Once, when asked about what his team would look like in the coming season, whether it would be more offensively minded, and how it would keep up the intensity on the defensive end, Flip Saunders said:

Well, defensively, the team always takes the personality of their players. The players we have here … are very defensive oriented. The strength of this team from a defensive aspect – how hard they play and how aggressively they play won’t change. What will change is the changing defenses we’ll use, being able to change the tempo of the game will full-court pressure, half-court traps and defenses. Offensively, like our defense, we will always stay aggressive. I always want my teams to attack, and so we will look to push the ball more and score more out of our fast break.

And on whether he would try to evolve a player into a superstar or continue with the teamwork mentality:

In Minnesota, even though we had a great player in Garnett, the team was built on team play. I look for this team to continue that. This team will move the basketball, become a high-assist, low-turnover team playing a very aggressive style.

This was in the summer of 2005, before Saunders’ Detroit Pistons finished with the best record in the NBA at 64-18, and before they lost to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals.

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A D.C. pic and some links …

[500 block of Florida Avenue NW - Washington, D.C. - K. Weidie]

This year, according to the flier below, Dray will be appearing in uniform, along with Lil’ Dray (wearing backwards red cap to the lower left), and several others, many of whom are listed on the promotional material. E. Taylor, Taz Wube, Rashad Jenkins, Serge Sejour, Todd Hamilton, DJ Quicksilva and Rara The Party Starter … they’ll all be there.

[via eVIPlist.com]

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[Thinking on 14th Street south of Thomas Circle, Washington, D.C.]

Who do you leave off the roster? A poll.

After the signing of Josh Howard, the Wizards’ “officially signed” roster has been pushed to 12: John Wall, Gilbert Arenas, Kirk Hinrich, Nick Young, Howard, Al Thornton, Andray Blatche, Yi Jianlian, Trevor Booker, Kevin Seraphin, Hilton Armstrong and JaVale McGee. So, there are three spots left with at least four potential names to fill them (that is if Ernie Grunfeld decides to have a full roster of 15 right now).

First, there is Cartier Martin, to whom the Wizards have extended a qualifying offer of $1,029,389, according to Sham Sports, making Martin a restricted free-agent.

Then there’s James Singleton, whose rights the Wizards had to renounce to sign Howard, but the Washington Post’s Michael Lee reports that the team is still interested in Singleton or Fabricio Oberto.

Next there’s a position that could potentially be filled by a point guard … Lester Hudson anyone? Hudson has reportedly been invited to training camp, but will Grunfeld rather have another combo guard or a more traditional point? (Delonte West is now available BTW)

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Hamady N’diaye only played eight minutes, 37 seconds in his Summer League debut with the Washington Wizards. He barely made an impression on the box score. He took one shot, missed it, had one rebound and one turnover. “H” almost had a sweet dunk, but got excited and traveled. He also got a 3-second defensive lane violation called on him.

Most would look at the box and think “Yuck, but that’s a late second round pick (No. 56 to be exact) for ya.” So why do I like Hamady so much? Let me explain.

No, N’diaye didn’t ‘wow’ me yesterday. And it’s just one Summer League game on his long journey to become a contributor on the court. But if my observations are true, Hamady has a solid foundation constructed in just over six short years of playing competitive basketball.

First, as much as I bragged about John Wall’s communication, I should do the same with N’diaye. I’m willing to bet that four years spent at Rutgers, where he acquired a degree in communications, helped him hone his verbal skills. He knows that it’s the center’s job to be that defensive anchor, to see what his teammates might not see and to let them know.

“That’s natural to me. I want to talk and make sure everyone follows the example,” said N’diaye after Sunday’s game. “That’s the one thing I can do is really play defense and one thing defense is you gotta talk. If I start talking I know the rest of my teammates are going to follow and I want to make sure I’m the loudest on the court.”

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Sneaker heads, this post is for you … what the Wizards Vegas Summer League players wore for their debut.

JaVale McGee

John Wall

Sun Yue

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Why should you care about the 56th pick? These guys rarely make NBA teams, right?

Not this year, not with the Wizards.

And regardless, you should be intrigued by Hamady N’diaye, the man who is simply known as “H” wherever he goes. It’s easy to see what attracted the Wizards to N’diaye, he exemplifies Ted Leonsis’ “Business of Happiness” philosophy.

Growing up in Senegal, N’diaye didn’t find basketball as a serious outlet until around age 15, mostly playing soccer when he was young like Solomon Alabi and others from the African continent. But with height as a natural tool (he now measures 6’10.5″ without shoes with a 7’6″ wingspan — Saunders says he can touch about 12’7″ on the backboard), N’diaye saw an opportunity and jumped on it. He left his family and came to the U.S. at 16, by himself and speaking very little English, to pursue a career in basketball.

Going from the Life Center Academy in New Jersey, then to Florida Prep, where he and a couple friends/teammates from his home country had to literally escape from poor conditions in the middle of the night, and finally ending up at Stoneridge Prep in California, you could easily call making it to the NBA a long shot for N’diaye.

Four years of basketball conditioning at Rutgers later, where he leaves as the school’s all-time leader in blocked shots (his 4.5 per game average was third highest in the nation last season) and reigning Big East Defensive Player of the Year, N’diaye finds himself a member of the Washington Wizards — six total years of competitive basketball experience and counting.

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The pre-draft workout interview of Omar Samhan has been covered … time to get to the rest.

Below is a video montage of interviews featuring Damian Hollis (George Washington), Dominique Jones (South Florida), Landon Milbourne (Maryland) and Donald Sloan (Texas A&M) along with some clips of the players working out. I had to leave before Hamady N’Diaye (Rutgers) was made available. Enjoy.

{videos of these guys dunking in college}

>>Donald Sloan against Baylor

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