In brief, a history of the Washington Wizards in the so-called “John Wall era.” At length, an exposition of the team’s front office and why the time for change is now.

“Point guards are not made, they’re delivered from heaven—and I believe he was delivered from heaven,” Flip Saunders said on “John Wall Day.” That’s what then-Washington, D.C. mayor Adrian Fenty dubbed the day after the NBA Draft when Wall was chosen first overall—June 25, 2010. Team brass wasted no time in welcoming highly-touted rookie to the city. Wall, who one day earlier signed a shoe deal with Reebok, was treated to door-to-Verizon Center limo service, red carpets, and had his mug posted on a billboard outside the arena. He even received an officially endorsed nickname, “The Game Changer.”

The Rebuild, Year One

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[This is Part Two of a two-part post on Washington Wizards team president Ernie Grunfeld looking back at his almost 25-year tenure making player personnel decisions in the National Basketball Association. Part One can be read here.]

[...continued from Part One...]

>>Damage in the District

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[Ed. Note: This is the 'official' TAI debut of Conor Dirks, longtime Wizards fan, Maryland transplant in the ATL. Follow him on Twitter: @ConorDDirks. -Kyle W.]

A pensive Ernie Grunfeld prepares to “explain.” Please allow him to do so.

In the last 10 years, the Wizards have had exactly one general manager, former NBA player Ernest Grunfeld. During Ernie’s tenure, the Wizards have amassed 475 losses, which is good for the second-most losses (tonight’s opponent, Minnesota, has the most) and third-worst winning percentage in the NBA over the last 10 years. The reason for the discrepancy between total losses and percentage is appropriately sad: the Charlotte Bobcats didn’t exist during Grunfeld’s first year with Washington.

It would be irresponsible to hold one individual wholly accountable for the failure of an organization with so many moving parts. However, after the trade of Jordan Crawford, and a recent history riddled with failed player development, it’s appropriate to try to ascertain what has gone wrong.

Bad draft picks and failed draft picks are not one and the same. Many of Ernie Grunfeld’s draft-day acquisitions have gone on to play significant roles in the NBA. However, the Wizards under Ernie Grunfeld have shown a complete lack of ability to develop and retain valuable players. Washington has also, during Grunfeld’s tenure, become notorious for dysfunction. This dysfunction isn’t endemic to D.C.’s team (see: Sacramento Kings), but the Verizon Center might be its headquarters. Read more »

When Washington began the 2012-13 season by cratering to a franchise record in futility, the main focus of fan fury was thrust upon Team President Ernie Grunfeld and Monumental Sports & Entertainment’s CEO Ted Leonsis. Grunfeld’s litany of basketball management mistakes are well documented (see the 2009 and 2011 Wiz drafts for further reference), and his continued presence in the organization has left some analysts scratching their heads—and calling for change. Only Andray Blatche is slightly more unpopular than Grunfeld amongst Wizards faithful.

The goodwill and patience Leonsis earned when he took control of team in spring of 2010 has gradually subsided. His shifting plans to rebuild the Wizards appear to be marketing speak that are void of concrete results. Questions continue to swirl around his ability to build a winning basketball foundation.

Blunders of his stewardship include unnecessarily extending Blatche’s contract, believing that a core of JaVale McGee, Nick Young and Blatche would produce wins, taking on Nene’s hefty contract despite an injury-prone past, allowing Nene to play in the Olympics with a bum foot, and squandering salary cap flexibility by acquiring the large deals of two declining players—Trevor Ariza and Emeka Okafor—instead of just buying-out Rashard Lewis. In the eyes of the Wizards fan base, the most egregious decisions were renewing the contract of the maligned Grunfeld and his alleged passing up on trading for James Harden.

Leonsis’ reported role in pushing for both NBA and NHL work stoppages only fuel negative perceptions. The constant rosy blogging alongside the Wizards’ incompetent play just agitates his customers and makes you wonder what he is trying to accomplish with such an unsavory approach. His mocking tone makes him look out of touch to what is happening around him. His latest offering is to brag about the team being 5-5 over their last 10 games and how awesome this is because only six teams in the Eastern Conference have accomplished such a feat. As you might note, the Wizards have yet to reach double digits in wins on January 25th and the owner’s  “bad by design” has now morphed into describing the wonders of aspiring to mediocrity.

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D.C. residents cheered when three new escalators opened at the south entrance of the Dupont Circle Metro Station in October 2012. The Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority (WMATA) closed the southern entrance for repairs for nearly nine months, but the wait was worth it, in theory. WMATA had decided to strip the entrance and rebuild from scratch this past summer, finally doing away with some of the least reliable escalators in the system.

New “transit-grade” escalators promised a better commute—to “unsuck” D.C. Metro—in one of the city’s busiest, and deepest, subway stations. In reality, Metro and its faithfully frustrated riders were forced to deal with 20 outages in the first 40 days after the grand reopening.

Construction is a constant in the nation’s capital, but, for one reason or another, it never seems to go according to plan. Just ask any Wizards fan who is still waiting for their team to climb out of the gutter.

Supporters of D.C.’s pro basketball team have suffered through nearly 200 losses and some of the worst basketball the Association has ever seen for almost five seasons now. We all know about owner Ted Leonsis’ blueprint for rebuilding his Washington Wizards: stay financially flexible, sign free agents and develop supposedly talented prospect. And, perhaps, trade some of said prospects for major players when the opportunities arise.

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photo: K. Weidie

More than ever, media surrounding a professional sports team is a battle waged with pixels. Even winning franchises must deal with damage control, getting out feel-good messages about players, feeding the machine. But for teams like the Wizards, the task is even tougher.

Nothing looks good about this season, and fan frustration with team management is quickly coming to a head. Only one NBA team has accrued more losses over the reign of Ernie Grunfeld in Washington (since 2003, 458 and counting): the Minnesota Timberwolves (462). The T-Wolves, propelled by woulda/coulda/shoulda-been Wizards draft pick Ricky Rubio, beat the Oklahoma City Thunder last night—the team that everyone wants to be like. And the Houston Rockets, who managed to turn their roster over faster and more efficiently than the Wizards, are the surprise story of this NBA season.

Meanwhile, the Wizards are 3-20. Sure, there are a plethora of legitimate excuses—injuries (as always), youth, roster turnover, owner turnover, the list goes on…

And so it’s the thankless, unenviable job of team-fueled media—from television to radio to the owner’s blog—to pump out the positive pixels of puffery surrounding such a dead-in-the-water team. Somebody has to combat the cold, cruel vitriol—sometimes fueled by facts, sometimes fueled by fatigue, sometimes fueled by friggin’, frackin’ emotions in that people just want to be able to enjoy the basketball being played by their hometown professional team.

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Ultimately, it is what it is — Mike Miller style. What will be with the Washington Wizards will be. Until there are signs that that franchise is truly turning around, those who question “the plan” are obtuse outsiders without context. At least it seems this way, sometimes, as mistakes accrue and ownership looks to provide massaged reasoning via blog pixels.

It won’t be easy is a mantra, stay the well-intended course is the verse, and injuries are the narrative. It’s still hard to tell if something is direly amiss with the Ernie Grunfeld administration and how things are being evaluated in his second life. The track record barely needs mentioning to know how putrid it is. Now, the fires have been further inflamed by a reported trade that never happened.

The Washington Post‘s Michael Lee dropped a bombshell on Ted Leonsis’ pro basketball franchise on Tuesday evening, just as the Wizards were set to tip off against the Hornets in New Orleans. The quick gist is this tweet via @PostSports:

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Washington Wizards majority owner Ted Leonsis spoke with the media for over 30 minutes on Thursday evening from team’s training camp on the campus of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. TAI was there. Below is part two of all that (here is part one) — some stuff in video, some in text.

TED Leonsis On…

>> TED LEONSIS ON: SHOOTERS

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Washington Wizards majority owner Ted Leonsis spoke with the media for over 30 minutes on Thursday evening from team’s training camp on the campus of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. TAI was there. Below is part one of all that — some stuff in video, some in text.

TED Leonsis On…

>> TED LEONSIS ON: ROSTER TURNOVER

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After seven seasons, 7-Day ‘Dray is no longer a Washington Wizard, cast away by means of the amnesty provision on July 17. Some are still celebrating, some are still contemplating… the TAI crew of Adam McGinnis, Sean Fagan, Dan Diamond, Rashad Mobley, and Kyle Weidie take you through an FAQ on the official departure of Andray Blatche.

Q: When did Blatche’s time with the Wizards go south? And Why?

A: Adam McGinnis (@AdamMcGinnis)

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