GAME DAY SUNS
6:07 AM… Dave Johnson checking in…hope you can join yours truly and Glenn Consor on the BLOGCAST during the game…if you are new to the drill..we blog during the radio broadcast and you can listen online or of course watch on Comcast SportsNet.. It will be a challenege against the Suns.. they are averaging 110 ppg and the Wizards are trying to make up for points without Gilbert Arenas. Hard to forget last year’s thriller in December….it was in Phoenix…Gilbert Arenas scored 54 points in a 144-139 Overtime win..it was the end of the same road trip that Gil scored 60 against the Lakers…it was a great flight home… and the curtain raiser to what turned out to be a memorable January….now I thought you might be interested in some of Eddie Jordan’s thoughts ahead of tonight’s game.“They play a different way and score a lot of points. They have a lot of different weapons. They can play small, but yet be very explosive in the paint with (Amare) Stoudemire and (Shawn) Marion.â€Â On defending the Suns:“It might not be a game plan. We might just go in with a basic package at both ends and adjust as the game goes along. It starts with Steve (Nash) and those guards. They are always going to be up-tempo and pushing. It is going to take adjustment through 48 minutes.â€Â   On most important statistics:“Over the past years, our best success is when we turn people over, we shoot threes, we get to the free-throw line, and we rebound.â€Â Check back later..and remember the BLOGCAST
6:25PM…..Dave Johnson and Glenn Consor checking in….glad to have everyone on board for the BLOGCAST..interesting comments…already..though Glenn and I respectfully disagree on Navarro…he was not in the Wizards plans…he is a scorer..but not the best defender..also a bit undersiszed..truth be told we should have been more physical against him Memphis…..but on ton tonight..starters are in…daniels, stevenson, haywood, butler, jamison….suns…nash, bell, stoudemire, marion, hill
Posted: December 7th, 2007 under Blogcast, Wizards.
Comments
Comment from Beeb
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:39 AM
oldphoneman,I like the positive vibe. Unfortunately,like a broken record,I remind that we could have had them both. Yes,it would have put us over the cap. Just as resigning Calvin Booth. Yet,with our Princeton offense that relies on outside shooting and ball movement, Navarro,with his European game, would have been perfect. Booth would have been a veteran presence and good practice player. Ad nauseam I have discussed my disgust with Abe’s lawyers and family pocketing the extra money. You’d think that revenue check is the difference between buying name brand or generic for Abe.
Comment from oldphoneman
Time December 7, 2007 at 10:51 AM
Beeb, I know what you mean but I don’t wan’t to go political. Actually, I thought the Wiz were gonna fold without Gilbert and the bench they have. They still might however right now, and a game at a time, I like what I see….They compete, and are fun to watch. I don’t expect the moon with this team…But ya never know!!! A five hundred season doesn’t bother me, as long as I see light at the end of the tunnel…
When the big Russian comes back, combined with the other long guys on the team, I think old Cal will be a forgotten entity.
Take care
Comment from Brickjp
Time December 7, 2007 at 11:26 AM
We were 0-5 and we are now 9-9. I wouldn’t complain about anything. I’ve forgotten about Booth and I’m not missing Navarro at all. This team is fine right now. Tonight would be a really big W.
Comment from Dutch Fan
Time December 7, 2007 at 12:09 PM
Beeb, I kinda agree with you. it would have been great to have Navarro as an outside shooter but could he contribute as an defender like Stevenson does? I’m not too sure though… and besides, all negative aspects also bring positive aspects. Now with Gilbert out for a couple of months, this is a great opportunity for Young and Mason to improve their game and become more consistent. We’ve already seen some potential of young and some solid shooting from mason. So if, and I repeat IF (I have faith that we will make the playoffs but you will never know what’s gonna happen…) the wizards would make the playoffs, their bench would be more solid at that time then when gilbert wouldn’t be injured. Don’t get me wrong, I hate seeing gilbert sidelined but you getta make best of it!
And indeed, the wiz are fun to watch at the moment! Looking forward to the game tonight. expect a lot from CB & AJ but also curious what BH is going to do…
Comment from GrifonRacing
Time December 7, 2007 at 12:18 PM
If there was only one game on the Wizards schedule where they had to play defense to win… This Is That Game.
I agree Brick. 0-5 to 9-9 mostly without Gilbert. We are a better team than most thought we would be, but, who listens to reporters lol. Ernie didn’t like Navarro and that’s good enough for me. Calvin who?
HI Oldphoneman! How is the weather? LOL. I’m guessing right about now that California sun is being badly missed. Hang in Bud…. it gets better around July 
Comment from oldphoneman
Time December 7, 2007 at 12:30 PM
Griff, me boy. We’ve lived up here for six years now and before that in DC for seven…..During the winter makes it good though, as long as we can watch the NBA, and our Wizards……Hey, like I said before, it’s about 80 days till Pitchers and Catchers…baseball will be here and we’ll be able to watch it in our teeshirts and shorts……None of this wearing a parka at night like it used to be sometimes at Candlestick!!!
Go Wizards
Comment from Tom Mandel
Time December 7, 2007 at 2:04 PM
Navarro has had a couple of good games, but he didn’t fit our team. We have no minutes for Calvin Booth — tho he’d be insurance if Brendan were to be injured.
Ernie is *clearly* focused on the future; meanwhile, we’re a pretty good team. We’re going to win tonight. When we do, remember that I called it. If we don’t, forget this message!
Comment from wiz123
Time December 7, 2007 at 2:06 PM
navarro is good but undersized to play the two. he would also steal time from young which is believe has better potential. but, if i remember correctly, he signed with the grizzlies for roughly 500k??…i think that is good money for a reliable bench scorer. i would have kept him….play him a lil…showcase him to the league…then offer him up for trade…prehaps then we could have gotten something better in return for him…but i have faith in ernie…and he has done a good job thus far…
Comment from Wizards4Life
Time December 7, 2007 at 2:32 PM
i agree EG is the best man for the job cant say he has made one bad move since he has been here. but for tonight i look for 2 big nights from CB3 and AJ but Haywood is the center of all this i have no dought when they go small he will step up and run them over and Blatch with the long arms and the quick move’s will help on the D and alot of the scoring
Comment from neal
Time December 7, 2007 at 2:32 PM
Well, I guess we all would have signed Navarro if we’d known Arenas was going down. But he didn’t fit too well with our “Big 3″. Not enough shots to go around among the starters. We badly needed D to go along with the shooters. If we had known further in advance we might have signed Navarro and drafted for another position, instead of Young. Since we already had Young when Navarro announced he wanted to come over, the only alternatives, I think, were to trade him immediately or showcase him until we got something better, as wiz123 suggests. I’m OK with what EG did, but $500k is certainly a bargain for an experienced scorer – reputedly “one of the best in Europe”.
I’m REALLY looking forward to tonight. I think it will tell us a lot about our team.
Comment from wiz123
Time December 7, 2007 at 3:06 PM
i think we might struggle tonight with marion on butler…and we have shown weakness gaurding 3pointers…and majority of pheonix players are capable 3 point shooters…i’m expecting/hoping for a good game from haywood instead…. i think he wants to prove something…he has got big games against the better centers of the league….eg, the game against big Z and dwight howard….
Comment from AUNDRA
Time December 7, 2007 at 4:04 PM
The Suns are loaded with offensive talent. Nash assisting on a record pace .Barbosa penetrating the lane at will. Amare just domanianting inside the paint for over 55% fields goals with 99% dunks. Grant Hill another penetrator who knows how to drive in for alot of layups. Then the X- factor Meriman who has three point shooting down and is just tough all around. We have only one chance of winning and thats to take the heart and soul out of this team. I believe its Nash who makes all the gears run smoothly. We must get Nash in foul trouble early and take the master off the court to even have a chance. The coach of the Suns don’t care about defense he just wants to snile those horse teeth and run the score up to 140 or 150. We have to be perfect in our 3-pointers,rebounding,assisting,blocking shota and the old art of stealing the ball to even have a chance of winning this barn burner! GOOD LUCK AND HAPPY SHOOTING!
Comment from Rook
Time December 7, 2007 at 5:35 PM
Beeb – I’d like to respectfully disagree with you that it was the Wizards that wouldn’t pull the trigger on Navarro…..
Had Navarro (and his agent) fairly negotiated with the Wizards, they would have signed him. Unfortunately, He and his agent kept saying they needed $2-$3M to play in the NBA. The Wizards still had to sign Stevenson AND Blatche. To spend that much on a third scoring guard would have been too much….. Then Navarro signed with Memphis for $500K (Less than the $770K that the Wizards are paying for Mason)….They COULD have had Navarro, Stevenson AND Blatche, and stayed under the Luxury Tax if Navarro had wanted to be here.
Comment from neal
Time December 7, 2007 at 6:01 PM
Rook, it’s my understanding that the Wiz had no idea Navarro would be available before the draft. Do you know any different?
Comment from Wiz034
Time December 7, 2007 at 6:05 PM
I agree Rook. I believe he just wanted to play along side his buddy Gasol.
I just want the Wiz to play good basketball tonight. I’m reminded of the last time, the Sun visited the phone booth. They picked and rolled the Wiz to death. Very ugly game. I hope the Wiz watched the tape on that game and made serious adjustment. We will see
Go Wiz!!!
Comment from wizfan and the kid
Time December 7, 2007 at 6:24 PM
Have to admit it everyone, we wanted to keep Navarro during the summer, but now, looking at Young’s upside, any minutes taken from him would not benefit us in the future.
What does everyone think about this: With the up and down tempo of this game, we think that this might be a game where we see DMac get some minutes. He seems quicker than Songaila and I like his potential to block some shots in this type of game.
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 6:36 PM
hey gang dave johnson just checking in..it should be fun… on navarro..i can tell you he was just not in our plans period…and again the luxury tax is pretty simple…for a player who will not play…it makes no sense to go over the cap just to have an extra body around…there are plus to navarro and minus..just like any player..he is undersized..and truth be told we should have been physical with him in memphis…but on to tonihgt…suns are fun team…let’s see if we can polit there fun..glad to have everyone on board
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 7:17 PM
glenn consor checking in: Keys: SPRINT back in transition, can’t run back, try to slow the pace, run when you can but, you don’t want to make it a track meet, also make Nash kick to 3pt shooters vs dropping dimes to paint players. Mix up screen and roll defense, Nash is the BEST in NBA running the screen and roll.
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 7:31 PM
steve nash so good at screen and roll
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 7:34 PM
susn just very efficient
Comment from ricklevinenyc
Time December 7, 2007 at 7:34 PM
not getting back on D
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 7:39 PM
that why we said transition so important..suns are truly amazing in transition and great to have you with us
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 7:41 PM
suns 61 %..they shot 58%..in their win over the raptors….have to a better job of getting back
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 7:47 PM
all things considrered good firts quarter
Comment from ricklevinenyc
Time December 7, 2007 at 7:52 PM
agreed that 1st qtr turned out ok…
not a lot of missed shots — fun to watch.
like to see young and mcguire get some time tonight. a lot of mid sized versatile players on phoenix to keep up with
love the way blatche is playing
Comment from wermol
Time December 7, 2007 at 7:54 PM
WOW at that blatche block…WOW
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 7:55 PM
rickle agreed…blathce just did a great job of getting back on D
Comment from ricklevinenyc
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:03 PM
does it make sense to play a high zone against the suns? a 3-2 or 1-3-1? they are too good if you let them play pick and roll basketball. too many weapons on offense.
on the other hand, the suns dont play too hard on defense and even their big guys let out on the break rather than hit the defensive boards. you want to get back on transition D, but you also want to get some offensive rebounds.
guys just need to read the situations and mix it up if we are going to beat this team
Comment from Jason C
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:06 PM
we need to stop fouling them on and1′s, just foul hard or don’t foul at all.
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:07 PM
good question,,glenn just said…zone is difficult becasue of their three point shooters..but glenn says you can mix it up
Comment from AUNDRA
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:08 PM
AMARE IS THE LAYUP CHAMP. IF HE CONTINUES HE’LL HAVE 50.
Comment from Jason C
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:08 PM
kinda like barbosa did to daniels, minus the F1
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:10 PM
blatche 12 pts 6 reb
Comment from AUNDRA
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:11 PM
IF NICK YOUNG CAN HIT A COUPLE OF THREES THIS WOULD BE OUR GAME!
Comment from Jason C
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:11 PM
despite some miscues we’re in the game, i would credit the suns lack of defense.
Comment from AUNDRA
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:12 PM
BARBOSA IS DOING THE LAYUP DRILL NOW . WHERES THE DEFENSE TO STOP THESE HIGH PERCENTAGE SHOTS!
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:14 PM
i know what you guysv are saying..but they are on another level as they get up court…but we are hanging with them…i like they way we are playing ..but transition defense remains a challenge
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:18 PM
again all and all not a bad half….
Comment from Wizards4Life
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:19 PM
good half we played it well got to give it to the suns on this one there just doing it better
Comment from wermol
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:24 PM
not a bad half, we looked a little sluggish very early on, but seemed to recover rather quickly…it has been a 4-6 point game most of the way. Hope there is something we can throw at them in the 2nd half to turn it in our favor, perhaps Nick scoring or uh…something else.
Comment from newposter
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:28 PM
can they do anything to slow amare down?
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:29 PM
good points..as glenn and i talked about…we have done a good job at both ends of the floor.. and are in..can we sustain it… and nash so impressive already 11 asists in the first half
Comment from neal
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:29 PM
Seemed like a well played half. Often it looks like they’re running our offense, only better. They are really good at it.
Blatche and Young are wonderful talents – I just wish they didn’t make so many rookie mistakes.
Comment from ricklevinenyc
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:31 PM
phoenix had 21 assists in the first half. we have to find a way to disrupt their offense.
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:33 PM
only ten turnoivers…..5 each
Comment from newposter
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:33 PM
ricklevinenyc, is nash getting those numbers of assists a foregone conclusion (and then we’d only hope to make sure he doesn’t score too much or something) or is there something that can be done about that?
Comment from Wiz034
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:33 PM
Is there any chance we will see Blatche and Haywood together together tonight?
All in all it’s a good game. We are hanging with them. To be honest I’m really surprise. If Tawn or Nick warm up we may be able to swing the game.
Also we are allowing tooo many points at the basket..
Comment from ricklevinenyc
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:35 PM
you can try to force nash to score himself. but he will probably do that.
i think you need to play some kind of match-up zone to help get a step ahead on the defensive rotation.
Comment from Jason C
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:39 PM
well so much for absorbing that run.
Comment from Jason C
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:39 PM
we can’t afford this many turnovers against them…their too good a team for it
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:40 PM
good points ..problem is they are scoring in transition.,….. and yes we need someone to get hot
Comment from newposter
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:42 PM
any likely candidates?
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:44 PM
like to asee caron go off..but this is where we miss gilbert
Comment from ricklevinenyc
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:44 PM
our transition D is disorganized. everyone collapses on the ball which leaves shooters and cutters wide open
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:46 PM
subs 11 of 14 in the 3rd quarter
Comment from ricklevinenyc
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:47 PM
eddie jordan has got to keep fresh bodies in there!
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:47 PM
suns 30 assist so far……
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:48 PM
going to the bench now
Comment from newposter
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:53 PM
i like how mason came in and made a shot right away.
Comment from newposter
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:54 PM
but i guess he’s missed another one since then.
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:54 PM
suns just amazing 16 of 20 from the line
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:54 PM
sorry 16 of 20 from field
Comment from ricklevinenyc
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:55 PM
you’ve got to give phoenix a lot of credit. they are playing well and really exuding confidence. i’d say they look the best of any team we’ve played this year. they should give the spurs a run in the playoffs this year
Comment from Jason C
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:56 PM
true they just need a way to stop robert horry…hahaha
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:56 PM
suns 17 of 22 in that quarter..made 11 of last 13,,,outscored 40-21 in 3rd quarter
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 8:57 PM
jamsion and butler have gotten good looks…but combined 12 of 32
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:01 PM
wizards doing better screeb and roll getting defelections…roger mason 7-0 run
Comment from newposter
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:04 PM
he’s streaky but he can get on
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:04 PM
yeah mason ahd 9 straight points for the wizards
Comment from newposter
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:07 PM
but that goes to show some of the posters that they cant get mad when guys like nick or roger or deshawn go 1-4 or even 1-5 and then ge tpulled. if roger had gotten pulled in the beginning, his stats would’ve looked horrible and we could all say how poor a shooter he is. it’s hard to make that judgment call when they dont get consistent minutes. i know that’s the nature of being a role player, but still. just thought it was worth saying.
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:12 PM
mason has a good week..tornot and cleveland an dhe is going to be more involved…this suns team just no margin of error against them…make you pay for every missed open shopt
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:12 PM
nice move by young on bell
Comment from newposter
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:16 PM
i’m glad dominic is in.
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:18 PM
suns just scary good on offense
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:19 PM
wizards 47 % shooting….101 points…but not enough as jamasion and butler cold
Comment from newposter
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:22 PM
being a local kid, i kind of wanted strawberry to make that. i mean we’ve lost already anyway.
Comment from DJ-WizardsRadio
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:24 PM
i hear you…better things ahead sunday………hope you can join us..
Comment from caribbeanskillz
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:25 PM
Wow…. the bench players looked better than the starters IMO…
Comment from AUNDRA
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:30 PM
RAJA BELL 22 6 FOR 11 3 POINTERS ,STEVENSON 2 0 FOR 2 THREE POINTER AND 0 FOR 2 FREE THROWS . I FEEL IT’S TIME FOR A CHANGE IF WE CAN’T GET ANYMORE PRODUCTION FROM OUR HIGHLY PAID SHOOTING GUARD.
Comment from caribbeanskillz
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:33 PM
I agree with with Aundra… or switch him to PG, let Arenas play SG when he’s back… I think it’s better for Deshawn’s poor offence and his solid defense…
Comment from neal
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:33 PM
After the first couple of minutes of the 3rd quarter we just got out hustled on both ends. It was like we had done every thing we knew and were still behind. Looked like we got discouraged and everything went down hill.
I think the Sun’s rep for poor D is not deserved. We got very few uncontested shots. I think teams make a lot of points against them because they get more possessions. The Suns score a lot on quick possessions, so the other team gets more chances.
It was really disheartening to see how fast the Suns got down on both ends, and how much slower we were in getting down on either end. That’s just plain old hustle.
Sorry. I’m not in a very positive mood tonight.
Comment from neal
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:55 PM
And what’s more…..
Even in our half court offense our guys more often than not look like they’re just going through the motions off the ball. In contrast, the Suns are MOVIN’.
And what’s more, somebody teach that talented knucklehead Blatche how to play NBA defense.
Comment from neal
Time December 7, 2007 at 11:01 PM
And Young, the rule about carrying the ball can’t be new to you. That’s not allowed in college either.
Comment from GrifonRacing
Time December 7, 2007 at 11:27 PM
They are a very good team guys. At one point they had 30 assists on 35 made baskets! That kind of teamwork is hard to beat. A basketball with that team lasts for years as it never touches the floor. Plus, those guys just don’t miss.
That is too many times this season we have hung right with a team the entire first half only to come out in the 3rd period and have them pull away. Maybe they are all playing online poker at halftime now? We seem to play well the first half and again in the 4th quarter. Somehow we have to put 4 complete quarters together to beat the elite teams.
The newspapers and online reporters need to stop talking about Andre’s shot blocking prowess. He is taking it way too much to heart. He is trying to block every shot and it’s getting him in trouble. Sometime it’s just better to get good position and hold those long arms straight up with his feet planted firmly on the floor. He won’t pick up as many stupid fouls and will probably make more guys miss. If he can harness that natural ability he has he is going to be very very good. Up until this season, though, he hasn’t seen the court very much. Court time will only help him.
Nick is a keeper. He is really coming into his own a lot faster than I thought he would!
It was very nice to see another wrinkle to Mason’s game tonight. He penetrated the lane very well and either finished at the basket or made a very good pass back out to a wide open shooter. Nice to see his shot starting to fall too.
Hey Tom? message? what message? lol
Comment from Tom Mandel
Time December 7, 2007 at 11:45 PM
We got beat by a superior team with all of its players healthy. What’s weird is that the lines show us playing pretty well. We shot reasonably well, we shot free throws very well, we didn’t turn it over, we blocked shots, we out-rebounded them, we didn’t commit a lot of fouls, and nonetheless we got beat by 15.
DeShawn is playing *terrible*; I don’t know what to say. We gave him a payday off a career year. Still, Aundra, he isn’t highly paid. I doubt his deal is even average in the league.
They shut down Caron and Antawn both; hard for us to win that kind of game. We’d have been much better off if Blatche, Mcguire and Young had played 35 minutes each. Dominic played solid in his 6 plus minutes, grabbing 3 rebounds and dealing an assist, while committing no fouls, missing no shots (he didn’t take any), and not turning it over.
Comment from millie mill
Time December 8, 2007 at 12:31 AM
How long before Jordan starts Young over Stevenson?
Stevenson 26 mins 36%FG 64% FT 6.8 points a game.
Young 13 mins 44%FG 86% FT 7.6 points a game.
I’m tried of seeing a starting SG with less than 10 points.
Even on the video games they automatically start young over Stevenson mid-way thru the season.
Comment from millie mill
Time December 8, 2007 at 12:45 AM
I’m sorry but I don’t see Stevenson shutting down anyone.
Comment from BruceO
Time December 8, 2007 at 5:34 AM
lol, I always crack up when people say that nick young is started out automatically on video games. I’ve been high on Nick young. Maybe too high on him. I followed him pre draft when they were talking about draft picks trying to figure out who’d I’d get if I knew anything about basketball. I saw a glimpse of nick young, what scouts said about his game, looked at his numbers including his 52 percent field goal in college and even higher true shooting percentage, his size and athleticism, the connection to gil and It made me think why can’t this kid be a star. I had the same impression when I saw bynum, Blatche, wagner, Pech, Monta ellis etc.. I think with strength, stamina his offense improves. I think theres also little things to pick up thats useful in the NBA game. The kind of things Tony parker, ginobli and barbosa do in traffic that might make him highly efficient. His defense I think is picking up, he still has trouble fighting through screens, when he cheats off to help in the paint and they kick it out to his man he gets beat. I think we can start him off defending alot of the quick point gaurds.. I’m just glad people are beginning to like his game. I love his efficiency.Theres no reason why this kid can’t become a ray allen, a michael redd, a kevin martin, a richard hamilton or better.
On another note I also feel strongly about Pech. I think at this point he’s just a step lower than Blatche which is good considering what Blatche gives us. I think Pech just gives us different things. Also with his work ethic and an opportunity to improve his shooting under Hopla I don’t see how he can’t be a poor man’s dirk nowitzki. He could probably defend just as well, rebound just as well and If those things Improve and he develops his shot to consistency plus have other offensive moves he could be really good. I know I’m projecting him and comparing him to an MVP player but I think Pech can be able to get those skills. Pech already likes dirks game so I wouldnt put him past him to try and learn what it takes. How good do you guys think Pech can be? Before Nick young played people thought he’d be crap and now they like his game and looking forward to the F-3 (IMO F-4 or future 4) Now that Pech hasn’t played a game how do you guys think he’ll do. What do you think he can become?
Comment from Beeb
Time December 8, 2007 at 8:38 AM
Bruce O,a game like tonight would certainly not have been a Pech game. It was almost comical to watch Jameson try to keep up. Eddie played him 38 minutes and not surprisingly, he shot 7 for 21. Plus,he can’t keep up on defense. That one foul under the basket where he just touched the shoulder,turning it into a 3-pt play is stuff you get reamed about in jr high. Before the game,Eddie said he didn’t know what the defensive strategy would be,that we’d just adapt in the game. Unfortunately,if you don’t have a plan with good teams, good things aren’t going to adapt. Back to Pech, I think it will take about 3 yrs to see returns because of the body as well as the nuances of the NBA. Anyway,this Phoenix teams provide matchup problems for everyone. Toss in that we are Phoenix light and the score shows how light we are.
Comment from wiz123
Time December 8, 2007 at 10:21 AM
i would say young is our 3 offensive weapon after butler and jamison…and he will have more Pt once he knows the princeton offence better and pick up on defense….you can see in his vlog…he said AD is constantly telling if “i can’t play with y’all if you don’t know where to run”….i don’t remember correctly…but i think thats how he put it…
so i’m sure EJ will increase his PT….once he learns the system….
as for pech….i would definitely be good to have another 7 footer in the team…should be a good substitute for jamison…but i havent seen enough of him to tell…
oh yeah, what do yall think? should we resign jamison next season? or should we pursue another FA? i know arenas would like jamison back….so, how much would you offer?? or who do you propose we pursue?
Comment from neal
Time December 8, 2007 at 11:09 AM
IMO:
1. Yes, if Stevenson doesn’t get it together offensively in another 10 games or so, and Mason and/or Young continue to develop, I’m in favor of replacing Stevenson as starter. But we can’t bench people every time they have a slump. We wouldn’t build continuity that way.
2. I agree, Jamison’s D last night was consistently late.
3. I think the resigning (or not) of Jamison will be one of the most difficult decisions EG will have to make. I think the first one he will have to make is whether we have a good backup to Haywood in Blatche or Pecherov. If the answer is yes, then can the other one team with Songaila and/or Veeremenko to handle the PF position? If the answer is yes, then I figure Jamison will be worth more to some other team than us. We badly need to get better defensively, and Jamison won’t likely be a major contributor (because of age) when this team peaks anyway.
4. Pecherov is still just a prospect at this point, allbeit one that looks good and has pro experience behind him. Let’s keep in mind that he could be a bust or he could be an important part of our future.
5. We’ve got 13 on the roster now and three rookies coming next year (Veeremenko and two draft picks). Presuming Arenas will be resigned, but not Jamison, we’ll be at the maximum 15 players. Anyone have an opinion as to what FA or position we should have our eye on and/or who should be cut?
Comment from wiz-skins07
Time December 8, 2007 at 1:52 PM
i gaurantee by mid-season Young will take over the duties of starting at the SG position…i believe if we can still get Jamison for 6-8 mil per year..that is a deal..b/c we would have and extra 10 mil of our payroll..and could use that money to sign arenas..although i dont think we will get all the money he wants b/c he has suuffered two knees injurys over the past year and probably could be out the rest of the season to rest up his knee
Comment from neal
Time December 8, 2007 at 3:53 PM
Presuming the % increase for next year is the same as that for this year, the new luxury tax limit will be $70.4M.
Our contractual commitments at this point are $51,259,731 plus an undetermined amount for Blatche. That includes Arenas’s option for $12,800,000, which he has said he will not exercise. However, the league maximum for a player with less than 7 years of experience is only $13,041,250, unless there’s some exception I don’t know about. Let’s presume Arenas has to exercise his option. So we’re at $64,059,731.
Blatche is making $2,556,847 this year and presumably get an 8% raise for next year, making $2,761,395. The total is then $67,062,376.
Add the minimum for Veeremenko and our second round pick ($442,114 each) and we’re at $67,946,603.
Salary for first round picks is strictly determined by order in the draft. Lets say we draft 20th out of the 30 teams. The scale salary is $1,063,600 for the 20th pick. Now we’re at $69,010,204 for 13 players.
Then let’s say we resign McGuire and Mason for the minimum for players with their experience ($711,517 and $826,046, respectively). That puts us at $70,547,767.
So we’re $147,767 over the luxury tax limit for the most obvious 15 players. Not signing Jamison will mean we can pay McGuire, Mason, three rookies, and the contractually mandated pay raises to the other players.
Comment from Wizards4Life
Time December 8, 2007 at 5:21 PM
if there is no Jamison there is no Arenas he has said that like 40 times
Comment from BruceO
Time December 8, 2007 at 5:53 PM
blatche is getting 15M over five years. If jamison resigns he will eventually make a great sixth man since he can play both forward positions and hold the power forward spot till the young guys develop. What arenas said is he’s waiting to see what happens as far as our position. I think whats important to him is we are competitive. If we can get Jamison for less or someone comparable or better he’ll be fine with it IMO.
AS much as I feel young should start I don’t think it’s important for him to start as it is for him to be starting material. Deshawns offense isn’t needed in the starting lineup. Its the same situation for Barbosa and Manu. Players who can make their own shot and don’t need a star to make them better. They work well as a number one option so they come in and attack. His offense is more important in the second unit. We have alot of scorers in the first unit.
Whats going to allow us to play Haywood and Blatche is lineups, limiting foul trouble, having good backups, Blatches conditionning, Blatches Improved offense. Jamison only had a hard time guarding a streaking marion whos fast. That play he fouled amare was only because Blatche went for the steal and Jamison had to attempt to foul him but it was too late. He put his hand on amare’s shoulder but he was already on his way up and is strong. Most of amare’s points came on catch and dunks. Nash was setting him up perfectly.
I’m not sure whats going on with Etan, hopefully he comes back healthy enough to play. If he retires we get room to do things with the cap space. Theres no guarantee that veremeenko (V-dub) gets to play next year..I once read he won’t come because of some contract stuff but I need to re-research this. If we have alot of draft picks and no roster spots we should bundle them up to get what we really need for the team. Also next year i think is a good draft year, and also a good FA year. Especially with all the potential space we have. I hope Gil takes the kind of salary that allows us to be a contender. I also hope that he puts pressure on the organization to improve. I think we are getting the pieces thats needed for a championship team. I feel Pech also has an important skill. I don’t know that many big men who can shoot. He can defend and rebound and he will be a good practice partner for Blatche, they’ll drive each other. I think the both of them need to be stronger and more explosive and that would make their potential off the charts if they are actualy explosive
Comment from BruceO
Time December 8, 2007 at 5:56 PM
By the way from the little I’ve watched Pech I think he and Blatche have the same potential. Maybe I like him cause he looks like stewie from family guy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stewie_Griffin
http://images.google.com/images?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4DKUS_enUS228US228&q=pecherov+oleksiy&um=1&sa=N&tab=wi
Comment from Tom Mandel
Time December 9, 2007 at 8:34 AM
neal — you’ve got Gilbert in there twice, dude!
Right now, w/ Blatche, we’re at @ $54m for next year. If Gilbert opts out, we’re at $41.2.
Re-signing Mcguire and Young puts us at $42.75. Signing two draft picks puts us at @ $44.3 for 13 players (but no Arenas and no AJ).
Assume for a moment that we re-sign Antawn for $8m. We’re at $52.75m with 14 players. We have $18m to sign a stud free agent and stay under the luxury tax limit.
Assume instead that Antawn goes home to Charlotte, but Arenas doesn’t opt out. We’re at $57m with 14 players. We’ve got $13.5m to sign a semi-stud player and stay under the limit.
Assume that Gilbert doesn’t opt out, and we re-sign Antawn for $8m, but we don’t re-sign Roger. We’re at @ $64m w/ 14 players. We can sign an above average NBA 2 guard and stay under the limit.
Comment from Tom Mandel
Time December 9, 2007 at 8:36 AM
We have, in other words, *a lot* of flexibility next year!
Now, if Etan should happen to retire, which obviously we hope won’t happen inasmuch as we want the maximum recovery for that good man, but if he does… we *really* have room to move.
Comment from neal
Time December 9, 2007 at 10:00 AM
You’re quite right, Tom. That’s embarrassing. Changes everything.
The $51,259,731 includes $1,602,960 we’re obligated to pay Young. I figure we have $14,431,046 left under the luxury tax limit for 13 players, not including Jamison, McGuire or Mason.
Comment from Tom Mandel
Time December 9, 2007 at 1:11 PM
(I wrote “re-signing Mcguire and Young”, but I meant “Mcguire and Mason” of course).
neal, I think your figures just above are off by one player; i.e. it should be $14.43m w/ *12* players, including 2 rookies but w/ Mcguire and Mason unsigned (and Antawn out of the picture).
Assuming Gilbert does *not* opt out, we’re at $51.25 + 2.75 (blatche) + 1.5 (mason and mcguire) +1.5 (two rookies from ’08 draft). That’s @ $57m for 14 players, including Gilbert but not including Antawn. I.e. we would be $13m under the luxury tax.
If Gilbert opts out, we are $26 million under the luxury tax, with 13 guys under contract. But, I don’t think it’ll happen. I think Gilbert will pick up his option.
Comment from GrifonRacing
Time December 9, 2007 at 2:32 PM
I’m not reading anymore… my brain is turning into mush.
How much do you guys charge to balance a check book?
Comment from Tom Mandel
Time December 9, 2007 at 3:41 PM
hahahah — i’m *the last* person you want balancing your check book, GR.
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Comment from oldphoneman
Time December 7, 2007 at 9:15 AM
Win or lose, The Wiz are becoming fun to watch. I can’t wait for Young Nick to do his thing again and each game Andrey seems to get better and better….. The Young one, meaning Nick, looks like he might be able to compete in a slam dunk contest or two, too! I like Deshawn but now I wonder if maybe Navarro would have been a good move. It’s all part of basketball though…It’s still really early in the season to really tell what’s going on, but right now the Wizards are competing and that’s enough for a fan like me.
Go Wizards!