SUMMER LEAGUE PREVIEW

The Wizards kick off a five-game schedule at NBA Summer League 2007 beginning Tuesday when they face the Kings. For the first time, Wizards summer league games will be shown locally on Comcast SportsNet. Click here for more information regarding the airing of Wizards summer league games. Viewers outside the DC area can also catch the action live on NBATV and on NBA.com.

WIZARDS TO WATCH
Nick Young: Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld was pleasantly surprised to see Nick Young available at the 16th pick. The former USC guard will look to show off his athleticism and scoring prowess that made him a household name at USC.

An early entry candidate in the 2007 NBA Draft, Young was a First Team All-Pac 10 selection in his sophomore and junior seasons. Young ranked among the Pac-10 leaders in scoring (17.5 ppg, 2nd), three-point field goal percentage(.440, 2nd) and field goal percentage (.525, 5th) last season.

Young has an excellent mid-range game and a fluid jump shot that will make him a viable scoring option and exciting player to watch in his Vegas Summer League debut.

Oleksiy Pecherov: Washington’s 2006 first round pick, Oleksiy Pecherov, averaged 12.6 points on 46.2 percent shooting and 7.6 rebounds for the Wizards’ summer league team last year. At 7-0, Pecherov is a tough rebounder and possesses exceptional range that stretches beyond the three-point arc.

A native of Ukraine, Pecherov averaged 12 points and eight rebounds for BC Kyiv last season. Pecherov, 21, added 10 pounds of muscle to his frame as he prepares for his first season in the NBA.

Dominic McGuire: Selected in the second round by the Wizards (47th overall), McGuire will bring his length excellent rebounding and shot blocking skills to Washington. He ranked fifth in the nation in blocked shots (3.6 bpg) during the 2006-07 season. While at Fresno State, McGuire recorded a triple-double (14 points, 14 rebounds and 10 blocks) in a game versus San Diego.

WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS
In last year’s summer league, Wizards forward Andray Blatche, a then-second year forward, averaged 16.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. During the 2006-07 campaign, Blatche made 13 starts and averaged 6.9 points (50 percent from the field), 5.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocks.

MORE: Official Wizards 2007 Summer League Guide

Thanks to super PR man Daren Jenkins for the write up!

44 Responses to “SUMMER LEAGUE PREVIEW”

  1. neal Says:

    Who of these guys other than our draft picks has a shot at making the team?

  2. Gilbert0 Says:

    I think that the Wizards should try to sign Darius Rice of the Dakota Wizards, he is awesome, and would be a great edition to the team. Please hear me out think about this option!!!

  3. stevevu Says:

    visser, definitely if etan or brendan is traded. everyone else doesnt have that big of a chance unless we trade a few guys away in a big trade and dont keep some of our FA.

  4. wiz-skins07 Says:

    Visser has the biggest shot…..whatever happens we shouldnt bring back Mike Hall

  5. wiz-skins07 Says:

    If Stevenson can’t be retained at a price that would allow the Wizards to keep Navarro, why not sign Jarvis to a one or two year deal for much less (I imagine $2 million per might get it done) and sign Navarro too? Although Stevenson is a better player right now than Jarvis, Jarvis + Navarro > Stevenson.

    And if we do trade Juan Carlos Navarro why not??

    JCN + Etan for SG Mike Miller (Proven 3 Point Shooter) and Maybe we Swap 1st Rounders or 2nd Rounder

  6. WizardsDotCom Says:

    stevevu/skins - quick question: did you guys mean to post those FA comments here? Just checking as to whether or not there’s a WordPress glitch because you seem to be responding to previous comments in another thread.

  7. wiz-skins07 Says:

    no didnt mean to i posted it first in the Free Man Navarro but it did appear there and then now i posted it in Thibbudo Had a Chage of Heart and It did work

  8. wiz-skins07 Says:

    But WizDotCom what do you think about the trade…we would be giveing up an offensivemindd player for another offensive minded player and would be getting rid of Etans UGLY contract

  9. Tom Mandel Says:

    I think Hall, Visser and possibly Miles have a shot at making the team (in addition to Pecherov and the 2 draft choices); of course a) they can’t *all* make the team, and b) much depends on what trades are in the offing (if any).

  10. WizardsDotCom Says:

    skins - this is a better example of a reasonable trade offer. :)

    Here’s a question though - why would MEM want to swap picks with us? They’re most likely going to have a better first round pick…

    That’s enough on trades and FA signings in this thread - let’s give these rooks and summer league FA’s the respect they deserve.

  11. wiz-skins07 Says:

    Okay Here Is My Starting Line-Up:

    PG: JR Pinnock
    SG: Nick Young
    SF: Dominic McGuire
    PF: Pech
    C: Kyle Visser (Almost Sure B/C we need a Center and he fits the bill)

    I thinke everyone in the Starting Line-Up except JR Pinnock will get signed if they havent already by the Wizards

    And Someone Not On The Line-Up Who I think will replace Mason and Taylor is Lee Humphrey he has a good shot at getting signed

  12. WizDom Says:

    neal “Who of these guys other than our draft picks has a shot at making the team?”

    Mike Hall

  13. Wizards4Life Says:

    i don’t know who is going to be in the running for our team but i cant wait to see N.Y. and O.P. an D.Mc play in a game! especially since i have not seen them play yet. got to be curious as to what there skill level is!

  14. LilGil Says:

    Yeah I’m excited about those guys too!! I think we’ll all be pretty happy with their skill, I excpect a lot from D-mac and NY, and I don’t feel like I’ll be disapointed, can’t wait!!

  15. LilGil Says:

    I don’t know if you guy are watching, but D-mac is IMPRESSIVE.

  16. WizardsDotCom Says:

    Looks like us local folks will only be able to watch on CSN…NBATV is blacked out :(

  17. LilGil Says:

    Check NBA.com !

  18. WizardsDotCom Says:

    Looks like NBA.com is not blacked out! :)

  19. Wizards4Life Says:

    well we just got comcast here so i am good to go!

  20. LilGil Says:

    I have to say that I’m still impressed by Mcguire, this guy went on the 2nd round, are you jokin!!

  21. dd86wiz0 Says:

    no d-league for dmac… he needs to stay with the team

  22. LilGil Says:

    I know it has nothing to do there, but we’ve been looking for it, so if you guys still wanna see Caron’s pitch, just go to the Wiz youtube’s site it was just added.

  23. WizDom Says:

    Visser doesn’t look too shabby

  24. wiz-skins07 Says:

    D-Mac has been very impressive after a first half of Basketball….Nick Young is having a tough time but he did give us a nice And-1…Visser looks good also…but so far as D-Mac goes he may indeed be the steal of the draft

  25. dd86wiz0 Says:

    I wouldn’t mind having Visser replacing Booth

  26. Nara Says:

    No, I think Booth is still better than Visser from what I saw on today’s game. And who said Lee Humphrey will be a good pick up? He didn’t do much in the game and he seemed slow for a 2 guard. He may be a good shooter but not worth a roster spot with our depth.

  27. wiz-skins07 Says:

    Nick had a rough time out there but as the commentator from the NBATV said “Nick is going to BLOW IT UP next game”…..every one in our starting line-up will have a roster spot

    Nick Young replaces Donell Taylor
    Aaron Miles replaces Roger Mason
    Pech Pech replaces Micheal Ruffin
    D-Mac replaces Mike Hall and may end up the Number 2 SF (very impressive)
    Visser replace Booth

    Our Front Court Starters all need to get signed they showed true hustle on the boards..and if they didnt end up with atleast they tried

  28. GrifonRacing Says:

    I know Eric (lol).. I sit down at 4pm in front of NBATV and get the old “not available in your area”. Rats. I didn’t know about NBA.com Wiz.. double rats.

    After watching the game I think DMac (you gotta like that name) is a #1 Wow! Very impressive on both ends of the court, in the middle of the court, on the sidelines? That guy has got Game. I didn’t realize Visser was so quick. He runs the floor very well and has very quick feet around the basket. He is definately in the position to possibly make the team. He seems to be a pretty good defender too. I feel sorry for the Pistons. You Mr. Young is going to explode. I can’t wait to see it.

  29. GrifonRacing Says:

    you (know) Mr. Young is going to explode. (correction to prior)

  30. Nara Says:

    I don’t know why everyone’s so high on Visser. He held his own but he did nothing to be giddy about. Aaron Miles and Chase showed up to play but they were OK at best and I don’t see them doing much at the nba level.

    wiz-skins, of course they’re going to hustle. This is the summer leagues and they better hustle or else they’re cut. I think for the free agents in the team, you have to look at results more closely than effort because of the situation and as far as results go, I didn’t see anyone push williams out from the paint when the rebounds were in the air.

  31. GrifonRacing Says:

    Nara,

    You didn’t watch closely enough. During one defensive play their center got the ball under the basket point blank range. Pesh and Visser were on the floor. Pesh blocked his first shot and Visser blocked the next two… creating a jump ball. He had a tough time of it in the 4th, but, showed his metal early. Again, I was surprised at how quick he is.

  32. nohoarhay Says:

    Dmac i love that name

  33. nohoarhay Says:

    I mean the guy was fantastic. visser sucks,Pech & young need 2 shake off the rust quick & I actually liked 2 see Mike Hall get those shots but he has 2 knock em down.Over all Young is a Heck of an athelete & Dmac is my new guy.

  34. wiz-skins07 Says:

    i might buy me a jersey that says D-Mac with the number 5

  35. wiz-skins07 Says:

    i mean this kid will be phenomonal i just wish there was a way to put Caron at the SG (but he is to slow defensively) and put D-Mac at the SF

  36. nohoarhay Says:

    Do these guys pay attenetion 2 anything Visser over Booth U guys quickly forget what cal does remember that amazing 3 gil hit vs the bucks it was cal who hit a crucial 3 pointer thats right 3pointer 2 ty the game just seconds b4 that & pech over ruffin pech is really soft & ruf is a bull but thats crazy Pinnock & visser should even be a realistic thought if they were id b really suprised

  37. wiz-skins07 Says:

    but thats all booth did last years ….. can anyone name another game in which he played welll he plays good for 9 or 10 games a season then after that hes just out of it….and Kyle Visser is a young prospect

  38. nohoarhay Says:

    Valid point there my friend but booth and ruffin are our leaders & you dont want a bench full of rookies and prospects thats why gil & cb got hurt no bench support. i agree with some of your trade scenerios on the other blog check mine out

  39. wiz-skins07 Says:

    nohoarhay..okay i will check them out and let you kno what i think but in which thread are they in

  40. wiz-skins07 Says:

    okay i especially like the Mike Miller one he is a proven scorer

  41. wiz-skins07 Says:

    and if we get hios done maybe we can include DeShawn in a sign and trade for him maybe Stevens, Etan, JCN for Mike Miller and 2nd rounder

  42. Tom Mandel Says:

    The question about Visser is do you see him as good enough to be a career back-up center in the league? If you do, it’s hard not to find a way to keep him. Anything beyond that would be gravy, but it’s difficult enough to find a backup center these days!

    That said, I would not want to lose Booth.

  43. nohoarhay Says:

    I think if nick young can avarage around 4 to 5 dimes a game it would help out alot CB & AJ are both iso players and Gil isnt a true point but he is a allstar so he’s going to be on the floor so AD’s minutes are going to be limited maybee he can help run the offense like Larry Hughes did.

  44. MOBY Says:

    Bookmarks

    I can’t add your post to Digg. How I do this?

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