I’m not going to call the locker room scene after Washington’s second loss to Detroit in as many nights on Saturday interesting. It wasn’t exactly a sad place. It wasn’t exactly unique. I don’t know what it was. And I’m pretty sure the players don’t know either. But it was something.

Kevin Seraphin sat crouched on the floor, only in his game shorts, next to a seated and suited (and currently indefinitely injured) Trevor Booker at his locker. Cartier Martin, with an adjacent locker, seemed to be part of a trio rapping about the days problems with concern, wondering about a fractured locker room. In reality, and in all likelihood, basketball was probably the furthest topic from their discussions. Or maybe they were talking about waived teammates.

Shaun Livingston was already dressed and ready to exit by the time the media was allowed access to the Wizards’ locker room. Earl Barron was scrambling to gather his things. Minutes later, the news would surface that both had been cut. The Washington Post’s Michael Lee knew, evidently, as he chased Livingston around the corner for one last interview.

John Wall had already exited the locker room, in a suit that actually fits him (his suit game has really excelled during these injured times). Nene sat near his massive, standard post-game ice bucket, still in uniform, looking rather depressed (or embarrassed). Bradley Beal provided his prerequisite “first thank God and Jesus Christ for blessing me with this opportunity” before answering the first question posed by the press. (Nene eschewed giving God a shout-out before speaking on this particular night; normally, he does not.) Martell Webster looked weary and worn out, ready to appreciate two days off with his family. Jordan Crawford donned his shades full of steez before meeting the media—normally, this season, Crawford has made sure to remove his glasses before talking post-game. Not this night.

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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. 22, Washington Wizards vs Atlanta Hawks in D.C.; contributors: Rashad Mobley and Kyle Weidie from the Verizon Center.]

Wittmanisms. Read more »

As Washington’s dreary season slogs along, faithful followers of this 2-15 team should realize that no loss is a surprise anymore. Blowouts, overtime defeats, missed game-winners, unsuccessful comebacks, and so many—nay, too many—“moral victories.” Even the Wizards’ two wins caused discomfort throughout their conclusions. Personally, I expect the worst and then laugh at the absurdity of the outcomes to mask my disappointed sorrow.

Twitter hashtags #SoWizards and #BecauseWizards exist for a reason. And, somehow, the Wizards found yet another unique way to lose an NBA contest on Saturday night, falling to Golden State, 101-97. This squad continues to be stricken by late-game calamity.

Golden State’s Stephen Curry made two free throws to put Warriors up three points, 99-96, with eight seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. The Warriors then wisely fouled Wizards guard Bradley Beal on the floor before he was able to get a potential game-tying 3-point shot off. Randy Wittman acknowledged in post game presser that it was a wise strategy employed by the Warriors since Washington was out of timeouts. Beal was surprised by the foul, believing that he was in the act of shooting.

“I didn’t know they were going to foul. I thought he was going to let me shoot, but the ref called it. He said that he called it before I shot it. But I didn’t take another dribble, so I thought it was three shots. … It was a smart foul because you shoot two free throws.”

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Well, it’s no Eddie Jordan pro-style Princeton offense. Instead, it’s Gilbert Arenas aimlessly wandering around the 3-point arc on the basketball hardwood in China. Which, for some strange reason, I take pleasure in watching … while those peddling Amway products are essentially paying Arenas not to play for the Orlando Magic. It’s all very sad in a bloggable way. Hey, did you know that Arenas was the first blogging athlete? Well, he was.

The above video, in fact, comes from China. It’s Arenas’ November 24 debut with the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA), against Stephon Marbury, famed consumer of Vaseline, and the Beijing Ducks. Well, the first few minutes of Arenas’ debut—he pulled up with an injury not six minutes in. But there Gilbert is, wandering around the floor in blue, wearing uniform No. 0 (just like Andray Blatche of the Brooklyn Nets).

Long story short, the Sharks get down 10-2 while Arenas barely touches the ball. Then Arenas sinks a step-back, fadeaway 3-pointer at about the 6:35 mark of the above YouTube (the only shot he would end up attempting). Then Arenas gets injured via his groin, or hip flexor, or “intramuscular strain of the right thigh”—all of them probably apply, all of them are probably lost in translation—and leaves for the night, and the foreseeable future (around the 8:22 mark of the YouTube). And then the Sharks lost to the Ducks, 94-78.

The blog, Beijing Cream, relays this: Read more »

“We are going to shock the world.”

This was the answer Washington season ticket holder and Goodman League head honcho, Miles Rawls, said just moments before tip-off between the Wizards and Heat on Tuesday evening. I had asked the iconic D.C. hoops personality for his prediction of the matchup, one where the Wizards were 10.5-point underdogs and plus-475 payout on the money line.

Rawls was not the only one with confidence that the NBA’s current cellar dwellers could defeat the defending champs at the Verizon Center. Coach Randy Wittman delivered an inspirational message to his team before the game, and he discussed  it afterwards.

“They only people that really think you have a chance tonight is us here right in this room,” Wittman remembered telling his team in the locker room.

He then spoke directly to the media attending his press conference: “You guys don’t. The outside didn’t. I said we need to have a statement game, we haven’t had a statement game … what better of an opportunity to come play in front of the fans that we knew were going to be here and to beat this team. And they took it to heart.”

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[RGIII looks sad hugging LeBron James; Sam Cassell's head was there.]

Yep, he totally was. I know because I watched it on the T.V., and there he was, definitely in attendance. He just about sat in Randy Wittman’s lap thanks to courtside seats. Seats that Ted Leonsis sits in sometimes. But this time, RGIII was there. You’ve certainly heard about it via the Internets, via the Twitter, perhaps even via the Google.

Maybe RGIII saw a Wittman face (i.e., #WittmanFace). Maybe RGIII saw John Wall’s red pants. He definitely saw the Wizards beat the Heat, 105-101. That RGIII, what a guy.

RGIII also witnessed the below GIFery: a sweet block by Kevin Seraphin on LeBron James after some fancy dribbling. Did you know that RGIII was at the Wizards-Heat game?

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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. 14, Washington Wizards at New York Knicks; contributors: Kyle Weidie, Rashad Mobley and Adam McGinnis from behind the T.V.]

Discuss amongst yourselves. [via the Comcast SportsNet television feed, John Wall was giving Nene an earful, likely giving his overall assessment of the situation, toward the end of the blowout]

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While trying their best to win against the Blazers on Wednesday night, the Wizards were also trying their best to lose. That’s just the way it is with this team. A negative? Washington, after getting up 15 points in the fourth quarter, didn’t score a basket over a span of almost seven minutes as the Blazers made a 16-0 run to steal the lead, 80-79. The positives? Randy Wittman adjusted and the Wizards didn’t concede victory.

Here’s the coach talking about his main adjustment: putting Chris Singleton back in the game to guard LaMarcus Aldridge in an effort to minimize a “bad matchup” in the pick-and-roll when a bigger, slower Wizard was checking the Blazers All-Star.

But also… Why on EARTH did Singleton snag a defensive rebound, when the Wizards were up 84-82, and call a timeout with 0.5 seconds left? The “hero ball” we speak of in the title of this post is not the standard “hero ball” you’ve come to expect from the Wizards—the likes of Nick Young or Jordan Crawford taking a contested fadeaway on a one-pass possession with 17 seconds left on the shot clock. But this move could’ve thrown the hero defense by Singleton that was lauded by Wittman into the belly of the goat. Because Wizards.

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“We just broke through the ice. That ice was about—I’ve lived in Minnesota for 15, 17 years—that ice was four to five feet deep, but it’s broken through now.”
—Randy Wittman

You break through the ice, you can breathe. Now the Wizards need to learn how to swim. Every player knows how close they came to blowing that game against Portland, but they won. Now they don’t have to focus on that zero in the win column. Hopefully they can more focus on basketball. These are your Wednesday night winners after breaking through the ice… Jordan Crawford, Bradley Beal, Nene, Martell Webster, Trevor Ariza, Emeka Okafor, Chris Singleton, and Randy Wittman, head coach.

The Wizards Said WHAT?

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[A John Wall jumper, original picture via the Internets.]

Welcome to the big leagues, Junior. Wall may have been the sixth-fastest player in NBA history to 2,000 points and 1,000 assists, but he’s not a top shelf NBA product. Not yet. ESPN’s NBA Rank project, which I participated in this season (here’s the full list of voters), ranked Wall as the 55th best player in the Association. He came in at No. 40 after after his rookie season.

Wall isn’t the fastest player, either. Not according to the 11th annual, and always entertaining, GM Survey on NBA.com. The survey asks every general manager (or team president) in the league to respond to 57 questions about the best teams, players, coaches, etc. GM’s are not allowed to vote for their own team or personnel.

Which player is the fastest with the ball?

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