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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The Wizards have shown the ability to bounce-back this season, at least on their home court. And that’s exactly what they did on Easter Sunday, providing a solid showing against a decent Raptors team in a 109-92 win. Washington tied the all-time series with Toronto at 33 games apiece and moved to 22-18 with a healthy John Wall. Below, Randy Wittman talks about what he called one of Wall’s “better all-around games,” and then I provide the game reaction (also submitted to ESPN’s Daily Dime).

M.V.P.

Wall finished with 18 points, 10 assists and merely a single turnover. He set the tone from the tap and played the measured point guard people want to see more consistently. Acknowledging that Wall did score a career-high 47 points a week ago, Wittman called the effort against Toronto one of Wall’s “better all-around games.”

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You’ve got this whole Wizards rebuilding project. Talk about angst. Are we in year three? Who knows. Has the can been kicked down a road of hope? Ted Leonsis has kept his kicking, and blogging, shoes on. In any case, the Wizards, clearly another lottery team, aren’t “rebuilt” just yet. Still on the schedule: another summer of, ‘Hey, we really mean it this time… playoffs.’

What about that draft lottery? An abundance of perpetual angst exists in Wizards Nation. And the Wizards and the draft lottery will tango once again; mark your calendars: Tuesday, May 21, 2013. In a supposed weak draft with somewhat of a core in place already, Ernie Grunfeld can probably leave his trusty gold coin at home. Winning the lottery is less relevant for the Wizards, especially considering how on Friday morning they had the third-worst record in the NBA. Now, they are eighth-worst and are less than 2.5 games out from 11th-worst (or 19th-best, depending on how you look at it). Nevertheless, there will be plenty of anxiety, perhaps some good, when the lottery balls drop in May while other teams are experiencing the post-season. [Worth mentioning: the Wizards currently have a 4.9% chance of winning the lottery.]

But what currently causes the most angst amongst Wizards fans? Martell Webster and the forthcoming decision — Webster’s free agency. The Wizards took a chance this summer by signing Webster to a one-year contract at the rate of $1.75 million. At the time, they had no clue it would end up like this. Now, Webster is one of the best 3-point shooters in the NBA. And so much more, especially to his teammates, as evidenced by the above video. On Saturday night, Webster tossed in 7-of-10 3-pointers and scored a career-high 34 points, also becoming the first Wizard with a 30-point game this season.

The question at hand: What will Webster be worth on the open market? And, as he continues to play up his value, can the Wizards afford to keep him?

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Well, if it weren’t for the name “Wizards,” we would have never been exposed to the unveiling of Martell Webster “unveiling the Wizard.” But Ted Leonsis should still change the name of the team. Confused? Let me explain.

Early in the fourth quarter during Friday night’s win over the New Orleans Hornets, with the Wizards holding a 74-66 lead, Garrett Temple inbounded the ball and the team went through their offensive set. New Orleans, at times over the course of the night, ran trick double teams and traps against Washington. On this possession, they double-teamed Temple on the sideline coming off a high screen, then they doubled Kevin Seraphin with the ball in the post. No big surprise, except for who doubled him. As part of the scheme, Roger Mason Jr. left Martell Webster at the top of the key to go double Seraphin. Another Hornet was supposed to rotate faster, but still, it’s Martell Webster. Why leave him in the first place? Sure, it’s still Kevin Seraphin, but to everyone’s surprise–a theme on the night–Seraphin was a willing passer, was aware of the double, and kicked it out to Webster.

Webster missed the wide open shot. But Seraphin, using that big body of his, inched the smaller Lance Thomas (6-foot-8, 225) out the way, and Seraphin, along with Trevor Booker, kept the rebound alive. Seraphin’s tip-out ended right back in Webster’s hands.

He crashed, jumped and fought for the loose ball, and in a fluid motion, Webster spun in the lane, took one dribble, and threw down a two-handed dunk. He then beat on his chest like Tarzan, let out a yell, crossed his arms, and mimed ripping something off of his chest. After the game, Webster called the move “Unveiling the Wizard.”

Whatever/In any case… let’s first see what the DC Sports Nexus has to offer, and then hear Webster ham for the cam about his move after the game:

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The Wizards put a two-game losing streak to bed by managing to defeat a Nick Young-less Philadelphia 76ers squad, 90-87, despite a late surge fueled by Jrue Holiday. But, Washington didn’t escape without damage. Rookie Bradley Beal went down with an ankle sprain with just over two minutes left and did not return. He is likely to miss some time, but how much has yet to-be-determined. The injury, or at least the sight of Beal crumbled on the floor in the aftermath, left Wizards nation and the immediacy of Twitter gasping for breath — some quickly speculated that the issue was with his knee. After the game, Beal admitted that he initially thought it was worse than it was, but said that x-rays showed no significant damage to his ankle. He walked on crutches in the locker room; from my perspective, there didn’t look to be too much swelling.

Below, we have Randy Wittman’s post-game opener, my ESPN.com “Daily Dime Live” reaction submission, and then a video of Beal talking about his ankle injury.

Post-Game Randy

[Spoiler Alert: Wittman talks about laptops again.]

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One thing that struck me about Bradley Beal’s shooting zone chart for games 21-50 that I included at the bottom of the previous post was the relatively even distribution in attempts per location. Now, he’s certainly better from certain spots — 12.1 percent better on 3-pointers from the left corner versus the right; 32.3 percent better on above the break 3s from the right side as opposed to the left (even though he’s attempted 14 more on the left side). It’s especially interesting to go back to that post and compare Beal’s game 21-50 chart to those of Eric Gordon, Dwyane Wade and Ray Allen to get a feel about the player each was when they got into the league (and to a certain extent, still are).

Below I’ve re-posted Beal’s shooting zone chart for games 21-50, and below that, Beal’s chart for games 1-20. After that, we have a video of Beal talking about the progression of his jump shot — he says he’s now getting more lift. Given that Beal’s Effective Field Goal Percentage (eFG%) has gone from 42.1 percent over his first 20 games to 49.8 percent over games 21-50, that is certainly evident.

Bradley Beal: Games 21-50

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“[Bradley Beal] is very talented. … He can play without the ball, he can put alot of pressure on the defense and he can shoot it. He is the future of the NBA.” —Jason Kidd.

[video below / quote via TAI's Adam McGinnis]

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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. 57, Washington Wizards vs New York Knicks; contributors: Adam McGinnis and Kyle Weidie from the Verizon Center and John Converse Townsend from where he watches television in comfort.]

It’s Randy. Hard to blame the coach for turnovers and missed free throws, especially in the land of tiny laptops.

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Jose Calderon played flawless basketball for the first 47 minutes and 17 seconds of Detroit’s game against Washington. He had just six points on 2-of-6 shooting, but he dished out 18 assists–nine in the third quarter when the Pistons went from down nine points to up 12. Up to that point, Calderon had not turned the ball over, and he hadn’t committed any personal fouls. His only focus was on getting good shots for Brandon Knight and Greg Monroe (the duo accounted for 13 of Calderon’s assists).

With 43 seconds left in the game, Trevor Ariza hit a 3-pointer to bring the Wizards within six points of the Pistons, 96-90, and on the next possession, Calderon committed his first turnover of the game via an offensive foul. Coach Lawrence Frank immediately called timeout, and when play resumed, Calderon turned the ball over for a second consecutive time when he lost the ball off the dribble. Ariza grabbed the errant pass and was headed down the court for an easy layup, until Will Bynum committed a clear path foul. Ariza converted the two free throws, and the Wizards pulled to within 95-96 with 12.3 seconds left–with the ball. Here’s what happened next:

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Twenty-eight percent of 3-pointers taken in the NBA are from the corner, and they go in the basket 3.6 percent more than above the break 3-pointers. The Washington Wizards, with John Wall, are the best shooting team in the league from the corner. This is significant.

[Wizards 3-Pointers in 2012-13 before John Wall.]

[Wizards 3-Pointers in 2012-13 WITH John Wall.]

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