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There are many incomprehensible facets to JaVale McGee, but the talent and seeming potential is unquestionable.
How did he make that BLOCK!??! (Or was it a steal?)
Future basketball historians may heavily sway their chronicles toward the 2009-10 Washington Wizards season. The infamy surrounding the heavily dramatized whirlwind that was Gilbert Arenas, locker room guns and court cases, and the losing that magnified it (or that it magnified) will go down in D.C. lore just as much as team media guides will gloss over the affair.
Meanwhile, Arenas continues to be in the contradictory mode of ‘they wanted me out, but I gave them plenty of reasons’ on Twitter. He is very ‘woe is me’, while claiming a lesson has been learned. If only Arenas knew how to not keep himself from proving maturity when it counts.
The abrupt end of one long-running and significant ownership era resulting from the passing of Abe Pollin will only add to the natural sensationalizing of ’09-10. But old flames — the one time poster boy and the patriarch of D.C. pro basketball — passed by new sprouts on their way out.
The 2010-11 season, on one hand, as another lottery year for the franchise, might be as forgettable as the rest. But a change in ownership is a very important event. Just think about how crucial ownership is to your opinion of the Washington Redskins.
While I and others may criticize and analyze and break down the Washington Wizards to varying degrees, sometimes it’s best to sit back and appreciate that the game of basketball is fun, or at least it’s supposed to be. And that’s just what this team is trying to do, play ball and have fun. Of course, the millions they make comes with strings attached. Darn. So for now, enjoy the fun of some choice cuts from Media Day to Midnight Madness in pictures and video … at least until we starting counting wins and losses, and judging effort, and crunching advanced stats, and deciphering measured locker room comments, and analyzing coaching decisions, and etc….
[produced by TAI's Adam McGinnis]
The Los Angeles Clippers threw Al Thornton away.
Maybe there were good reasons, maybe there weren’t, but after roughly two and a third years removed from making the NBA’s All-Rookie First Team with Kevin Durant, Jeff Green, Luis Scola, and Al Horford, Thornton was essentially given away by Los Angeles last February to save money. In the three-team Antawn Jamison trade involving the Wizards and Cleveland Cavaliers, the Clippers sent away Sebastian Telfair (to Cleveland) and Thornton and got back Drew Gooden (from Washington), whom they didn’t retain as a free-agent this summer.
Al Thornton, a former lottery pick, was thrown away … and he noticed.
The last time we saw Cartier Martin, he was lighting up the New York Knicks in the Vegas Summer League for 24 points, and wondering if that was enough to earn a roster spot on the Washington Wizards — or at the very least an invite to training camp.
When I saw Martin on Monday’s Media Day, he looked like a man who did not have a care in the world. He was practicing his post moves with Kevin Seraphin, and joking with Hamady N’diaye about the advantages of playing in the NBA versus playing in Europe. At first glance, you would have no idea that Martin was about to be in the fight of his life for a roster spot on the Wizards roster.
There was a moment between Gilbert Arenas and John Wall at Wizards Media Day on Monday afternoon, a brief exchange which I described in the previous post that seemed to slightly reflect a developing bond between the two.
The returning smile from Arenas in response to Wall’s presumed mocking/joking with him about the pains and process of media attention eluded the cameras of Truth About It.net. But I was able to snap a couple photos and TAI’s Adam McGinnis was able to shoot some video of the fun-loving Jimmy Wall in all his glory.
In the big picture, this silly little incident doesn’t mean much. But it’s also been a long time since Wizards fans witnessed positive interactions between Arenas and his teammates. And it was especially interesting on a day where Arenas was trying his hardest not to smile.
Last Monday’s Washington Wizards media day seems like such a long time ago.
In addition to me being there, blogging about DeShawn Stevenson’s new tats, the musings of Gilbert Arenas, and the ‘consistent’ goals of Andray Blatche, there was a ton of great coverage from Hoops Addict, Wizards Insider, Wizards Outlet, and Bullets Forever.
Now, after transcribing all of my interview recordings, I wanted to share some of the quotes/pictures that have been relatively unheard/unseen.
{Note: I will be in Richmond for training camp on Saturday and Sunday. There’s limited media access, but I’ll be updating some of the goings-ons via Twitter}
Back in late May, Mike Miller professed his ‘man-crush’ on LeBron James via Twitter. When coming across this sometime in early September, I thought, ‘okay, let’s give this guy the benefit of the doubt.’ For one, his proclamation occurred way before he joined the Wizards. And let’s be honest, despite my hatred of LeBron, the guy is a damn fine basketball player.
Unfortunately, Miller just doesn’t seem to know any better. It’s kinda like the greasy-faced tween-age boys who have crushes on Megan Fox. Grown men know better. Sure, most so-called grown men wouldn’t kick Fox out the bed, i.e., wouldn’t mind LeBron James on their team. However, neither of these happen without compromising personal beliefs (and cheating on whomever you’re with/your team … especially if you’re a Wizards fans, but a distaste for LeBron is growing around the league).
My point: LeBron getting “Chosen One” tattooed on his back is just as douchey as Fox getting Marilyn Monroe tattooed on her forearm. (Cavs fans, I know you’re wondering, where does getting Abe Lincoln’s face tattooed on the front of your neck fit in? I’m not sure, and I won’t even begin to explain.)
Media day was the first time I’ve been around Andray Blatche in a public setting. From what I’ve gathered in the past, he’s not exactly a juicy quote machine. On Monday, he pretty much lived up to that expectation.
“Consistent” was Andray’s choice word of the day, repeating it several times, and mostly in reference to his jump shot. I found this to be a bit curious. In my evaluation of Blatche, I outlined how I’d rather him take less jumpers (or at least avoid ill-advised/forced ones).
If he can hit them, great/splendid/wonderful. Everyone likes a big man who can spread the floor. I just would have been more comfortable had Andray mentioned rebounding and defense as priorities.
The media knew Gilbert Arenas was going to be first up to bat at media day, so they picked their spots and waited. When Arenas arrived with a full ‘mean-mug’ on his face, the rugby scrum for question asking and comment hearing positioning began.
Arenas started with a serious nature and short answers, but eventually opened up and talked about a wide range of subjects. Here’s the run-down:
When: Tues., May 21 - 7:30 pm
Where: Lou's City Bar - Columbia Heights, D.C.
Across The ESPN TrueHoop Network