Comment from mcgeemaniac
Time October 28, 2009 at 5:59 AM

I could not have asked anything more from the Wiz. It was just beautifully played

Comment from mcgeemaniac
Time October 28, 2009 at 6:00 AM

http://www.nba.com/nbatv/#

Poll to the right

Vote for the Wiz-Cavs game to appear on NBATV on November 3rd!

Right now the Lakers-Thunder game is ahead … what?! That will not even be a good game. It is only winning because of the tremendous LA fanbase.

Spread the word.

Comment from reddog271
Time October 28, 2009 at 8:20 AM

who won the ticket contest? I know I had the correct 3 leaders. was one off on points and assist

Comment from dmac
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:27 AM

Great win last night. Great coaching, good chemistry. Most of all great team defense. Next is TCB in ATL on Friday night. I am looking forward to being at the home opener on Saturday. Should be a great atmosphere and game. Watch out NJ

Comment from bravens199
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:32 AM

What an uplifting start to season. The team played great and hustled the whole game. If this is a sign to come, this is going to be a fun season. My family is truly looking forward to a great year filled with happy memories!

Comment from aznzero
Time October 28, 2009 at 10:01 AM

good morning!
great game last night. the defense was definitely something i havent seen in a long time. the wizards have so many different lineups they can use.

i dont know if you guys remember, but last night is exactly why i was so excited when we got randy foye. he brings that scoring ability off the bench.

i believe last season either tapscott or caron said that andray is very good scorer. he had a great game last night coming off the bench and rebounding for us.

what a great start and win! there are so many things to say about last night. ill see u at the game dmac!

lets go wizards!

Comment from reddog271
Time October 28, 2009 at 10:20 AM

The good part about the Defense is that it was against a good team.

Comment from Rick
Time October 28, 2009 at 11:43 AM

If we can hold teams around the 90pt mark, we will win ALOT of games!

The one thing that bothered me last night, was that we were forced to make a lot of medium-to-difficult shots. Haywood and Blatche got a couple of easy buckets inside, but there were many more contested/long jumpers. Yes, many of them were falling, but I’d like to see the offense generate some more easy shots (especially for Butler).

Comment from NODNARB1
Time October 28, 2009 at 12:14 PM

Very true Rick but i think Flip will generate plays to get easy baskets…Honestly i have been a Wiz fan for a long time going back to chris whitney days and this is one of the best Wiz teams i seen

Comment from Babakism
Time October 28, 2009 at 12:42 PM

@NODNARB1 Try being a little kid in school and explaining to your friends how Bernard King will come back from his back injury and lead the bullets to greatness or how Pervis Ellison will be an all star and having a your rec league basketball card list Michael Adams as your favoritte pro. Before Gil came to DC the most memorable shot I had ever lived to see by the bullets was Rex Chapman on opening night against the Magic @ the buzzer and Abe Pollin came running down onto the court elated. Life was tough………………..

Thankyou Gil for 4 consecutive playoff apearances. Last year doesn’t count This year will be our 5th trip to the playoffs since Gil came to DC.

I could not be happier with our team and our personel and our coach.

I know in my heart that this will be the best Bullets season I have ever lived to see(born in 1982)

Comment from M2
Time October 28, 2009 at 12:47 PM

I think it’s a very significant sign that the last couple of possessions Gil was able to be comfortable with Foye having the ball in his hands.
It’s been a LONG time since we’ve had that in Larry Hughes.
It’s certainly nothing we’ve ever had in Stevenson…
Foye has great handles & knocks down foul shots.
He & Gil both in down the stretch protecting a lead in any game will be a very nice double dose luxury.

Comment from dmac
Time October 28, 2009 at 12:49 PM

Come on Rick, Tough Juice had 17 shots last night and hit only 6. But we won. With contribution coming in the amount of 39 points from Foye and Blatche off the bench. Mind you Tough Juice still had 16 points and hit a key jumper last night towards the end. I gurantee u Caron will be in the mix Friday night. As long as we win as a team it is going to be great.
Kevin Garnett only had 13 points and Lebron had 38 but Boston won.

Comment from dmac
Time October 28, 2009 at 1:04 PM

I also want to let you all know I was a supporter of Randy Foye from the day of the trade. I remember saying that he would feel a void that had been in the backcourt with Gil since Larry Hughes left town. I was not saying he would play exactly like Larry but his contribution would be like Larry’s.
Remember Tom M.? Tom you had some not so supportive remarks concerning Randy Foye’s future contribution to this team.

Comment from Babakism
Time October 28, 2009 at 1:37 PM

I think Gil and Foye could be alot like nash and barbosa for phoenix.

They both play with such tempo and energy.

Comment from dubv1980
Time October 28, 2009 at 1:43 PM

Babakism-
I hear you on the Chapman shot, I was there that night, you would have thought we’d won the championship with how excited I was. Sadly, the rest of that year..not so exciting. (I also still have my Michael Adams, Gheorghe Muresan, and Tom Gugliotta posters…)
You da man, you da man…thats the reason I’m a Bullets fan…*taps foot*

Last night, what a great game. It also seems like we’ve got a good character group this year (quirky, but character.)

Comment from GlingGling
Time October 28, 2009 at 1:53 PM

I’m wondering if Foye’s poor FG% and 3PT% in Minnesota were somewhat caused by being a good player on a bad team. Notice that Mike Miller’s FG%/3PT% also went down last year with the Wolves. It could be because of how their offense was designed that these guys were getting the ball late in the shot clock. Or simply being told to go one on one.

Both of those situations will rarely occur for either of our Minnesota pickups. Foye is going to be spending a lot of time coming off screens and Miller is going to be spending a lot of time being wide open at the 3pt line.

Comment from TAG FLIP
Time October 28, 2009 at 2:07 PM

i’m still wondering why we never saw nick young or javale (other than the 30 or so seconds javale was in at the end of the first half).. you would think with the injury to jamison that flip would give the young guys more minutes, especially early to preserve our veterans from injury for later in the season when we will need em for the playoff push..

Comment from tousleys
Time October 28, 2009 at 2:13 PM

Great team win, I was more impressed by the nature of the team effort than the fact of a win. It would be really great to see this team end up more rather than less than the sum of its parts.

Comment from Wizards4Life
Time October 28, 2009 at 2:21 PM

TAG Flip if AB was not playing like a all star last night you would have seen McGee alot more but its hard to put a guy on the bench when he came out and put up that kind of game on a good team..
Caron will be ok i think he still has last years funk on him were he thinks he has to do alot to get the team a win but as we all seen last night this is a good team its no longer a 3 man team its a 7-8 man team every guy can get it done and he has to trust them and pass out of the hard shots and let the game come to him

Comment from GlingGling
Time October 28, 2009 at 3:30 PM

TAG FLIP, what coach in the right mind would have taken out either Andray or Randy with types of games they were playing. Stick with what works, we all knew there were guys who weren’t going to see minutes… and also isn’t Saunders known for an 8-man rotation?

I’ll repeat, there are going to be nights when guys don’t see minutes. Sadly for them, I can live with it.

Comment from GlingGling
Time October 28, 2009 at 3:54 PM

Did anyone notice the Boxscore says, “J. Butler”

Comment from SportzWiz
Time October 28, 2009 at 3:55 PM

good eyes glinggling, Caron’s full name is James Caron Butler.

Comment from JC
Time October 28, 2009 at 4:04 PM

I say we shut up the experts on Friday who picked Atlanta by creaming The Hawks by 20 or more.

Comment from JC
Time October 28, 2009 at 4:05 PM

Who picked Atlanta over us in the standings sorry, made a mistake. They should be motivated to do so.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time October 28, 2009 at 4:49 PM

dmac — Like you, I’m *glowing* because of our performance last night. Gimme more. We have a shot to beat the Hawks — tho they are a good team. They’ll have watched tape on last night; we won’t be catching them unaware.

The 3 things I most loved last night: 1) Andray, 2) Mike, 3) the coaching. Loved those things even more than the evidence that Gil is back (tho that’s a good thing too!), Randy’s solid performance (also good!), and Brendan being strong thru 38 minutes.

As for Randy, he hasn’t really prospered in the league thru 3 seasons, but he got off to a pretty good start last night. Don’t anoint him a star, ok? Let him find his way.

Comment from dmac
Time October 28, 2009 at 4:54 PM

TAGFLIP if something is working real good don’t mess with it. That was awesome to see them go down the stretch and not relinquish the score or momentum. Anybody notice how frustrated Dirk and Jason were at the end for the Mavs? That defense and smart coaching will do for you. I truly believe that because of the teams versatility that if Flip sees a certain players matches up and can be effective toward certain players and teams they will play if they stay in the team concept..
The main thing is Nick, Javale and DMAC should watch what their teammates are doing well on the team to keep them on the floor for Flip.

Comment from dmac
Time October 28, 2009 at 5:03 PM

Hey Tom, these next four games should give us some good posting opportunities. ATL, NJ, MIA and CLE.
We will see if the Matador (DS) still got D against, Joe Johnson, DWade LBJ and Anthony Parker.
Tom hopefully I can anoint Randy at the end of the season.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time October 28, 2009 at 5:15 PM

A few points I haven’t seen mentioned:

1. Don’t sell short DeShawn’s performance last night. He couldn’t get his shot to fall, and he missed his only 2 FT attempts, but in 18 minutes he had 5 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal — w/ no turnovers and only 2 fouls (one of which, wrapping up Marion on a layup, gained us a point when SM missed a foul shot).

2. Mike Miller is an incredible ballplayer. He was in the right place on nearly every play last night. He got 8 rebounds and 2 steals in 22 minutes. We know he can shoot; he has always been able to, and last night he turned 4 shots into 6 points. On nights when he shoots more, we’ll be a tough team with a different look.

3. No time for Nick; 2 minutes for Dom; 1 minute for JaVale. Wow.

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time October 28, 2009 at 5:37 PM

@Tom, to your point number three, that is a “WOW”. It was a great win for the team, and a fun night on the blog! It’s is very hard not to be excited about this team (although it was one game). I think last night game, this team established a “bar”, a tough win on the road against a good western conference team. I also voted for the Cavs vs Wizards for Fan night on NBA TV, next week however I think they may show the Lakers vs OKC (that game has the lead thus far).

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time October 28, 2009 at 5:59 PM

@babkisim-Ok try this one, how about Dudley Bradley’s game winning shot in the playoffs vs the Bucks( To cap an unbelievable comeback by the Bullets). How about Jeff Malone’s buzzer beater, falling out of bounds deep 3 in the corner (one of my favorites, Mel Proctor had one of the best calls I have ever heard on HTS). So yes from Gus Williams, John Williams (the original Blatche, point guard skills in a big man’s body) Ledell Eackels our version of the microwave, to AJ English, LaBradford Smith to above the rim talents that necer reached potential. Rod Strickland, had all star years for our team and never made the team (a crime), Mahorn and Ruland the DC version of the bad boys! Terry Catledge, bad knees yet still productive. And of course my namesake the M and M connection, Moses Malone and Jeff Malone, so from HTS to Comcast, from Mel Proctor (was the best) to Phil and Buck (the best in the NBA now). Bernard King to Gilbert Areans, through the years it has been a tough ride, but this year just feels special!! As dcbutler said bring back the “Fat Lady” and bring back “Robin Ficker” the NBA’s BEST hecker for the Cavs and Celtics game!!

Comment from jmpalomo
Time October 28, 2009 at 6:50 PM

4th Quarter Notes:
The back court quickness of Gilbert and Foye was just downright NASTY.
I loved the hustle to every ball. It looked like every rebound had 3 Wizards attacking the ball.
It was great to be a Wizards fan last night.

Comment from jmpalomo
Time October 28, 2009 at 6:51 PM

It’s not important on who started the game.
It’s important on who was on the floor at the end of the game.

Comment from sstew11
Time October 28, 2009 at 7:20 PM

I honestly was jumping for joy last night watching the game. My girlfriend was like “You need to calm down. It’s just basketball” I was like, “This isn’t just basketball, it’s Wizards basketball, baby!”

Let’s hope Gilbert can produce those types of numbers all year long. Foye and Blatche too, although that’s not really expected. Caron had a so-so game, but he will have his great games.

Let’s tear those Hawks up on Friday so we can be 2-0 heading into the Verizon Center for the home opener.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time October 28, 2009 at 7:21 PM

dmac — if Randy Foye develops in a way that justifies where he was picked in the draft, we’ll *really* have made a steal w/ our trade. No doubt about it. It’s already turning out to be a good trade for us (and maybe will for Minn. too).

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time October 28, 2009 at 7:28 PM

Jeffmalone1990 mentions Robin Ficker. I had seats a few rows behind him in the ’90s, and that was *not* fun. He was noisy and annoying beyond belief. It was hard to watch the game through his constant racket and weirdness.

Comment from M2
Time October 28, 2009 at 7:37 PM

Tom per your:
“3. No time for Nick; 2 minutes for Dom; 1 minute for JaVale. Wow.”

Those are exactly the type of minutes those guys would be getting at this stage in their development (careers) on any of the top teams in the league…
SA, LA, Bos, Clev, Orl, Den, etc…

Sorry, but it’s where they should be right now. Nice to see the Wiz finally have a squad that can oblige. Long-overdue.

Guys stay healthy please!

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time October 28, 2009 at 8:22 PM

We can agree about NY and JM and agree to disagree about DM, who I think is a player right now.

When you think about Nick at “this stage in development” do keep in mind that, for example, he’s a year older than Rajon Rondo and the same age as Trevor Ariza. You have to wonder just how much more development there will be.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 8:39 PM

Raptors kicking LeBronze’s butt at the half (57 – 39)

There are probably not many fans who are more disappointed with Slick’s lack of progress in Coach Saunders scheme than I am. Coach has said that Nick is having a problem grasping the concepts of what the team is trying to do. I don’t think that anyone would dispute Nick’s talent one-on-one, but he has to understand how to play within the game plan with the other players. Hopefully, that will come as the year progresses.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 8:54 PM

Coach Saunders said that he would be going with an eight-man rotation; and he did (although Dom and McGee did split 3 minutes). When AJ comes back, DeShawn will also get limited time. I’m not going to be surprised to see DeShawn and/or Mike James packaged for a rebounder later in the season. Both Mike and DeShawn obviously worked hard this past preseason and both could contribute to a team that is short on guards, which the Wizards are not.

Barring injuries, the only way that Dom, Slick or McGee are going to get any substantial minutes is if they beat someone else out of those minutes, and I don’t see that happening this year. If they work hard and keep their egos in check, along with ‘Dray, Foye and Gil, they should comprise the core of the Wizards future.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:01 PM

I’m not quite as happy as I was last night, but I am smiling because Shaq (the Mistake by the Lake) is once again not a positive influence on a Cav’s game.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:06 PM

Refs are doing their best to get the Cav’s back into the game vs Toronto.

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:13 PM

The NBA Where “NBA LEAGUE PASS” Happens!! I LOVE THIS GAME, LOL……..Great slate of games tonight, the Magic look great and the OKC Thunder are almost at 70 pts at the half.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:22 PM

Cav’s actually had a chance to take the lead in the 3rd Q, but LeBronze missed the free throw. Raptors came back to lead by 7 as the 4thQ starts.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:26 PM

Shaq’s back…Raptors increase lead.

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:26 PM

The Raptors are stroking from the 3pt line, looks like the Cavs are going down to 0-2, barring a great finish

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:28 PM

The “Mistake” missed a layup and the Raptors went the other way and scored and are now up by 11.

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:28 PM

OMG….The Celtics 66 and the Bobcats 38 with a minute to go in the 3rd………..geezzzzzzzzz

Comment from AUNDRA
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:28 PM

GREAT WIN AND EXCELLENT COACHING FROM FLIP.
WE PLAYED GREAT BUT ATLANTA WILL BE A EVEN GREATER TASK WITH THERE LENGTH, HIGH SCORING ABILITY AND SPEED. I WOULD LIKE TO SEE A LITTLE MORE INSTANT OFFENSE/ DEFENSE FROM M.JAMES AND MAYBE N.YOUNG IF HE IS SERIOUS AND READY TO EXPLODE !

Comment from HardCoreFan
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:30 PM

Gotabigboyoffense,

I agree with you and I was thinking the same thing – the Refs are trying to give the Cavs the game. I hope the Cavs get whopped again tonight!

Also, thanks Dave for providing me with the information on how to add a picture to the blog! I am looking for my picture that I took with Caron and Haywood.

I am looking forward to Friday and Saturday’s games!

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:32 PM

Mistake and “Z” in the game atb the same time…result Raptors layup.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:40 PM

Almighty Cav’s down 15 to Raptors with 4:45 to go. LOL

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:41 PM

Man the Cavs really do not look good early on in the season. They have issues with West out and Mo Williams not playing well, and hoping somehow that a 30 plus old Anthony Parker is the answer….hmmmmmm

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:43 PM

The refs are still trying!

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:46 PM

The NY Knicks and the run and gun offense 59 pts with 2 minutes to go in the 3rd. The Heat are killing them……

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:47 PM

Only the ref’s can save the Cav’s now! Down 10 with 2:30 to go.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:52 PM

The refs stink!!!!!!!!!!!!

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 9:55 PM

Wizards 1-0
Cavs 0-2

Just love it!

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time October 28, 2009 at 10:06 PM

101-91 Toronto over LeBronze + company

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time October 28, 2009 at 10:16 PM

wow the Cavs are 0-2, not the start they thought huh? And the Bobcats only score 59 in a game, really?

Comment from dcbutler357
Time October 28, 2009 at 10:37 PM

LOL….HEY CREW!!!!

That’s right, if the fat lady can sing 50-60 times this season and we make the playoffs, its fine with me
Who cares if it’s game 1 or 11, there’s no exact time for one to be happy for your team like the present….energy baby

As far as NY and Javale and Dom, let the coach coach for crying out loud, he got us a much needed VICTORY, and on the road also….ok NY and Javale doesn’t totally have the team concept and the other players showed that they do, so it is what it is, right now, if they don’t play at all and we win a championship, someone will still be unhappy….LOL….

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time October 28, 2009 at 10:59 PM

Wow — how about them Cavs, huh?

Gabbo — I agree that DS and/or James might be packaged to trade (tho we might well want to hold on to James’ expiring contract to facilitate the slew of re-signings we need to do).

Still, DeShawn was very solid last night in spite of horrible shooting. I guess I’m just glad to see him seemingly recovered from his back injuries. I would have been happy to see him traded over the summer, but maybe now I feel slightly different.

(Not that I wouldn’t like to see another rebounder on our team!)

Comment from tyrone20000
Time October 28, 2009 at 11:24 PM

I thought Deshawn’s defense and ball handling are overlooked. Last year when he went out our average turnovers went up. So his poor shooting will always be what everyone notice.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time October 28, 2009 at 11:26 PM

Pretty good start to the season for us eh? We beat Dallas in their house and the Lebron’s are 0 and 2. It just doesn’t get any better than that.

Tom I like Dominic and what he brings too, but, with Miller rebounding like that and the rest of the team “actually” playing defense it’s going to be hard for him to find minutes this year I’m afraid. He needs to spend 16 hours a day in the gym on the off days just shooting. He needs to develop an “all around” game. The talent on the team this year is just too good.

You don’t like him yet, but, watch Foye defensively. It’s great that he scores, but, he is our best defensive guard. No I didn’t forget about Deshawn. Foye is very quick and has a nice way of staying in front of his man. We have needed defense for what seems to be forever. This guy can bring it. It’s a plus that his jump shot is so sweet.

Who thought of that trade? Miller and Foye for the 5th pick plus 3 old friends. Give that person a paid vacation to the destination of their choice

Comment from M2
Time October 29, 2009 at 1:20 AM

Dom Mandel…

PLEASE change your user name!

Comment from Wizards4Life
Time October 29, 2009 at 2:17 AM

Dom Mandel LMAO now thats almost as good as GABBO’s name chance almost…

Comment from dmac
Time October 29, 2009 at 7:05 AM

Jeff Malone I love the way you go down memory lane with the Bullets. We have a lot of great memories from the Bullets. I really became a Bullets fan when I saw this this big young kid from Louisville name Wes Unseld come into the league to win double honors. That lob pass was a thing of beauty.
Tom I had the pleaseure of sitting behind Robin Ficker one game when the Bullets were playing the Charlotte Hornets who had Alonzo, Larry Johnson, Muggsy Bogues and Dell Curry. Ficker was non stop on Larry and Zo all night.
ATL had 120 points in their win last night with 6 players in double figures. So Friday night will be a good test for our defense. I expect Caron to have a big game. It would be nice to see AB come with another good performance like Dallas. Of course I want the rest of the team to do well. Expect to see Gil average 25-30 until AJ get’s back.

Comment from millie mill
Time October 29, 2009 at 8:23 AM

I hate to change to subject: But Antonio Daniels, may be the next latest Wizards trader since Larry Hughes. http://www.cleveland.com/cavs/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/sports/1256719011233280.xml&coll=2

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time October 29, 2009 at 8:47 AM

M2 — ROFLOL! But I’m not *exclusively* a fan of Dominic McGuire. I just like to see kids who work hard, fit in, produce on the court and have a high basketball IQ succeed — cuz they help their teams succeed.

millie mill — is Antonio not supposed to go out and earn a living as a basketball player? It’s a profession and a game, that’s all, not war or patriotism. I’m delighted to see him land somewhere. Next year, I bet Antonio will begin his coaching career. If he isn’t a head coach in 5 years, I’ll be very surprised.

Comment from SportzWiz
Time October 29, 2009 at 8:57 AM

Gotta give a blogger bump to M2 for the Dom Mandel line

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time October 29, 2009 at 9:01 AM

dmac — the Hawks/Pacers game was very tight til the 4th quarter.

Indiana turned it over 26 times and had 1 steal — yikes! That’s giving the other team 25 extra possessions. No way to win when you do that!

Yet Indiana outrebounded the Hawks, shot 53% and 84% from the line. They scored 106 points despite all those turnovers, so *no one* was playing any defense on either side of the ball.

Moral of story? Don’t turn it over, and we have a good shot to get a win.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time October 29, 2009 at 9:27 AM

DeJuan Blair played 22 minutes in the Spurs’ opener last night. All he did was go 7-10 from the floor and grab 11 rebounds.

I guess those bad knees are really gonna hold him back, huh?

Comment from millie mill
Time October 29, 2009 at 9:46 AM

@ tom
Daniels can play anywhere just not Cleveland.

I was going to say the same thing about Blair. I watched that game he looked great.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time October 29, 2009 at 10:03 AM

Ty Lawson — another guy downgraded by the GM herd (too small) — had a great opening night for the Nuggets last night.

Comment from maggicman11
Time October 29, 2009 at 6:06 PM

I think the thing that really scared people away from Blair was his size… actually, let me rephrase, it was his height. (his size is great)