jamison, McGuire, Stevenson and James lineup in.

2:24: Jamison breaks the ice with his first FG — wasn’t the easiest attempt over Scola — shakes his head going down the court — misses a short jumper his next time down. 18-16 Rockets.

0:24: Mike James with a gutsy drive to the hoop for the bucket and the foul (misses FT).

0:05: There goes quick-trigger jumping McGee…..scouting report on him….Scola travels, but McGee practically jumps over him on a pump fake and goes tumbling precariously. They call the foul on McGee.

Well, believe it or not, the Wizards are in the game for two reasons: Mike James (8 points) and defense. Yep, Double-Take….Houston 22-21 after 1.

Q2

Songaila, Stevenson, Young, Blatche and Etan Thomas to start 2nd….I’m sure people are pissed at this lineup for some reason.

D-Song gets a quick 4 points and a rare rebound. 25-22 Wiz.

9:08: Dixon comes in for Nick Young…..I can sense some sort of grumbling. “But Player Development!”

8:33: More bad jumpers from Andray Blatche…airball.

8:02: Andray Blatche is not strong with the ball, Artest knocks it out of his hands and off his foot. Only the 2nd turnover for the Wiz (the other came on Nick Young’s travel).

7:40: Etan loses a tough pass to catch for turnover #3.

6:54: Ugh….Stevenson with an open look from three with the shot clock running down — misses everything.

6:40: Artest nails a three…..but Andray does a good thing and runs the court, gets block position on Artest, receives the lob and powers in a layup. 29-27 DC (yea, from reading the account, you would never know the Wizards are up)

6:09: Dixon nails three….Dixon forces a turnover….Dixon drives and scores on Yao Ming. But Player Development!! (Uh yea…..I’d rather see who’s playing well, regardless of our record, over youthful cluster-fucks for the sake of precious player development.) 34-27 Wiz.

Houston looks very disorganized….not playing like a team at all. I know that Wilbon likes to gush over the Rockets, but with McGrady claiming he won’t play in back-to-backs, and the PG lineup including the likes of Rafer Alston, Aaron Brooks, and the rarely seen Luther Head, I don’t see this team going far even if they do make the playoffs.

The Rockets are making a mini run by going to Yao and Scola inside…..while Songaila is having his struggles on offense against the bigger Rockets. 39-33 Wiz.

There has also been a Crittenton sighting…..albeit brief. Player development.

1:14: Songaila has been hit/miss on offense, but he gets a steal from a driving Artest that leads to an unguarded Mike James layup. Ronnie Artest has 5 turnovers. 43-33 Wiz.

On another note, Etan has been doing a nice job against Yao….and instead of missing jumpers like Blatche, he’s getting rebounds.

Player Development: With 1.7 seconds left in the half and the Wizards taking the ball out under their own basket, Andray Blatche makes a bad pass that gets picked off by Ron Artest who makes a shooting motion from half court as Nick Young fouls him. Tapscott argues that Artest wasn’t shooting, no dice. Artest only makes one of three FTs.

In the first half, the Wiz held the Rockets to 12/36 shooting…..and you really can’t say that Houston was just shooting like a one armed man with no index finger. Washington actually packed in the D….thanks to the “manning up” (as Phil Chenier put it) of Etan Thomas, Darius Songaila and Andray Blatche, while being pretty adept at covering Houston on the perimeter.

What else?…..work in paint….(a side-effect of determination) — The Wiz outscored Houston 28-8 in the painted area. Jamison has 11 points, Mike James has 10. 45-36 Wizards.

Q3

10:53: Dominc McGuire youthful mistake….doesn’t turn his head, doesn’t see the cutter….easy layup by Battier. 47-38 Wiz.

10:33: Insane circus shot by Nick Young….benefited from a friendly bounce too. 49-38 Wiz.

9:30: Great pass from D-Mac to a cutting Jamison. 51-40 Wizards. So refreshing to know McGuire has passing skills.

8:41: Scola keeps getting his, 6 points in a row…..Tapscott calls a timeout. 51-44 Wiz.

8:20: Rockets leave him open…..hesitation….but Andray Blatche finally hits the jumper from the top of the key.

7:15: Young stays aggressive….hits a short ‘spin around the toilet bowl’ J in transition. 55-46 Wiz.

6:14: Andray hits another long jumper from the wing….gotta develop that youth (someone told him to keep shooting those open shots). 57-49 Wiz.

4:42: Jamison is heating up with two quick jumpers…he’s got 19 points. Another good start to the 3rd quarter for the Wiz. 61-51 DC.

4:00: Unfortunately, McGrady is starting to heat up too — 13 points.

Game stoppage…Andray Blatche is bleeding all over the place after catching an errant Jamison bow going for a board.

3:35: More Jamison….baseline runner set up by a Nick Young drive. 63-53 Wiz.

2:21: Etan Thomas the veteran draws a charge….6th turnover from Ron the erratic o
ne Artest.

Antawn Jamison is being a 3rd quarter warrior…..he’s throwing his body all over the place, and bodying up Ron Artest….not too many players have the moxie to try to do that, much less actually do it.

0:20: Jello hands Andray loses a rebound to Ron Artest….gotta squeeze it.

Blatche misses a three at the buzzer, but a great 3rd….mostly due to Jamison (15 points) and a little bit of Nick Young (8 points). 72-62 Wizards.

Q4

11:20: Andray Blatche nice up and under on Artest….gotta keep pounding it inside on offense (especially while Yao is out). 74-64 Wiz.

9:49: Well…..McGuire is learning by experience I suppose…..he commits and offensive foul and then lets Ron Artest get free for five straight points. “Safe to say the momentum has changed,” says Steve Buck and Ed Tapscott calls a timeout. 74-71 Wizards.

9:20: Blatche has missed a couple crunch time baskets….

9:06: Aaron Brooks misses the 2nd of two FTs, the Wizards watch Carl Landry get the rebound, and Brent Barry nails the 2nd chance three. 75-74 Rockets.

8:48: Blatche makes himself available and McGuire pin-points a long pass….and dunk. 76-75 Wiz.

8:12: Mike James has been quiet…drives…..ahh…charge call. Looks questionable at first sight, but upon slow motion replay, Scola’s feet were outside the charge area….James gives the ref a Nanny look….like he wants to punch him.

7:38: ARG!! The offense slows down and Andray is forced into a couple dribbles…then a missed jumper.

7:00: Songaila answers with a jumper after Blatche took out Brent Barry on a pick. 79-78 Rockets.

6:00: Mike James chucks up a J to tie the game at 81 (actually it was not a three…Wiz down 81-80)

4:39: Scola again (7-8 FG)…nice setup by Brent Barry. The Rockets are starting to expose holes in the interior zone of the Wizards…of course, DeShawn had a lot of trouble keeping up Barry’s drive. 85-82 Houston.

3:48: Mike James drive…tough miss…but a hobbling Jamison tips it in. 85-84 Rockets.

3:10: Jamison draws a foul, 2 FTs – 30 points, 10 boards. 86-85 Wizards.

2:31: Mike James and Andray run a pick and roll…..James drives….looks like there is contact….miss….tip no, tip no…Rocket ball.

2:18: McGuire block (#4) and inside move by Artest…out of bounds off the Wizards.

2:07: Houston goes to Yao….strong move on Blatche, who is trying to hold his ground….help defense by Jamison…AND he gets the steal!!

1:52: Jamison takes a long step-back two….I really don’t like that shot at all (especially with 11 still on the shot clock — need to get a better look)….miss. Wiz still up 1.

1:35: Another iffy three by Artest that’s contested hard by McGuire and Andray secures a huge rebound against Yao Ming, squeezing it.

1:12: DeShawn Stevenson has been quiet the whole game….not trying to do too much at all….even playing good D against McGrady on a couple occasions….the offense gets stagnant…Jamison gives the ball to DeShawn with 8 seconds on the clock…AJ comes to set a ball screen….DeShawn gets free and….HITS a fading shot from the corner. You gotta be f-ing kidding me. 88-85 Wizards.

0:54: Rockets trying to go to Yao…Andray, again, does a great job of holding his ground….Yao short hook that Houston would take any day….but it comes up just short.

0:39: Stevenson with new found confidence…..drives to the hoop…and gets fouled on the layup…..still don’t like the ball in his hands. He makes 1-2 FTs. 89-85 Wizards. Yikes.

0:32: T-Mac hits a two on Stevenson…..who was there to bother, but could not get a good contest…..McGrady, shaky knees and all, can still elevate high and fast on his jumper. 89-87 Wizards.

Dixon, James, McGuire, Jamison and Blatche for the last seconds (good, Stevenson is out…..and yes, I agree with putting Dixon in over both Young…and Crittenton).

0:11: Jamison has a hard time getting position on Artest….McGuire tries to force it into him….steal by Artest.

0:07.2 left…..Rockets got to Yao, obviously, Andray gives a good contest on the baseline turnaround jumper…NO GOOD! — McGuire gets the rebound, is falling out of bounds….throws it in to a Rocket….but the buzzer sounds…WIZARDS WIN!!! 89-87

NBA.com Box Score

Random Posts

• March 17, 2011 -- ShareBullets: Dunking Pictures & Monster Pixels
• October 23, 2009 -- Antawn Jamison Out 3-5 More Weeks (Damn)
• June 1, 2011 -- Gilly Arenas back on Twitter? Of course, perhaps.

The Washington Wizards appear to have solved their hole-digging slow starts now that speedy point guard Dee Brown and athletic center JaVale McGee start alongside All-Stars Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison and ironman DeShawn Stevenson. Finishing games, however, remains a different story.
[The Washington Times]

I can’t remember seeing a game so completely dominated by a player who scored four points in the fourth quarter but that’s what happened tonight as the Houston Rockets ran everything through Yao Ming when it counted, spread the floor with shooters and used a 27-6 game-ending run to put the Wizards away.
[Wizards Insider]

McGee, who was making his second straight start, did what he could, but the Rockets went after him relentlessly, time and again feeding the ball to the 7-foot-6, 310-pound Yao. As a result, Yao (18 points) dictated the game’s tempo in Houston’s 103-91 victory, while his teammates took advantage of the Washington defense whenever it sagged to stop him.
[The Washington Post]

With an appearance on national television at home against the Houston Rockets, the Washington Wizards had every opportunity possible to show the world they were better than their 1-8 record. Instead, they showed the world that they are every bit as bad, and then some.
[Stet Sports]

Quoteables

“I know I keep saying this, but we’re just not playing smart. We’re not getting the ball where it needs to be at in the stretch, we’ve got guys kind of doing some things outside of themselves.”
-Antawn Jamison

“Apparently Juan Dixon had a bet to see how many times he could avoid passing the ball to Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison down the stretch.”
-Pradamaster, Bullets Forever

Who Cares?

“Gotta change something, I’m pulling a Gilbert Arenas” — pregame shooting.

“And I changed my wristbands,” he added, pointing to the two red plastic bracelets on each wrist. The first bracelet on each wrist had printed in white ink “I wear my heart on my sleeve” — and the second read “Like it’s a new fashion.” -DeShawn Stevenson

Random

“DeShawn Stevenson must be the greatest player in the history of the NBA. He must be the first ever inducted to the Hall of Fame before his career had ended. Michael Jordan must envy him, wishing he were back in Washington just to see him play.

All the posing and posturing this guy does, you would think he was a cross between Jordan, Magic and the Big O.

He’s not. He went 3 of 12 on Friday while his team fell to 1-9.”-Jonathan Feigen, Houston Chronicle

Random Posts

• November 6, 2009 -- Wizards at Pacers >> What To Watch For: The Caron Butler vs. Danny Granger Show
• February 21, 2010 -- A Closer Look at Al Thornton’s Defense
• October 3, 2008 -- Improving The Defense of the Washington Wizards

[Update: My answers to questions from the Dream Shake]

1) Before the season, I berated Michael Wilbon on Bullets Forever for writing what I considered to be a hack-job of an NBA column. Part of my issue with his piece was misplaced optimism about the Houston Rockets. This is what I said:

Stories out of Rockets camp read much like the high the Wizards were feeling upon leaving Richmond….great camp, excited to match-up against someone other than teammates. But if you’re telling me that “optimism” in Houston is anything more than extremely guarded, you’ve got to be kidding yourself.

The team’s two stars, Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady, have missed a combined 148 games over the past three seasons. In fact, T-Mac had knee surgery in May and has already announced that he’s got an arthritic shoulder which will require surgery after this season. Rockets fans may be excited about their prospects, but if they’re not walking on egg shells regarding that key issue of health, just as Wizards fans were after this latest setback with Arenas, then I’m at a loss.

So….was I wrong? Were you optimistic before the season, or guarded? How do you feel about the championship prospects for the team today as the Rockets continue to experience health issues?

You can be realistic while still being optimistic. I said the Rockets would win 62 games this year. Now, you may say, hold up, that’s blatantly optimistic.

Here’s what I say:

The Rockets won 55 games last year. That was without Yao for the latter part of the season, including the last 10-0 stretch of 22 games in a row. That was without Tracy for portions where the team actually played well for the first time since he’s been here and had time out. And most importantly that was without a true backup for Shane Battier and Tracy McGrady that we now have in Ron Artest. So I was saying they would win 7 more games. They could have done that without a few slip ups here and there last year, like an early season loss to the Grizzlies.

So while it was optimistic, it wasn’t overly so. Every team in the league experiences health issues, so I’m less bothered by it than a lot of people are. The off-season surgery to McGrady was the first of his career, and it was supposed to stop his knee from having any further issues. It was a leap of faith to believe that, but taken on face value, with them only removing free floating calcium deposits in the knee, it made a lot of sense. It wasn’t ACL surgery. He did have shoulder surgery as well, but that was more precautionary. I have the same injury in my shoulder and I’ve never had surgery for it. And Yao got a screw in his foot for what was the first “non-freak”, “non-collision” injury of his career. Before that I always made the argument that he was more unlucky than injury prone. And the screw was supposed to stop stress fractures from occurring again. It appears it has done its job considering how fast he came back for the Olympics and that his recent MRI showed no damage. Either way, a slow start isn’t a big deal. The Rockets have an easier schedule right after the New Year than they did last year and that could help them rack up a lot of wins in a row again. They are still learning to play together and the continuity is not there yet. So while 62 wins is optimistic, it’s not a wholly unreachable number, even at 7-5.

2) Say there was an NBA expansion draft before this season and you can only protect 8 players. Yao, T-Mac, Artest and Scola seem pretty obvious (I’m assuming that even with his injuries, you protect T-Mac and his salary because he’s only on the books through next season….but tell me if I’m wrong), who else do you protect?

I wouldn’t protect TMac, for the most part, because of his salary. It’s highly unlikely a team would take him on at 21MM dollars. His coming off the books in this scenario isn’t a big factor because we could replace him with someone that comes off the books in the same manner and in theory he would come off the books now instead of later. But I’ll play along and say that there is a 50% fear that someone would take him and our replacement, while cheaper, is a terrible tradeoff. So we have 4 games named and my other 4 in order:

1. Carl Landry – I love his energy and his floor presence. He’s easily the first “backup” guy to keep
2. Shane Battier – Shane could be 1A here, there is no way I’m just letting go of him. He’s a heck of a trade piece if for some reason he wasn’t in the future plans. And the fact is that he’s likely to be the starter when he comes back so Artest can dominate with the second team. Plus, you have to love the whitest man in the NBA
3. Aaron Brooks – Speed + the ability to finish without dunking, that’s a pretty good combination. He has been more than I even expected he could be this year. His potential has officially gone about 10 levels higher than I thought it could.
4. Von Wafer? Rafer Alston?– While our bench does go 8 or 9 deep and Rafer would be an option here, I’m fine with losing any of these guys provided we’re replacing them with someone. None of them is irreplaceable.

3) How satisfied, or unsatisfied, are you with Rafer Alston? Is starting Aaron Brooks over Skip to My Lou an option? If you could change one thing about this Rockets team (make a trade), would it involve the point guard position?

Great. Googly. Moogly. No I’m not satisfied with Rafer. Our blog actually started because Dave and I wanted Rafer gone. (Note: Dave is going to be ecstatic that I actually admitted that.) Has he been acceptable? Sure. He is a good defender and when he’s on, the Rockets can’t be beat. He’s rarely on from a FG% standpoint though. His passing has improved and he doesn’t throw the unexplainable pass to n
owhere as often, so that is nice. But he’s 31 and he’s not going to learn to shoot anytime soon. I don’t hate Rafer, but let’s not act like he’s Shane Battier off the court; doing good for the world. He’s a punk, and he’s not misunderstood, that’s just what he is. I’m fine with that on my team, this is basketball, not church camp, but I become less amenable to it when you also can’t shoot.

Aaron Brooks is not an option this year to start, that’s why I’ve said that Rafer actually might be the perfect fit for this team now that he doesn’t throw the ball away twice a game “just ’cause”. But his defense on Chris Paul, and don’t let anyone fool you, he was all over Paul from the start of the game, gave me confidence that players can’t just bully him. Big PGs that are physical will eat him up, but there aren’t a ton of those out there anymore, so I think he might become viable as a starter as soon as next year.

At the end of last season I would have told you that are three biggest needs, in order, were: 1. Get a top 10 PG, 2. Get a back up SG or SF 3. Get a legitimate backup Center.

If I could change one thing about the team and get a mid-level star in return, then yes, it would be PG. But barring that, the number one need on this team right now (besides the health fairy) is a backup C that is 7 feet tall. And while I think Dikembe Mutombo is the answer this year, I don’t believe he is the answer next year. I can’t tell you how much I wanted Roy Hibbert in the draft. That’s not to say I’m not pleased with the way our draft was turned into Crazy Pills, he filled number 2 on that list. Actually, he more than filled number two as he can be a starter in this league at the 2 or 3. And since Brooks has stepped up, and we aren’t getting a top 10 PG, backup center is our glaring weakness.

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Thanks again to the guys at The Dream Shake. Be sure and check some of their latest posts out, including: A Q&A with the Orlando Magic Blog, Third Quarter Collapse, and why they hate Jason Terry.

[photo source: flickr/project 404]

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