No. 1 on this week’s list of stupid NBA basketball stuff: this guy. 

First of all, cool story, bro. [Is 'cool story, bro' played out yet?  I mean, it is on t-shirts and stuff. Nonetheless, it applies to this guy.]

Second of all, nobody cares. [Wild guess: You, bro, are also a NY Jets fan.]

Third of all, the Heat won a championship recently. You might have heard about it through the Internets if you’ve been a fan of the team for long enough. So, why don’t you go suck on that for a spell. Should provide plenty of nourishment.

Fourth of all, even though your sign does not specifically outline such, you did not pay all that money for tickets to “see Lebron play.” Nope, you paid to see the Wizards of Washington play the Heat of Miami. Susan O’Malley is no longer around, so I’m pretty sure that LeBron wasn’t featured on the ticket that got you into the arena.

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Prior to last Saturday night’s game against the Washington Wizards, Indiana Pacers Head Coach Frank Vogel wrote the following words on the white bulletin board in the visitor’s locker room, ”He’s a difference maker.”

The “he” was John Wall, and Coach Vogel was well-aware of Wall’s torrid play during the month of March, when he averaged 22 points and eight assists per game, also putting up a career-high 47 points against the Memphis Grizzlies. Vogel undoubtedly knew that earlier in the week, Bradley Beal, the other formidable offensive threat on the Wizards’ roster, was ruled out for the rest of the regular season with a stress injury to his right fibula. In the first game after the announcement about Beal, the Wizards lost 88-78 to the lowly Raptors in Toronto, and Wall was harassed into a 5-for-18 shooting night, including 1-for-10 outside of the paint. Coach Vogel went on to give specifics about the game plan for stopping Wall:

“He’s a sensational young talent, he changes their team offensively, and you really have to put most of your defensive game plan into limiting what he brings to the table … you still want to keep him out of the paint first, and hope that he’s not getting hot from the perimeter.”

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[D.C. Council: setting the scene, rating the starters, assessing the subs, providing the analysis, and catching anything that you may have missed. Unlike the real DC Council, everything here is on the table. Game No. 76, Washington Wizards vs Indiana Pacers; contributors: Kyle Weidie and Rashad Mobley from the Verizon Center.]

Classics. [Elvin Hayes and Wes Unseld speak to the media about the '78 championship and more.] John Wall on flexing muscle and playing in front of the 1978 national world champion Washington Bullets: Retro Scoreboard:

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The Washington Wizards preach patience, but internally, they are desperate. The rebuild has not gone as planned. They still can’t seem to adequately develop draftees who aren’t shoe-ins (i.e., those not named Bradley Beal). If they don’t make a move now, their core either could be set for next season, or teetering on relatively drastic change with the expiring contracts of Trevor Ariza and Emeka Okafor potentially coming into play this summer or before the next trade deadline.

Do the Wizards need to make a deal by 3 pm on Thursday? No, not at all. Why rush the rebuild when lottery chances are once again at stake? Could Team President Ernie Grunfeld still roll up his sleeves to expose some tricks? Indeed (Omar Little voice).

So who’s out there?

Well, we all know Josh Smith is available. But reports on top of reports on top of roast beef sandwiches indicate that the Wizards are now “coolin’” on a move for Smith, which means that the package they’re willing to offer for him is probably not as competitive as offers from Milwaukee or Brooklyn, for instance. I’m not so hot on Smith myself — with him “thinking” that he’s a max contract player and with Smith essentially being his agency’s only marquee player (also the agency of Javaris Crittenton, FWIW). Smith is not a max type player, at least not with his poor attitude. Although, colleague John Townsend informs me that Smith’s cumulative WARP (Wins Above Replacement Player, an advanced stat) over the past several seasons is very good. So, yea…

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[D.C. Council: setting the scene, rating the starters, assessing the subs, providing the analysis, and catching anything that you may have missed. Unlike the real DC Council, everything here is on the table. Game No. 30, Washington Wizards vs Pacers in Indiana; contributor: John Converse Townsend and Kyle Weidie from behind the television screen.]

Watch a man with two first names whoop Washington’s behind: Read more »

Here to provide the DC Council Opening Statements for Washington’s 30th game of the season against the Pacers in Indiana are TAI’s Kyle Weidie (@Truth_About_It) and guest Jared Wade (@Jared_Wade), who writes about the Pacers for the ESPN TrueHoop blog 8 Points 9 Seconds.

Wizards Starters (4-25):

Garrett Temple, Bradley Beal, Martell Webster, Nene, Emeka Okafor

Pacers Starters (18-13):

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[D.C. Council: setting the scene, rating the starters, assessing the subs, providing the analysis, and catching anything that you may have missed. Unlike the real DC Council, everything here is on the table. Game No. 9, Washington Wizards vs. Indiana; contributors: Rashad Mobley and John Converse Townsend from the Verizon Center with Kyle Weidie from behind the T.V.]

Wanna Get Away? #WizardsSlogans Read more »

Here to provide the DC Council Opening Statements for Washington’s ninth game of the season against the Pacers in D.C. are TAI’s Kyle Weidie (@Truth_About_It) and guest Jared Wade (@Jared_Wade), who writes about the Pacers for the TrueHoop blog 8 Points, 9 Seconds (@8tps9secs).

Wizards Starters (0-8):

A.J. Price, Jordan Crawford, Trevor Ariza, Jan Vesely, Emeka Okafor

Pacers Starters (4-7):

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[D.C. Council: setting the scene, rating the starters, assessing the subs, providing the analysis, and catching anything that you may have missed. Unlike the real DC Council, everything here is on the table. Game No. 5, Washington Wizards at Indiana Pacers; contributors: Adam McGinnis and Kyle Weidie from behind the T.V.]

It usually starts with #WittmanFace Read more »

Here to provide the DC Council Opening Statements for Washington’s fifth game of the season against the Pacers in Indiana are TAI’s Kyle Weidie (@Truth_About_It) and guest Jared Wade (@Jared_Wade), who writes about the Pacers for the TrueHoop blog 8 Points, 9 Seconds (@8tps9secs).

Wizards Starters (0-4):

A.J. Price, Bradley Beal, Trevor Ariza, Trevor Booker, & Emeka Okafor

Pacers Starters (2-4):

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