Foxhall Rd & Q St. NW DC – photo: K. Weidie

Forgive D.C. sports fans for seeming gloomy – for feeling like there’s a dark cloud hanging over their heads.

Ok, maybe that’s just Hurricane Sandy. But after a sunny September that featured Robert Griffin III’s debut and some incredibly exciting baseball, October’s been much more depressing for local fans; a stomach-punch Nationals loss, the Capitals locked out, and several big injuries to the area’s best young players.

Will the Wizards give us a reason to smile? When the NBA season wrapped up about six months ago, TAI did its first Wizards Optimism Index – a survey of where the team stood, having just ended the 2011-2012 season on a six-game winning streak.

We weighed in using five factors, weighted to reflect their relative importance to the  state of the franchise. Read more »

In 71 total minutes over four preseason games, three starts, Trevor Booker posted the following averages per 36 minutes: 22.3 points (.567 FG%), 7.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 2.0 turnovers — per 36 numbers that faintly reflect Chris Webber’s second season as a Washington Bullet (but we’ll let the comparison stop right there). Trouble spots in Booker’s brief preseason window have included his free throw percentage (.600 — his career average is .639 and he shot .602 from the stripe last season) and fouls (4.6 fouls per 36 in the preseason, up from a career rate of 3.9). But any preseason concerns are far dwarfed by the solid all-around game Booker has shown in action that’s the first evidence of his offseason work.

Along with John Wall and Kevin Seraphin, Booker is one of the longest-standing pillars of the Wizards rebuild effort. And from that trio, Booker might have improved the most since being drafted by Washington in June 2010. Part of it is that improving efforts from Wall and Seraphin have gotten more attention. Wall was the No. 1 overall draft pick and proclaimed face of the franchise and Seraphin was an Olympian for France. Plus, when the Wizards were making their vaunted run at the end of last season with Wall, Seraphin and dashes of Nene, Booker was riding the bench. He missed the last 15 games, including the Wizards winning eight of their last 10, due to the very same ailment currently keeping Nene on the sidelines, plantar fasciitis.

“We actually had the same injury, same foot, and got it at the same time,” Booker told me on media day 2012. “I mean, it was something new to me, but we’re getting through it. I just had to stay off my feet for a little while. Now I’m back. I feel pretty good. And I’m ready for the season.”

Booker still ended up missing the first four games of the preseason with what he called a “grade one” left hamstring pull. But he’s better now. He’s ready to continue with defensive toughness, ready to show an improved jump shot, and ready to prove his worth in minutes. The “Cook Book” is ready to starting frying the opposition, and he’ll likely do so as the starting 4 to begin the season on Tuesday night in Cleveland.

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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. Preseason Game No. 8, Washington Wizards at San Antonio Spurs; contributors: John Converse Townsend and Kyle Weidie.]

Martell Webster offerings: a composed full court push to Jan Vesely. Read more »

Sometimes I wonder if LeBron James’ spirit animal is Mitt Romney. I’m not quite sure what this means — and not to get all ‘political’ — but just bare with me. Romney was born into a rich family, and LeBron was born rich with physical gifts that the NBA has never seen before. Both, I’m sure, had to work hard to get to where they are. Both, I have seen, are capable of having emotional expressions on their face which appear obsessively calculated and robotic. (But who doesn’t have silly expressions on their face sometimes?)

What it boils down to is this: Can you see a young “Glove” Romney having all the fun in the world with a dollar bill, a fishing lure, and an inner city street near a homeless shelter? Certainly. And perhaps that’s the visual elicited from the below LeBron GIF-ery performed against the Wizards last night. Let’s watch…

Wait, what just happened? Let’s watch from another angle…

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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. Preseason Game No. 7, Washington Wizards at Miami Heat (in Kansas City, MO); contributors: Adam McGinnis, Rashad Mobley and Kyle Weidie.]

Jordan Crawford can pass? Yes, Jordan Crawford can pass… to Jan Vesely, a GIF.

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[Video scenes from Wizards practice on Monday, October 22. Randy Wittman, before training camp, said that his team needed to make some highlights... Well, here some are, kinda.]

Cook Book Strong.

Most Wizards fans have yet to be visually treated to Trevor Booker’s two stellar preseason performances because the powers-that-be felt showing Wizards preseason contests in Toronto and Milwaukee weren’t worth the money. It’s kind of a shame in a ‘games don’t count’ sense.

Averaging 19 minutes over two contests, Booker is putting up 17 points (.640 FG%), 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals a night. On Monday after practice, he credited pick-and-roll action for his 22-point performance against the Bucks on Saturday. Just imagine if “Cook Book” had John Wall to trade recipes with. In the video below, Booker powers down Martell Webster with a strong paint move and a lefty baby hook before getting crunk over himself. Enjoy.

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Shelvin Mack races down the floor in training camp. Photo: K. Weidie

The Washington Wizards, well, aren’t doing too well this preseason. Randy Wittman’s bunch is also not a full bunch. Surely not the way coach wanted to start his campaign.

John Wall’s knee will continue to be a gargantuan question mark, even as his scheduled return date — toward the end of November — nears. What else would the preemptive resting of a 22-year-old because he was on his way to a stress fracture of the patella mean? It’s a major threat to Ted Leonsis’ rebuilding project until proven otherwise.

Nene is getting fitted for orthotics in order to tolerate the pain in his foot — and play — instead of showing off suits on the sidelines. Since players started convening in D.C. for training camp, Emeka Okafor has dislocated his finger, taken time off due to “rest/soreness” (per various box score reports), and has had a bout with food poisoning via a burger from the George Mason University hotel during training camp. (He’s playing now.) Trevor Booker, because of a hamstring pull, just played in his first preseason game last night (he played well). Kevin Seraphin has missed the last two preseason games with a calf injury. Jannero Pargo’s ribs, Chris Singleton’s shoulder — things happen.

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Two weeks ago, John Wall and the Wizards jointly announced that the third-year point guard would miss around eight weeks with a stress injury to his left patella. The resulting ”sky is falling” sentiment divided into two groups. There was the “Curse of Lez  Boulez” camp who fully expect the Wizards to start the season with a 9-20 record, followed by season-ending injuries, bad trades and a missed playoff berth, because that’s basically been the norm the past 30 or so years (the Eddie Jordan years and 1997′s ‘we-beat-the-Chicago-Bulls-in-the-first-round’ year being the only exception). The other group of disappointed people are still feeling the effects of the Gilbert Arenas injury (those effects range from contract extensions while hurt, to the criticisms of the Wizards’ training staff, to the eventual blowing up of that playoff roster) which was the catalyst for a slide from playoff relevance to lottery dependence.

Fortunately for Ted Leonsis and Randy Wittman, this current Wizards roster is neither burdened nor bogged down by the franchise’s previous chapters/history. With Wall’s injury, Trevor Booker and Kevin Seraphin are the longest tenured Wizards on the roster (Cartier Martin played for the Wizards during the 2009-10 season, but has not been on the team consistently). The Wizards have players like Trevor Ariza and Emeka Okafor, who just arrived to the team via trade over the summer, and Martell Webster, who witnessed career-threatening injuries to Greg Oden and Brandon Roy while in Portland. Then there are players like Bradley Beal, Jordan Crawford and Shelvin Mack, who will have the opportunity to shine in Wall’s absence and aim to enhance the Wizards’ offense upon Wall’s eventual return. And finally there’s Nene, who is currently battling plantar faciities, but, according to Nene himself and Ernie Grunfeld, will be ready on opening night against the Cavaliers. That’s important, as Nene led a  mini-Wizards resurgence toward the end of last season. This Wizards roster can actually claim the “New Beginnings” mantra without drawing the cynical ire of bloggers and writers alike.

Wall’s injury and extended absence come at a crucial time in the development of this young Wizards franchise. The Wizards finished the season on a six-game winning streak, which was part of the reason Coach Randy Wittman was brought back for a full season. Ted Leonsis is on record as saying the playoffs should be on the radar, and that the lottery is not acceptable. (Leonsis recently tempered those expectations by saying it would be “unacceptable” to finish the season with one of the four worst records in the NBA.) And with maturity-challenged players like Andray Blatche, Nick Young and JaVale McGee no longer around to serve as go-to scapegoats, this was supposed to be the year the Wizards took the proverbial next step—a step that was predicated upon a full, healthy season of John Wall.

If the young players like Beal and Crawford fail to step up; if veteran players like Nene, Ariza and Okafor fail to lead; and if second-year players like Chris Singleton and Jan Vesely fail to improve, the grandiose hopes and plans of this team will disappear, and the lottery could very well be the Wizards’ destiny yet again. Not to mention, there could be more ugly losses like the Wizards’ first preseason loss against the Charlotte Bobcats. (As Kyle Weidie points out, there were plenty of injured Wizards unable to play, but plenty of disturbing trends, too.) Read more »

The Wizards matched-up against each other for two segments of 5-on-5 action in front of season ticket holders and media on Thursday night. That it was just the third day of training camp was clear, as jumpers on offense tended to clang and more experienced defense usually won out. A white team featuring A.J. Price, Bradley Beal, Trevor Ariza, Trevor Booker, Emeka Okafor, Cartier Martin, Brian Cook, Earl Barron handled a blue team featuring Jordan Crawford, Martell Webster, Chris Singleton, Jan Vesely, Kevin Seraphin, Shelvin Mack, Shavlik Randolph, and Steve Gray  32-14 — the white team won each scrimmage segment 16-7. Below are the video pixels and scenes.

Beal And-1

In this first clip, Okafor gets a relatively easy post catch against Seraphin, turns, and hits a soft-appearing but slightly flat jumper over Kevin. It’s a shot Okafor needs confidence to take. On the inbounds, Booker puts defensive pressure on Crawford and Vesely. Booker is a big guy, but Crawford barely makes an effort to create space, and then he gets on Vesely because he doesn’t initially execute the tough pass. Once on the other end, Booker steps up to help with Crawford’s dribble penetration — Booker and Ariza together make an intimidating defensive combination. The clip ends with what appears to be a very poor entry pass from Crawford into the post (the play is obscured by a coach on the sideline). The blue team turns it over, Beal picks up the leftovers, and he takes it the length of the floor to draw an And-1 against Crawford.

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The Set.

Media Day has been over for several hours and the Washington Wizards have been officially media’d. Quotes, images and pixels of various natures have been broadcast. Hope has been expressed. Do we have the talent to make the playoffs? Yes. How will we come together as a team? We will see, that’s what training camp is for. Will it be tough without John Wall (and Nene to some extent)? Yes, but we’re going to try anyway.

Could one simply tell, from an affair such as media day, that the Wizards are a more mature, professional team? That’s the gut feeling. Have a conversation with Nene, Emeka Okafor, Martell Webster or Trevor Ariza — there’s a difference compared to other teams in recent memory. Now young Wizards have guys they can look toward, knowing their experience, knowlege, and professionalism will provide answers they can trust. There is still as much uncertainty as to what these 2012-13 Wizards will do on the court as the last couple of seasons, but there’s much more of an underlying sense of confidence that they can stay together and tackle any adversity, that they can deflect any punches instead of simply rolling with them.

Make no mistake, until they prove themselves otherwise in the win-loss column, these are still the same Wizards. But it’s a changing franchise. And this year is a new team – the freshest start Les Boulez have had in about a decade.

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