Quietly, rookie Shelvin Mack is one of the few positives in another lost Wizards season in terms of wins and losses. Just about every day, Mack writes into his Twitter account, @ShelvinMack, ”Think Positive…….” So to not let something good go unnoticed, let’s talk about Mr. Mack for a second.

Thus far this NBA season, 34 rookies have played at least 100 total minutes. Mack’s PER (Player Efficiency Rating) stands at 15.1, which is slightly above the league average of 15. For a rook, however, this is better than average. His PER ranks eighth best amongst the list of 34 rookies (via Basketball-Reference.com). Here’s the top 10:

1. Kyrie Irving – 21.5
2. MarShon Brooks – 19.5
3. Nikola Vucevic – 18.1
4. Jon Leuer – 17.6
5. Ricky Rubio – 17.6
6. Enes Kanter – 16.9
7. Kemba Walker – 15.4
8. Shelvin Mack – 15.1
9. Tobias Harris – 14.9
10. Kawhi Leonard – 14.9

To note, Chris Singleton has a PER of 10.0 (ranked 26th) and Jan Vesely has a PER of 6.4 (ranked 32) — no reason to be down on Washington’s first rounders in comparison to their second rounder, however.

Read more »

An unusual post-game locker room indeed, after a big 105-102 Washington Wizards win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night at the Verizon Center. It was a release of coping amongst players relieved to exhale their goofiness, or at least some smiles in front of media pixel vultures. There was talk of swagger, trust, playing with no fear, and giving people the ball when they’re open. Nick Young enjoyed the sounds of ‘swish’ as much as lauding in the fact that Kevin Durant put up an airball against his defense.

It was doing the little things, the young Wizards realized. But John Wall, without hesitation, pointed out that they were still 2-12. And the much-maligned Andray Blatche? His message was simple: “I’m still here,” (why? stay tuned for part two) as he jokingly patted himself on the shoulder/back for hitting a 30-foot three-pointer at the third quarter buzzer to bring the Wizards within four points going into the final stanza.

The Wizards said WHAT? This is what they said… Pt. 1 featuring Flip Saunders, John Wall, Nick Young, Andray Blatche, Jordan Crawford, JaVale McGee and Roger Mason…

[The DC Council -- After each Wizards game: setting the scene, rating the starters, assessing the bench, providing the analysis, and catching anything that you may have missed. Unlike the real DC Council, everything here is over the table. Game 12 contributors: Adam McGinnis and Kyle Weidie with first-hand coverage and John Converse Townsend from watching on T.V.]

Score

Read more »

[The DC Council -- After each Wizards game: setting the scene, rating the starters, assessing the bench, providing the analysis, and catching anything that you may have missed. Unlike the real DC Council, everything here is over the table. Game 4 contributors: Adam McGinnis and John Converse Townsend who covered the game at the Verizon Center, and Sam Permutt, who watched the game all the way from Israel.]

Score

Read more »

Merry/happy time of the year for whatever it is that you and friends/family enjoy celebrating/taking part in. Hope all of that is going well. What you will see in this Christmas Day post is scenes from scrimmaging at Wizards practice on Thursday, December 22. Prepare yourself, fans of the team, for an ugly start to the season as a young team looks to progress toward improvement in uncertain times, i.e., enjoy!

What You Will See:

The Wizards making extra passes in the early offense — even JaVale McGee passing out of the post, go figure (I imagine this happens because McGee knows a double team is coming) — and Jordan Crawford ultimately finding Mo Evans in the corner for a jumper.

Read more »

Now that NBA the season is upon us, the most oft-considered repercussion of the compacted schedule has been for whom is it an advantage. Fresh legs? Sharp minds? Old teams?

On media day Flip Saunders was asked if a youthful team brings any benefits to a scrambled environment in the aftermath of the 2011 lockout. ”I think if you have youth, you’re going to say yes, and if you have veterans, you’re going to say yes,” he said, implying that you can cook the perspective to whatever degree you like.

As with any NBA season, normal length or not, if a team is hit with the injury bug too harshly or with bad timing, it can significantly affect results. With a slate of 66 games in just 122 days, injuries are now more likely. Neither young nor old are immune. Sure, less aged muscles can recuperate faster, but those benefits are not as effective without proper time to recover.

“We just have to make sure that they can get the proper rest when they’re not playing,” said Saunders, “and so that’s going to be a main focus of what we’ll try to do too.”

“We got to really listen in and focus in on film session and listen to what the coaches are saying because there’s not going to be a lot of time to practice on the floor,” said Rashard Lewis, a veteran of the last NBA lockout, the shortened season afterward being his 1998-99 rookie campaign with the Seattle Supersonics.

Read more »

[Editor's Note: Truth About It.net is trying something new with its game coverage this season. Of course, we will be honing this series as we go along, but here's the gist: relevant pre- and post-game quotes/analysis from those in attendance covering the game (last night it was Rashad Mobley and Adam McGinnis); D.C flag 3-star ratings for the Wizards starters and bench from three people able to watch the game (live or on television -- we will keep a running tally on the ratings); thoughts on the environment and slept-on moments; and finally, fan tweets, scenes from the game, and anything else that would be fitting to include in "The Rundown" (which totally might not be the final name of this series, especially since it's also the name of a movie featuring "The Rock" and Seann William Scott... and Rosaio Dawson, don't want to forget her). In any case, here goes... -Kyle W.]

Score

Washington Wizards 78 – Philadelphia 76ers 103 [box score]

Quick STAT: The Wizards had 20 turnovers and 10 assists; John Wall: 6 TO, 3 AST
Read more »

Andray Blatche pounded his chest as he strutted off the practice court at training camp Wednesday evening, mean mugging and dripping with sweat.

“That’s one, that’s one, Dray,” shouted assistant coach Gene Banks from under one of the main baskets. “You’ve got one more!”

Banks was overseeing a heavyweight battle between Blatche and second-year bruiser Kevin Seraphin, and tried to persuade him to run it back for a best-of-three series. Blatche, unconvinced, waved a flippant hand in the direction of his coach before proclaiming, “I won. I just won. Gosh!”

Read more »

Read more »

“I’m a better player than the last time I was here, that’s for sure,” proclaimed Roger Mason Jr. on Monday night, after the fourth day of Washington Wizards training camp. Furthermore, he said, “I’m a better player than I was in San Antonio.”

At least this is what the Wizards are hoping for, but to what degree remains to be seen. Regardless of his chances to show himself as a player, Mason knows the role he signed up for in his return stint with Washington.

“My role is just to share some of the knowledge that I’ve learned,” said Mason. ”Learning from guys like Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili, you know, pros… being with Amar’e Stoudemire. Those are things that I can bring to Andray Blatche, to let him know how Tim Duncan prepares for games. To let John Wall know how Tony Parker prepares for games. They won championships. So my role now is to come here and teach these guys what champions do.”

Read more »