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Previously on Deep Thoughts:
Q1
You’d think that it’d get to the point where when Phil Chenier discusses ‘Keys to the Game’, he’d just say, “don’t lose” — but I guess that’d be lazy.
Tonight’s key: Mike James…yes, an NBA vagabond is our freaking key to the game.
8:43: Caron turnover trying to pass to Jamison….that was just a horrible angle…..basketball instinct diminishing.
7:32: I don’t understand how the Wizards can appear to be pointing and communicating, yet completely turn their back on Igoudala who gets a lob from Miller and dunks. 10-7 Sixers.
The party has been effing ruined. I missed the Wizards game last night and have yet to decide if I’ll watch it on DVR….although, it will be damn hard to resist reliving an 22 point “thriller.” I guess I could always look for more Andray Blatche crop dusting incidents. But now that he’s in street clothes, he might get all fancy on us.
Best in Show:
[Wizards Insider]
How bad was it? Consider that the Wiz reserves were outscored 50-14 by the Heat reserves. Bottom line: this Wizards team looks a lot like the Miami team that won only 15 games last season. Some of these young guys have potential but the gap in confidence and NBA ability we’re witnessing on a nightly basis is scary.
[Wizards Outlet]
There’s no other way to put it other than this is a bad Wizards team. Only 14 assists opposed to 18 turnovers that went for 26 Miami points? The Heat didn’t shoot well at all — just 39 percent — but they made 10 3-pointers and 19 of 22 free throws. That made the difference right there.
A couple weeks ago, Rob Mahoney of Upside and Motor released an NBA Archetype Hierarchy chart [click on the link to check out the full blog post and explanations]. Here is Rob’s actual chart:
So naturally, I wanted to categorize each Wizard in primary and secondary roles. But before I get to that, here’s a Rob’s chart with the archetypes the Wizards do not have grayed out (the Wiz obviously have neither an elite point guard nor a refined big man):
And now, a fancy graphic representing Wizards players and their primary and secondary archetypes:
If you don’t like graphics, here’s the listing:
Remember that video of various Washington Wizards talking about who would make the best President? (It looks like it’s since been removed from the internet.) Joking aside, most who eventually gave a serious answer went with Etan Thomas. Well, now we know why.
Ehh….we really already knew why….Etan is the Huffington Post’s “rebounder with a cause”, a stumper for Barack Obama, and “totally against war”…..basically, the guy is involved. Plus, he has dreads, they make him a politically active statement maker by default.
Flash forward to Wednesday night’s game in Atlanta…….I’m not sure what Oleksiy Pecherov said to Etan. Big Oily, by all accounts, is a silly dude….either that or anything he says with his Ukrainian accent is funny. Who knows, maybe Pech gave his best rendition of “Ukraine is game to you!?” But whatever it was, the American and the Euro shared an international chuckle.
So what does Etan do to return the favor of Big Oily’s gift of laughter? “Yo, bartender!” He turns around and not only orders a cold beverage for himself, but gets his new international buddy a drinky-poo as well. That, my friends, is a true diplomat.
Had on the Washington Wizards-Orlando Magic game as I was getting ready to go out on Saturday night. Thanks to my laggard adoption of DVR technology, I figured I could just watch it again later and hack out a game blog.
But as the walloping swelled, it became more and more evident that I’d never be watching the game again. And a game blog? You’ve got to be kidding, right?
I’m certainly distraught about the beginnings of this 09-09 season, but surprisingly, any anger I should have is subdued as if my drinks were being drugged.
The Washington Wizards, as proven last season, can manage to survive without Gilbert Arenas. They obviously had enough talent and depth, along with a coach who is able to make the necessary adjustments, to be a playoff caliber team in the Eastern Conference.
So, when the news of losing Arenas until 2009 hit, some where frustrated, but for the most part, Wizards fans did not press the panic button. However, now that Brendan Haywood is out, the absence of Arenas is compounded and the team outlook for ’08-’09 appears very bleak.
Not all is lost for the Wizards to possibly keep their head above water and hope for a timely recovery in the health department for a playoff push. But subtracting Haywood from the remainder sans Gilbert Arenas hurts the team more than losing Arenas by himself.
As I wrote in Haywood’s evaluation, during the course of last season, BTH displayed significant and noticeable improvement in the areas of maturity, hand strength, shooting ability, concentration and leadership. Aside from shooting percentage, it’s hard to measure those other intangibles. So, we much turn to stats to assist with the story of Brendan Haywood’s value to the Washington Wizards.
A new site, Basketball-Statistics.com, and blog, attempts to compile an all encompassing stat which incorporates a player’s value on offense and defense. You can read the explanation of ‘Composite Score’ here…..essentially, it combines a number of statistical measurements from other statisticians, along with various tweaks from the site’s creator, Jon Nichols. Nichols is the first to admit that Composite Score is a work in progress, as one can always find ways to tinker with a system. However, in its current version, the results pertaining to the Wizards, specifically Brendan Haywood, are interesting nonetheless.
I’ve been working on a piece about Eddie Jordan and his rotation size, specifically in comparison to the rest of the league and how it may or may not relate to team success in the NBA. The research is taking longer than I thought, so….spawned by a Slam Online blog entry today, I wanted to assess the Wizards role players for the upcoming season first.
In “Know Your Role,” John Krolik highlights five types of role players (plus Robert Horry) that every team wants. How do the Wizards stack up? Well, let’s see.
1. The Mistake-Free Backup Point
This one is easy….Antonio Daniels is even cited as an ideal example. AD is a leader who is willing to put his body on the line and the team first. In my player evaluation of Daniels, I cited negatives such as inability to shoot and defend. However, with Arenas back and Antonio going back to the bench, those inefficiencies will be somewhat masked in the bigger picture. The key theme is the steadying veteran presence Antonio provides as the point guard leader of a young second unit.
2. The Bona Fide Sniper
This is an big area of concern for me. Gilbert Arenas is the team sniper, but he’s no role player. Gone is last year’s sniper in Roger Mason, who will fill the role for the San Antonio Spurs. Sure, Nick Young will be expected to provide an offensive spark off the bench, but I’ve never been confident in his ability as a long distance threat. Are you telling me that the Wizards will look to Oleksiy Pecherov to be the unconscious jacker from deep? I sure hope not, and that’s assuming he’s not reporting for D-League duty during the upcoming season.
The 2007-2008 Washington Wizards player evaluations have begun on Bullets Forever. Second up to bat, Oleksiy Pecherov. My thoughts are below…..be sure and check out those of Prada and Jake the Snake as well.
Good ol’ Oleksiy Pecherov……the fun-loving Euro cut-up whom many have compared to Stewie from Family Guy. Personally, I like to think of O-Pech as the Ukrainian Balki Bartokomous…..a much more fitting, obliviously foolish, type of character than Stewie (although O-Pech and the youngest Griffin do favor each other in looks).
I think a player with Pecherov’s skills is necessary for the Wizards offensive style. You need a big man who can spread the floor and nail the long jumper off a pick-and-pop. Songaila currently fills this need, but Pecherov has more range.
I know many have clamored for Pecherov to get more time, sacrificing Songaila’s minutes…….let’s just calm down on that thought – or as Balki would say, “Don’t be ridiculous!” I admire Oleksiy’s lack of jump shot conscience, as killer instinct is always wanted. I also have been pleased with his aggression and desire in terms of rebounding.
However, as much as people talk about those who contribute positive intangibles which do not show up in the box score, there are those who bring unseen negative intangibles to the table. Right now, Pecherov lacks the strength to secure defensive rebounds, the lateral quickness to on-ball defend his man, and the basketball IQ to limit turnovers and make intelligent contributions to the system…..among other adverse traits.
Across The ESPN TrueHoop Network
