Before Tuesday night’s thrilling OT victory over the 76ers, I gathered up comments from JaVale McGee, Andray Blatche, Hilton Armstrong, Cartier Martin, Trevor Booker and Al Thornton about the Thanksgiving Holiday. I asked the players what they were thankful for, what food they would serve at dinner, about their fondest memories of the holiday growing up and got them to provide a short greeting to the fans.

Since the team is in Atlanta for a game against the Hawks tonight, they will eat a meal together Thursday afternoon. Thornton, who hails from Georgia, will be able to spend some time with his family and friends.

Enjoy the video and everyone have a Happy Thanksgiving!

The Wiz-Grizz ‘Play of the Game’
comes courtesy of JaVale McGee.

The Washington Wizards found themselves ahead of the Memphis Grizzlies 82-79 with just over three minutes left in the fourth quarter.

The Wizards were on the offensive, but on this particular occasion, they faced a defense playing with a little more attitude. As the shot clock winded wound down — the Wiz just couldn’t find a good look at the basket — the ball found its way into the hands of JaVale McGee. About 20 feet from the basket. Passing the ball back to PG Kirk Hinrich (1) would have been too easy … so with about six seconds left on the shot clock, McGee decided it was “go time.”

McGee (5) tried to lose Zach Randolph (x4) with a hard crossover and a spin move. Z-Bo wouldn’t stand for this and punched the ball out. Mike “Million Dollar Man” Conley (x1) collected the loose ball and took off on the break.

Hinrich and Gilbert Arenas (2) got on their horses to cut off Conley, while Ovinton J’Anthony Mayo (x2) curled around Arenas to support the wing. McGee was in hot pursuit.

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Normally we’d break down a play that the Wizards ran for the ‘Play Of The Night’. But, as you know, last night’s loss to the Celtics wasn’t quite normal. Instead, we’ll break down a pretty intelligent deception play from Boston … and in the process, you’ll just happen to see the clueless ways of the Wizards magnified.

This one starts with Rajon Rondo (1) bringing the ball up the middle of the floor. Boston’s bigs, Kevin Garnett (4) and Shaquille O’Neal (5), are posted at the elbows, Paul Pierce (3) is on the right wing, elbow extended, and Ray Allen (2) is on the right block. Since this play took play early in the third quarter, the Wizards’ starters are in: Kirk Hinrich (1), Gilbert Arenas (2), Al Thornton (3), Andray Blatche (4), and JaVale McGee (5).

Out of this set, Rondo uses the pick of Garnett (which Hinrich naturally goes under) to free up space, vision and a passing lane from his position on the left side of the court. As Rondo is moving, Pierce drops just a bit lower from his position. Allen, and here’s the part you could call a deception, has his head and eyes only focused on the Garnett/Rondo action — hence, the guy defending Allen, Arenas, has his defensive horse-blinders on and is only focused in that same direction. In fact, the head of every Wizard is pretty much frozen in the direction of Rondo, including Pierce’s defender, Thornton.

As Garnett turns clockwise to open for a pop out jumper, Pierce starts to cut baseline. Thornton is aware of this cut, but he’s not aware of what’s about to happen, because neither is Arenas. Just after Pierce begins his cut, Allen suddenly turns to screen Thornton. By the time Arenas becomes aware, it’s too late to communicate. Allen sets a great screen on Thornton, who, if he was more aware, would have been able to turn his body in the right direction to trail Pierce. Instead, Thornton turns the wrong way and gets caught up on the screen. Arenas, clearly confused himself, is not in good position to help on Pierce and switch with Thornton. The Wizards are clearly pretty unaware of scouting report action items.

Rondo makes the pass to Pierce under the hoop with little resistance. JaVale McGee wasn’t much help here either. He had his head up observing the action, but was pretty much planted in no man’s land, unaware of the passing lane the Wizards completely opened up for Boston in this instance.

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On occasion, someone from Truth About It (usually Adam McGinnis or myself) is afforded the opportunity to sit on photographer’s row and capture the NBA game experience. One of those chances came last Friday when the Charlotte Bobcats came to town. Here are some select captures from that game.

Note sure if this is the epitome of something or just weird … but Kwame Brown, flexing his bicep, while on the injured reserve and barely in the NBA, with the Wizards logo looming in the background.

Kevin Seraphin talks with assistant coach Gene Banks before the game. Don’t take Kevin’s face to be a negative, he’s just a very expressive, goofy kid who is usually smiling otherwise. An interesting young character that Seraphin, sophomoric in every sense, yet a gentle giant who sets practice screens that make Kirk Hinrich cringe.

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Before Wizards-Rockets match-up last Wednesday, I informally polled a couple of the more veteran Wizards on A) who has been the toughest guy for them to defend during their time in the league, and B) who in the league sets some of the hardest, toughest screens. Here are their answers:

Al Thornton

Toughest Cover:

“Definitely Kobe, Tracy [McGrady] … a couple years ago, Vince [Carter], there are a lot of guys. Rip [Hamilton], Tayshaun [Prince] …”

I asked Al if any guy really stood out to him: Read more »

What’s that buzzing in your ear? Or rather, what ‘s that wondrous melodic tone?

That’s people singing the praises of John Wall, who achieved his first career triple-double, in front of Magic Johnson no less, and led his team to a 98-91 victory over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night.

Wall totaled 19 points, 13 assists, 10 rebounds, six steals and only one turnover, and perhaps Wizards fans should thank John Stockton for that, who was not in attendance at the Verizon Center for the game. Flip Saunders said he recently gave Wall a 45-minute tape of Stockton and that he’d been watching it over the past couple days.

“All he came back talking about was how John [Stockton] was so deliberate, and how he played more under control, and I think John [Wall] tried to make a more conscious effort to do that tonight,” said Saunders.

Wall certainly played his most controlled game as a pro, and that was reflected in the play of his entire team. Well, except for Gilbert Arenas (5 points, 3 assists, 2 turnovers, 1-7 FGs) and Kirk Hinrich (10 points, 3-9 FGs, 6 turnovers, 2 assists). Without much help from them, Wall showed he could maneuver the offense and carry his team without two-thirds of what’s been touted as one of the best backcourts in the NBA by team management.

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Michael Imperioli voice: That’s cool. John Wall just poured Yi a shot. What can your point guard do?… nuthin.

This here was my favorite play of the night because all five Wizards seemed to know where they were going and moved with purpose–not always a given. Hard screens were set, tears were shed, and Yi Jianlian drilled a 17 footer. The Wizards ran this out of a timeout midway through the second quarter in a sideline out of bounds situation.

1) The Wizards begin with Hinrich inbounding and Armstrong, Wall, Yi, and Thornton (who had a very nice game) standing in a line across the free throw-line-extended. Hinrich enters the ball to Wall who is coming off a perfunctory Armstrong screen, while Yi goes away from the space he wants to use by heading down to the block.

2) After freeing up Wall, Armstrong heads down to set a pick for Yi. Meanwhile, Thornton crosses through the middle of the court and Hinrich makes his way along the baseline. These two cuts are meant to clear out the middle of the court and occupy the potential help defenders as Yi comes up for a high screen and roll with Wall. Because Yi himself is coming off of a screen, his man is trailing more than he normally would, so he will be unavailable for a hard hedge on Wall. Instead, he’ll sluff off of both Yi and Wall to prevent penetration as any help is occupied by the Hinrich-Thornton crossing action.

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Slow steps and seconds guesses were the main themes from Saturday’s night home loss to an Antwan Jamison-less Cleveland Cavaliers. The Wizards let a very winnable game slip away as Anthony Parker, Daniel Gibson and Mo Williams all burried late key three pointers and Washington fell to 1-4 on the young season.

Coach Saunders regretted sitting a hot Al Thornton (23 points on 10-16 field-goals) for the final nine minutes of the game.

“I said to Al that I made a mistake….I question myself the last three minutes about not having Al in there.”

Flip went to the long anticipated three-guard lineup of John Wall, Kirk Hinrich and Gilbert Arenas for the fourth quarter. The trio led the Wizards to a 90-85 lead with five minutes to go in the game after Arenas fueled a 3-on-1 fast break that ended with a flush by Andray Blatche.

On the following Cavs possession, where Cleveland seemed to get away with a three-second call and a travel, JaVale McGee fouled J.J. Hickson on a shot attempt. Hickson made the first and missed the second. The very grabbable rebound caromed over McGee’s head into hands of Anderson Varejo, who then found Parker for a corner three ball. The four-point play kind of summed up the night.

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NBA players like their fashion. With so much disposable income, it’s only natural. So why not ask some of them about their favorite fashion items … and shoes, because it’s gotta be the shoes, especially what shoes they were into growing up.So, watch the video below if you want to find out …

• Which Wizard has a brand new pair of basketball shoes with his mom’s name on them. (He wore them for the first half on Tuesday, but then changed into his old shoes at halftime because he’s still breaking the mom pair in.)
• Whose mom bought him a pair of leopard skin Gucci shoes … that he hasn’t worn just quite yet.
• Which Wizard has a hat collection that’s 300 and counting.
• Who wore some skinny, tight Wrangler jeans back in the day when he was 13-years old … back in the day being 1996/97.
• Which Wizard calls his ‘Fruit of the Loom’ underwear his favorite clothing.

A run-down of Tuesday’s home opening win with pictures, links and video …

NOTE: Rashad Mobley and I will be taking turns writing a weekly column on the Wizards for the DCist. Check out the first one by me here.

Cartier Martin celebrates the win after the final buzzer in OT.

Prelude to a meeting in the paint …

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Tonight’s Play of the Game comes courtesy of Andray Blatche, for obvious reasons.

This play led to the two free throws that lifted the Washington Wizards to their first win of the season. But, but it was also a variation of a play that Flip Saunders had called a number of times tonight.

While the play gives Kirk Hinrich an option for an open mid-range jumper (or even a three-pointer) coming around an off-ball screen, it is designed to isolate Blatche in the post. Blatche is typically quicker and more agile than most power forwards, so the isolation situation offers the Wizards a great scoring opportunity.

The best part about this play was that instead of settling for a jump shot like he’s already done several times this season, Blatche took the ball to the hole. I guess he is finally ready to listen to his coaches and get his “big butt down [in the post].” Andray knows that he has to be more physical and be the Wizards’ low-post scoring option.

Blatche shared his new focus with Michael Lee after Monday’s practice:

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Much more solid effort from the Wizards, let’s run down some bullet points on the Wiz Kids.

• John Wall ran the show and set an early tone, getting five assists in the first quarter. He only got four assists for the rest of the game, coming short of a double-double with his 28 points. He really looked a lot more comfortable offensively, especially with his jump shot as the game progressed. It did not look deliberately nervous like against Orlando; he even hit a couple threes late in the game.More importantly, after starting 2-8 from the field, Wall hit us with a shot of cappuccino (what Ted Leonsis likened him too during an in-game recorded interview), and sparked his offense with 2:19 left in the third quarter. Including a free-throw Wall hit at the 3:01 mark in the third period , he scored the last 12 points of the quarter for the Wizards while Atlanta just scored six. The game was tied at 70 heading into the fourth.

  Because of Wall, the Wizards stayed competitive. They were out-talented by the Hawks in the end behind efforts from Joe Johnson (25 points, but on 10-23 shooting) and Al Horford (an incredibly efficient 21 points on 6-10 shooting and 9-10 from the free-throw line). But Wall did live up to the “Game Changer” moniker the Wizards dubbed him with after the draft. With his 28 points, Wall got nine assists, only three turnovers, and five rebounds. Maybe we should open the Rookie of the Year award back up.

• JaVale McGee stayed active, and that really needs to be what defines his game. He had a career-high seven blocks to go with seven points, eight rebounds, but five fouls and five turnovers. And I was just as curious as others as to why he wasn’t in at the end of the game to guard Al Horford instead of Yi Jianlian. However, it’s not like Yi did anything completely terrible (Horford hit a jumper in his face and went back door on him for a lob dunk in the last 2:19; Yi also sent him to the foul line with six seconds left) … Basically, McGee could have given up just as many points, but his length and athleticism can lead to more possessions.

  The amount of possessions, mostly defense, that McGee still gets lost on is terribly frustrating. Plus, he really struggles in his ability to set screens. He picked up several fouls (and turnovers) by getting called for moving picks.

• With Gilbert Arenas out and Kirk Hinrich forced to run the point, the Wizards’ offense really struggles. Some of this could be Hinrich, in that he’s not really an offensive threat (if he only was a more consistent shooter), and some of it could be what his teammates are doing. Point is, the team could really use the offensive threat of that Gilbert guy. Not to say that Hinrich won’t be running the point when Arenas is back playing and Wall is resting during a game, but you must wonder if the guy with the ball in his hands should be more of an offensive threat, and if Hinrich is best playing off of that.
• Al Thornton looked great … and a guy motivated to keep his starting job. I’ve questioned Thornton a lot leading up to the season, but if he continues to make hustle plays and find offense closer to the basket, he’s going to get significant run. And mostly because those are things guys like Nick Young seem incapable of. Thornton had 24 points on 10-15 field goals to go with seven rebounds, four offensive.
  Thornton took just four shots from beyond 16 feet and only made one of them. He made the two shots he took from 16 feet out. He took the remainder of his nine shots in the paint, making seven of them. Last year, 4.2 of Thornton’s nine field-goal attempts came from 16 feet and beyond.
• Andray Blatche put up some numbers, but often didn’t look great in the process. He had 18 points on 9-19 shooting and didn’t earn a single trip to the free-throw line. He managed just seven rebounds in 34 minutes of play and had four turnovers. When he did manage to get into the paint on offense, he mostly shot fade-away jumpers. Blatche tried to post up a couple of times, but his actions are too slow and he’s not strong with the ball. Facing up right now doesn’t always benefit Blatche because he’s so out of shape.

  Overall, his ultra-softness inside makes me really question whether the team should have signed him to an extension. John Wall may be the team’s savior … guess that would make Blatche like Angel Soft toilet paper. But for several more games, an unforeseen amount of time I supposes, we get to keep saying that Blatche is out of shape and that he’s “still young.” Great.

• In terms of Blatche’s buddy, Nick Young, more than not, he doesn’t seem to have much contribution to the game. If he’s not scoring (because we know he’s not passing … he seems completely incapable of seeing the flow of the game develop, such as with about seven minutes left in the second quarter when Yi Jianlian was in perfect position to receive a pass on the re-post, but Young put his head down, dribbled a couple times and jacked up a shot). Young went 0-2 from the field with a block and a turnover in 11 total minutes.
• Yi Jianlian had an okay game in that he hit some jumpers, but he only got one rebound in 24 minutes … pretty bad for the player I bragged could be the team’s best rebounder. You can tell he’s out there trying, and doesn’t look as lost as he’s been accused of in the past, but he’s also not the presence that one would hope a player of his size brings.

The Wizards are what we thought they were. They also showed a side that we didn’t imagine them to be. Or perhaps naively didn’t consider.

The goal over the summer was to get bigger, tougher … in comes Kevin Seraphin and Trevor Booker via the draft. Unfortunately, the rest of the front-line is much too frail. Of course, that was magnified by the juggernaut Magic, but frail in every sense nonetheless.

And it was evident that the team was short of shooters coming into the season, again, magnified without Gilbert Arenas for the opener. The following charts express long distance experience coming into 2010-11:

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{flickr/bestfor/richard}

When I was in junior high and behaved in a way that my father deemed incorrect or beneath his standards, he would banish me to my room.  He knew how much I loved watching sports (specifically basketball), and that if I were exiled to my television-less room, I’d be crestfallen, dejected and angry — and the first few times it happened, I was all those things and more.

Then one day I discovered the joys of talk radio, and I realized that listening to the Washington Bullets play-by-play was almost as exciting as watching the game on television.   I could create my own mental pictures, I could hear the players’ sneakers squeaking through the sub-standard radio speakers, and the announcers seemed to pay more attention to detail than the TV broadcasters.  I enjoyed the experience so much that even when I wasn’t punished, I’d watch the game on TV with the volume down while listening to the radio broadcast.  In fact, I was so smitten with the radio that I started using that technique to watch football as well.

Somewhere along the way I stopped listening to radio broadcasts during sporting events and just watched them on TV or via the Internet.  But last night, for the second time in two weeks, the Washington Wizards (with No. 1 pick John Wall on their roster) weren’t anywhere to be found on television or by streaming bootleg video on the Web.  To the radio I went …

The first time this happened, the Wizards took on the Cavaliers, and for a good quarter I tried to listen to the game intently.  But unlike when I was junior high, when I listened strictly for pleasure, trying to analyze a game with the intent of writing about it later was just too difficult.  I gave up after a quarter, watched on the gamecast/box score on the Internet, and promptly told my editor that no article (from me at least) would be forthcoming.

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A regular season chock full of meaningful games is ever so close. In fact, the last Wizards preseason game is tonight against the Pistons in Detroit Toledo, OH … and then we have to wait a whole eight days until Washington basketball opens the regular season in Orlando against the Magic on TNT on October 28.

Summer is a speck in the rear view mirror. But just before it’s set to disappear, I took the opportunity to ask several Wizards what was the most relaxing thing they did this past summer. Most seemed to enjoy the time they were able to spend with family. One particular Wizard got his heart broken and spent a lot of time watching movies about love. Just watch.

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