Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 1, 2010 at 8:26 AM

Hey DJ, welcome back. Hope you had a good summer too. As you will see if you review some of the posts, the bloggers didn’t lose a beat since the end of last season…there is, however, evidence of cabin fever in a lot of the posts. If the season doesn’t start soon some of the bloggers will have advocated for trading everyone and firing the entire staff. Just can’t seem to be able to back away from the keyboard…

Comment from gray16
Time September 1, 2010 at 10:11 AM

Welcome Back DJ!

look forward to listening in on some games this season and blogging with you again. can’t wait for the season to start.

Comment from JWALL
Time September 1, 2010 at 10:37 AM

Welcome back DJ. I like the rest of the blogging crew am very anxious for training camp and the season.
Being a diehard Redskin fan. This is the first time I have ever been more fired up for the Wiz season coming than the Skins. Even with McNabb and Shanahan in the picture I am more focused on the new additions and seeing who that 8 man rotation will be. With Yi playing like he is in FIBA it seems he is determined to be in the top eight.
I guess by the time the Skins get ready for the Cowboys on 9/12 I will be ina football frame of mind.

But I will be sure counting down to the opener in Orlando and our opener against Philly,

Comment from JWALL
Time September 1, 2010 at 10:53 AM

DJ here is my prediction for the top 8 in Flip’s rotation.

Wall- PG
Arenas- SG
McGee- C
Blatche- PF
Thornton-SF

Hinrich- G
Jianlian- PF
Booker- F

Young and Armstrong- foul trouble reserves

Jianlian or Booker could be foul trouble reserves when Josh Howard returns.

One player who could cause some problems with other’s playing time especially Armstong is Seraphin.

Comment from JWALL
Time September 1, 2010 at 11:33 AM

In a perfect rebuilding season here is my cure for off-season cabin fever.
Player predictions:

Player PPG Reb Assist Blocks Steals
Wall 14 5 9 1.5 4
Gil 24 3 4 – 3
McGee 10 8 – 3 -
AB 17 7 2 2 1
AT 12 4 2 – -

Kirk 12 4 5 – 2
Yi 8 4 – 1.5 -
TB 6 4 2 2 2

Game 103 39 24 10 12

Comment from Babakism
Time September 1, 2010 at 11:50 AM

@Tom You continue to refer to Yi as a “bad” player.
I do understand your evaluation based on his entire career and up until this point has been inefficient at scoring. The fact he has shot a very poor percentage from the field there is no doubt Yi is not “good”, but you can’t call him “bad” while he is “below average” he has at least shown at times he can be “good”

Bad Players

Mark Madsen
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhibi0aSAZk

Kwame Brown
Adam Morrison
Hilton Armstrong
Joe Alexander
Robert Swift
Calvin Booth
Michael Ruffin
Damon Jones
Darko Milicic
Sheldon Williams
Olesky Pecherov
Jonathan Bender
Brian Scalabrine
Quinton Ross
The Collins Brothers
Brian Cardinal

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 1, 2010 at 12:00 PM

Babakism,

You have to be able to distinguish between “bad” and “expectations.”
On your list, I would say according to “expectations” Calvin Booth, Michael Ruffin and Brian Cardinal were very good players.
They did for the Wizards/Bullets what was expected of them. They might have even done a little bit more.

Calvin Booth had a 10 year career for a 2nd round draft pick. That is outstanding.
Michael Ruffin played with the Wizards for 3 years and did exactly what we wanted him to do. Play 10-15 minutes a game and do the dirty work.
Brian Cardinal is another 10 year veteran, 2nd round draft pick. He does what he is asked.

All 3 of these guys were 2nd round draft picks who outlived their expectations on the basketball court.
I would call them good players for the role they did for their teams.

Comment from neal
Time September 1, 2010 at 12:03 PM

I was a little surprised that Thornton showed up on that “no defense” list. My opinion of him just dropped. I hope Booker becomes the primary back-up to Howard.

And I’m still hoping that Yi has taken a big step and we will have a 3-man rotation down low (Blatche, McGee, Yi).

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 1, 2010 at 12:13 PM

Some of my favorite Old time Wizards:
1. The Bruise Brothers Jeff Ruland and Rick Mahorn with another bruiser, (Wes Unseld shouting orders).
2. Jeff Malone
3. Dan Roundfield (remember the long white ugly sleeve he wore on one arm)
4. Manute Bol, George Murisahn and Mugsy Bogues (a picture paints a thousand words)
5. Charles Jones and Calvin Booth (Are they brothers?)

Comment from wizards_fusion
Time September 1, 2010 at 1:22 PM

Damon Jones can’t be “bad” if he’s the self-proclaimed “best shooter in the world”

http://www.insidehoops.com/damon-jones-interview-122805.shtml

Looking at Babakism’s list again, there are a lot of big men. I wonder if that’s saying something …

Comment from crozby
Time September 1, 2010 at 1:37 PM

Thornton will probably not be with the team next year, unless he shows defense this year.

Comment from millie mill
Time September 1, 2010 at 1:38 PM

To all the gamers,

Check out the new highlights of NBA 2K11 featuring John Wall doing the Dance.

http://2ksports.com/videos/new/nba2k11/311

Comment from SportzWiz
Time September 1, 2010 at 1:47 PM

For those wondering, I can confirm Kevin Seraphin is in DC. I just saw him walking down 7th street.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 1, 2010 at 2:16 PM

SportzWiz – I have it on very good authority that ‘Dray has had the boot removed from his broken foot. That is good news.

Comment from SportzWiz
Time September 1, 2010 at 3:01 PM

your authority is good gabbo . Might have more details on Dray coming up I will let you know.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 1, 2010 at 3:15 PM

Thanks, SportzWiz

Comment from Babakism
Time September 1, 2010 at 3:44 PM

@Wiz Fushion lol damon jones is an idiot

@draftazoid I remember CJ good old Charles Jones. His brother Caldwell played for the spurs and actually could score the ball a little bit. Poor CJ was always so overmatched trying to guard guys twice his size like Patrick Ewing. I think he lead the league in fouls. He was the starting center the first time I started understanding and watching basketball

I think the starting 5 was

Darryl Walker
Jeff Malone
Bernard King
Tom Hammonds/Mark Alarie
CJ

The first game I ever went to we played the Sonics with Nate Mcmillan Sedale Threat Michael Cage and a very young unblossomed Shawn Kemp. I remember asking my brother, “whos that guy running and jumping all over the place?” of course it was Shawn Kemp

Kind of makes you feel good about Javale Mcgee cause he plays run and jump right now. If he ever developed into a Shawn Kemp type we would all be happy.

Funny how Shawn Kemp was the “Star” of that team when it was really Gary Payton who made things tick.

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 1, 2010 at 4:17 PM

The John Wall-Gary Payton comparisson has been made.
That would be awesome.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 1, 2010 at 4:33 PM

@draftazoid ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo yeah lol I think j wall has the tools to be the defender payton was but I think Payton was already a great deffender even as a rookie. Wall has a ways to go to get to that level. However, what Wall lacks in D compared to Payton he makes up for it on the Offensive end. Interestingly enough the both were pretty bad outside shooters when they came into the league and over time Payton become a decent shooter from the outside and I think Wall will too. He has the best teacher any player could ever ask for on how to drain it from long range in Gilbert Arenas.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 1, 2010 at 4:38 PM

Since we decided to kick it old school a little bit I started looking through the Bullets past rosters from season to season. I really enjoy using Basketball-reference.com You can look from one season to the next all in the click of a button.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/WSB/1990.html

Comment from Babakism
Time September 1, 2010 at 4:52 PM

Below is a perfect example of when per 36 minutes stats are NOT applicable lol

http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/l/lewisce01.html

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 1, 2010 at 5:50 PM

Babakism,

Flip has pretty much said that John Wall is the best Defensive Point Guard in the league right now.
I know it is an incredible statement.
I did not hear Flip compare Wall to Payton. I heard at least 2 other Basketball commentators make the comparisson.
Gary Payton was awesome, especially defensively. If that is where John Wall is headed then the future is definitely bright.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 1, 2010 at 6:11 PM

Why don’t we let John Wall actually play some games in the NBA before we start comparing him to a future HoF player like Gary Payton?

For that matter, maybe a guy who has *never played an NBA game* can’t really be “the best defensive Point guard in the league,” hmmm?

I can’t imagine a better way to set a guy up for a fall than with this incredible, idiotic over-the-top hype.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 1, 2010 at 6:32 PM

Excellent news on Mikhail Torrance Tom!

@Fusey…. yeah I agree, but, nice to know if others pick up early fouls he may be a semi suitable replacement. I too doubt he will get the minutes to get 20/10. Yours is much more realistic.

@Gabbo…. NO WONDER! LOL Tapscott is now directing the scouting team? Good Grief

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 1, 2010 at 6:34 PM

Yeah Tom lol…… I’m sure John Wall reads our little blog and is, as we speak, twitching nervously hoping and praying he meets all of our expectations

IT’S A BLOG BUD. Not a summit of Gm’s lol

Comment from Babakism
Time September 1, 2010 at 6:35 PM

@draftazoid I’ve been trolling the net trying to find a quote from flip like what you have said a couple times on the blog but have yet to find one.

I don’t doubt Flip having praised his Deffensive ability, but without an exact quote I would have to speculate that Flip is speaking on potential. Based on the physical tools/length/athletic ability of Wall he should be able to be the best Defensive PG in the league.

How could Wall be the best Defensive PG in the league when he has no idea what it is like to guard a Nash pick and roll, a Rhondo drive, or a Derick Rose first step(basically guarding himself)

I’m not huge into college basketball but did he really get a chance to play against any NBA caliber PGs in college last year?????

I expect great things from Wall on the D but I think expecting him to be an All NBA Defensive 1st, 2nd, do they have 3rd team? lol or even a 3rd team if they have that in his rookie year seems unlikely.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 1, 2010 at 6:38 PM

I like how Tom and I were typing the same thing at the same time lol

I also enjoy how I went to type up an opinion and when I sent it through the page layout of the blog changed before my eyes lol

The jersey trim is a very nice touch

Comment from Babakism
Time September 1, 2010 at 6:46 PM

after looking on wiki it appears that Tim Duncan is the only rookie to ever make an All D team

Did anyone know that Larry Hughes made the All D 1st team playing for the Wizards??? lol I never knew that.
No wonder Cleveland overpaid him lol

Comment from gray16
Time September 1, 2010 at 7:24 PM

loving the new set up to the blog! looks good.

as for damon jones, although he hurt me with that game winning 3 against us, that was my boy lol. he was funny, i miss watching him play. he was a character, and i’m not gonna hate on him for anything he said.

as for wall vs payton, i guess we’ll see. if he’s as good as rondo i think we’ll be happy enough lol.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 1, 2010 at 8:23 PM

@Babakism – Yep, Larry Hughes made the All D 1st team during the 2004-05 season when he, Gil, Jeffries, and Jamison were together. Larry and Gil demonstrated great ability to play the passing lanes, but not necessarily play tough heads-up “D” so he got a lot of steals which influenced his being chosen. Gil, Larry, Jared, and Jamison were fun to watch ( run and gun ).

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 1, 2010 at 8:32 PM

The defensive strategy in 2004-05 was for Jeffires to double team the ball handler around half-court with either Gil or Larry and the off-guard (Gil or Larry) play the passing lane off the double-team. The real key to the “D” was Jared. He got great position and has those long arms that created havoc with the ball-handler.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 1, 2010 at 8:37 PM

Hats-off to the web designer(s) for incorporating the uniform piping onto the blog background. Nice touch; very professional looking.

I probably haven’t said this before, but I believe that the Wizards web-site is extremely fan-centric. It is easy to understand and easy to navigate. I have tried accessing all of the other existing NBA web sites, and they are light-years behind the Wizards site. Congratulations on a great job!

Comment from Wizards4Life
Time September 1, 2010 at 9:06 PM

new blog is hottt! they make cell phone skins that look like this but never make them for my phone lol..

But i do remeber flip saying when he got here that his play book was more like 60% D# and 40% O# because people were getting kinda scared that he was just a O# coach an everyone here knows D# was going to be a key to us going deep in the playoffs but yeah so much for that dream!

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 1, 2010 at 9:21 PM

Said it before, but here it is again…
Playbooks are fine, but the key to coaching success is to adapt to the personnel that you have. Wooden had a playbook, but when Kareem arrived, he re-wrote it; Aurebach had a playbook, but when Russell arrived, he re-wrote it. Every coach has playbooks. It’s what they do..they create playbooks. BUT, good coaches don’t expect players to adapt to their playbooks. Good coaches adapt the playbook to the players.

Comment from neal
Time September 1, 2010 at 9:30 PM

Well, I hope our coaches can figure out how to utilize Yi well. He’s big, athletic, and highly motivated. Surely he can be a bigger contributor than he’s been.

SportzWiz, have you found out anything about Martin? Do we have any rights to him?

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 1, 2010 at 10:01 PM

“Keith Glass suggests that the lack of playing time that Hamady received in the Summer League has had a negative effect on the contracts being offered from Europe. He does still believe the Wizards will still offer Hamady a non-guaranteed contract.”

hmmmm, maybe, just maybe his client just isn’t that good….has this agent seen the list of players that went overseas? there’s no way SL influenced all of those signings…lol

BTW-The new layout is very nice

Comment from Reuben
Time September 1, 2010 at 10:01 PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meYIbAt2iaQ

these guys need to perform at the home opener

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 1, 2010 at 10:27 PM

Great job SportzWiz

The blog looks Great

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 1, 2010 at 10:45 PM

Babakism,
Here is one of Flips Quotes on Wall. I will find that quote from my earlier statement.
“Whether you look at [Michael] Jordan, you look at [Kobe] Bryant, LeBron James. They’re all great offensive players but they’re all first team all-league defensive players. That’s where I think he has the ability to be that… But with him, with how hard he plays and just his competitiveness, he’s going to be able to just get by on his defense. That’s how Gary Payton was at the beginning of his career, just able to get by on his defensive ability to do things.”

Tom, these are Flips quotes not mine. Flip is the one putting out the high expectations for John Wall.

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/sports/blogs/pick-and-roll/Flip-Saunders-on-John-Wall-97206424.html

Comment from Babakism
Time September 1, 2010 at 11:16 PM

@draftazoid Flip did use the word “ability”

Javale McGee has the “ability” to lead the league in blocked shots, but it doesn’t mean he will lol

I hope John Wall can have that kind of impact right away but I don’t think we should depend on it.

@gotabigboyoffense I fondly remember that season and many of the games I just didn’t realize that Larry won first team honors.

People can say what they want about Jarred Jeffries but he was a great defender. I can rememeber him disrupting Tim Duncan one night and then guarding Lebron James the next night. Not to many players are that versitile. His downfall was his inability to find any offensive identity.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 1, 2010 at 11:22 PM

BTW maybe I missed you guys talking about it on the blog already, but did you guys know Gil is changing his number???

Apparently he changed it from 0 to 6 back in March and then decided to change it to 9 in July

Random facts: Gil holds the NBA record for most points scored in an overtime period(16 against Lakers)

Gil also holds the NBA record for most points scored in less than 30 minutes (46 points)

another thing lol do you guys have to resend your post 2 or 3 times every time you try to post??? cause I do lol

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time September 2, 2010 at 1:27 AM

I just wanted to say, “Isn’t great to come home again?”….Hello to the entire blogging family as well s Dave, Glenn and Sportzwiz!!!

And I know it has been said, but loving the new layout as well

Comment from jeffmalone1990
Time September 2, 2010 at 1:34 AM

A great read:

The future of the Washington Wizards: Wookie and Wall.

We get this year’s 30-teams-in-30-days NBA preview off to a start in reverse alphabetical order with the Washington Wizards.

Ever since the Warriors traded Chris Webber to the Bullets, and then with Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison, the two franchises have always seemed like alter egos of each other and last season was no exception. Both teams finished 26-56 and this time, it was the Wizards with their star scoring ball handler who was suspended for a huge amount of games for an off-court transgression.

The Wizards then blew up the roster, got the #1 pick in John Wall, and here we are. As we set forth into 2010-11 and going back to these sister-city comparisons, I’d have to say that I like the Wizards’ retooled lineup a lot better than the Warriors’…

Click below for the rest: (got this link from http://www.tedstake.com/)

http://www.goldenstateofmind.com/2010/9/1/1662489/2010-11-washington-wizards-preview

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 2:03 AM

Bubba = Babaklism…. if we have any sucess this year it’s going to fall on two players…. John Wall and Gilbert Arenas (time for him to earn his money). If those two can “become” consumate teamates, while at the same time, control the flow of the game, play defense (so far foreign to Arenas… we will see), and set each other up along with setting up the rest of the players we will get to around 32 wins.

IF guys like Andray and Mr. Jianlian are serious about playing consistent basketball, and, Mr. Booker and Mr. Seraphin come with guns loaded and ready to play “fast/tough” basketball……… that # goes up

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 2:13 AM

If Howard comes back …. fully healthy (AND STAYS THAT WAY)… within the first 20 games… the # goes up again

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 2:24 AM

Less than 4 weeks now

Hiya Dave

I know every season when you post… it’s almost “That Time

I’m really getting Wizards… antsy lol

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 2:32 AM

opening night line up:

John Wall

Gilbert Arenas

Trevor Booker

Andray Blatche

JaVale McGee

I like the subs for those positions too

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 2:40 AM

LET’S GET READY TO RUN…. BLE

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 2:44 AM

the “Run” was NO TYPO

Comment from Babakism
Time September 2, 2010 at 3:00 AM

@giffonracing don’t understand what you mean by Bubba………is it a Forrest Gump reference? Don’t put Yi and Andray in the same category. Andray performed on a level the last 23 games last year that Yi never has in the NBA. However well Gil and Wall perform if they want to be more than just entertaining to watch they need Blatche to be a force in the post.

PG that can break down a Defense

Pure shooting wing player

Low post scoring threat that comands a double team

you need all 3. what good is a PG breaking down the D if he’s got no one who can knock down shots or fill the lanes and finish at the basket, what good is a shooter if he’s got no one to get him the ball or no one to feed the ball to when guys are pressing out on him so he can’t shoot, What good is an array of low post moves if you have no one who can get you the ball when and where you need it and no one to kick the ball out to when you get double and triple teamed who can knock down the open shots.

They all need each other

Sure Gil and Wall could be awesome by themselves and we could win some games but we won’t go far playing that kind of basketball.

I refuse to watch another year of selfish 1 pass or no pass settle for bad outside shot offense like we had to watch before all the trades last year.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 2, 2010 at 7:34 AM

Gotabig is right that the coach adapts his playbook to the players. Surely that’s the biggest part of coaching — adapting to your players and to the opponent’s players too for that matter.

Still, the fact that you rewrite your playbook for Bill Russell doesn’t necessarily mean that you rewrite it for Yi Jianlian. Or maybe just say that rewriting for Russell is the more welcome task!

No reason to think Flip can get more out of Yi than Lawrence Frank, etc.

Comment from JWALL
Time September 2, 2010 at 7:42 AM

We have a very athletic team. We just need to develop the mental toughness to do the things that will make us better. That means hard work and determination. It starts with building a winning attitude. I believe the glue to this squad will be the direction the backourt of JWall, Gil and Kirk will will take us and a stabilizing presence from AB. AB can’t blow up no more when adversity or a couple of bad games comes his way. Players who are going to be under some pressure to improve like Al Thornton, Nick, Hilton and Yi are going to have to dig deep so they can prove the naysayers wrong.
i believe Gil is going to if he is healthy have a all star year.
I only know how to think positive. Negative thinking will become your wardrobe of mental makeup if you are not careful.
We are living in the NOW. Our team has the potential to grow and be something special. As the next couple of years unfold and we can add a couple additional pieces we will have JWall leading us to the promise land like Joshua. All those ex players who thought they would be a part of the great turnarouind of the franchise will have to look from the outside.
As I stated the most important part is developing mental toughness. We the fans in the phone booth have to now cheer for our team more than we did for the favorite players of other teams we gravitated to and say this is who we are going to the big dance with.
The fans have to develop a reputation in the phone booth that opposing teams will not want to make a call from our phone booth.
It is not about how good a player is it is about how successful we can be as a team.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 2, 2010 at 8:33 AM

@Babakism – The only problem that I have ever had with posting is if it took me a long time to compose my post. If that happened, I sometimes got a message that the page was no longer available and I lost the post. I have worked around that by composing in WORD and then doing a cut-and-paste to the blog.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 2, 2010 at 8:45 AM

If you’ve written something, hit “Submit” and gotten a message that the page was no longer available, you should be able to hit the “Back” button on your browser and find your words in the “Message:” box.

In that case, highlight the whole of your post and copy it w/ Ctrl-C.

Then refresh the page. The “Message” box will be empty, so paste back what you’ve written w/ Ctrl-V, and then hit “Submit” again. You should be ok.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 2, 2010 at 8:54 AM

Don’t know why it never occurred to me to use the back button on the browser. If it happens again, I’ll give it a try. Thanks, Tom.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 9:59 AM

Babakism… I fear you misunderstood me on Sooo many levels lol. You are right though, Bubba, is a bit too Forest Gumpy… I’ll come up with a better one for you

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 10:00 AM

The “back” button thing never works for me, and, I don’t know how to do the “word” thing. I always just end up retyping the darned thing

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 2, 2010 at 11:05 AM

Grifonracing — here’s an idea. Type up your posts as if they were email messages. Then, don’t send them (obviously), just copy the text and paste it into the blog and hit Submit.

If you get the bad result, go back and refresh the page, and then paste the text in again.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 2, 2010 at 11:06 AM

Oh duh, even easier: write it in the message box, but copy it before hitting submit. That way you have what you wrote if there’s a problem.

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 2, 2010 at 11:16 AM

Grifon,

I would love to see Trevor Booker win the starting small forward spot. Our fast break speed would be incredibly fast with Wall-Booker-McGee.

Now that will be fun to watch!

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 2, 2010 at 11:28 AM

Tom I agree,

When you write a long posting make sure you copy before you hit the submit button or else you risk losing it.

Comment from tyrone2000
Time September 2, 2010 at 12:17 PM

JWALL, you left JHoward off your rotation…What’s up with that?

Comment from maggicman11
Time September 2, 2010 at 1:07 PM

I think it will take some time for booker to take the starting sf spot from howard or thorton.. He will just be learning how to play the position this year. that puts him at a disadvantage. not to say it wont eventually happen, but i think opening night is too soon

Comment from maggicman11
Time September 2, 2010 at 1:15 PM

I think javale will be a very good center by season’s end. the only 2 things he needs ALOT of improvement on is on ball defense in the post, and positioning on offense. knowing where he is supposed to be. I think these are two very easy things to learn. he is not too slow, too small or too weak (like last year) to be a good defender int he post. we will get alot better once javale learns these things. we could be a top team in the east with a developed center like him.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 2, 2010 at 2:21 PM

I think people are leaving howard out of their rotations because they don’t know if he will be fully recovered

Comment from gray16
Time September 2, 2010 at 3:08 PM

javale also needs to work on his rebounding. we can’t afford to keep giving guys second and third chances out there, that not only hurts your defense, but also your offense. if he can get it in his mind to get the rebound instead of worrying about the fast break all of the time, and also not trying to get a big block EVERY time and just putting a hand up so you can be in position for a rebound, he would be a much bigger help imo.

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 2, 2010 at 4:09 PM

You cannot count on Howard. He will be a bonus when healthy.
I don’t even think he is scheduled to be fully recovered until after the season starts (I think).

Booker has to beat out Al Thornton and Yi for the position.
Flip is going to give Trevor every opportunity to win that spot.
I believe Trevor played all 4 years in college so he is coming up more mature than most players.
He is faster than John Wall. I believe it would be in the best interest for the Wizards if Trevor wins the spot.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 2, 2010 at 4:56 PM

Josh Howard’s recovery time was estimated at 6-8 months. He had surgery in March, 2010. If he is on schedule, he should be ready between September and November. He began his rehab shortly after the surgery. He said that he was ahead of schedule and his agent said he would be ready by training camp time. Maybe SportzWiz has some insight?

Comment from Wizfan4life
Time September 2, 2010 at 5:07 PM

you know, Larry Hughes is still available and while he might not have much left in the tank, he would be a great veteran (not to mention inexpensive) addition to the team. I know he is terrible at defense, but he can distribute the ball and can get to the free-throw line. Coming off the bench, I like the sound of Kirk Hinrich and Larry Hughes in the back-court.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 2, 2010 at 5:24 PM

I think I was probobly wrong for putting Howard into the starting lineup. I think he will deffinetly get signifigant minutes the moment he is able to play but if he isn’t back to play in pre-season then he can’t/won’t start. No training camp and no preseason for a new team means no time to gel and mesh and build chemistry. If flip gave him the starting spot it would send the wrong message.

This means we now have something else to look forward to in preseason. I think we can expect a 3 way battle for the SF position between Booker/Yi/Thorton. I personally like Thorton the best, but Yi is looking great in Turkey, and the concept of rebuilding points to the youngest player who has yet to have been molded by the NBA. It will be very interesting to see how things shape out. As long as the player that performs the best gets the nod I will be happy.

I wonder if Howard will show up to training camp and preseason practices even if he is PUP so that he can try to build whatever chemistry he can from the sidelines as well as grasping the offense. That would show alot of dedication and would set a great example for the youngins.

Comment from neal
Time September 2, 2010 at 5:30 PM

Re. Hughes, I think you’re living in the past. It’s like trying to start over with an ex.

Do we have a credible backup to Howard in Young, Thornton, or Booker? Do we have a credible backup to McGee in Armstrong, Yi or Seraphin? Do we have a credible backup to Blatche in Yi or Seraphin? It will be really interesting to see how these questions play out.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 2, 2010 at 6:14 PM

So I just got finished watching booker highlights on Youtube and I don’t know if he can offensively play the 3. Blatches improved mid range jumper might make up for the lack of Bookers. Booker is more of a PF on offense but can hang with 3s on D. His game, intensity, and attitude make me think a little bit of Charles Barkley. He would have been the PERFECT SF to play along side Jamison when we had him since Jamison was really a SF cause he liked to hang outside on the perimiter so much.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 2, 2010 at 6:18 PM

Nyger Morgan had every right to steal those bases and every right to charge the mound after being thrown at the second time.

Comment from tyrone2000
Time September 2, 2010 at 7:35 PM

Don’t leave JHoward out cause he is a baller. I am not familiar with his history but the games (about 11) that I ‘ve watched the guy-he just has intangibles about his game other than his scoring and defense. With him on the court we will win a lot of games. I believe KHinrich is the same. JHoward time on the court will change my wins prediction. Less time will equal less wins. Shaq could of, would of, should of taken the Wizards over the top if they had picked him up. I still think we need a stronger, physical type center.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 2, 2010 at 8:07 PM

Hey… a few days ago I said that I figured out how the Wizards could win 30+ games, and I’d report in with that info. So here I am.

Except, it’s better — if all the below comes true, the Wizards could win 44 games. Note that I’m using the Wages of Wins method to figure this out, and that what’s really interesting is that the things that have to “come true” are more or less the things the optimists among us are predicting.

So… we can win 44 games if:

1. Gilbert comes back to ’06-07 productivity level (and number of minutes).
2. Hinrich plays at ’06-07 productivity level and number of minutes (he’s fallen off the last few years).
3. John Wall is as productive a rookie as Rajon Rondo was and plays about the same # of minutes.
(note that as these 3 *combine* for @6600 minutes, the distribution doesn’t really affect anything in this prediction)
4. Nick plays at the same level as last year and only plays 261 minutes (unrealistic, I know, but stay with me…)
5. McGee plays 2500 minutes at Center, playing at the same level as last year.
6. Blatche splits his minutes between Center and PF, playing a total of @3000 minutes.
7. Hilton Armstrong never gets on the court.
8. Booker is as productive as Taj Gibson was for the Bulls last year, and for the same @2200 minutes (I think this is quite possible — and he may be better)
9. Yi plays 1500 minutes at PF at the same level as last year.
10. Josh Howard gets back to his productivity level in ’07-08 and plays 2000 minutes (i.e. comes back a little late but can take heavy minutes)
11. Al Thornton only plays @ 700 minutes.

I have nothing here for Seraphin, because I don’t begin to know how to predict what he’ll be able to contribute.

Now… these are a lot assumptions! But, should they come true, the optimists are right, and I am wrong — very wrong!! I hope that is what happens!

Comment from Babakism
Time September 2, 2010 at 8:47 PM

@Tom you must mean Wall as productive as Rondo when he was a sophmore. The first season with the Big 3. His rookie year he averaged like 6 points lol I think Wall will make more mistakes than Rondo but he will also make up for it by getting more steals than Rondo. The biggest difference between Wall and Rondo is confidence. I was so mad at Rondo in the playoffs this year for being afraid to take the last shot. He kept trying to defer to Pierce when he was just as capable. Hopefully this off season he is working on that 17 18 foot jumper that teams are cheating back from because they know he can’t make it.

Nice to see some optimism from you Tom although you had a good thing going before and now you might have ruined it and jinxed our season lol

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 2, 2010 at 8:53 PM

LOL….There is 3280 minutes in a season….no way AB is getting all those minutes…lol…but we shall see

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 2, 2010 at 9:04 PM

“7. Hilton Armstrong never gets on the court.”

Tom, that is Hilarious!
Although, we might need Hilton to get 6 fouls in 3 minutes against Superman, Brook Lopez, Bynum and other good Centers so we can tire them out for McGee.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 2, 2010 at 9:07 PM

Booker avg 26 minutes a game…etc etc etc

yeah, some of us are getting cabin fever, or just need to say no….lol

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 10:47 PM

Thanks Tom.. funny thing though (I’m so computer illiterate lol) I’m using a notebook tonight and for the life of me I can’t find a “file” button anywhere in the tool bar??? Geees my kingdom to be Bill Gates for 5 minutes for his computer knowledge only LOL.

First post bombed too LOL

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 10:54 PM

Good Stuff Tom A little sarcastic optomism perhaps Hilton never gets off the bench and Nick gets 261 minutes. Love IT More like that one Please. Very Funny

Draftazoid we really are going to be fast and a lot of fun to watch this year. We will have a few teams gasping for air

@Babakism thats why I didn’t put Howard into my opening night line up. He wasn’t supposed to be ready to play until sometime in October. Gabbo posted that his agent said he would be ready for training camp. That may just be “agent talk” though.

Do you guys think Yi could handle the 3? He isn’t a defensive juggernaut to begin with. Other 3′s would probably blow right by him. On the other hand he would tower over most opposing 3′s. ????

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 11:03 PM

Oh @ Babakism…. I’m certainly not comparing Andray to Yi. Far from it. Only that they both need to be more consistent in their play. Andray is a “MUCH” better player than Yi.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 11:06 PM

To further explain the Bubba thing….. I’m a very lazy person. Names like Tom and Neal I have no problem with. Everyone else I give a Nickname so I don’t have to hit too many keyboard keys

ex… DCB and Fusey. again I’m very lazy lol

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 11:14 PM

Morgan expected the first ball to hit him. It should have been a done deal after that. A SECOND one? He should have knocked the pitchers block off !

I think more than the stolen bases they were upset because he “decked” their catcher.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 11:21 PM

Oh @ Tom… if the things happen that you put in your post… exactly as you have in your post… I have no doubt we will win “exactly” 44 games right on the nose (you outdid yourself on that one… I’m going to be laughing over it until probably next Wednesday LOL)

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 11:28 PM

Oh and I appreciate all of the time that took you. I’m as sure as I’m sitting here (knowing you for … wow just thought about that… do you know it’s been like 6 or 7 years now?) Those numbers are far from being “made up”. I’m sure to post that took you literally hours of research

I printed it though… That one is going down in the Mandel archives

Comment from neal
Time September 2, 2010 at 11:31 PM

Tom my friend, you are such an optimist.

Update on estimates:
crozby 50 ?
babakism 46
gotabig, tyrone2000 45
dayle 43
draftazoid 42
jeffmalone 41
maggicman 39
rick, wizards4life 35
millie, dcbutler 34
neal 33
grifonracing, gray16, jwall 32
jaba 31
datapony 29
phemy, wizards_fusion 28
Tom 20 ?

Reuben, anyone who can guess the number of Wiz wins for this year gets $20 from me. Want to take a stab?

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 2, 2010 at 11:37 PM

Neal… I think Tom updated his pick to 44? LOL

Comment from Babakism
Time September 3, 2010 at 4:35 AM

The Wiz need someone who can have the passion and intensity and nasty edge of Nyger Morgan…………Trevor Booker??????

I think if Morgan hadn’t had the 2 other issues from other games recently he wouldn’t be catching so much slack. I don’t think he was trying to cause injury to the catcher when he charged at home plate. I think he was just trying to play the game the way he does and it was unfortunate the catcher got injured.

Every team in every sport should want 1 guy like him on their team.

Reggie Evans
Ron Artest
Kendrick Perkins
Rick Mahorn
Bill Lambier
Dennis Rodman
Edjuardo Najera
Matt Barnes
Doug Christie
Kenyon Martin
Andreas Nocioni
Kurt Thomas
Mookie Blaylock
Isiah Thomas
Rasheed Wallace
Doug Christie
Anthony Mason
Charles Oakley
Karl Malone
Charles Barkley
Sasha Vujachek
Kurt Rambis
Brad Miller

Some of these guys get carried away with what they did but it usually brought the best out of them and their teams whether they were a star player or their only role was to be a goon.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 3, 2010 at 7:38 AM

babakism — No, I mean Rondo as a rookie. Stop judging player performance by how many points he scores. First off, he played 23.5 minutes/game as a rookie, averaged only 6.4 points, but did everything except FG% extremely well and was *immediately* a way above average NBA player. If we get that level of rookie performance out of John Wall, he’ll be on his way to being a tremendous player.

But don’t take me as being optimistic about wins — the assumptions required to get to 44 wins are *enormous.* Later on, I’m going to post a different set of assumptions, so you can see a different potential result.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 3, 2010 at 7:58 AM

A few comments on other responses to my post:

dcbutler — 3936 minutes/season for each position (i.e. 82 times 48). It’s not at all impossible that Dray plays 2936 minutes (what I have him down for).

Anyway, he isn’t a big variable in this scenario. The big variables are the play of rookies and of veterans, especially the 2 guys coming off of injuries.

Booker — obviously, no one can know what a rookie will do. But given that he played 4 years in college, and that we can see the ways he developed there, and how good he was there, I’m pretty confident that he can be a slightly above average NBA player his first year in the league — as Taj Gibson was — and I’m assuming that if so, he’ll get the minutes, as Gibson did. I actually think he might be *better* than I’ve put him down for.

Wall & Rondo — John has only *one problem* in this comparison. As a freshman, he had 4 TOs per 40 minutes; Rondo had only 2. Had Wall kept to the same level, his freshman numbers would have been much better than RR’s. In reality, they are somewhat worse because of them.

Minutes — this is a big one. If Armstrong or Young play *a lot* of minutes, we lose a lot of games. If Yi or Thornton gets a lot of minutes at the expense of Booker (i.e. based on my *assumptions* about Booker!), we lose more.

Biggest X factor — the play of our guards. That’s where alternate assumptions make a big difference. Stay tuned.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 3, 2010 at 8:20 AM

Suppose we make some different assumptions:

Guards:
Minutes stay the same as in my previous model
Gil plays to the level of productivity he had *last year* (but over more minutes)
Hinrich plays to his level of productivity last year
Wall plays like Rose as a rookie, not like Rondo

Center:
McGee unchanged from previous model
Blatche plays 1000 minutes less at Center
Armstrong plays 1000 minutes at Center
Nick still at 261

Forwards:
Blatche plays 500 more forward minutes than in previous model (but overall plays @2400 minutes vs. 2900 minutes as previously)
Yi stays the same
Howard plays the same # of minutes (I have him at 2000 — pretty optimistic) but plays at ’08-09 productivity level (that was the year he began to slip a lot).
Thornton plays @1300 minutes (he was held to @680 in previous model).
Booker is still as productive when he’s on the floor, but he only plays a little over 1000 minutes.

W/ these assumptions in place of the previous set, we win 21-22 games.

The biggest difference comes from the changed assumptions about Arenas, Howard and Hinrich — can they really return to being the players they were when a few years younger?

The second biggest difference comes from the changed assumptions about the rookies. Rose wasn’t as productive a rookie as Rondo (tho he played *much more*), so that assumption holds Wall’s contribution down some. Booker contributes less because he’s on the floor less.

The 3d biggest difference is that having Armstrong on the floor for 1000 minutes and doubling Thornton’s minutes costs us a few games.

Still, Arenas, Hinrich and Howard are key — do you really think they’re going to play like they did 3-4 years ago? If so, right away we’re in the 30s in wins. If not….

Comment from wizards_fusion
Time September 3, 2010 at 9:15 AM

Since it’s Friday, I’m going to be lazy and respond to less sensical items

- – -
Comment from neal
Time September 2, 2010 at 5:30 PM

“Re. Hughes, I think you’re living in the past. It’s like trying to start over with an ex.”

great point – i don’t understand where folks are getting the idea if gilbert and larry get back together in 2010 that the team will be like 2004.
- – -

re: babakism’s list of players that should be on every team

yes, that’s an excellent list of enforcers. bruce bowen didn’t enforce anyone but he earned his fouls on defense when going up against kobe, etc with his pesky style. i would add him to the list.
- – -

re: GR’s laziness

why don’t you call babakism “babs”? babs is easier to type than bubba.
- – -

re: player minutes

so, if guys get hurt, then all these theoretical numbers would be in jeopardy?
- – -

re: norman tugwater

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ALmgArYW8Y

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 3, 2010 at 12:18 PM

IF IF IF IF – If only the season would start we wouldn’t have all these IF’s.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 3, 2010 at 12:33 PM

Tom M. – I’ve said several times previously that even though I frequently disagree with you, I enjoy reading what you post. However, those last two posts with those assumptions based upon Lord knows what were not your best work. I guess we’ll have to chalk it up to roundball withdrawal. Hang in there, camp starts in a few weeks.

SportzWiz, please feed the inmates. Give us some news to chew on. Start a rumor…anything.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 3, 2010 at 12:49 PM

New York Knicks president Donnie Walsh recently rejected deal for Rudy Fernandez

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 3, 2010 at 12:53 PM

Gotta really know NBA History for this one:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/448467-the-8-most-disappointing-nba-teams-of-all-time#page/9

Comment from Babakism
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:01 PM

@Tom It’s not just about points, I stated points cause that was his worst statistic tied in with his FG%. His assist to turnover ratio was barely 2-1, yes he stole the ball to make up for it but you can’t consider a 2-1 assist to turnover ratio doing something extremely well. He shot badly like you said and he also shot poorly from the foul line. He only played 20 minutes a game as well. Wall is going to play 35 minutes a game. You keep talking about how Wall’s turnovers are gonna be a big negative.

Suppose Wall leads the league in turnovers averaging 4 per game. But then he averages 8 assist per game and gets 2.5 steals a game. He would be ridiculed for leading the league in turnovers despite his assist/steal/turnover ratio being the same as Rondo’s “above average” ratio. Yes I do understand that you are also into Rondos numbers because he rebounded so well for a guard which John Wall should do as well.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:02 PM

Miami? may have 2 1/2 superstars, but the celtics have an army waiting in the wings…..

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:03 PM

Come to think of it, miami isn’t going to win anything with their lineup…i don’t see bosh taking it to LA or Boston’s big men….better get him some help down there….

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:05 PM

Gotabig — but… but … but… Grifonracing said I ‘outdid myself’ w/ that post!

How wrong was what I wrote? I said that if Arenas plays like he did in ’06-07 and Howard too regains his pre-injury form of a few years ago, and Hinrich plays like the Kirk of a couple of years ago, and John Wall performs akin to Rajon Rondo as a rookie — and a few other less critical things — we’d be pretty darn good.

Isn’t that what you’ve been predicting? I was trying to *confirm* that point, and actually I think I did a pretty good job.

Are you objecting that I’m high on Booker? Or low on Armstrong?

Comment from Babakism
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:13 PM

@Wizfushion I’m mad at myself for not saying Bowen lol

Lets not go Babs I’ll take bubba but if you can remember it Babaki works fine

@Tom Rose also played a huge role in the playoffs as a rookie for chicago. He is also not affraid to take control when the game is on the line and his team desperately needs a bucket. Their is also something to be said for the “WOW” factor. While efficient basketball is what is most important, sometimes having a player who can make something out of nothing by doing things that a coach would never want you to do delivering a top highlight can excite and energize a team motivating them to play harder. Those things aren’t really measured in stats.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:18 PM

In reality we should all just shut up and be happy to see some optimism out of Tom although he is jinxing us lol

I wonder if my last post is going to make Tom bring out my favoritte quote of his where he sarcastically says, “He a beast!” I actually really do enjoy when you use it lol

@Butler I wonder why they wouldn’t want Rudy, he is perfect for their style.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:26 PM

The Hawks signed Etan Thomas which brings us one step closer to my prophecy of the Hawks demise. lol

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:29 PM

@babs

Rudy Fernandez continues to lobby for a trade to New York, but the Knicks either can’t or won’t make a trade for the Portland shooting guard.

According to a team source, Knicks president Donnie Walsh recently rejected a three-team deal that would have sent Anthony Randolph to Indiana, a first-round pick to Portland and Fernandez to New York.

Because the Trail Blazers are insisting on receiving a first-round pick in return for Fernandez, the Knicks likely need to recruit a third team in order to complete a deal. The Blazers apparently have little interest in Wilson Chandler. Fernandez, who is currently playing for Spain at the world championships in Turkey, was fined by the NBA for publicly asking for a trade.

Denver’s Carmelo Anthony has avoided similar punishment from the league, although from all indications, he’d like to be traded to the Knicks, Nets, Rockets or Clippers.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:33 PM

Etan isn’t so bad, depending on how he’s used….definitely not a center.

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:35 PM

They Knicks think Anthony Randolph is a star in the making. They are not trading him for Rudy Fernandez. Remember, they traded David Lee for him.

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:38 PM

The Hawks are a very good team.
They blossomed last year and this year they should even be better with another year of maturity.

My bet is that in the beginning of the year they could have the best record in the East. They should finish no less than 4th at the end of the year.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:41 PM

Yi has an achilles injury???? Here we go already……

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:45 PM

The hawks have to get a “real” center and Horford play the four. The also have a bunch of 4s on their team and their three is ???. Upgrade the point, bibby is about washed up, but as a whole their good, but in the playoffs, they are beatable.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 3, 2010 at 1:47 PM

LOL….The year before last was the Hawk’s year of maturity….as barkely put it, why can’t the hawks fill up their arena. They could be 82-0 and they won’t fill up their arena…LOL

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 3, 2010 at 2:11 PM

Tom M. – I didn’t take exception to anything you wrote about any player, positive or negative. No disrespect intended, but I simply thought that it was not the quality post that I usually see from you. In fact, it is the first post that I have seen from you that I didn’t want to spend time reading.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 3, 2010 at 2:13 PM

Yi has an achilles injury???? – dcb, where did you hear that?

Comment from SportzWiz
Time September 3, 2010 at 2:14 PM

First off big kudos to FantasticWiz he’s behind the great new look so a big shout out to him. Thanks gabbo for the kind words regarding the wizards website I will pass the post along to the other people in the web department.

As far as info is concerned i apologize for being quiet guys, typically august is the quietest month and things start to pick up after the holiday so when i have good info i will share it. (and hopefully i’ll have more good info coming soon)

Still need to find out about Cartier for you Neal, i’ll see what I can find out next week.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 3, 2010 at 2:29 PM

@butty Etan isn’t bad, but he is a bad luck charm

The Hawks are a good team I just think they are do for some bad luck and a change of fortune. Every year in every sport a team that is pegged to be a top team faulters. This is not a prediction backed up by alot of hard facts. This is coming purely from my crystal ball lol.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 3, 2010 at 2:39 PM

Etan wasn’t a bad luck charm for OKC last year…LOL…

in regards to Yi:
China will tackle undefeated Lithuania for a place in the world basketball championship quarter-finals, but their slim hopes have been hit further by an injury to star player Yi Jianlian.

The Washington Wizards forward is suffering from an Achilles injury and sat out China’s 87-40 mauling at the hands of Turkey in their last group game on Thursday.

China coach Bob Donewald said Yi will need an MRI scan to discover the extent of the injury although the 22-year-old has time on his side with the last 16 clash not scheduled until Tuesday.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 3, 2010 at 2:55 PM

If Yi has to miss time, and it means more time for Booker, we will be a better team. Don’t wish Yi any bad luck obviously.

You know… I don’t believe Yi is 22. DraftExpress lists his b’day as 10/28/84, meaning he’d turn 26 next month. To be honest, he looks a lot more like 26 than like 22.

Boy TeamUsa looks like it will go *nowhere* in this tournament.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 3, 2010 at 3:06 PM

@ Babaki:

“While efficient basketball is what is most important, sometimes… delivering a top highlight can excite and energize a team motivating them to play harder. Those things aren’t really measured in stats.”

Look, if it ain’t in *someone’s* stats, it doesn’t get to the final score, meaning it doesn’t contribute to wins. So you must mean that someone delivering “a top highlight” will show up in *the other guys’* stats — because they “play harder.”

It was Derrick Rose you were talking about. If what you say is true, then other guys on the Bulls must produce better numbers during minutes he’s playing than other minutes, right?

If not, then all you are saying is that *the crowd* gets excited by spectacular play. True enough — basketball is only 1/2 competition; the other 1/2 is entertainment.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 3, 2010 at 3:55 PM

From Bleacher Report:
No one was happier about the arrival of John Wall in D.C. than Flip Saunders.

Not only is Wall a seat-filler, but he is a major talent that could flip (no pun intended, yes it was intended) the Wizards organization right side up. Guns in the locker room, suspensions, and lousy play have plagued the Wiz for the last few years.

If Wall hits a wall (another pun) in his rookie year, Flip won’t be around to help him break through it.

Saunders has three years left on a four year deal.

Seeing Pink: February or later, if at all.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 3, 2010 at 11:39 PM

@ Fusey LOL… No way I’m Going with “Babs”…. Period

I was thinking more along the BBKing lines.

Coming in “by the back door” was brilliant Tom. Gabbo (I think) was talking about the “next” two posts when you started coming back in through the side door sorta

I love how everyone loved the first one… Me Certainly Included. That was very clever.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 3, 2010 at 11:43 PM

Doesn’t it just figure? Yi gets himself a trainer, eats well, works hard and AS SOON as the Wizards get him he gets hurt. If China is talking about him maybe coming back by Tuesday It can’t be too bad though.

I think Booker is going to play the 3 along side Andray. Unlikely Yi will get too many minutes behind Dray… I hope. I’m encouraged by Yi’s extra dedication this off season and I’d like to see him become a viable option if someone at the 4 or 5 gets in foul trouble.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 3, 2010 at 11:47 PM

BaBaki… I have no personal knowledge of this, but, from what I’ve read both Booker and Seraphin like to knock people around. Maybe three “enforcers” counting Hiney?

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 3, 2010 at 11:56 PM

Yeah… there is no real age to put to Yi or Seraphin (although Seraphin does act a lot closer to 20 than what some say). We will probably never know their true ages.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 12:00 AM

Thanks SportzWiz.

Will … amazing job. The site and blog look AMAZING

Thank you again (for I have no idea what time it is lol). You have done some amazing things on and with this site over the years

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 12:01 AM

gotta get a new word LOL

Will must = amazing

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 12:11 AM

DCB… for the most part we have a very young team. I didn’t like when Flip got frustrated last year he tried to “coach through the media”. The “Big Three” still doing their own thing in spite of him probably enticed him to do things he normally wouldn’t have done. This year with a young coachable team lets see what he’s got. He has a blank slate now except for Gilbert. And Gilbert is “probably.. but who knows knowing Gilbert” going to try to be a model citizen and a “do what coach says” kinda player.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 12:20 AM

3 weeks and 3 days… but who’s counting

Comment from Babakism
Time September 4, 2010 at 3:10 AM

Etan wasn’t good luck for minny lol

@Tom I wasn’t speaking on derek rose specifically but I’m sure you have already pulled up his plus minus numbers lol
Probobly 6 months ago I made a nice post about all the things that can happen that are positive but don’t show in the stats. I think we were talking about Brendan Haywood.

Talking on D
Bumping the cutter
Diving on the floor
ect ect.

If I remember correctly @MagicMan and I were on the same page on this one.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 4, 2010 at 3:13 AM

@Griff Seraphin could very well be an enforcer but I don’t think he will get the time to do it this year. I almost would wanna call him an “intimidator” lol at 270 he’s almost like Brian Orakpo running around out there lol

I’m liking this nickname thing we are trending towards lol

maybe we can start calling Tom “T” lol

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 3:42 AM

@BBki… Ok that one I like LOL. has the BBKing flair coupled with the Babaki I’m now happy LOL.

I think Seraphin may surprise us a little … God knows Hamady didn’t (and I was really rooting for him). Booker has had a 4 year … productive… college career. Seraphin is an untested unproven KID…. but I like what I see of him. We may have found a diamond in the French countryside?

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 3:49 AM

I know.. the “nickname” thing is probably my fault. I apologize in advance for my supreme laziness

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 3:52 AM

hey.. Chris Berman made a career out of it

Comment from Babakism
Time September 4, 2010 at 4:37 AM

Will Ferell did his president bush special and was handing out nicknames to everyone in the audience and it was hillarious.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 4, 2010 at 7:15 AM

I’m *definitely* looking forward to seeing what Seraphin looks like as a player. He’s enormous, that’s for sure. Apparently, they have him on a really tough conditioning schedule. I don’t know if he’ll put on pounds but he’s bound to get much stronger.

Whatever minutes he gets this year — and the more he gets the happier I am — will be at the expense of guys like Yi and Thornton (realize — Al played *a lot* of 4 last year). He isn’t likely to be any worse than them, so he isn’t likely to make the team worse either. The more he plays the quicker he’ll develop, and the quicker we’ll know what we have in him.

Ditto Booker — but I expect him to be productive from day one. When was the last time we drafted a forward who had actually played NCAA ball? Some time in the last century I think!

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 4, 2010 at 8:47 AM

So, to begin the season, our question marks are Javale, NY, Thornton, Booker, Yi, Seraphin and slightly Wall ( Everyone that we don’t know what we are going to get night in and night out, or production period)

Our injury question marks are Gil and Howard and maybe AB

ready to play in Heinrich (wow out of a whole roster)

we don’t want to see HA

Coaching style and what flip will do (toss-up)

Yes this will be an interesting season

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 4, 2010 at 8:51 AM

Inquiring minds want to know:

What kind of program does seraphin have going on over there, that they couldn’t put in place over here, for the players that they see every day? If it takes two/three years if not longer for a player here to evolve, what makes you think they can turn him into the incredible Hulk in two months….ROFL…..WOOOOWWWWWWWWWWWWW

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 4, 2010 at 8:52 AM

CONT…

WOOOOOWWWWWWWW (In my flavor flav voice)

Comment from ChenierFan
Time September 4, 2010 at 9:12 AM

Just a reminder, a few weeks ago I predicted the Wiz would win 48 games this year and was widely ridiculed. Now, some other bloggers are just as optimistic. And we should be…Let’s put it another way, how many other teams in the East are really scary? Miami? Let’s see what kind of chemistry they have. Boston… got to be getting old. None of the other teams are really that impressive, are they. In the West the Thunder and Lakers are impressive. In other words, the Wiz can compete with anyone.

The Wiz will be bigger, stronger, than last year. I think (you can call me) Al is ready for a strong season.

Like Tom, I am waiting to see what Kevin can bring to the team. Of all the players, he’s a real mystery.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 4, 2010 at 10:45 AM

dcbutler — Seraphin is *here* working out w/ the Wizards. He came over as soon as his visa was sorted out.

ChenierFan — I hope you’re not counting me among the “optimistic.” To win 44 games, we need things to happen that to my mind at least are virtually impossible — above all for Gil, Howard and Hinrich to play like they did 3-4 years ago (seems almost completely out of the question) and for Wall to be as good a rookie as Rajon Rondo (that’s a little closer to possible).

What I’m excited about is seeing Wall, Booker and Seraphin to find out what we have in these rookies. I’m also a little hopeful for improvement from McGee and Blatche.

Of course I want to see what Gil can do coming back. Mostly because I’d like to trade him to a contender for young talent and picks — good for him and for us too.

As to the guys I see as this-year-only players — Josh, Nick, Al, Hilton, Yi — I don’t expect much from them.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 4, 2010 at 11:24 AM

Okay, he came over last week, but YOU posted he was on a “superhero” schedule from the wiz while he was overseas….lol….you losing it dude….lol…

Boston is lethal…very lethal….they have personnel that were starters/all-stars to back up their regular starters. They will be a force to be reckoned with.

The less I expect, the more I will receive…lol…

okay, now that kanye west has officially apologized to taylor via twitter (that’s official as they get nowadays):

“@kanyewest I’m sorry Taylor. ”

does this mean Gil needs to apologize? or does being in detention serve as an apology? Personally, it doesn’t matter to me, he lost freedom, that is humbling enough. I would rather him show that he is sorry, by going “hard in the paint” — Wacka Flacka…lol

Comment from maggicman11
Time September 4, 2010 at 11:39 AM

I saw Dray last night at Park on 14th st. (the night lounge) and as i made my way over to speak, i noticed he didnt have on a boot, nor was he limping at all. thats got to be a good sign. I asked him about Booker and what he thot about him. He said Booker has a chance to start by the end of the season. He said theres a battle brewing over the 3 spot with booker, Nick, thorton. and “they all be going hard out there”.. it was an interesting convo.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 4, 2010 at 11:43 AM

LOL…Does that constitute as getting info from the horse’s mouth or snitching on his surroundings….lol…

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 4, 2010 at 11:44 AM

if we keep this up, we are going to have to tell players that we are from the blog, anything they say can and will be held against them….expecially where we see them…LOL…OKAY i’m out to enjoy earth’s gifts…;PEACE

Comment from JWALL
Time September 4, 2010 at 2:59 PM

Tom anytime u can b optimistic from any point of view is cool with me. I agree with u that I am concerned about the production we get from our draft picks. JWall does need to score per say. But run the team and watch his to’s. If TB can give us some energy and hustle on the floor and KS can bang inside it will be very good for them and the Wiz.

Comment from maggicman11
Time September 4, 2010 at 3:06 PM

@dcbutler- Not really info from the horses mouth cuz he didnt give me any in info. nothing other than what we already knew. there is uncertainty at the 3 spot. however i did notice he didnt mention Howard. maybe he wont be ready at the start of the season. or for a while after. but its hard not to notice the one guy that towers over EVERYBODY in the club. that was the only thing i cud think to ask about at the time. lol..

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 4, 2010 at 3:24 PM

WOW, u would think this was game 7 of the nba finals (greece vs spain). These announcers are going to need new vocal chords when this is over….

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 4, 2010 at 3:43 PM

Sofoklis SCHORTSANITIS, the center from Greece looks like he could earn a decent living in the NBA.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 4, 2010 at 4:02 PM

Sooooooooo, didn’t our second round pick and seraphin start playing ball around the same time frame (see below comparison)…lol….i’m not liking the similarities. We have seen one of them play already…ruh roh (in my scooby doo voice)…where’s ernie???????????????…lol

Seraphin starts to play basketball lately in year 2004 only. He joins the Cholet Basket Youth Academy in 2006 before joining the senior team and make his professional debut in the 2008-09 season with Cholet Basket in the French Pro A League.

Name is pronounced (Ah-meh-dee enj-eye)…Born in Dakar, Senegal…Majored in communications at Rutgers…Is fluent in four languages: English, French, Wollof and Arabic…Started playing basketball at the age of 16 after previously competing in soccer as a goalkeeperBirthdate: January 12, 1987

Comment from Babakism
Time September 4, 2010 at 6:36 PM

For all we know Seraphin could be as basketball literate as Peter John Ramos when we drafted him.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 4, 2010 at 6:51 PM

Someone expressed joy earlier that by drafting Booker we finally drafted a non foriegn forward in the first round. The last 2 were Jared Jeffries and Kwame Brown so maybe the 3rd time is the charm lol Although if we don’t count Kwame cause he never went to college(probobly not any school at all. I was watching the Spike Lee Documentary, “If God is Willing Then Da Creek Don’t rise” One family was happy after relocating to Houston because they had a child with autism who needed a special needs school. This school not only taught special needs children typical curriculum but incorporated “life skills” into it. Such as, cooking, cleaning, and doing laundry so the kids wouldn’t end up eating Popeye’s every night and with a room full of dirty suits. Sounds like Kwame should have gone to this school lol) The last forward drafted in round 1 before Kwame was Rasheed Wallace.

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 4, 2010 at 7:46 PM

Babakism,
You forgot about one of the greatest draft busts in Wizards history.
2006 First Round pick, #18 overall

OLEKSIY PECHEROV
What a waste of a draft pick!

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 4, 2010 at 7:48 PM

Jared Jefferies was a good player for us.
He ended up getting some great money as a restricted free agent from the Knicks. (after he completed his contract with us).
No way was he a bust.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 4, 2010 at 7:54 PM

Pech was a #18….uh oh, that makes me feel worse….okay, I need to just stay off the blog/out off the basketball internet/etc and come back for the opening tipoff….lol…..i can’t take anymore…..

44 wins? call me when ernie’s sorry hindpots is gone

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 4, 2010 at 7:54 PM

Babakism,

Sorry. you said non foreign born.

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 4, 2010 at 7:58 PM

Smush Park is playing in Russia!

That sounds so CCCCOOOOOOOOOLLLLLLLLLDDDDDDD

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 4, 2010 at 7:59 PM

Yeah, but based on history of ernie’s picks, we f@#@$%

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 4, 2010 at 8:03 PM

Far removed from the lakers….that is what happens when you’re not humble…

Comment from neal
Time September 4, 2010 at 9:08 PM

ChenierFan, haven’t heard from you in a while. We’re having a little contest. Anyone who can guess the number of Wiz wins for this year gets $20. You can change your guess up to the day of the first preseason game.

Update on estimates:
crozby 50 ?
ChenierFan 48
babakism 46
gotabig, tyrone2000 45
dayle 43
draftazoid 42
jeffmalone 41
maggicman 39
rick, wizards4life 35
millie, dcbutler 34
neal 33
grifonracing, gray16, jwall 32
jaba 31
datapony 29
phemy, wizards_fusion 28
Tom 20 ?

Comment from JWALL
Time September 4, 2010 at 9:13 PM

Has anybody heard anything about Gil? Has he had a chance to ball with JWall?

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 4, 2010 at 10:02 PM

How do you know it’s a slow-really slow NBA newsday?
When the headline is:
LUCAS TO CHICAGO

Not Maurice Lucas or John Lucas. No- it’s John Lucas III.

Subheadline:
NUGGETS SIGNING D.J. MBENGA?

enough said……………………….

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 4, 2010 at 10:13 PM

magicman — my guess is that Dray didn’t mention Howard because he was referring to the “battles” on the practice court at the Phone Booth right now.

Very interesting to hear his positive take on Booker. I hope he gets 2000-2500 minutes. If so, we’re a lot better team than w/ Nick and Al at the 3. Of course, that’s *a bit* self-fulfilling, since if he plays those minutes that means he’s *earned them* by his productivity!

dcbutler — schortzanitis washed out w/ the Clippers this Summer. He has *no* NBA-level skills.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 4, 2010 at 10:23 PM

“…since if he plays those minutes that means he’s *earned them* by his productivity!” – Tom M.
You’re right Mr. M. The kicker is if the coach and the GM have the intestinal fortitude to play the best players and not the most expensive players. I think that Flip learned his lesson last year with the me-ball boys. Let’s see how he does this year.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 4, 2010 at 10:29 PM

Yes, if you don’t give your most productive players the bulk of the minutes you don’t get the most out of your squad.

But, I think the Wizards are *very* focused on the future. For that reason, I think Booker will get every chance to develop. Seraphin too, however raw he is (tho that’s not to say he’ll get the minutes Booker will).

Comment from neal
Time September 4, 2010 at 10:39 PM

They want this team to be tougher. So do I. So if Thornton still isn’t playing much D I trust Booker will get virtually all his minutes.

To me, the bigger question mark is who gets the backup minutes at center, Armstron, Yi or Seraphin. I REALLY hope Yi and the coaches fix on a way to utilize his talents and he makes a quantum leap from last year. I hope he earns lots of minutes backing up both Blatche and McGee. He’s still young enough to be at his prime when Wall, Booker, Seraphin, Blatche and McGee peak.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 10:45 PM

I’m hoping Flip, given a clean slate… almost, will be able to put the pieces together. It would be nice for a change to see the most productive players play. That hasn’t always been the case in the past. Especially with Gabbo’s me-ball crew. That really got hard to watch toward the end.

New guys…. fresh start. It’s going to be fun

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 10:50 PM

Neal center is probably going to be JaVale’s primarily, but, at the end of the day it will probably end up being a group of people playing center. Nobody is a dominant guy and we have to protect against too many fouls especially from Seraphin early. Probably the group of JaVale, Andray, Yi, Seraphin, Armstrong (when the prior all have 5 fouls).

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 4, 2010 at 10:50 PM

AMEN, GrifonRacing! Let’s go forward.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 10:52 PM

The nice part of that is only JaVale and Hilton are pidgeon holed into center. The others are multiple position guys

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 10:58 PM

Just the addition of John Wall and Trevor Booker make us better than we were the 2nd half of last year. I’m encouraged for us. We have a good young team to build with. We are going to be fast, yet make mistakes, but still be a lot of fun to watch. No MORE sitting around watching someone dribble out the shot clock

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 11:07 PM

Seraphin is the player, out of all of them, who really intrigues me. Ever since Tom posted that highlight reel on him I’ve been searching and reading what prescious little I can find about him. There isn’t much and most has already been discussed here. There is something about the way that kid moves that really makes me want to see more of him. Not so much his shot. I don’t like that with that hitch everytime before release. NBA guys aren’t going to let you get away with that. If that kid has any BB IQ at all, with his athelticism, size, and defensive abilities… we really may have something a lot more special than Ben Wallace in a couple years?

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 4, 2010 at 11:10 PM

John Wall makes us better than last year because he is a true point guard. Booker MIGHT make us better than last year. Al and Josh can be very productive. Booker will have to beat them for minutes. If Slick is used at the 3, Booker has another player to contended with for minutes.
However, that’s all good news.

The REAL encouragement comes from the fact that Gil will be back to provide the outside shooting that will relieve AB of the double/triple teams. The fact that the high percentage, but non-shooting Miller will be replaced by the very good shooting Arenas; the defensively weak (at the 3) Butler will be replaced by Young, Howard, Thornton and Booker; and the shoot-first, me-ball Jamison will be replaced by a real 4-spot in AB are the true differences in the 2009-2019/2010-2011 Wizards. 45++++ for GABBO

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 11:22 PM

It’s really kinda funny. It’s True. The real “dark horse” as to wether we do well may just be the play of Gilbert Arenas. Every year for the last …… lol we have gone into the season hoping and praying Gilbert plays well or comes back and plays well and we go onto the conferance finals.

Wow how things have changed. Gilbert has had A LOT of rest and has had plenty of quaity Tim Grover time. I’m assuming he comes back loaded for BEAR. A fully healthy, motivated Arenas next to Wall has to give both of them confidence. I think we are kinda ok at the starting guard spots

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 4, 2010 at 11:27 PM

Javale has the Center job locked down from Summer League and the Team USA Tryouts.
If he didn’t the Wizards had the money to go sign another Center this summer but chose not to.

Seraphin (just like Booker) is going to get every opportunity to backup Blatche and Javale this season.

My thinking is that Booker will Start at SF (Howard still hurt) and Seraphin will be the first BIG off the bench.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 11:29 PM

Gabbo.. love ya man and love your Wizard’s enthusiasm

If Nick or Al can beat Booker in training camp I’ll be completely and totally in their corner. It may happen?

I doubt Joshy will be back until we are a few games into the season

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 4, 2010 at 11:32 PM

Zoidy.. I agree, but I think probaby Yi will be the first big off the bench ahead of Seraphin just given the experience thing. UNLESS Seraphin comes out like a beast in training camp?

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 5, 2010 at 2:16 AM

Grifon,
That’s our hope.
Booker and Seraphin starting out like gang busters!

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 5, 2010 at 3:01 AM

Zoidy..
Gang Busters… Bruise Brothers II… this could be the start to a good, hard nosed, defensive team. I was so hoping that smart, tall, workaholic Hamady could have joined them. He may still….just probably not this year. We are a work in progress. If Hamady plays a year or two overseas and hones his skills.. no reason we couldn’t bring him back. For the Now… I like us… at least defensively. It’s seems we drafted/traded to get a little faster/tougher. Not a bad thing

John Wall and Gilbert in the backcourt…. Trevor Booker (at least until Joshy gets fully back) and Andray at the forwards… with JaVale anchoring us…… with more than a few to back him up.

Gonna be fun to see who steps up in a few weeks. Who else will make our… probably… 14 man roster?

I love this time of Year

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 5, 2010 at 3:56 AM

Plain and simple, EG doesn’t know how to select big men….hasn’t done so in his seven years here, and doesn’t value one when he has one…..new owner can’t fix that.

oh, the guy that was cut off of the clippers, sure outplayed Marc Gasol…..the system is the key….

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 5, 2010 at 7:35 AM

draftazoid — JaVale has the Center “locked down” on account of we don’t have another Center! Not off TeamUsa, about which see Lamar Odom’s comments on JaVale. And certainly not off SL, where yes he dominated a guy named “Tillie.”

JaVale is a huge, phenomenally gifted athlete. Does he understand the game of basketball and the Center position? Not so much.

Still, he is definitely the guy we want to see play the position. It’s third year in the league; if he doesn’t start getting better quickly, you’re looking a career shot-blocking ‘n dunking specialist.

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 5, 2010 at 11:01 AM

Well Tom,

You would think that if they didn’t think Javale is good enough to be the starting center that they would have signed someone better than Hilton Armstrong. They had the money to do it. The Wiz chose not to do it because they believe he is ready.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 5, 2010 at 11:10 AM

ready to sink or swim

Comment from crozby
Time September 5, 2010 at 11:37 AM

It boggles me that we didn’t get a better back-up center for Javale. I can only guess that they are thinking that Armstrong has some untapped potential or they will use Blatche and Yi at center oftentimes.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 5, 2010 at 11:56 AM

I don’t know why we keep comparing Seraphin to Ben Wallace. I don’t really see a resemblance. Honestly we don’t know much about this guy other than what we have seen in the Nike Hoops Summit footage which is about the same quality of play as summer league. If we had to compare Seraphin to a pro player maybe a less athletic poor mans Dwight Howard or perhaps Darryl Dawkins.

Dwight Howard may have won Defensive player of the year but I don’t think he is nearly as good a defender as Ben Wallace was. You gotta rememeber D was all Ben did so it had to be the best of the best and it was.

Defense is an attitude that we have no clue if Seraphin has yet. Seraphin is also 20 pounds heavier than Ben Wallace. Wallace could and probobly still can put up more weight in the gym than Seraphin but that extra weight and girth to throw around makes a difference. Seraphin could almost be reffered to as a baby Andrew Bynum

Comment from neal
Time September 5, 2010 at 12:29 PM

Crozby, I can only guess that EG thought Armstrong has a chance to blossum and become what some hoped he was.

I don’t think we’ve ever had a team with more big question marks. Usually, we know about what to expect of most of the team and the question marks are the rookies. This year we have 4 rookies, 2 guys trying to come back after major injuries (Arenas, Howard), and 3 guys trying to become what they were supposed to be when they were drafted high (Thornton, Yi, Armstrong).

It makes for a really interesting year.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 5, 2010 at 1:11 PM

Babakism — you are right. How could we know whether Seraphin is like Wallace; even the same kind of player, let alone as good? We don’t.

Of course, “a poor man’s Dwight Howard” would be ok too!!

As to why we didn’t sign a better backup center: we have *a plan.* We signed *no free agents* beyond this year. We are remaking the team from scratch. Armstrong is just a body for this year. Then he’ll be gone. I trust that so will Yi, Howard, Young and Thornton.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 5, 2010 at 2:16 PM

BBki… I don’t think any of the bloggers are comparing Seraphin to Ben Wallace. That is who Seraphin compares himself too. As we know so little about him we have to go by his personal assessment of who he resembles.

In a few more weeks we can make our own comparisons

Comment from Babakism
Time September 5, 2010 at 6:30 PM

I didn’t know he compared himself to Ben Wallace. Now that I think about it I do rememeber him calling Ben Wallace his favorite player. Kevin Seraphin MUST be healthy for training camp and preseason basketball if he is going to have any impact at all on this season.

T is right, Hilton Armstrong is the cheapest 1 year contract to play backup center that we could find. Alot of the players that T named could very well be gone at the end of this season. This doesn’t mean that any of those players can’t change their careers around by playing well and earning a future spot on this team.

Antonio Daniels is considered by many to have been a bust because he was drafted so high. However, most of us probobly have good memories of Antonio as well as SuperSonics fans. Antonio was our best PG the entire time he was here and our best backcourt was when he came off the bench to share the backcourt with Gil.(proof he can share the backcourt with wall)

Just because you don’t live up to expectations doesn’t mean you can’t carve out a meaningful role and a productive NBA career.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 5, 2010 at 6:31 PM

Tom, thanks for reiterating the over-all plan

“As to why we didn’t sign a better backup center: we have *a plan.* We signed *no free agents* beyond this year. We are remaking the team from scratch. Armstrong is just a body for this year. Then he’ll be gone. I trust that so will Yi, Howard, Young and Thornton.”

THE REALITY IS THAT WE ARE REBUILDING AND WE ARE NOT INVESTING IN CURRENT PLAYERS IN THIS LEAGUE. if we make the playoffs it’s gravy on top, but i kind of think the wiz want another high draft pick, even though we don’t even know what’s out there this year. Ted needs more time to gauge what he has and what he needs and this season, hopefully, will enable him to do so and figure out his plan for the wiz.

IN OTHER NEWS, SERAPHIN HAS ONLY BEEN PLAYING FOR 6/7 YEARS…..HE’S NOT AN ISNIDE SAVIOUR JUST YET.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 5, 2010 at 9:36 PM

Toronto has a 14.5 mil trade exception….wow!!

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 5, 2010 at 10:20 PM

Yeah… but can their trade exception heat-butt the rim?

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 5, 2010 at 10:40 PM

LOL..Is that your concern or theirs….

in other news…from Shamsports

New Orleans has a full MLE and BAE, over $16 million in trade exceptions, plus Peja’s expiring. If you want to appease Paul, open the books.

Melo may go…..

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 5, 2010 at 10:54 PM

DCB… there was another player that only played BB for 8 years prior to entering the NBA. He was a swimmer prior to a hurricane destroying the swimming complex in his native Virgin Islands. Tim Duncan. He did ok.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 5, 2010 at 11:05 PM

Not only do I think that Wall and Arenas can play together in the backcourt. I think both will thrive

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 5, 2010 at 11:06 PM

If Wall comes close to getting ROY Gilbert will play a big part in it.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 5, 2010 at 11:09 PM

Yi’s personal trainer, chef, and everyone saying how hard he is working this off season tells me he is trying to improve his strength, conditioning, health, and game. That can’t be a bad thing. He may not be the best 4/5 around, but, if any of the one year wonders has a shot at longevity with us I think it may be Yi.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 5, 2010 at 11:19 PM

We could essentially play center by committee just by going with the big lineup of Wall, Gilbert, Yi, Andray, and JaVale

I don’t think Yi can play the 3 either, but, fun to think about

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 5, 2010 at 11:24 PM

My only concern is that the only big we have with any “beef” at all is the kid…. Seraphin. Everyone else is a beanpole

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 6, 2010 at 12:21 AM

I believe that Gilbert Arenas is a NBA superstar. I love to watch him play, and I am sensitive to his ability to connect with the fans. He is in the “rock-star” category. Fans justifiably love him. However, Gil has to understand that the Wizards portraying John Wall as the “face-of-the-franchise” is 100% publicity. The #1 pick always gets the press. The Wizards are justifiably taking advantage of getting the #1 pick in the draft. The face-of-the-franchise BS will be determined, not by the media, but by how the TEAM plays in order to move the Wizards into the “best” teams category. I don’t think it will be John Wall, himself; I don’t think it will be Gil Arenas, himself; I don’t think that it will be Andray Blatche, himself; it will not be any of the Wizards by himself. It will be a combination of all of the Wizards playing as a team that will elevate us to the level we want. I positively do not want to see any of the 2009-2010 jealousy on the 2010-2011 team. If that jealousy manifests itself, EG and Flip have got to move quickly to snuff it out. If Gil resents the press that John Wall is getting, let Gil steal the limelight if he can by his performance. If he can’t, and he is jealous, sit his butt down. Gil is one of the most talented players in the NBA. He doesn’t have to be concerned about the press being afforded to John Wall. That press is to sell tickets. I want Gil to show us that he can be the “MAN” by demonstrating it on the court. There is no NBA player that can win a 5 on 1 game. Gil’s understanding of the situation is one of the greatest keys to the Wizards success in 2010-2011. We have a lot of talent. We can not have dissention.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 6, 2010 at 1:21 AM

Gabbo…. this year Gilbert “should” come back fully healthy, strong, and healed. He has something to prove and that “always” makes him a better player. Even though he is on the “other side of the mountain” he still has a lot of “game” left. John Wall is the perfect back court mate for Gilbert. I don’t see Gilbert being selfish… I more see him being a yes man and trying to get back into everyone’s good graces. With Wall running things and setting everyone up including Arenas…. it’s going to be a lot of fun to watch.

Playing defense on the converse side will be culture shock.. but very refreshing to see from our Wizards

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 6, 2010 at 1:25 AM

Gilbert and Larry Hughes played pretty good defense together. I’m expecting the Wall/Arenas combination to be at least as good if not better.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 6, 2010 at 1:31 AM

Hudson/Hinrich.. of the bench… lock down defenders.

I’m getting excited

Comment from JWALL
Time September 6, 2010 at 7:16 AM

I awoke thinking about Gilbert Arenas role with the Wiz this year. The fact that Gil was my favorite player on the Wizards before JWall came along is a sweet situation. Now I have JWall and Gil the starting backcourt as my two favorite players on the Wiz team. So the same way GABBO lobbies for AB I will for the JWall/Gil duo.
I believe a healthy Gilbert is the key to John Wall’s transition into the NBA. Not Kirk Hinrich. Kirk Hinrich will be a great fit with JWall and Gil. But it will be Gil’s love and intelligence for the game that will push JWall to greater heights. I truly believe that as the off guard Gil will thrive and lead the team in scoring.
If Gil can make the same impact on the team the way DWade did when he finally returned to his old form following his past injuries then I don’t see why Gil can’t do the same.
I don’t believe Gil is upset that he is no longer the face of the franchise. I believe that he is grateful to Ted L. giving him the opportunity to still be an integral part of the team.
That being said why would we trade Gil if he is in hibachi form and him and JWall and Kirk are playing good together.
I know some of are saying it is because of the cost of his contract. Well if Gil comes back and averages 22 to 24 ppg and their is great chemistry wioth him and JWall you don’t trade him.
I don’t care if a Dwight Howard changes his mine and say’s bring him to Orlando for VC at the trade deadline.
If we were to trade Gil it would have to be to our benefit. Even with trading Gil to a division rival may look good on the financial books. I would not want facing us in the same division.
Outside of a Xavier Henry or Monta Ellis deal I say that Gil is a keeper in Washington unless their is simplay a deal we can’t refuse.
Gil will shine this year and it will trigger a nice turna around in the wins column.
Our concern will be what kind of contribution will the frontline make.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 6, 2010 at 8:31 AM

Monta Ellis??? Hope not.

Gil was a very, very good player — and an exceptional personality who naturally and easily captured the spotlight. He’s no superstar and he never was. Comparing Gil to Dwayne Wade is fooling yourself.

This franchise is facing forward not back. It’s building through young players, starting with the draft. We’re not going to put together a championship-contending squad in just a couple of years. It can’t happen.

That means that by the time we get to that level of excellence, Gil will be a shooter in his thirties. Very few of those still contribute at a high level. He could be, but the chances are small.

That’s why trading Gil would be a good idea — for the team and for him too, as it might take him to a team that is more ready to contend. It’s also why there is no benefit whatever in doing *anything* but welcoming him back w/ open arms. He’s a team asset; we should do anything we can to increase his value.

But, if we did trade him it would have little or nothing to do w/ our finances. It would be about clearing cap room to sign more young talent.

Not saying it’s going to happen, but I don’t see why it’s such a difficult idea for some people to deal with. Is the past that important?

New era. New team.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 6, 2010 at 8:35 AM

Well, Gil did say he didn’t want to be a leader, or something similar, didn’t he? This is his chance to just go play ball and let his play do all the talking.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 6, 2010 at 8:42 AM

sorry tom, gil is a superstar. he is not an average nba player. he could make the difference in a game and he could carry a team on his shoulders. that is a superstar in my book. now his antics and behavior are out of sorts but he was definitely a superstar in my book. Now should we keep him is another topic, but don’t discount his skills. He deserves better, and yes he was in the class with dwade etc.

as far as monte ellis, he’s owed 44 mil over the next four years, do we need that on our team?

also any word on yi and his achilles (hurt last week in FIBA play)

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 6, 2010 at 8:52 AM

LOL….when does cap room have nothing to do with our finances….lol…

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 6, 2010 at 9:11 AM

touche grif with the tim duncan comparison….lol…..he’s an exceptional ball player. the only stoic player left in the nba…lol

gotabig, its safe to say every position is important on a team, and everyone has to know their role AS WELL AS perform them to reach success. while there will/may be a face of a team, the whole team is responsible for the success of the team.

btw-grif, the blog is cutting back it’s availibility hours, due to the new CBA, what are we going to do with you posting….lol…

Okay, macy’s has a sale, and their labor day sales are usually pretty good,,,gotta go, peace!!

Comment from Babakism
Time September 6, 2010 at 9:27 AM

Maybe T meant that we aren’t hurting financialy so trading Gil would be so we could use the cap space to sign other players as opposed to getting rid of big contracts to save money. Meaning we won’t be like the Pittsburgh Pirates of baseball, which is actually funny cause since Barry Bonds left they have had nothing but losing seasons but still always turn a profit because they are so thrifty lol.

Butler is right, and I’m sure everyone on this blog will agree that Gil is a superstar. BTW this time it is ALL ABOUT SCORING POINTS lol Maybe he is not the best all around player but when you are that good offensively you are in a special class of player.

How many people have scored 60 points in a game?????

Comment from JWALL
Time September 6, 2010 at 9:34 AM

Thanks for the feedback Tom and dcbutler357. Wrong choice of word. I meant to refer to cap room vs. finances.
i forgot you have to be very specific on this blog.
Tom like dcbutler357 shared I considered the Hibachi Gil as a superstar. To return to that form would be awesome for the Wiz. To say Gil was……. Is like me saying Demarcus Cousins may turn out…………………
DWade and Gil are clearly two different types of players.
I feel Gil was never was suppose to be a point guard but a off guard. That is why I feel he will thrive playing next to JWall and Kirk.
Come on Tom you can’t be optimistic about that happening?

Comment from tyrone2000
Time September 6, 2010 at 10:20 AM

In the few games that GArenas played he led the Wizards in total assists and avg assists. That is part of what a point does. Who played the point on the Lakers or the Cavs of the past few years? GArenas was a superstar and chances are he will return to that status. I don’t think he was a bad defender but that was his weakess area on the court. All superstars/players have a weakness in their games. JWall will be a bonus if he totally gets the pro game but I believe with a stronger center we can do go all the way. But that weakness could put the Wizards on the border of the playoffs.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 6, 2010 at 11:24 AM

Tyrone2000 –

“In the few games that GArenas played he led the Wizards in total assists and avg assists.” — What was our record in those 32 games? Gil did not play at a high level last year.

“GArenas was a superstar…” —

Again, Gil has been a very, very good player and a big-time scorer. Has he ever been productive ala Dwayne Wade? No. In *every* season they both played through, Wade has had a higher FG %, gotten to the line more often, averaged more rebounds, more assists (yes), more steals, more blocks, fewer fouls and (usually) fewer turnovers. Wade is a superstar — Gil is a very very good NBA player but never at Wade’s level.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 6, 2010 at 11:30 AM

STOP THE NONSENSE…LOL…ALSO BORN 11 DAYS APART

Wade: 27.4 PPG, 7.5 APG, 4.7 RPG, 2.1 SPG

Arenas: 28.4 PPG, 6.0 APG, 4.6 RPG, 1.9 SPG

These numbers are certainly comparable. If you add in an argument about Wade’s higher FG%, you can counter with Gilbert’s better 3PT%. Wade assisted on a higher percentage of his possessions, but also turned the ball over far more.

Many of Wade’s teammates on the US Olympic team say he’s healthy and better than ever. But could he break down again? Arenas had a summer to recover from his latest injury. Will the upcoming season be a showcase of each star’s return to prominence?

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 6, 2010 at 11:32 AM

jwall — I have hopes for Gil of course. And I want what’s good for him. The rest is less important to me.

I’m much more interested in the next generation of the team, based around the new players and those to come. Notions like Ty2K’s “with a stronger center we can go all the way” are so obviously off the hook that they don’t fill me with optimism, no.

We aren’t going to win many games this year, but we are going to improve radically over the next few years, a process that would be made easier and quicker by trading Gil.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 6, 2010 at 11:41 AM

rofl…just in case you missed it…LOL…

STOP THE NONSENSE…LOL…ALSO BORN 11 DAYS APART

Wade: 27.4 PPG, 7.5 APG, 4.7 RPG, 2.1 SPG

Arenas: 28.4 PPG, 6.0 APG, 4.6 RPG, 1.9 SPG

These numbers are certainly comparable. If you add in an argument about Wade’s higher FG%, you can counter with Gilbert’s better 3PT%. Wade assisted on a higher percentage of his possessions, but also turned the ball over far more.

Many of Wade’s teammates on the US Olympic team say he’s healthy and better than ever. But could he break down again? Arenas had a summer to recover from his latest injury. Will the upcoming season be a showcase of each star’s return to prominence?

Comment from tyrone2000
Time September 6, 2010 at 11:48 AM

When and if the Wizards trade GArenas they will take a huge step backwards unless they get a superstar in return. I’ll stand by this comment for the next 3 years.

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 6, 2010 at 11:57 AM

With this being the last year of the Collective Bargaining
Agreement the one item of concern for the superstars is the owners are going to want to have an NFL Type FRANCHISE TAGE.

With this Franchise Tag one player on each team will not be able to be a free agent. They will get a humongous salary but will not be able to go to another team.

1. This is why you are seeing Carmelo Anthony’s handlers trying like heck to get him traded to a team he wants to go to right now.
2. This is also why Denver is not in a hurry to do anything right now.
3. NBA players were not very good at the last collective bargaining agreement process. The majority of the players who are not superstars (99% of the players) will sacrifice the Franchise Tag so they can keep more money for themselves.

So please do not think for a second that Carmelo or CP3 has any leverage right now because they don’t with the collective bargaining agreement coming up. The only thing can do is not play, but we all know that ain’t happening (they are not going to give up $17million to prove a point).

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 6, 2010 at 12:39 PM

at 80 or 60 million bucks, the wiz will get something for gil….at the end of the day, the wiz still need to build a team that is not centered around one player, whether gil is here or not.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 6, 2010 at 12:41 PM

zoid, everything is not centered around money for either player. at this point of their careers, they will get paid regardless….

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 6, 2010 at 1:02 PM

draftazoid: close, but not quite.

Even if the “franchise player” proposal does get through, it won’t affect anyone’s *current* contract. At the end of this season, *before* any new CBA takes effect, Carmelo Anthony will be an unrestricted free agent, able to go anywhere he wants.

But, yes, if he’s going to leave his people want him to move now for a *related* reason.

Any team that trades for him will want an extension in place (otherwise, you give a lot for a one-season player). He’d rather have that extension under the *current* CBA than a new contract under the next one.

I.e., if he becomes unrestricted, his *next* contract will be under the new CBA — no doubt for less than a current extension would net him.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 6, 2010 at 1:12 PM

Remember that time we just HAAAAAAAAAAAAAD to trade Chris Webber…………………..didn’t really work out so well for us did it??????????

Comment from Babakism
Time September 6, 2010 at 1:14 PM

speaking of Chris Webber I finally saw the video of him and David Kahn

http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/07/its-not-just-you-laughing-at-david-kahn-chris-webber-is-on-board-too.php

This dude is freakin looney! I feel like he might be basketballs Vinny Cerato

Comment from neal
Time September 6, 2010 at 1:56 PM

I agree, Grifon, about Yi.

We have 4 guys that haven’t lived up to expectations: Young, Thornton, Yi and Armstrong. So EG has given us an opportunity to get a good player for almost nothing. The odds are one of them will blossum.

I think Yi has the best chance. He’s big, athletic, and very motivated. The big question is how to use him. Should he be allowed to continue to play on the perimeter?

Comment from tyrone2000
Time September 6, 2010 at 2:08 PM

Thanks Babakism, I thought everyone forgot the CWebb trade. That IMO is the biggest mistake the Wizards ever made right in front of the RWallace trade. Also, a close third but I did support at the time when the Wizards didn’t want to pay BWallace and even that backfired. Non-basketball related bull crap. If the Lakers had gotten rid of Kobe, I wonder how many championship games they would have played in. You keep your star players if they want to be here period

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 6, 2010 at 2:22 PM

Did all of this happen under Wes Unseld???
What a loser (as a gm)

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 6, 2010 at 2:25 PM

it took us about 10 years to recover from that trade didn’t it….wow

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 6, 2010 at 2:38 PM

The Biggest Waste of the Washington Bullets was the disassembling of an AWESOME FRONT COURT that could have played for 12 years together and just dominated teams up front:

Center- Rasheed Wallace- Rookie
Forward- Chris Webber- 3rd year
Forward- Juwon Howard- 2nd year

That is why Wes Unseld was the worst GM in the history of the franchise, if not the NBA. I still cannot believe he broke up that young team.

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 6, 2010 at 2:43 PM

When Wes traded Chris Webber, he did not even put him on the open market to get value for the trade. He simply wanted Mitch Richmond, 900 years old but great character, and called Sacramento to make the deal.
Other GM’s said theywere not even notified that Webber was up for trade.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 6, 2010 at 2:48 PM

Yeah, I think our nickname was the washington blanks (no bullets in the gun)…..whew that was a rough stretch. talking about allegiance to a player….even to the point of self-destruction.

gotta get a proven gm in the house….

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 6, 2010 at 4:02 PM

Someone was asking for an update on Yi’s recent injury. According to an nbc sports report, he

“is battling an inflamed Achilles tendon. He sat out the final game for China in group play, had an MRI on his leg, which found nothing serious…. None of this should carry over to the season, he would have a few weeks to rest and recover. And the Wizards will be careful with him during camp, because they don’t want this to be a lingering thing.”

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 6, 2010 at 4:04 PM

For TeamUsa, “Kevin Love is… averaging 7.4 points and 6.6 rebounds in just 10.4 minutes while shooting 59.3 percent.” Pretty good.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 6, 2010 at 4:08 PM

Abe Pollin ordred that Chris Webber be traded although I guess Wes is still at fault for not getting more value for him.

I think the Rasheed trade was fine because Rod Strickland led the league in assist at least 1 if not 2 of the seasons he played when we had the Wolverine core together.

We never would have made the Rasheed trade if it weren’t for the bad luck of Robert Pack’s season ending might as well been career ending injury. After it he lost all of his athletic ability and was never the same.

Pack was averaging 17 points and 8 assist 2 steals a game the year he got injured. and was easily the third best player on the team behind Webber and Howard.

Comment from Babakism
Time September 6, 2010 at 4:10 PM

Lets not forget the first round draft pick for Mark Price trade and then Price has a career ending injury.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 6, 2010 at 6:17 PM

I remember getting all these players when they were ready for retirement…Moses Malone, Bernard King, Mark Price, etc etc etc

in other news:
Andray Blatche tells Michael Lee that he’ll be ready and healthy by the start of training camp

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 6, 2010 at 10:31 PM

Pack was one of my favorite players back then — he’s an assistant coach somewhere in the league now.

I think when we traded for him, Mark Price might already have been suffering from the condition that ended his career — although he did play for the Warriors the following year and play pretty well. But he was 31 when we traded for him and had certainly come far down from his terrific years in his mid-twenties.

Strickland was also on his way down when we acquired him, but at least he played 304 games for this franchise.

The Mitch Richmond trade was criminal. An all star 7 footer for a washed up off guard.

And letting Ben Wallace go for Ike Austin!!!!! After the seasons Ben had had for us.

What a series of bonehead moves! Really over the top.

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 6, 2010 at 11:53 PM

Wes was a horrible gm and because of it we stunk for 30 years. I think he went into player negotiations with the mindset… I never made that kind of money…. they aren’t going to either. He certainly was no Sam Presti/ Kevin Pritchard. Heck he probably wasn’t even up to David Kahn’s level LOL. More bad moves than by any other team in that time frame.

Gilbert isn’t going anywhere. Maybe if he plays exceptionally well this year we could trade him next off season, but, for this year he is ours. He makes too much and has too much baggage for anyone else to be interested in him this year. Good part of that is that he could really help US this year

Comment from datonypony
Time September 6, 2010 at 11:58 PM

Meh ah well. At least I wasn’t a wizard fan back then yet I didn’t have to go through those pains!

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 7, 2010 at 1:35 AM

OMG… tony I envy you LOL.

I was back then and it’s been a very painful ride. Even Tom got the “benifit??” of being a Warriors fan back in the day What a crew. Fans of the bottom dwellers. No wonder Tom wants to wait and see us rebuild wisely and into a powerhouse in the east… just as everybody else is … let’s just say… going into their “golden” years … we are going to be Ripe to pick from them. Gilbert… if he plays well this season.. If traded… may just get us a very good young player or two and a first round draft pick looking ahead…..

Comment from GrifonRacing
Time September 7, 2010 at 1:48 AM

Who knows maybe the Kings will hate Cousins??

Comment from Babakism
Time September 7, 2010 at 2:29 AM

We got Robert Pack by trading Don Maclean and ummmmmmmmmmmmm not Chris Whitney but ummmmmmmmmm some freakin backup PG maybe Haywood Workman or AJ English nooooooooooooo lol I really don’t want to look this up cause I feel like I should know it lol oh well, but thats how we got Robert Pack lol

I don’t think Price had a pre-existing injury. I believe he tore an ACL or something like that. My brother was working at Sibley Hospital at the time and shared an elevator with him and the moment he saw him he sarcasticly said, “welcome to DC” lol

I think Rod strickland was still in his prime but at the tail end of it.

I’m proud to have been a life long Bullets fan and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I was born in 82 so I never had the chance to see our championship won. When we finally win our next NBA title all of the hardships will make it that much sweeter.

Comment from Jaba
Time September 7, 2010 at 2:33 AM

James Singleton is off to China. I was really hoping the Wiz could bring him back. Loved his energy and attitude. He simply wanted to play, and I guess he figured that behind Blatche, Seraphin, and Yi there wouldn’t have been a lot of minutes left for him.

Comment from Jaba
Time September 7, 2010 at 6:23 AM

Taken fron Bullets Forever: With few noticing, Singleton emerged as a key role player for the Wizards last year. He changed his game from being a jump-shooting small power forward to being a rebounder that did the dirty work. His positive outlook was infectious in keeping what should have been a dour clubhouse loose, and he became very close with Andray Blatche in particular. (I am forever convinced that Blatche’s success last season would not have happened without Singleton being around keeping him at ease). But that’s the thing: few noticed. It’s tough to get much attention as a glue guy for a 26-56 team, especially one with as anonymous a name as James Singleton.

At the end of the day, I’m not sure if the Wizards should have actually kept him. Trevor Booker does many of the things Singleton does, and he’s younger. But I’m very, very surprised that no NBA team, the Wizards included, think he’s worth anything more than the veterans minimum. Most good teams have a swing forward that acts as a reliable option off the bench, and Singleton surely is better than a number of guys that have signed. I really do think lots of teams missed a chance to add a guy simply because they didn’t know who he was.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 7, 2010 at 7:51 AM

Singleton, for his career, is an above-average NBA player. One reason he’s not in the league is that GMs, like fans, tend to over-value (and to over-pay) scoring — whether efficient or not. Another is that if a guy is picked in the first round, and especially in the lottery, he is given *many more* “second” chances than someone like Singleton, who went undrafted. If a high pick fails, the GM looks like he can’t pick ‘em.

Singleton is, for example, a *much* better player than Al Thornton at the 3-4, and a significantly better player than Yi at the 4, for that matter. But because Al was a lottery pick and Yi a high lottery pick, they get more shots to fulfill their “potential.”

It’s a waste of time to feel sorry for James Singleton — after all, he’s making lots of money playing a game he likes to play! Sorry to see him go, however.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 7, 2010 at 7:59 AM

Btw, the fact that “Booker does many of the things Singleton does” would be a reason to sign Singleton, not to pass on him. We thought well enough of Booker to trade up and pick him at 23; why wouldn’t you grab a guy for a couple of years at the veteran minimum salary in year 1 and slightly more in year 2 who does the same things and is *proven?*

Like passing on deJuan Blair, I don’t put this on Ernie in particular — it’s a GM failing. Heck, NO has only 11 guys signed and a $68m payroll. Wouldn’t a low-cost, effective guy work well there? Duh.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 7, 2010 at 8:07 AM

From the Post:

“Veteran big man Sean Marks has accepted an invitation to try out for the Wizards, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation.”

Marks is 35 years old. He would be another rent-a-player for this year. You’re probably wondering if he’s better than Hilton Armstrong. Yeah, off of limited minutes in the league he has been a bit better. Maybe he’s just camp fodder, however.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 7, 2010 at 8:14 AM

More Wiz news from the Post:

Cartier Martin has also informed the Wizards of his plans to participate in training camp, but the team is still waiting for confirmation from Lester Hudson.

The Wizards extended a contract tender last week to second-round pick Hamady N’Diaye, ensuring that the team would retain his rights… – a non-guaranteed contract worth the league minimum – before N’Diaye became an unrestricted free agent. The Wizards still expect N’Diaye to play in Europe next season….

“We’ll see how everything shakes out,” Grunfeld said, when asked if there is a chance that N’Diaye comes to training camp. “He’s a good defensive player, a good rebounder, but he has a lot to learn, like most young players.”

In other words, Ernie Grunfield:

“I picked a guy in round 2 who isn’t good enough to invite to training camp. Later in the round, the Lakers picked a guy good enough to sign for the year (Caracter). Undrafted, the Nets found a guy (at Center no less) good enough to give a contract to (Zoubek). Now you see why I earn the big bucks?”

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 7, 2010 at 8:36 AM

Well, we were all wrong about Hamady N’Diaye. (misinformation about H)
He has been offered a contract.
The Wizards do not want him to sign it. They want him to not sign it and go to Europe so they can keep his rights.

It’s up to “H.” If he wants to be in the NBA this year and play for the Wizards he just needs to sign the tender offer.
Good for him!

Comment from Jaba
Time September 7, 2010 at 8:45 AM

Why Sean Marks? We might as well bring back Fab, who already knows all the plays…..! (Not that I really want that to happen!) I really don’t understand why they invited the guy.
If they were just looking for camp fodder, surely there must’ve been younger guys with a little more upside around.

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 7, 2010 at 9:34 AM

EG can not be everywhere looking at college players before the draft. The Wizards have a group that “scouts” opposing teams and also college players for draft potential. I wonder who is in charge of scouting for the Wizards? Of course…TAPOUT.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 7, 2010 at 10:37 AM

Why were we wrong about H? There was never any doubt we’d tender him an offer. We *have to* offer him a contract in order to retain his rights. The contract doesn’t have to be guaranteed, and I’m sure it isn’t.

Gotabig — Tapscott is not my favorite person, but why are you so focused on him I wonder? It’s *Ernie’s job* to draft effectively. If he doesn’t do it, don’t blame someone else.

Over and over, Ernie has demonstrated that he doesn’t really believe in the draft. He has traded away high 2d round choices, drafted to little effect in Round 1, and in general drained away the young talent on the roster.

The new marching orders are in the other direction, and he needs to be judged on his results. He gave away a high round 2 pick to move up 7 places and grab Trevor Booker. If Booker turns out to be better than Damion James and Quincy Pondexter (chosen right after him), Ernie gets credit for the trade and pick; but if not he gets the blame. If Seraphin becomes a good NBA player, Ernie gets the credit, if not he gets the blame for the pick.

Tapscott isn’t in the picture — he works for Ernie.

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 7, 2010 at 10:39 AM

In fairness, Ernie has also made some good picks — he got Dray deep in round 2, and he picked Dom down there as well.

Hard for me to get over picking Pech over Rajon Rondo, however!

Comment from Gotabigboyoffense
Time September 7, 2010 at 10:57 AM

How can anyone wonder why I would be focused on Tapout? How about everything he touches having to do with the Wizards turns out badly! I’m not giving EG a pass. He should have thrown Tapout out at the end of the 2008-2009 season.

Comment from draftazoid
Time September 7, 2010 at 11:06 AM

Tom,
The CBA says that no player can be offered less than the minimum salary.
A team cannot tender a player less than the minimum salary for the years they have been in the league.
Which means, “H” has to have a contract offer of at least $473,604, the minimum, for this coming season.

The Wizards say they have tendered an offer to Hamady.
So right now Hamady, if he chooses will be a Washington Wizard this year. All he has to do is sign the tender offer that is on the table.

If the Wizards want to retain H’s rights then by the terms of the CBA they must offer a minimum salary contract, which is exactly what they did.

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 7, 2010 at 11:17 AM

Getabig/Tom,

You know I don’t have the energy to go there anymore…..cest la vie….lol

Comment from dcbutler357
Time September 7, 2010 at 11:44 AM

Wiz tendered non-guaranteed minimum contract last week to retain rights for 2nd-rd pick Hamady N’Diaye: http://wapo.st/aMmUhx

NON-GUARANTEED……

Comment from Tom Mandel
Time September 7, 2010 at 4:54 PM

draftazoid — no doubt, but it’s *non-guaranteed* (per dcb just above); hence, H has a strong incentive to play in Europe rather than sign the tender. And that was the intention — the offer is to *retain rights to him.*