WizBlog RSS FeedWizards Begin Mini-Camps
Hey everyone, minicamp kicked off today and the Wizards just finished up their first workout of the two-a-days. Etan Thomas and Dee Brown were both in the arena working out with the team. We will have quotes from them on the day as well as several other players. Pictures and videos will be up shortly as well. Please fire away with questions.
Ernie also spoke to the media and we will have quotes from him.
Click here for photos.
July 11th, 2008 at 1:09 PM
oya….SL practice!!!!! LOL
So how did it go?
July 11th, 2008 at 1:17 PM
Lot of learning going on and trying to understand what the coaches wanted in drills.
Dominic, Nick, Dray and Dee seemed to take over the leadership roles. Pech was icing down an ankle and we’ll have more on that as we get it. Veeremenko should arrive tonight and be ready to go tomorrow.
Dee Brown first impression - Very humble human being who is very VERY excited to be here. Went to Turkey to work on his game and he’s very excited about the opportunity.
Dominic - Talked about working on his mid-range jumper ths off-season and ball-handling. Also dropped 10 lbs is down to 225 he’s trying to be quicker so he can as he says “Be that lock down defender for this team.”
Nick - Working on his defense and his understanding of the offense. His jumper is just so pure.
Andray - Is calling himself the Antawn of the team (with Dom being “Caron” and Nick obviously being “Gil”), but he’s trying to push everyone.
July 11th, 2008 at 1:20 PM
SportzWiz:
Thanks again for all of the great coverage, so my question is who are we really targeting with the MLE? Names please? Roger Mason did an outstanding job for the Wizards no question asked however the Wizards pressing need is at the 3 not the 2, IMO. Thoughts?
July 11th, 2008 at 1:28 PM
How did McGee look among the others?
and are you saying that youngs jumper is just so pure or did he say that himself? LOL haha…cuz i can see him saying that
July 11th, 2008 at 1:29 PM
good stuff, good stuff. keep the insider scoop coming. Thanks SportzWiz.
July 11th, 2008 at 1:34 PM
We didnt see much game action, McGee looked good, but a lot of it was guys going through drills and learning plays so its hard to get an idea.
I said that about Nick’s jumper but if i asked him i bet he gives me the same answer.
Jonathan Wallace also has a very nice jumper.
July 11th, 2008 at 2:43 PM
we got some videos coming up shortly?
July 11th, 2008 at 2:44 PM
also anybody else checking out that orlando summer league via webcast…i watched it a bit and those “announcers” are so annoying. I think they are part of the magic organization. Its also pretty boring. Just to let you all know.
July 11th, 2008 at 2:56 PM
SportZWiz
How is AB looking has he hit the weightroom and gym this offseason. We need him to come up BIG this season.
July 11th, 2008 at 3:30 PM
Aaaah, the fun is starting! Nice to hear that AB is “pushing everyone.”
I really hope for the best for Dee.
July 11th, 2008 at 3:36 PM
vids are coming… hold on for a little bit. AB looked to be moving pretty well. Again its very hard to tell right now. The games will be a much better indicator.
July 11th, 2008 at 3:38 PM
I can tell you Dee Brown as a person is very impressive. Very humble very excited to be here.
July 11th, 2008 at 3:40 PM
and videos are up.
July 11th, 2008 at 3:44 PM
Nice to hear good things about Dee.
July 11th, 2008 at 3:44 PM
How does Javale look? Physically, attitude, picking stuff up, etc.?
July 11th, 2008 at 3:45 PM
Real basketball….. aaaahhhhhhhh…
just gettin my fix
July 11th, 2008 at 3:50 PM
javale moves real well and can shoot the ball pretty well, coaches wanted him to keep his hands up at all times on the rebounding drillto use his height.
He’s very humble and very quiet so his whole attitude is very tough, but he kept saying how its very important for him to go out there and just work as hard as possible.
July 11th, 2008 at 3:59 PM
What… is *everybody* humble???
It’s hard to keep in mind, for someone of my age, that Andray is really not much more than a child, and that Javale really *is* a child! Wow. (and these are some *big* children!)
July 11th, 2008 at 4:10 PM
Not everyone is humble. Nick Young is not humble :). Nick Young is fun and hilarious but not necessarily humble :).
by definition humble is : not proud or arrogant; modest:
I would say JaVale and Dee Brown are that.
And yes they are very BIG!!!
July 11th, 2008 at 4:19 PM
nice to see Etan in the mix, I also saw javale and have mixed feelings about it. Everyone seems about the same size. Nick doesnt look more defined etc etc. How’re the young guys looking. They’re the ones who are supposed to make tranformations over the summer. I know nick can shoot but hows his finishing ability. I was watching old vince carter stuff on youtube and it was his rookie season and vince was a beast getting that quick step and elevation. He weighed less too. Nick youngs aggression isnt consistent to me cause he isnt trying to destroy people. Kobe has that aggression and had it since stepping into this league, vince used to have it, see all sorts of tapes of him dunking on people, he seems less aggressive now. Anyway before I jump into conclusions, how’s everyone looking? And tell Nick yizzle to be aggressive
July 11th, 2008 at 4:20 PM
hows your week tom? got the add on facebook, thanks
July 11th, 2008 at 4:34 PM
is there a second practice?
July 11th, 2008 at 4:41 PM
again, there’s very little contact when we play, the videos you see are what we see. , we’ll have a much better idea after seeing those games, but even then thats such a small sample.
July 11th, 2008 at 4:43 PM
there will be a practice tomorrow but unfortunately there will be no coverage.
If enough people want I have no problem blogging live during the game on Monday night, just let me know if people want a live blog to talk about the game since it will be on Comcast and NBATV.
July 11th, 2008 at 4:51 PM
It’s good to see Etan again. He looks good, but it sure is a tiny little tv screen!
July 11th, 2008 at 4:56 PM
How is Forbes? have you talked to him? He might kill it in summer league and the Wiz might have to offer him a contract
July 11th, 2008 at 5:06 PM
Forbes worked out some with the first unit which was mostly
Nick, Dom, Dray, Etan and Dee.
He came in at one point and played with them. I dont know if that was just random or not.
Again as far as “seeing” stuff from guys its very tough. We see them shoot and we see them play against no defenders, so I cant give you a good feel on them.
July 11th, 2008 at 5:09 PM
BruceO you make a good point. Nick Young’s aggression dosen’t always seem to be there. Theres no denying that the guy has talent. He’s so talented at scoring, that he makes it look too easy at times. Now if he could only have a more of a scorers mentalty, I think we would see him become a serious offensive threat to opposing teams. Even gilbert thanks highly of his capabilities. He talks alot about how great he thinks Nick Young can be in his blog. Coming from a star player that actually practices, and plays with Nick, that says alot. That game he had in LA this year, was a preview of what he’s capable of doing on a nightly basis. I hope he finds that player more often this season. If he can this team will become even more of an offensive power.
July 11th, 2008 at 5:12 PM
SportzWiz, will one guy get cut before Vegas, or are they ok to send 16 players?
And I suppose if Pech can’t play, then no problem?
July 11th, 2008 at 5:28 PM
I was told Rich is no longer on the team.
July 11th, 2008 at 5:37 PM
I’m not worried about Young being more “aggressive.” I’m worried about him learning the offense, becoming more decisive in what he does with the ball and having what he does be more integrated into the team offense rather than usually being a departure into one on one basketball.
I also see no reason to compare a kid taken outside the lottery w/ Vince Carter or Kobe Bryant. Yes, he has a nice shot, that’s what got him drafted. Now lets see something more than that. And lets see the shot itself go down at a higher clip.
One thing we might see is some defense and rebounding, fewer fouls and fewer turnovers. Those things will make the Wizards be a better team.
July 11th, 2008 at 5:41 PM
Hey Sportzwiz. Can we get some jersey numbers so we can put faces to names. Thanks. Good stuff so far. You’re working all weekend right? I want more video. MORE! It’s a looong time ’til October…
July 11th, 2008 at 5:45 PM
It’d be great to have a blog during the Monday game, SportsWiz — if you feel like it. Obviously, these games won’t have the importance of regular season games, so maybe they don’t need to be blogged as profusely or intensely, but it’s still fun.
Hi BruceO — looking forward to the weekend around these parts.
I’m going to be really interested to see whether we can sneak a veteran under the luxury tax limit (in which case, no room for Forbes, alas)
July 11th, 2008 at 5:52 PM
Thanks re. Rich out to make room for D. Brown.
BTW link to minicamp quotes on front page is broken:
http://linuxpub/wizards/news/minicampquotes_080711.html
instead of NBA.com/wizards etc.
The link to the quotes from the Summer League Central page is ok.
July 11th, 2008 at 5:52 PM
The Nets have signed Eduardo Najera and Jarvis Hayes. That gives them 16 guys under contract! What’s up with that?
7 of them are new to the team, btw. Hope they hand out name tags!
July 11th, 2008 at 6:04 PM
jeffmalone1990, you aren’t THE jeff malone from 1990 are you?
July 11th, 2008 at 6:35 PM
The quotes are up now correctly. Thanks rgz.
I will host a blog on Monday then, obviously it wont be on set but by all means join along in and talk aobut what you are seeing.
doclinkin
#’s
35 is Vytas Danelius
54 Will Thomas
34 - McGee
36 - Etan
5 - Dom
52 - McCullough
13 - Wallace
17 - Dee Brown
32 - Andray
1 - Nick Young
42 - Frank Elegar
16 Peeples
Forbes has no # on his front and a livestrong band on his left wrist.
I will be on and off the blog but as i said no coverage tomorrow.
July 11th, 2008 at 8:54 PM
Hello Gang Aundra here in sunny Las Vegas watching the Philadephia versus Golden State team staring there 6-11 rookie foward who has all three areas of offensive coverered already. Anthony Randolph is spectacular because he has the quick first step and blow by his defender,shoot the pull up three and attack the basket for dunks. The stat the really made me look was his shot blocking ability and his excellent free-throw form. This rookie has alot going for him except weight which is listed at 222 pounds. He made all the phladelphia defenders pay including Thadeaus Young who had a very difficult time handling his quickness and length. OJ Mayo also looks extremely quick and confident in his abilities for Memphis . He however doesn’t look to be 6′5″ tall but has great cort awarness and excellent leapinp ability. I hope the home team can put together a winning run because there is alot of competition on the west coast teams.
July 11th, 2008 at 9:29 PM
Neal,
I wish I was that “Jeff Malone” because that outside shot would really space the floor as well as his underated defense. Those were the good old days
July 11th, 2008 at 9:39 PM
Surprised, but EXTREMELY happy to hear that AB wants to be the “Jamison” of the summer league. He is going to be crucial this year. I also think Forbes maybe could take that 15th spot and battle it out with Mcguire to back up THE TOUGH JUICE! Everything I hear and see tells me Dominic is pretty dedicated though, which is good cuz it seems like people in the organization are really high on him.
July 11th, 2008 at 9:40 PM
And who is Rich?
July 11th, 2008 at 11:18 PM
What time was practice? I saw NY1 at Tysons Corner today in some gym clothes. Perhaps he just came from practice. Anyway, thanks for the vids!
July 12th, 2008 at 12:08 AM
Arenas and Jamison are pretty rich (ok - bad joke).
Rich = Jason Rich 6-3 Florida State
I guess my Jarvis Hayes comment from yesterday didn’t take long since NJ snagged him up. Jarvis does have a history of playing well at the Meadowlands (what’s it called now - IZOD Center?).
I think the Wiz should just keep 14 on the roster and have a bit of money left aside for emergencies. Last year, the Wiz didn’t have money to get backup PGs and they settled for Mike Wilks for 10 days.
July 12th, 2008 at 1:16 AM
This year Wiz Fusion I don’t think there will be any problem “money wise” to having 15 if the right guys impress us. If Etan and Gilbert come back 100% I’m ok with a 14 man roster too, but, I think we have too many options to just settle for that.
July 12th, 2008 at 1:37 AM
like the videos…….ok so I will not be able to blog for the next 4 weeks because I will be out of town…….Hope the Wizards do well in Summer League and hope everyone has a good rest of the summer! be back in August!
July 12th, 2008 at 8:44 AM
i heard that the wiz were in the running to getting James Posey. are they?……….
cuz james posey is a pretty good player………….
July 12th, 2008 at 9:18 AM
very unlikely, posey is getting close to if not the MLE from multiple teams. The wizards woulld have to go over the tax for Posey and it would basically cost them a LOT of money to sign him.
These aren’t exact figured but here’s basically what spending the MLE would cost the Wizards
2.3 million regular
3.5 million over the luxury
3.5 million tax
4 million lost in staying under and being one of the teams that receives the redespered taxes (which is about what the 20 teams that stayed under received last year)
so for James Posey you are basically paying 13,3 million dollars.
July 12th, 2008 at 10:33 AM
SportsWiz,
Since we only have 2.3 mill left, do you think we might see a trade coming instead of another FA move? Maybe moving Songaila’s $4 mill contract to get a veteran SF?
July 12th, 2008 at 2:07 PM
Bostjan Nachbar is unrestricted off the Nets and definitely not coming back. He might be an inexpensive backup 3. He also might make more money in Europe.
July 12th, 2008 at 2:08 PM
You have to find someone *interested in* Songaila’s contract — don’t know who that’d be.
July 12th, 2008 at 2:14 PM
I wouldn’t move Songaila at all. The Wiz got him with a bargain contract in my opinion. I expect another slow start by Darius since he’ll be playing in the Olympics. It seems like Songaila starts picking things up around early January of each NBA season.
Other thoughts:
1) Arenas hasn’t been back from China yet, so he hasn’t signed anything. He only provided a verbal agreement to Grunfeld and expressed his sentiments to the Washington Post. As far as I’m concerned, he’s still a free agent and can pull an “Elton” and go back to Golden State afterall (or any team that can muster over 100 million).
2) Besides Quinton Ross (which is out of the question now with the Wiz loading up on guards), I wished the Wiz would try to obtain Ryan Gomes. Gomes was selected 1 spot before Blatche and I knew this kid was going to be a solid player. I remember Gomes schooling Jamison at the VC one game a couple of seasons ago when he was still with the Celtics. Once the T-Wolves gave him a good 28+ minutes per game, Gomes became a consistent player. It is the consistency that raised his value and most likely put the Wiz out of contention to get him. I have no doubt that if he was in a Wiz uniform, he’ll become a fan favorite like Roger Mason Jr.
3) With so many young kids on the team, conditioning is the key for them to sustain an entire 82 game season + playoffs. We all talked about how winded Blatche and Young got in seasons past because they just weren’t ready for the pace of the NBA. When guys get fatigued, they tend to drop their guard on defense or make silly fouls.
July 12th, 2008 at 2:22 PM
Wizards_fusion, I knew conditioning was an issue with Blatche and Haywood. I hadn’t heard that about anyone else. Are you sure about Young? He sure looks in shape.
July 12th, 2008 at 2:44 PM
AUNDRA — how cool that you are in Vegas! Lucky guy — can you get online during (or at least after) our games to let us know how guys look?
I looked at the boxscore of the game you describe and, yes, Anthony Randolph looks to be the real deal. For the sixers, it looks like Speights got right into it, and rebounded great but couldn’t get the ball in the hole — how’d he look to you?
Were you at any other games yesterday/today?
July 12th, 2008 at 3:12 PM
Yesterday’s box scores from Las Vegas are up and are very interesting. Aaron Miles had a very productive stint; DeAndre Jordan (who fell like a stone in the draft) played quite well; Anthony Randolph was fantastic; so was Andre Thornton; Darrell Arthur went 9-12; Charles Rhodes, the undrafted big who worked out for us, played well; Trent Plaisted played well for Detroit.
Very fun. I can’t wait for our guys to start playing.
July 12th, 2008 at 3:14 PM
wizards_fusion said: 1) Arenas hasn’t been back from China yet, so he hasn’t signed anything. He only provided a verbal agreement to Grunfeld and expressed his sentiments to the Washington Post. As far as I’m concerned, he’s still a free agent and can pull an “Elton” and go back to Golden State afterall (or any team that can muster over 100 million).
wizards_fusion - The Warriors signed Maggette… They don’t have any Cap room left to offer Arenas anything… The Clippers had enough room to sign Davis; and they could have re-signed their own FA Brand, but they don’t have anywhere near enough Cap room for Arenas. - - - Philly was the only other team with Cap room, but they signed Brand.
Bottom line is that if Arenas wants more than $5.6 Million dollars (Mid-Level Exception), the only team left that can give it to him are the Wizards.
July 12th, 2008 at 3:16 PM
But you are right… He is still, technically a Free Agent… and could sign for any team if he wanted to take the Mid-Level Exception.
July 12th, 2008 at 3:23 PM
If he goes anywhere it will be via a sign-and-trade deal. Which is OK with me. You can bet Grunfeld would ask for a whole lot in return.
July 12th, 2008 at 3:46 PM
Neal - not sure we could even do a sign-and-trade….
There are 13 players currently under contract… Grunfeld would have to get back no more than 2 players, with contracts totaling somewhere around $16 Million.
If he got more than 2 players, the Wizards would be over the League mandated maximum number of players - which is 15…
Then, there’s always the problem of getting market value in return. I’m sure that there are lots of teams out there willing to give up $16 Million in bad contracts for unerperforming players… But I doubt there’s anyone out there willing to give up two All-Stars (or even 2 real good Starters) for Arenas, with his knee problems..
July 12th, 2008 at 4:04 PM
But… could a *nasty* GM (not Ernie) offer substantially less than the 111m but more than any other team could offer?
Not that any of this is reality-based: Gil and Ernie/Abe have a deal and that’s the deal that’ll be signed.
July 12th, 2008 at 4:27 PM
I’m not sure what the current Cap situation is for each team… All I know is that the only teams that had Cap space were Golden State and Philladelphia - then Brand opted out and signed with Philly, so the Clippers had some room - they used that room to sign Davis.
July 12th, 2008 at 4:36 PM
Gil is a little crazy, but not stupid. He’ll sign soon as he gets home from China. He loves DC and he has a team that can contend for a title right now. I’m sure he wants to prove he can lead a team to the finals and I expect him to come back in great shape ready to go.
July 12th, 2008 at 4:52 PM
Rook:
I only brought up the Warriors because they haven’t restructured deals with restricted FAs Monte Ellis and Biedrins (sp?). I’m pretty sure they want to keep both of those guys. If they don’t, they surely will have made room to offer Arenas or whomever a 5 year deal near Michael Redd’s contract extension a couple of seasons ago (~ 90 million).
But, you are correct that with the Maggette signing, they blew the cap space needed to lure Gil back to the Bay Area. You are also correct that Gil would need to agree to the MLE if all the Warriors’ restricted FAs are retained. It was my understanding that the Warriors wanted 1 of 2 FAs this offseason by swinging for the fences with money - Brand or Arenas. Once both of those options went dead and Baron Davis skipping town, the Warriors could only get a guy like Maggette.
Lastly, Turiaf signed an offer sheet with G.S., so everything I mentioned about the Warriors earlier is less becoming true by the second. I’m not sure if the Lakers want to keep Ronny.
PS - any thoughts about the Wiz getting Maurice Evans from the Magic? He can surely play the SG/SF role in D.C. Evans is unrestricted.
July 12th, 2008 at 4:59 PM
Any thoughts on Keith Bogans? Who could come cheap and maybe he wants to come home and play? His days in Orlando are really numbered.
July 12th, 2008 at 5:02 PM
Also anybody have any update on Juan Dixon? Are we interested, is anyone? This is also a little tidbit I am fairly confident that Chris Wilcox may be on the move this summer or the latest at the trade deadline.
July 12th, 2008 at 5:31 PM
Bogans wouldn’t be a bad option if there is room, and if he can play defense — I haven’t paid enough attention to his game to know whether he can.
I tried to watch some online video of las vegas games, but it’s like watching ants play basketball — I can’t find an option to make it full-screen.
July 12th, 2008 at 6:04 PM
Tom do to a scheduling mixup Friday was the only games I witnessed so next year the summer league schedule can be atleast put out 4 weeks before. I know last year they started earlier and I saw atleast a week of the new talent but not this year! I will be taking off 2 weeks next year especially for the summer league play. I really like the chemistry and hustle of the Golden State team and Memphis with super quick OJ Mayo!
Memphis team has balanced from there centers to pointguards so they look very confident from my vantage point. I did see any washington news agencys this week but maybe they will be there for the wizards final week!
July 12th, 2008 at 8:12 PM
I don’t think any team is going to value Arenas more than the Wiz, and thus give up what Grunfeld would be willing to take in a trade. So Arenas ain’t going anywhere.
Go Memphis! I would love for the Phizzlies to be in the playoffs in a couple of years, so we could get their number one pick. Looks unlikely at this point.
July 12th, 2008 at 9:22 PM
Well, Memphis may be fielding a good summer league team, neal, but I wouldn’t count on any playoff runs. As far as Mayo goes, we’ll see whether he develops. He and Rose are both question marks in my mind.
July 12th, 2008 at 10:42 PM
This year I’m rooting for:
the Wizards
the Phizzlies
Roger Mason
July 12th, 2008 at 11:16 PM
Yeah - I’m rooting for:
The Wizards
Kyle Weaver
Roy Hibbert
I’m also gonna keep my eyes on:
Mario Chalmers
Joe Alexander (I think he’s gonna be a star)
July 13th, 2008 at 6:39 AM
Chalmers had a really terrific summer league in Orlando. Weaver is playing in Vegas, if you want to check in on him.
For some reason, Hibbert didn’t play for Indiana’s team in Orlando, and neither did Rush.
July 13th, 2008 at 8:08 AM
Before I get on a plane to go somewhere else for work, I noticed NBATV will have a Wiz summer league game on television. So go DVR it or watch it at a sports bar or something. This should be an exciting game to watch (for summer league).
Portland Trailblazers vs. Washington Wizards
Monday, July 14, 2008 @ Thomas & Mack Center, Las Vegas
8 pm EST on NBATV
July 13th, 2008 at 8:30 AM
For some reason, Hibbert didn’t play for Indiana’s team in Orlando, and neither did Rush.
Tom - They haven’t signed yet.
July 13th, 2008 at 8:32 AM
It really should be an entertaining summer league. The Trail Blazers summer roster will include their 1st round picks Nicolas Batum from France and Jerryd Bayless from Arizona. It will also include a couple local players, Bernard Robinson from DC’s Dunbar and J.R. Pinnock from GW.
I haven’t been too high on J. Bayless the few times I’ve seen him play but what do I know, everyone else seems to like him. I’ll get a good chance to see him tomorrow against the Wiz.
Cant wait, can’t wait.
July 13th, 2008 at 11:57 AM
the roster is finalized…will thomas, the lithiuian, and peeples got cut.
July 13th, 2008 at 12:04 PM
Hmmm, why hasn’t Indiana signed these guys, I wonder, given that the salaries are fixed by the CBA?
July 13th, 2008 at 12:41 PM
Will Thomas got cut. Good luck to him.
July 13th, 2008 at 1:09 PM
Etan Thomas should play in the summer league. Will they have all of the games on TV? Looking foward to seeing that first one…
July 13th, 2008 at 1:25 PM
It appears that all but the last game against the Suns will air on NBATV and Comcast. Sundays game vs. the Suns will be on NBA.com Webcast
July 13th, 2008 at 1:55 PM
Thanks Wizbulletman. I guess that means Forbes made the summer league roster. I hope that is a good sign.
July 13th, 2008 at 2:19 PM
I’m a little concerned that Pesh is again having ankle problems.
July 13th, 2008 at 2:21 PM
I just read a report on espn.com by marc stein that said that we are very interested in getting posey, but we may need to shed a salary or two in order to get him since posey wants the mid-level and a three or four year deal. I thought that you were able to use the full mid-level on a player even if you were over the salary cap and it would not have any effect on the luxury tax. Is this incorrect? Either way does anyone feel that since Arenas hasn’t offically signed his deal yet, that maybe he would take a few million less ino order for us to sign Posey?
July 13th, 2008 at 2:23 PM
Hibbert and Rush are probably only a logistics thing Tom. Probably just haven’t gotten all the players, players reps, and team reps together at the same time just yet. It probably won’t take long.
July 13th, 2008 at 2:30 PM
I don’t think that 111 mil is a “done deal” until it is signed. I’m sure Gilbert has been keeping a keen eye on what is going on. I’m also sure the Wizards are not going to ask him to take less. Will Gilbert decide on his own to take less and give us a better chance at a Posey or whoever? Is more Gilbertology forthcoming? I think he is getting back from his trip this week. We will see.
July 13th, 2008 at 2:31 PM
jg004 — We can still get him with the MLE even if we are over the cap, BUT if we get him we would hit the luxury tax, which would end up costing the team 3-4 mil. Unless Ernie and Abe think we can win it ALL with our current team plus Posey, i think we shouldn’t pay the tax. That means tickets and consession prices go higher.
July 13th, 2008 at 2:36 PM
thanks wiz-skin that clarifies a lot i appreciate it! yeah as much as i would love to have posey becuase i feel he would bolster our bench and that i feel has been such a problem on this team, i dont forsee grunfled going over the luxury tax. thats too bad. maybe gil takes a litte less who knows
July 13th, 2008 at 2:47 PM
We didn’t go after Posey last year, when he was available for substantially less $$, for the same reason — he would have pushed us above the luxury tax limit. Not going to happen.
Gilbert would have to come down a fair amount to lower his year-one salary enough to squeeze Posey in under the limit. That’s not going to happen either.
I have my eye on Matt Barnes; he would give us defense and rebounding in a veteran backup for Caron. He’d be a solid addition at much less money than Posey. Even in this case, we might not be able to squeeze under the limit.
What Gilbert *could* do if he thought it was a good idea would be take a shorter contract w/ an earlier player option out. For that, he might well take a bit less money, because there is going to be a new CBA in a couple of years, and his next max deal will be for even more.
He’d probably do *better* long term in that scenario, but of course there’s less security in case of injury, etc. It’s hard not to take $111m when it’s on the table in front of you.
July 13th, 2008 at 2:50 PM
One additional note — if there was one player out there who would make the Wizards a realistic contender for a title in the coming season, there might be more reason for everyone to get together around ways to bring that guy in. But… there really isn’t such a player on the market — I don’t even think Brand, who was the best of the available lot, would have had that effect. We’re not there yet.
July 13th, 2008 at 5:15 PM
How has McGuire been at practice? I heard he was working on his mid range shot, and I noticed that shooting was a major struggle for him last season. I hope he gets more playing time this season, the man has a ton of potential.
July 13th, 2008 at 5:32 PM
McGuire seems to be the odd man out in most of our discussions on this blog of late. While we are all dreaming of a Posey or a Brand or whoever we forget that we do have a very high potential guy in Dominic. If McGuire really shows his stuff this year who backs up Caron at the 3 is a mute point. If Nick and Blatche can play a little back up 3 as well we are pretty well set as a team.
July 13th, 2008 at 5:57 PM
Tom:
I am really hoping that Ernie makes a run at Bogans, he is a slasher and I am sure we can get him without breaking the bank, I am officially on the bring Bogans to the Wizards bus.
July 13th, 2008 at 6:04 PM
McGuire is a good young player — I am very high on him. But, he does not bring what someone like Posey brings; he can’t be expected to. I hope he’ll earn some steady playing time this year, rotation time. I agree that he has a great upside.
jm1990 — does Bogans play defense? We have *lots* of scoring options.
July 13th, 2008 at 6:05 PM
And also for the record Keith can play above average defense
July 13th, 2008 at 6:09 PM
Tom,
I agree that he will not be called on to score but could really hold his own at the 2 or 3 (in the east) and hit the ocassional 3 and play great on the perimeter and some on the block (on D). Local kid, locker room guy that will add to the chemisty to the team without going over the luxury cap. Yet another great pick up for a run at the title, come on Ernie get Orlando on the line. The Magic either have to move Reddick or Bogans, or maybe even both of them.
July 13th, 2008 at 6:09 PM
Orlando also has Maurice Evans, whose numbers are good — but is he a 2 rather than a 3? Ditto Carlos Arroyo — and he is a guard for sure.
July 13th, 2008 at 6:17 PM
Tom
Once again I agree, I love Dom and his upside, I really do. But I am only speaking for this upcoming year, I cannot see him making that kind of stride over the summer to be the next man off the bench to give CB3 a breather. Not next year, however Bogans or Maurice Evans could and will not break the bank. And more to your point in the East they can play the 2 or 3. Both are athletic and can stick the jumper and can defend. Orlando has helped out before thank you Magic for Deshawn how about one more time eith Evans or Bogans. Again I think Bogans because we can get him for a little less.
July 13th, 2008 at 6:48 PM
Tom please understand I didn’t mean to compare McGuire to Posey. I’m just pointing out that we may already have a fair back up to Caron without either losing a player(s) or going over the luxury tax to get one.
Jeff I aplogize. I don’t know very much about Bogan’s game. You could have hit the nail on the head for all I know.
July 13th, 2008 at 6:52 PM
Now McGuire to Rodman…. That I’ll do
July 13th, 2008 at 7:04 PM
Grifon,
Well with all of the moves we have made, with retaining our own. If we can add one more to the table that would be sweet. I really think that Ernie has a move coming this summer.
July 13th, 2008 at 8:56 PM
If Ernie has another move coming I think it will be in the form of a trade because of how close we are to the tax limit. I still would like to see Songaila moved, even though he played pretty well last year, just because I don’t see him having a role with the growth of AB. I know there’s gotta be some team that can give us a reserve at the 3 spot and that needs a backup at the 4 spot who can score a little. Songaila would fit that role for them.
All that said, I would be even happier if Dom comes up big this year as the primary backup for Tough Juice (the best player on the team in my eyes).
July 13th, 2008 at 8:59 PM
You may be right, and of course the biggest part of the off season fun for fans is wondering who’s going to get better, who’s going to be added and so forth.
So, in that sense, it’d be great to have another player. On the other hand, maybe it’ll be an undrafted kid who plays himself onto our team in the Summer League — someone on our team, or even someone on another team.
In any case, it’s fun!
July 13th, 2008 at 10:20 PM
Tom:
Better yet everybody, looking at the Summer League action, and one named the also stands out on the Mavericks roster is James Singelton. This is a former LA Clipper who can come in and play the 3, and is a high energy guy and a great defender. Any thoughts? This guy would not break the bank
July 13th, 2008 at 10:20 PM
Gtown I hope at the end of the season we can look back and say we didn’t need Songaila because Blatche had a great break out season. But, what if he doesn’t? He hasn’t had one so far? I hate that Songaila is playing in the Olympics cause he always comes back from such things bushed. But, at least you know what you are going to get from him night in and night out. Blatche night in and night out is a crap shoot.
I would rather have Songaila rebound, defend, and score for Us.
July 14th, 2008 at 8:01 AM
I watched a little summer league on nba tv last night. Anthony Randolph has *tremendous* ability; it’ll be fun to watch him (hopefully) develop.
Looking forward to tonight’s game.
July 14th, 2008 at 8:32 AM
Tom, I saw him too and he was a steal @ 14, Warriors got lucky. Brandon Wright looked darn good too but he will need to bulk up a little more and Marco Belinelli is going to be a good player one day soon.
I think the Warriors will be ok without Baron Davis, Monte Ellis is the truth.
July 14th, 2008 at 8:36 AM
DeAndre Jordan is *really* playing well in Summer League; the kid is shooting 75%, rebounding, and not making a lot of mistakes. Looks like a round 2 steal for the Clips.
July 14th, 2008 at 9:31 AM
I just started a summer league gameday blog topic above. One thing that i think everyone needs to take into this is dont get too high or too low off of one game.
Some players have put up some very gaudy #’s in summer league that haven’t translated to the NBA, at the same time if I was milwaukee and Miami i wouldnt go crazy over the fact that Joe Alexander went 2-13 or that Michael Beasley went 1-13.
July 14th, 2008 at 11:12 AM
Grifon,
I hear you but I think we should put more faith in Andray. Don’t forget he’s only 21. This is from a Washington Times article:
“Blatche averaged a career-best 7.5 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.4 blocks last season. In 15 games as a starter he averaged 11.5 points, 8.1 rebounds and 1.93 blocks. Criticized at times in the last three seasons for having a subpar work ethic, Blatche said he has “turned into a gym rat this summer.”
Those are very good numbers given the minutes he played behind Jamison/Haywood. Not too many guys average 2 blocks a game
July 14th, 2008 at 11:21 AM
SportsWiz — Bellinelli poured in 31 points in his first summer league game in ‘07; then he basically didn’t play the entire year!
July 14th, 2008 at 11:35 AM
And of course Nickoloz Tskitishvili who dominated the summer league.
July 14th, 2008 at 1:31 PM
Anthony Randolph is an athletic freak, this guy is the real deal and has a legit handle. OJ Mayo looks very good as well, very confident on the floor, plays with a swagger. Countdown to the Wizards and Blazers, should be a very good game. I still say keep a look at James Singleton for the Mavs, and free agent Keith Bogans or Maurice Evans as possible targets for us. Tom as you know Nelli will not play rookies, it is like a 2 year project for him, however this year Randolph will get some burn. Look for Gerald Green to get better as the Summer League goes he is working out with John Lucas, should ba a nice addition to the Mavs. And for our beloved Wizards, fans please take note that CB3 has really got the focus and attention of our young players, Young, Dom and AB this investment alone will really be crucial this year for the Wizards.
July 14th, 2008 at 1:51 PM
Do you guys think that Wallace has a shot on making the roster?
July 14th, 2008 at 4:52 PM
You know taking in some of the action in Vegas, and I had a thought what about Mike Hall? I mean he really looked good with the Wizards and CB3 really took him under his wing and he really improved, any thoughts on him?
July 14th, 2008 at 5:03 PM
Mike Hall is in the D League last year here are his stats:
SEASON AVERAGES
Season Team G GS MPG FG% 3p% FT% OFF DEF RPG APG SPG BPG TO PF PPG
07-08 TUL 48 43 37.3.413 .345 .855 2.7 4.7 7.4 3.1 1.1 0.3 1.75 2.00 15.7