Washington Wizards Blog

Comment from ChenierFan
Time November 22, 2009 at 10:32 AM

I still have a lot of faith in Flip. I’m sure he and Ernie realize that about 70% of the team salary is tied up in Antawn, Gil and Caron. Thus, they have to be given the chance to earn that salary and carry the team.

However, I have to believe that that window of opportunity is closing. Flip will find a way to get Javalle, Dom and maybe even Nick integrated into the scheme.

Realistically, Gil is playing about as well as can be expected for having missed 2 years. He will get better as the year goes along.

Caron looks like an average player these days. He used to be a dead-eye shooter, but not anymore. I liked him better when he guzzelled soda. I mentioned during pre-season that his skill level had dropped and it has carried over to the regular season. He has also been a turnover machine!

Antawn, is terrible on both individual and team defense. He is the epitome of the perfect sixth man. He is not a starter in this league anymore. He cannot move on D at all. He does hustle for rebounds, but in crunch time is often over matched by bigger, longer forwards. Plus, he also badmouths his teammates, which doesn’t help anyone.

I’ll continue later… breakfast time…

Any comments?

Comment from dcbutler357
Time November 22, 2009 at 10:53 AM

That is what will separate Flip from the other coaches. The vets CAN NOT RUN this team if we are going to win. PERIOD.

How in the heck did they get this much control, without winning a championship??

Comment from dcbutler357
Time November 22, 2009 at 10:56 AM

Also, the bench is the one expending the energy (for the most part) to get back in the game, then re-insert the rusty wheels….it’s a slap in the face to those other players on the team that are working hard, just as well as the fans that have to stomach it. No more this player or that player ain’t ready…..that card has been taken from the deck…

Comment from maggicman11
Time November 22, 2009 at 11:20 AM

I want to go on record as saying I DO like flip. I believe in his system. I dont agree with they way he distributes minutes, but i think that is somewhat influenced by Ernie. I just dont believe in these players running his system. he doesnt have the defensive players he had in detroit on minessota. we have Gil and caron on the wings and they are getting beat off the dribble left and right. not only that but on offense non of the players look like they’re running the same play except when they run that double screen by the two bigs at the top of the arc. it reminds me of a group of guys in the YMCA running pick up. no real scheme. then while everyone is trying to takeover the game none of our main guys are shooting the ball well. if gil can jack up 20 shots and only shoot 35% while leading the league in turnovers and still get to play 35 min then why cant nick? DOM could average the same amount of points per game gil does if we let him shoot 20 shots per game and get 35 min.

So are we now a team that distributes minutes according to the names on the back of there jerseys? We need a mike Singletary minded coach. a coach from the old school who careless how many endorsements a guy has. They guys who show up will play, even if that means only playing with four guys on the floor. I cant stand this sense of entitlement from our so called “big” 3.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time November 22, 2009 at 11:55 AM

http://www.nba.com/2009/news/11/22/wizards.changes/index.html

I can’t believe Gil said “hidden agendas”…ok, I guess Gil is officially back (mouth-wise). This doesn’t take the focus off of the fact that he isn’t back physically. Look in the mirror hibachi, because right now, we need you to come back TOTALLY, or give someone else a chance, until you do so.

Comment from gray16
Time November 22, 2009 at 12:01 PM

while i feel flip is wrong for playing poorly playing players (tongue twister lol) so many minutes, it seems that he is about to address that.

THANK YOU FLIP

but i still don’t want to give up on flip yet. it seems to me that players aren’t adapting to his system. if gilbert were to instead of taking a jumper 10 seconds in to clock, to rather swing it to see if a closer shot comes, then the movement would be better. even randy foye looks better than gilbert right now, because at least he doesn’t settle for jumpers all the time. boykins looks better because he doesn’t settle for the first open look.

for caron, as soon as he touches the ball, he wants to shoot it. if you could convince him to drive instead of shooting, or just swing the ball to see if another shot comes up, this system would look a lot better.

it seems to me that the system is looking so bad because there are players who are looking for THEIR shots first, and running the offense second. when the ball moves, it goes in the hoop, when players take the first shot they see, the ball clanks.

so hopefully flip isn’t just talking stuff about young guys getting time, hopefully he starts putting them in. nick young, javale, and dom all need to get 8+ minutes per game. of course there will be nights where deshawn’s defense will be needed over nick young, and there will be nights javale will be in foul trouble, but these young guys deserve their chance just like caron and gil have been getting all season long.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time November 22, 2009 at 1:03 PM

I am starting to believe Flip stuck with them, to prove to mgmt, that he needs to play the others, to be successful. IMO I don’t think changing coaches is the answer, but I am glad Flip put it on the floor (justifying why the big three is no more, without sacrificing the whole season to prove it).

NOW, the season of “team play” can begin (hopefully).

Oh well, football time…..GO SKINS

Comment from wizards_fusion
Time November 22, 2009 at 2:01 PM

ah, the infighting in the locker room – it always happens when a supposedly good team starts losing uncontrollably

arenas said “hidden agendas” – ok, that’s a very interesting phrase to use with the media. are guys doing one thing in practice to “impress the coaches” and then doing something completely different in the real games? blanket statements from haywood such as “need to play defense and need to move the ball” don’t answer any questions of how to fix the problems.

aside from the 12 turnover game, i thought arenas has played well this year. i know his FG% stinks, but he’s getting rebounds and dishing a bit more assists. i DO think he’s changed to be a more well-rounded PG instead of a domineering scoring guard like iverson. he’s not TOTALLY back, but i can’t expect him to be.

if eddie jordan spoiled the team, then i have no problems with flip correcting it by enforcing some rules – even if this means losing games. players are not supposed to run teams – just like fans are not suppose to dictate to the coach how things are done. no one here saw how many layers the team built up and now those same layers are being uncovered and the situation is getting ugly.

it is obvious the “Big 3″ doesn’t know how to play with each other anymore. there is no chemistry and no trust. it’s a sad day to realize this fact.

Comment from gray16
Time November 22, 2009 at 2:34 PM

here’s an interesting and funny read for you wizards fans, doesn’t have much to do with the wizards, but one thing should stand out.

http://www.nba.com/2009/news/features/john_schuhmann/11/19/numbersgame.battier/index.html?ls=iref:nbahpt1

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time November 22, 2009 at 2:52 PM

@gray16 – That’s an interesting link, Thanks. Statistics strike again! That just might be the dumbest statistical ranking yet.

The players know who plays defense and who just goes through the motions. It’s just too bad that the three worst defensive players on the Wizards just happen to be the captains…otherwise, we might suggest that the captains speak up about the laggards.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time November 22, 2009 at 3:16 PM

Spurs made 40 field goals, 32 of those came from assists – 80%
Wiz made 28 field goals, 12 of those came from assists – 43%
Assists are the result of team play; a lack of assists is indicative of selfish play.

With Miller out, that percentage will probably get worse.

I know that Coach Saunders is not advocating the “jack it up” offense (or lack of offense) that the Wizards are playing, so the guys on the court are really running the team. Does it matter if we lose by 1 or 50? – a loss is still a loss. If playing the young guys results in wider margins for losses, so what; at least they have energy and potential and can be very entertaining. The “Big 3″ has turned into the “Dwarf 3″. I feel badly that AJ is rolled together with the other two because he is pulling his weight, but 0 and 3 are horrible.

Once again, I will say that I believe that CB should be traded for the best offer we can get. He is an albaross around the neck of this team, but I’m sure he would be considered a valuable property around the league and we should be able to get someone productive for him.

Comment from datonypony
Time November 22, 2009 at 3:47 PM

Last year was supposed to be a learning experience for a lot of the young players, they got some valuable experience and playing chances. This year, when they are most needed off the bench they aren’t getting the chance, even when we have given up 8 consecutive points or when wemiss 6 in a row.

Comment from datonypony
Time November 22, 2009 at 3:56 PM

Wow Mcgee is 4th in the NBA in blocks per 48 minutes. He only gets 7.6 minutes….

Comment from Wizfan4life
Time November 22, 2009 at 4:19 PM

So somehow this Wizards team is 12th in the league in rebounding, 8th in the league in blocked shots,
9th in the league in 3pt percentage, however look at all the things the Wizards need to work on….they are currently:

1. 18th in the league in free throw percentage
2. 19th in the league for rebounds per game
3. only 27th in the league in steals
4. 24th in the league for ppg
5. 26th in offensive efficiency
6. 23rd in defensive efficiency
7. only 3-3 record when the Wizards have more rebounds than opponents
8. 1-3 when the Wizards have fewer turnovers than opponents
9. 25th in the league in fg percentage

Comment from Wizfan4life
Time November 22, 2009 at 4:31 PM

I knew Miller would be out for a while……why does it seem like every player that has come to this Wizards team gets injured? Is it the players themselves, or is it got something to do with the athletic trainer? I dont know……All I can say is, Foye should not start in place of Miller while he is out. One reason is he himself is just getting back into things after missing a couple games from being injured. Second, if you put Foye as a starter, we have almost no energy coming off of that bench, although Foye has failed to prove he can be explosive off the bench up to this point in the season. Something I would like to see would be to have a lineup like this:

1. Arenas
2. Butler
3. Jamison
4. Blatche
5. Haywood

Blatche has shown he is dominant as a starter this season, so why not? It gives us a lot of depth in the front-court, and overall it gives our starting lineup a lot of size in the paint and with 2 shot blockers……if that does not work, I say do this lineup:

1. Boykins
2. Arenas
3. Butler
4. Jamison
5. Haywood

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time November 22, 2009 at 4:38 PM

Here it is for all to see, the Wizards are the 24th ranked offense in the NBA (keep in mind we only have 30 teams) And please take a look at the assists per game as well:

http://www.nba.com/statistics/sortable_team_statistics/sortable1.html

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time November 22, 2009 at 2:21 AM

Again look at the assist numbers in all 3 wins:

http://www.nba.com/wizards/stats/team_splits.html

In the Wizards 3 wins they have avg 22.7 assists in there L’s they have avg 17.1, In the 3 wins we have avg 111 pts per game, and the L’s 91.4

Comment from Rick
Time November 22, 2009 at 5:37 PM

It’s hard to get a lot of assists when you shoot such a low percentage. Then again it is hard to shoot a high percentage when you are not being passed the ball in a position to score. Which is the problem? Both.

An interesting statistic, which I don’t think is tracked, would be the percentage of an individual’s made FGs that were assisted. That would really tell you a lot about a guy’s style of play. And if you look at a team where those percentages are not balanced, you will have a situation like we do on the Wiz.

Comment from Rick
Time November 22, 2009 at 5:45 PM

I just read Arenas’ comments. What a joke! He is wondering if he needs to go into attack mode? What does that mean? Take 30 shots per game instead of the 20 he is jacking up now? AND he’s shooting an awful 39%!

Gilbert, get real. You have a long way to come back before you have earned the right to make any comments like that. If there was even 1 team in the league that wanted to make a trade for you, I’d be surprised. Jamison, Butler, and others would definitely make the short list of a number of contenders. But not you, because they are team players, and you are not.

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time November 22, 2009 at 6:08 PM

Comments from Mr Haywood:

“I guess when you start losing everyone wants to start pointing fingers everywhere else,” Arenas said. “I converted my game to try to get people involved, but at the end of the day, to be honest, this is the same team since three years ago. We added a couple of pieces, but everybody else is basically the same player.

“I’m sitting here thinking ‘Do I have to go in attack mode like I was two years ago to get us over this hump?’ I hope not. I hope we’re strong enough mentally that we can get over this.”

Arenas leads the team in total points and assists. But heading into Saturday’s game he had taken 55 more shots than the next player.

When asked about sacrificing his game in order for the team to win, Arenas replied, “I think the only person who actually had to sacrifice is me. Everybody else can just play their game.”

That’s not sitting well with at least one player. Wizards center Brendan Haywood said players need to “check their ego at the door.”

“It’s very frustrating because our talent isn’t winning over our egos,” Haywood said. “If you normally score 20 and you don’t get your 20 but the team wins, who cares? Let’s try and win.

“That’s what the Celtics do. Paul Pierce can have 12 in the fourth quarter. [But] if they’re up, he don’t care. That’s what we gotta do. Check your ego at the door. Move the ball. Play some defense.”

Comment from dcbutler357
Time November 22, 2009 at 6:36 PM

Ok bloggers, what in the he– is everyone thinking. I see everyone wants a change, but everyone’s lineup still has Gil, Caron, and AJ on their starting five!!!!!!!!!!

THEY ARE A DEFENSIVE LIABILITY….Haywood can’t and shouldn’t still be the only defensive person on the court. Since AJ is a def liab, i would rather have two bigs on the court with him and put him at the 3 (Javelle or AB start at 4). We don’t necessarily need five scorers on the court all the time. Let Caron and Gil split time at the two (Caron only shoot jumpers) and either get a point to start (JCritt) or let Boykins start, but he is more of a shooting point.

JeffM-Gil is in denial. either he’s part of the problem or part of the solution, and right now he’s part of the P.

Comment from Wizfan4life
Time November 22, 2009 at 6:51 PM

DCbutler357: I agree with you….maybe we should even have Jamison come off the bench? He could keep the younger guys in tune with the game, and we would have a veteran point guard coming off the bench in Boykins as well!

Comment from datonypony
Time November 22, 2009 at 7:18 PM

C: Haywood, Javale
PF: Blatche, Jamison
SF: Butler, Dominic, Jamison
SG: Arenas, Foye
PG: Boykins, Arenas, Foye

This is until our roster is healthy.

Comment from datonypony
Time November 22, 2009 at 7:21 PM

If there is no energy then play:

C: Javale
PF: Blatche
SF: Dom
SG: Nick
PG: Boykins

That should give us a few decent run and gun baskets.

Comment from Aj
Time November 22, 2009 at 8:02 PM

Well flip said expect changes on tuesday which is good because last year tapp was very stubborn with not changing his lineups. I think we all know that arenas and haywood will be in the lineup and miller is injured so i’m curious to see the lineup against phily. I would like the lineup with gil, foye, twan, blatche, and haywood. I think we would have to play a lot of zone so people like lebron and Iggy don’t kill twan on the perimeter. It’s sad that everyone on the team is off with their shot or most people are on at the same time. D-steve really needs some late night training sessions to get his shot back. I really want to see nick and javale get more playing time. Lastly, did anybody watch the real nba episode about the wiz, because on the show antawn says that flip told the team if you are a def. liability you won’t play much. This is funny that twan mentions it and it is funny that he plas the most minutes.

Comment from ChenierFan
Time November 22, 2009 at 8:17 PM

It is instructive to note that the only time Antawn has been on a team with a very good regular season record was during the 2003-2004 season with Dallas (52-30). That was the year he came off the bench as the sixth man. That was also the year he shot his best fg % of his career at 54%. This backs up my contention that Flip should give serious consideration to having him play the same role here. The trouble is, it is hard to justify Antawn’s huge salary for a guy who comes off the bench. Nevertheles, that is what I would do.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time November 22, 2009 at 8:23 PM

AJ, that’s a very good analysis of the situation. Some people walk the walk and some people talk the talk. And then we have the wizards…..lol….just playing.

I’m watching league pass myself, and just trying to get a feel on how everyone else plays the “pick”, because whenever picks are set on us, the other team ends up at the rim. From what I’m seeing, the big man either jumps all the way out and stops the ball, or leaves the person and protects the paint. Just an FYI

I’m def going to watch the lakers vs okc though….

Comment from dcbutler357
Time November 22, 2009 at 8:27 PM

Chenier, All three of our previous all-stars make a nice chunk of change, but if I recall correctly, they make less than KG, pierce, Lebron, etc. I don’t mind him coming off the bench and getting 20-10. Heck, I don’t even mind him starting, I just want them to find a way to play more team ball, and stop thinking they are above reproach.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time November 22, 2009 at 8:32 PM

Oh, my bad on the pick and roll thing, other players don’t need a pick, they dribble right around us…lol…whoas me

Comment from gray16
Time November 22, 2009 at 8:57 PM

i don’t know about anyone else, but i’d rather have butler coming off the bench than jamison. jamison has been the reason the wizards were even able to stick with teams in the early minutes of games. if you don’t start him, the starts to games will be even worse.

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time November 22, 2009 at 9:35 PM

I am with you dcbutler, looking forward to the Lakers vs Thunder………..as far as who should start or sit, I side with you (you have swayed me)

PG Boykins
SG Arenas
SF Butler
PF Blatche
C Haywood

2nd Unit

PG Foye
SG Young
SF DMAC
PF Jamison
C McGee

Maybe change is good?

Comment from Wizfan4life
Time November 22, 2009 at 9:39 PM

Gray16: why would you have Butler come off the bench over Jamison? Butler is the only one besides Haywood that actually plays relatively solid defense the whole time they are on the court!

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time November 22, 2009 at 10:01 PM

Whoever is responsible for changing the way we defend the pick and roll should re-think it. During the first couple of games both Brendan, Oberto and ‘Dray would step out on the ball handler and stay with him until someone switched over. Now they just run up and wave their arms and immediately retreat to the basket leaving the ball handler to do what ever he wants. STOP the BALL!!!!! Rotate in the back.

Can’t anyone on this coaching staff see that our defense of the pick and roll allows open shots while our opponents’ defense of the pick and roll forces our ball handler deeper toward half court simply because their big man stays with the ball handler.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time November 22, 2009 at 10:03 PM

Jeffm, Did you see Miami and NOH, GREAT FINISH!!

Phoenix and Detroit is pure energy. Detroit needs to slow it down, they’re a step behind, Villanueva does look good.

LAL vs OKC was a double ot last time they played….OKC reminds me of ATL

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time November 22, 2009 at 10:09 PM

AJ’s effectiveness is diminishing with each game and I don’t think it is because of anything that he is doing differently. Gil has simply stopped giving AJ the ball at the right moment on the pick and roll. I believe that Gil is using the pick and roll with AJ to try to get himself open for a shot because he is trying to take over each game and the expense of the team. Now he wants to go into “attack mode”???? GIL, SIT DOWN AND SHUT UP! You really need a reality check about what is wrong with this team…the answer is Gilbert is what is wrong with the team, but he is followed closely by #3.

The Wiz will not be trading Gil. No other team can afford a $110,000,000.00 point guard who does not care about assists and can’t hit the side of a barn with a basketball with any consistency. We are stuck with him. We can, however, get something worthwhile for CB. He is an excellent player in the wrong system with the wrong point guard.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time November 22, 2009 at 10:12 PM

BTW, even if Gil averages 30, AJ averages 25, and CB averages 25 we will lose every game. No NBA team wins with 80 points. These three guys have to begin to realize that they need other players involved if we want to win.

Comment from neal
Time November 22, 2009 at 11:40 PM

As far as I know, Arenas is the only one who has tried to influence management re. running the team.

I give Arenas credit for trying to adjust for the good of the team, but he still has a lot of “it’s all about me”. I agree with Haywood there.

I am even more convinced McGee needs to play over Oberto. And Stevenson needs to come out of the rotation. That still leaves big question marks as to who the new starter at the 2 and who the backups at both the 1 and 2 should be. I think you can make a case for several scenarios.

MORE IMPORTANTLY, as suggested above, we are approaching the point where one or more of the big three should not be starting, at least for a while. Whether they are unable or unwilling to adjust to a team system (whether Jordan’s, Tapscott’s or Saunders’s), or whether they just don’t work well together, something has to change.

Comment from Wizards4Life
Time November 23, 2009 at 1:11 AM

i like McGee just as much as the next guy but he needs more body mass he just gets pushed around too much at the 5 and he is never near the basket on rebounds and he fouls way too much but he has a ton of positives like jumping shot blocking and changing shots but its not enuf with his low Ball IQ but again he is not going to find it on the bench he is in a lose lose if you ask me

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time November 23, 2009 at 4:22 AM

From the Washington Post’s Michael Lee Wizards Insider

Agent ego?

I wasn’t able to completely delve into the rising dissension in the Wizards’ locker room, but I decided to use this forum to go a little deeper than what I could in the newspaper. You already know by now that Brendan Haywood and Gilbert Arenas made some interesting comments after the team suffered a 22-point loss in San Antonio.

Haywood talked about how “ego” is standing in the way of the Wizards’ success this season. He didn’t single out anyone, but he spoke of the need for the players to humble themselves, stop worrying about statistics and glory and play basketball. “Check your ego at the door. Let’s try and win,” Haywood said. “I watch the Celtics, and that’s what they do. Paul Pierce can have 12 in the fourth quarter if they’re up, he don’t care. That’s what we gotta do. Check your ego at the door, move the ball, play some defense.”

But immediately after Haywood was done talking to reporters, Arenas emerged from the shower and basically said that he was going to start going for his if the situation doesn’t get better. It was a rather bizarre because Haywood intentionally yelled his answers so that everyone in the room could hear them. Arenas actually walked in from the shower while Haywood was talking, then returned until Haywood was finished.

Arenas then began talking as if he was going to save the team and that the individual agendas of the Wizards’ eight free agents have been the reason for the team’s failures. I’ll get to his comments about the free agents a little later, but first I want to look deeper into what else he said. He explained why he might have to go on a similar tear as three years ago, when the Wizards started the season 4-9 and had the best record in the Eastern Conference before February.

“I guess you start losing everyone wants to start pointing fingers everywhere else,” Arenas said. “I converted my game to try to get people involved, but at the end of the day, to be honest, this is the same team since three years ago. We added a couple of pieces. You had Roger Mason, now you have Randy Foye. But Dray is Dray, Caron’s Caron, Antawn’s Antawn. It’s basically the same thing, so I’m sitting here thinking, ‘Do I have to go into attack mode like I was two years ago to get us over the hump?’ I hope not. I hope we’re strong enough mentally that we can get over this.”

Arenas cannot honestly believe that this current team — on paper at least — is not better than the one three years ago. And, with the ball in his hands more than it was then, he has had opportunities to take over games but either didn’t (he took just 10 shots in Indiana) or couldn’t (he took 27 shots, missing 18, in a loss to Miami, and could never provide the closing touch in that home loss to Detroit). Since that opening win in Dallas, the Wizards’ best fourth-quarter performance came last week against Cleveland, with Arenas on the bench.

Still, Arenas believes that he has had to scale back his game for the betterment of the team. “I think the only person who actually had to sacrifice was me. Everybody else can just play their game,” Arenas said.

Arenas is averaging 19.3 shot attempts, which leads the team. Through three quarters on Saturday, he had taken 18 shots — the same as Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison combined. “Before, I would’ve taken 27 shots on a night like this to keep us in the game,” Arenas said. “But I’m not trying to revert to that. Before, I’d look at Eddie and he’d say, ‘Take over the game.’ But I’ve got trust in these guys that eventually Randy’s going to start hitting shots. He’s coming off of injury. That Caron’s going to start catching and shooting, that we’ll start getting production out of Dray again.”

“Like I told Twan, couple more games before I just say, ‘Hey, I’m going to have to carry you guys on my back,’ ” Arenas said.

But the part of Arenas’s interview that was truly strange was when he spoke about the “hidden agendas” on the team.

“Everybody needs to get on the same level, that’s all. Everyone’s got their own individual goals, I guess. Hidden agendas. You can’t win like that,” he said. “I’ve never been on a team where you have eight free agents next year. I’ve never played on a team like that. I’ve never seen it turn out well. Sometimes it works out for the best because everybody’s hungry and everybody’s fighting. Sometimes it works out for the worst when everybody’s out for their own.”

Huh? The eight free agents have hidden agendas?

Haywood is the only free agent who has played every game this season, but it’s not like rebounding and blocking shots is a disruption. Mike Miller has been playing with one arm because he’s a competitor. Randy Foye has been hurt and received limited minutes of late. Fabricio Oberto is the ultimate team player, so much so that Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich said the guy is going to heaven when he dies. Earl Boykins has played three games. Dominic McGuire doesn’t play. And Mike James and Javaris Crittenton are both out injured.

I’ll admit that having several players looking for contracts could be a distraction, but I have a hard time seeing any of those guys as the problem right now. It’s not like any of them resurrected old nicknames, are trying to get a million followers on Twitter or just established Web sites to promote their all-star campaigns.

Look, Arenas is free to market himself in whatever manner he pleases — as Angry Gil, Silent Gil, Agent Zero, Hibachi, etc. — but the timing of all this seems pretty bad with the season slipping. He really needs to just play basketball and stop worrying about the ancillary stuff. Three and nine should lead to a change in priorities. Ultimate stardom comes with wins.

Comment from wizards_fusion
Time November 23, 2009 at 10:07 AM

All this yapping from 2 guys that actually like each other in the locker room is problematic.

Haywood’s mouth is more refined – he actually thinks through about the situation and tells it as it is. Haywood cares to win as a team and cares very little about individual statistical glory. However, this season is somewhat complex for Brendan because he is trying to maximize his stats to get a $$ long-term contract. You can call it the “Tim Thomas rule”. I can’t completely agree with what Haywood says but I know where he’s coming from.

Arenas, on the other hand, just fires comments to get HIS theories out in the open – which is typically going to irk most everyone involved. Arenas doesn’t care about the emotions of the players around him – he’s egocentric and it was obvious from his latter days in Golden State. WAS fans gave him a pass because he did come in and made Bullets/Wizards basketball somewhat relevant again. However, he treats his teammates like robots and wants to be worshipped as the alpha dog in the league when he only helped guide the team to 45 wins – an average standing at best. It seems like day-in-and-day-out, the drama of Arenas is parallelling with the Iverson saga. And as we see right now, the AI story doesn’t end well. Oh, and guess what – Arenas’ current contract ends at about the same age as Iverson’s …

I’m very sure that Arenas is NOT buying into anything Flip is selling because the team is 3-9. Arenas, as he has all his basketball life, thinks he needs to carry his team and control everything from his position. Haywood knows this will lead down a path for disaster (UNC always preached team – even during the Jordan days), but Gil doesn’t know any other way. Gil is trying to be like Wade, Kobe, and LeBron – 3 guys that can carry teams, but Gil is not good enough to do so. He’s blinded by his own limitations. And when he steps back and sees the situation worsening, he believes it is all on him to right the ship.

What I fear is that if the Wiz goes back to their winning ways, all this back-and-forth will be brushed under the mat. These problems never go away and will always rear its ugly head when another losing streak pops up. Flip and his staff are in a no-win situation at the moment. If Flip decides to bench any of the Big 3 for reasons other than if he’s injured and the team continues to lose, Ernie is going to put him on a short leash like he did with the Eddie Jordan fiasco. If Flip doesn’t bench the Big 3, someone from that group will continue to undermine the team (either with Gil going 1 at 5 or Caron racking up more turnovers per game than points or whatever) and the Wiz will be no better off this season than last year.

On Tuesday night, watch Arenas take 40 shots because he wants to show his old boss that he’s an alpha dog. Gil will get his stats. If this happens, watch the Wiz lose to the 76ers.

Comment from gray16
Time November 23, 2009 at 12:45 PM

how can arenas go back to his old ways when he’s not doing anything different now? he’s still putting up 19 fga (in 6 less minutes than his 05-06 season), he’s still putting up 5 3s per game, i don’t see much of a difference? the only difference is he was making shots back then that he’s missing now. if he’s saying he’s gonna start making them, be my guest agent zero lol

as far as starting caron over antawn, i see your point about the defense, but that hasn’t been the problem in the starts. i think if you are going to have twan coming off the bench, the starts will go right back to being horrid, and the wizards will still be playing catch up.

Comment from gbkdc
Time November 23, 2009 at 1:20 PM

What a mess.

I am glad I missed the Spurs game. I have been reading everyone’s comments, and I only have one thing to add.

I realize that Caron has not been playing that well this year, but I do believe that he can change. Caron seems willing to do whatever is asked of him by Flip, and he has always seemed like a team-first kind of guy. Gil, on the other hand, I’m not so sure about. I guess what I’m trying to say is to give Caron a chance. He probably knows he is not playing well, and he will probably take whatever suggestions Flip hands him into consideration, and will try his best to do what is asked of him. He seems to have the right attitude, even if his game is off right now. To me, that means there is hope for him to get it together. It might not happen right away, though. All the pieces are out of order right now anyway.

I’m curious to know what happened to TOM? What do you think, Tom?

Comment from Wizfan4life
Time November 23, 2009 at 1:27 PM

One thing about the Wizards that is very frustrating to me so far is how many fouls they have per game…..Oberto for example, averages a little more than 3 personal fouls a game, yet only plays less than 20 minutes! That is absurd!! Also, Haywood, our top defensive player right now, is averaging 3 fouls a games as well!! How do we expect to have solid defense if we keep getting guys that have 4,5, or 6 fouls a night?? Surprisingly, our opponents have averaged 22.5 fouls a night, while we have averaged 21.8…….I would love to see a statistic though that shows when those fouls occurred and how many were silly fouls……if there was such a stat, ours would be very bad!!! also, our team is averaging 74.8% from the free throw line…..I am sorry but that is just garbage!!! Even New Jersey and New York are averaging better free throw percentages than the Wizards right now, in my opinion that is just sad…..most of the problems though can be attributed to Gils horrible free throw percentage though, because he is averaging a low 73.6%……that said, there is no excuse in my opinion for players to do poorly on free throws….free throws can win games

Comment from Wizfan4life
Time November 23, 2009 at 1:29 PM

With Miller out as well, you can expect the Wizards to have difficulty making 3 pointers and free throws

Comment from Wizfan4life
Time November 23, 2009 at 1:30 PM

If only someone would show these blog posts to the Wizards players during practice today…….That way they could see how frustrated some of the fans are right now. Maybe that would motivate the players to change some things on how they play!

Comment from wizards_fusion
Time November 23, 2009 at 1:56 PM

@ gbkdc

part of the blame with caron’s struggles is toward flip saunders. he is NOT running plays to get caron into positions on the court where he’s comfortable taking those jumpshots. at least eddie jordan knows where caron’s sweetspots are and gets him the ball in those situations.

caron has to create way too much for a guy that’s not good at creating his own shot – thus, the turnovers.

caron is playing hard as usual, but he has no flow or rhythm with the game. it is hard to make baskets when your body cant get with the program. it is even harder to play basketball when there are so many distractions and backtalking and expectations hanging on everyone’s heads right now.

@ W4L

i’m going to help you out with a subliminal message to the Wiz players

puffpuffPASSDABALLpuffpuffPASSDABALLpuffpuffPASSDABALLpuffpuffPASSDABALLpuffpuffPASSDABALLpuffpuffPASSDABALLpuffpuffPASSDABALLpuffpuffPASSDABALL

Comment from maggicman11
Time November 23, 2009 at 2:59 PM

Although i believe arenas is the BIGGEST problem on the team right now, I do agree that caron seems to be trying to “up” his value. If flip is not running plays his way, that doesnt mean go out and try to get your own shots. it simply means we are trying to get a better shot so pass the ball. I dont think he should have any plays called his way till he starts playing defense. this is not football, you cant play offense then take a break while the rest of ur team plays D. you have to have both. if a guy cant play D he shouldnt be on the floor. D wins championships, O just wins games. so if DOM can always play good D but cant score as good as caron, but will make the extra pass to get it to someone who can and can sit on the bench.. why is it then when guys play good O but cant play a lick of D they get 30 min a game? it doesnt make sense. not to mention if flip were to let Dom shoot 20 times a game he would probably score more than gil has been scoring so far. its not like we’d be missing anything. and if nick shoots 20x a game he’d definitely score more than 18 points.

I think we need change on this team and i dont mean take out one player and leave the 3 guys causing the most problems on the floor in differnt positions. GIl and caron need to come off the bench. That is the best way to make sure guys check their ego’s at the door. nothingg more humbling than benching your so called “star” player. The only reason i dont also say bench twaan is because at least he attempts to play defense. he is not quick, and is not a high jumper, and is not as big as some other bigs, so its harder for him to go up against players like duncan or josh smith. but he gives 100% every game.

right now twaan and haywood are the only startes deserving of the title. i would include miller but he’s hurt.

so for the starting lineup i would pick

1. foye or boykins
2. nick young
3. dom
4. twaan or blatche i’d split the time evenly between these two
5. haywood

6. blatche
7. mcgee
8. caron
9. arenas

that would humble these guys with “hidden agendas” and “egos”
9.

Comment from neal
Time November 23, 2009 at 3:19 PM

Yes, Tom, where did you go?

I haven’t seen that Jamison hustles more than Arenas or Butler on defense. Do others see that? Actually, I haven’t noticed Butler giving up as much as the other two. Maybe because I haven’t watched him as much.

Wow! Slick goes from DNP to starting. It does seem, however, that when he only subs he never gets into a rhythm.

Someone posted stats on the Wiz as a team compared to the other teams. Where did you get those?

Comment from maggicman11
Time November 23, 2009 at 4:41 PM

well I’d rather see players on the court who are going to make a solid effort at getting the team a win than to see guys just out there trying to out score each other. jamison understands team ball. Gil even is starting to understand it but even tho he’s healthy, he is not as good as he once was and is terrible on D. untill those guys understand D as well as team ball they need to come off the bench. what would we be losing, really? scoring? HA, that would be a good joke.. these starters are shooting a horribly fg%. would we lose D? HA, an even better joke. we have nothing to lose and everything to gain. yes, slick goes from dnp to starter because as of now this would be the best starting lineup. it would hopefully get gil back to his killer instinct ways. He has always been a player who wants to prove everyone wrong. well, now people think he’s a beast. and yet again he is proving people wrong. maybe if he is coming off the bench it will reignite something he has lost. Jamison is a true leader. the only one on the team. I dont know what kind of a message it would send to bring him off the bench.

Right now im thinking a trade is order if the lineup change doesnt work. maybe Gil is pretty untradeable given his price tag and lack of ability to earn it. but Gil and Caron together.. I wonder what we could get for that?? hmmm…