SB Nation - Mike James

Keys to the Palace

JakeTheSnake — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:52:13 -0000

More photos » by Alex Brandon - AP

Scott Skiles shows his outrage after being given a Red Lock of Shame.

Last week, we got an e-mail from user ledellforlife asking if we could do a weekly segment in the same vein as Japers' Rink's Capital Ups and Downs. After some brainstorming and tinkering, we are proud to unveil the first installment.

Most of you probably know that the title refers to Ed Tapscott's famous response to why Nick Young wasn't getting playing time last season. In case you don't remember, here's the quote:

"Someone asked me the other day if I have a dog house. I said, 'No I don't have a dog house, I have a Palace of Good Play.' I'm looking for someone who's playing well so I can put them in that palace."

Each week, we'll be handing out golden keys to the players whose good play has earned them the right to stay in the Palace of Good Play. Each player who makes it inside the Palace will be rewarded with the Gold Key to the Palace of Good Play.

Likewise, those who do not play well enough to enter the Palace of Good Play will receiver their own logo. Their scarlet letter will come in the form of the Red Lock of Shame.

After the jump, we'll take a look at each player on the roster to see who gets to stay in the Palace, and who will be forced to sleep in the cold.

Gilbert Arenas

#0 / Guard / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: 25 points, 8 assists, 3 rebounds in 41 minutes
vs. Indiana: 22 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds in 35 minutes

It's hard to deny entrance to the palace for someone who recorded a triple-double and played a solid week of basketball, but those free throws are going to stick out in people's minds until he can prove that he can hit clutch shots again.

Final Verdict

Andray Blatche

#7 / Forward / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: 17 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists in 26 minutes
vs. Indiana: 5 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 assists in 19 minutes

There were questions about how Andray Blatche would adjust after Antawn Jamison returned. So far, he's done a magnifcent job of showing that he can still be productive in a more limited role. Maybe it would have been premature to do so earlier this season, but I think we can finally give kudos to Blatche for finally turning the corner.

Final Verdict

Earl Boykins

#12 / Guard / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: 2 points, 3 assists in 12 minutes
vs. Indiana: 14 points, 2 assists in 19 minutes

After playing the shortest amount of time he has played all season against the Celtics, Boykins saw his playing time rebound to the norm against Indiana. Fortunately for Earl, it looks like his diminished PT was just an abberation and he will continue to be a key reserve for the team moving forward. Unfortunately, his playing time was the only rebound he collected all of last week.

Final Verdict

Caron Butler

#3 / Forward / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: 10 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists in 41 minutes
vs. Indiana: 23 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists in 38 minutes

Saturday night's game against Indiana was the first game this season where Caron took over 15 shots and hit over half of them. Although they lost on Saturday, it is the most comfortable the Big 3 have looked playing together all season long. Caron holds the key to getting the Big 3, and in turn, the rest of the team in sync, but I'm not ready to give him the key to the palace just yet.

Final Verdict

Javaris Crittenton

#8 / Guard / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: DNP - Injured
vs. Indiana: DNP - Injured

One has to wonder if the presence of Earl Boykins hasn't totally eliminated Javaris Crittenton from the picture. Nick Young has been in and out of the doghouse all season long and the team picked up his option, unlike Crittenton. If he can't find a way to contribute early on, don't be surprised to see those DNP - Injureds to into DNP - Coach's Decisions once he comes back.

Final Verdict

Randy Foye

#15 / Guard / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: 6 points, 3 rebounds in 13 minutes
vs. Indiana: 0 points, 2 assists, 1 rebound in 7 minutes

You have to wonder if Randy Foye feels a little bit like Wally Pipp, watching as the player who was supposed to just be an injury replacement end up taking most of his playing time. Then again, when you hurry up an off-balance three pointer with 8 seconds left because you didn't realize how much time you had left, it's hard to pass blame off on someone else.

Final Verdict

Brendan Haywood

#33 / Center / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: 17 points, 8 rebounds in 35 minutes
vs. Indiana: 6 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assists in 35 minutes

It's a good thing that Haywood's play speaks for itself, because his blog was not doing a very good job. While insightful at times, his controversial takes on some issues (most notably the Tiger Woods fiasco) got him in some hot water and he has decided to pull a Gilbert Arenas and retire from the blogging game.

Final Verdict

Mike James

#13 / Guard / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: DNP -Injured
vs. Indiana: DNP - Injured

He might be injured, and he might be on the trading block, but he's still a bbbeeeeeaaaaasssssttttt.

Final Verdict

Antawn Jamison

#4 / Forward / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: 16 points, 8 rebounds in 35 minutes
vs. Indiana: 20 points, 7 rebounds in 45 minutes

Antawn Jamison is more consistent than you are, he's tougher too.

Final Verdict

JaVale McGee

#34 / Center / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: 0 points, 0 rebounds in 3 minutes
vs. Indiana: 0 points, 0 rebounds in less than a minute

JaVale McGee made sure the void for a blogging presence from a Wizards center did not last for long. In his latest entry, he told readers:

So really really the point of this blog secretly is to dare anyone with a Ps3 to a challenge on Call of Duty Modern Warefare 2.

I seriously think i'm one of the best in that game, let alone the NBA.

This should be interesting.

Final Verdict

Dominic McGuire

#5 / Forward / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: DNP - Coach's Decision
vs. Indiana: 4 rebounds, 1 assist in 6 minutes

After receiving a nice palm to the face on Thursday, Taser responded with a solid performance in limited minutes against Indiana. We'll see if his solid rebounding and positive +/- are enough to get him some more burn in the future.

Final Verdict

Mike Miller

#6 / Guard / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: DNP - Injured
vs. Indiana: DNP - Injured

Odds are, if Mike was playing he would have a key to the palace, but I just can't give him a key for looking nice in a suit. Maybe if he got a haircut I would reconsider.

Final Verdict

Fabricio Oberto

#21 / Forward / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: 1 assist, 3 fouls in under 2 minutes
vs. Indiana: DNP - Coach's Decision

Remember when this guy was starting games this season?

Final Verdict

DeShawn Stevenson

#2 / Guard / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: 5 points, 0 assists in 15 minutes
vs. Indiana: 2 points, 3 assists, 4 rebounds in 19 minutes

Starting DeShawn Stevenson might bethe key to creating a balance between Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler. In the two games Stevenson has started, Gilbert has averaged 21.5 points per game and Caron has averaged 21. Then again, the Wizards have lost both games he has started, so maybe it isn't worth exploring any further.

Final Verdict

Nick Young

#1 / Guard / Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: 4 points, 1 assist, 1 rebound in 11 minutes
vs. Indiana: 1- points, 2 rebounds in 13 minutes

Flip has been tough with Nick Young this season. He has put him in the doghouse a few times for poor play, but he has also been fair in giving him chances to work his way out. His recent stretch of strong play makes it appear that the hard work is paying off.

Final Verdict

Flip Saunders

Coach - Washington Wizards

This Week

vs. Boston: Lost to Boston 104-102
vs. Indiana:

The start of the year hasn't gone the way Flip would have wanted or expected, but there are still some bad habits that he has to break the team of before they can truly move forward. The good news is that he is doing a good job of starting to break the team of their worst bad habit, sloppy defense.

Final Verdict

Tip-In: Toronto Raptors Post-Game Report - Fool's Gold

RaptorsHQ - Franchise — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 14:33:03 -0000

More photos » by Chris Young - AP

Story of the night for Toronto; one Atlanta player out-working and out-leaping three Raptors...

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Franchise has seen enough. After a second straight lopsided loss to the Hawks, it's clear that this team needs some major changes if they hope to return to the post-season...

Last year after the season had concluded, I wrote a piece asking if the Raptors were really as good as the Hawks , who last year had sewn up a fourth place position in the playoffs.

After all, when Bryan Colangelo spoke to the media at season's end, he stated that he felt last year's Raptors' club should have been on par with teams like Atlanta, fighting for one of the 4 to 8 seeds in the East.

While a 111 to 89 loss wasn't a throttling on the same level as the last time these clubs met, last night's loss to Atlanta was further proof of just how far this Dino team has to go to be on par with the Hawks. I said it last night and I'll say it again; the Raptors could take on the Hawks 10 times this season and I'm completely convinced they'd get throttled each and every time; this is just a nightmare match-up for Toronto between Atlanta's advanced talent and superior athleticism.

However that alone doesn't explain yet another lackluster effort by the Raps in a short season already full of them. While Toronto kept things close in the first quarter, they were unable to get much help from their bench (outscored 55 to 31 by the Hawks last night) and once again, the game was essentially over by halftime.

Last night's loss ran Toronto's record to 3 and 15 when they allow opponents to score 100 or more points. (Their record is 7-0 when holding teams below that 100 point plateau.)

The defence isn't there, and hasn't been all season really, and now even the offence is floundering. Toronto for the second straight game barely extended their "3-pointers made" streak, and in fact took only 10 long-range bombs last night. Simply put, this team is not nearly athletic or aggressive enough to score without a heavy dose of 3-point shooting so 10 on a night is not going to cut it.

And that three-game winning streak from last week sure looks hollow now doesn't it?

The club beat up on a terrible Bulls' team, lucked-out of an OT loss to Washington after Gilbert Arenas blew a game-winning lay-up, and barely beat a 3 and 20 Minnesota club.

And now, with a slew of tough games on the horizon, it's possible that win number 11 doesn't come until next Friday against the Nets.

The frustrating thing from my perspective, is the effort first and foremost.

It just ain't there.

I've been a Triano backer all season but it's getting pretty hard to defend him and his staff. I mean, last night marked the ninth time already this season that the Raps have been beaten by 13 or more points! I was never a big Sam Mitchell fan but it was pretty hard to argue with the effort he got out of his club on a nightly basis. Even in the Mike James era on a club devoid of talent, at least you knew you were getting a max effort each and every time the team stepped on the floor. The team scrapped and clawed on every possession and ended up upending some teams despite relying on a journeyman chucker at the 1, Chris Bosh...and Rafael Araujo. There's no arguing that this team is a lot more talented, however they don't have the fight previous incarnations of the Raps had.

That's a pretty strong statement in itself considering that it's been years since one could refer to Toronto as being a "tough" team.

At some point, and soon, something needs to be done here as it's pretty obvious that even after the vaunted "closed door meeting" the team had recently, some things haven't been fixed.

Unfortunately, aside from moving some starters around (which now seems a sure thing at least at the 1; Jose Calderon re-injured himself last night and while I have no idea why he played at all last night, he's likely to miss a big chunk of time), I'm not sure what else can be done. The problems start with this team's composition and the players themselves, and a coaching change or line-up swap is again only a band-aid solution.

The reality in my books is that once again Bryan Colangelo has put together a team in his own image; flashy on the outside but hollow beyond that. Sure, the offence looks nice most of the time, but that's all for naught if the defence is beyond paper-thin, the effort isn't there every night, and the team wilts at the slightest challenge. The Raptors shot over 55 per cent from the field in the first quarter last night, but again were still behind on the scoreboard. That's simply absurd, but a defining statement about this club, who again fell to pieces as soon as Atlanta made their second quarter push.

That's why it still blows my mind that Toronto thought maxing out on Hedo Turkoglu was a good idea. The team is already chalk-full of players in his ilk; ones who can do a bit of everything, but who can't take over games when need be or defend and get stops.

In many ways he's the perfect Bryan Colangelo player, a fool's gold specimen if you will. 12 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists with a block looks beautiful on paper (or on your fantasy team), but again this came in a very lopsided loss, one in which he barely had an impact.

He's not alone in this boat though as we're 25 games into the season and this team still has no identity. The team has been outplayed badly in over a third of the games they've played, and risk running their lone bright spot right out of town.

Something's gotta give here.

Unfortunately, I'm just not sure what BC can do to get out of the corner he's boxed himself into.

Briefing: The World's Most Interesting Man Delivers Down the Stretch

JakeTheSnake — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 13:51:27 -0000

More photos » by Alex Brandon - AP

15 days ago: Washington Wizards guard Earl Boykins, left, is fouled by Milwaukee Bucks guard Brandon Jennings with seconds left in the fourth quarter of an NBA basketball game in Washington on Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2009. Boykins made his two free throws and the Wizards won 104-102. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

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Washington hasn't seen someone as small as Earl Boykins have an impact this big since James Madison was in office.

Earl Boykins plays a big part in Wizards' 104-102 win over Milwaukee - Michael Lee, Washington Post

Boykins spent last season in Italy -- where his performance in a matchup with Jennings left an indelible mark on President Ernie Grunfeld -- and the Wizards signed him on Nov. 11 only after Javaris Crittenton, Mike James and Randy Foye came down with injuries, leaving the team with one point guard in Arenas. But Boykins has quickly provided some fourth quarter stability for the Wizards, leading the team to victories against Cleveland, Miami, Toronto and now Milwaukee, one of his eight former teams. He was especially clutch on the foul line, where he made his final four shots after missing three of his first six. "I was awful from the foul line, but it's different when the game is on the line. It's actually easier to play when the game is on the line," Boykins said. "Tonight, I was able to get it done for us."

Instant Analysis: Bucks-Wizards - Brian Jackson, CSN Washington

It’s been Earl Boykins not Gilbert Arenas who has led the Wizards down the stretch, to a couple of close wins. Boykins scored 11 of his 13 points in the final 10 minutes, causing the fans in the Verizon Center to chant "MVP! MVP! MVP! At this point in the season he’s been the Wizards fourth quarter MVP if nothing else. Not that Arenas isn’t doing his part --finished with a game high 22 points and 9 assist-- but with the game on the line Flip Saunders put the ball in the hands of his 5’5’’ spark plug. "If you look at the games that we have won, (Earl) he has finished games for us. He has the ability to make plays and make free throws. The first game was a great example, we lost but he finished strong and he is a unique player with the ability that he has to do. "

Wizards 104, Bucks 102: the Big Three and a little one that was even bigger - Craig Stouffer, Washington Examiner

Earl Boykins, who wasn’t even on an NBA roster at the beginning of the season, scored 10 of the Wizards' last 14 points, including two free throws with one second remaining, to give Washington a 104-102 win over Milwaukee. It wasn’t just that Boykins (13 points – 11 in the 4th quarter – and four assists) played the role of closer – again – instead of any number of players that the Wizards are built around, but the way he did it. With the Bucks leading, 99-96, Boykins played the pick and roll, and smoothly stepped back for 14-foot fadeaway jumper of 7-foot Andrew Bogut. On the next trip down the floor, Bogut wasn’t going to let Boykins do the same thing, and stepped out even further, only to see Boykins feed Brendan Haywood (8 points, 14 rebounds) for an uncontested throw-down.

Boykins Comes Up Big For Wizards - Dave Johnson, CSN Washington

In the game’s final 1:39 Boykins made four free throws, hit a 14 foot fade a way jumper and put the Wizards ahead for a good with an assist on a Brendan Haywood dunk to make it 100-99 with: 59 seconds left. Boykins used his 5'5" size as an advantage as he weaved around the top of the key and then in need of assistance called for a screen to be set by Haywood. With the screen set, Boykins drew all the attention at the right elbow and then shoveled a pass to a cutting Haywood for the dunk. "[Andrew] Bogut hadn’t stepped up on a shot for a guard all night long so we chose to attack him down the stretch and see what he was going to do and he finally stepped up. Earl dropped a pass and I was able to get an easy dunk," Haywood said.

Wizards 104, Bucks 102 [UPDATED] - Michael Lee, Wizards Insider

Funny how Boykins was working out in Denver last month when the Wizards called him out of desperation because of their depleted backcourt. Three weeks later, he's on the floor with three all-stars in Gilbert Arenas, Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler, and he's making plays in the end. Boykins has now closed out wins against Cleveland, Miami, Toronto and Milwaukee. He has done this in previous stops, so this isn't a surprise for Arenas or Jamison, who watched him do the same thing with the Golden State Warriors. "To you guys it's a surprise, but that's what Earl does. He was a great scorer at Eastern Michigan, he's been in the league 11 years because of it. He makes plays," said Arenas, who scored four points in the final period. "I was with him at Golden States and the same results. We played in the fourth quarter together and that's how we did it. Coach yelled at us four games ago...and said 'Why don't you run the [darn] floor?' and I was like 'Well, see me and Earl have this thing from the last couple years. He attacks and if nothing's there, he kicks it back to me. And then I drive and attack.' So, that's just how we play."

Wizards 104, Bucks 102 - Mike Jones, Outlet

Seriously. I mean, I know it may drop off at any moment, but for now, Earl Boykins is hot at the right time for the Wizards. Gilbert Arenas still is working his way back, and although he's getting better as is evidence of the last two days. But without Earl Boykins and his late-game charges of energy, the Wizards very well could be looking at 3-14 instead of 7-10. This little dude has now had four games in which his fourth-quarter heroics have led the Wizards to victory.

Last Night's Action: The Tiny Man In The Middle - Aaron Morrissey, DCist

In a league populated with giants, it's easy to forget about Earl Boykins. Standing at five-foot-five and tipping the scales at 133 pounds, he is, quite literally, a David amongst the Goliaths of the National Basketball Association. But when Boykins picks up his figuartive slingshot, he suddenly becomes a lot harder to miss. The Lilliputian one scored 11 points in the last ten minutes, including hitting two free throws with one second left to lead the Wizards to yet another win last night -- their fourth in their last five games.

The little man steps up big for the Wizards - William Yoder, Agent Dagger

Gilbert Arenas had his second good game in a row. The point gaurd added a team high 22 points and nine assists on the night. While it seems he has finally found his confidence to attack the basket, he is still struggling to find his shooting stroke. Arenas was 1-6 from three tonight, and only 10-24 overall. On the season he is shooting a career low 39 per cent from the field.

Wizards hold on to defeat Bucks - Matt Kremnitzer, Krem's Sports Blog

I'm impressed with Young. He turned the ball over five times last night, which is too much, but he shot well from the field and seems to play well with the other starters. I wasn't sure if he'd be able to bounce back from not playing much to start the season, but he worked hard and is certainly contributing right now. I'm not sure if Randy Foye is completely healthy or not, but Young's recent play and the presence of Earl Boykins have really cut into Foye's minutes. Last night, Foye played only five minutes and didn't score a point.

Game Notes: Milwaukee vs. Washington - Rashad Mobley, Hoops Addict

In the second quarter, Gilbert Arenas came down on three consecutive possessions, drove the ball, was seemingly fouled, but nothing was called. After each call, he went and pleaded his case to the referees. This happened just one night after he earned a technical foul against Toronto for doing the same thing. In the third quarter, Arenas again complained about the officiating, and this time that complaining led to him being relaxed on defense and Brandon Jennings went by him and scored. Flip Saunders promptly called a timeout and yelled something to Arenas as he ran off the floor. After the game, Arenas explained his behavior, "I used to average 11 or 12 free throws a game, and now I can’t even get a call. I feel like they’re profiling me as a player," Arenas said while he stood in front of his locker. "They say I’m creating all the contact, and I’m saying that’s what a scorer is supposed to do, there’re supposed to create the contact when they get in the lane. If they [the defensive players] are outside the lane its a charge…now if they’re inside the lane and I run into them, its a no-call. I’m asking [the refs] where do I win that? Last night I got frustrated I got a technical."

Gilbert Arenas Feels Profiled By The Refs - Kyle Weidie, Truth About It

From where I sit, Arenas needs to stop worrying about the refs (at least not more than the standard in-game politicking). Warranted or not, he can’t use a lack of calls as a lingering reason in the back of his head to why some things might not be working. Keep attacking the basket, but do it with scoring in mind, not trying to draw a foul while throwing up whatever attempt that can be mustered. Arenas is still trying to get a feel for his own game, his new coach, and his teammates … much less a feel for how he will be addressed by referees on aggressive moves to the hoop. Allowing frustration to mount won’t help his play or standing with the whistle-blowers. But just like anything else, and to quote a favorite term of Ernie Grunfeld and Flip Saunders, Arenas achieving an offensive comfort zone is a "process." Only time will tell if this process will result in success for Agent Zero his team.

Wizards 104, Bucks 102 - Alex Boeder, Brew Hoop

The Wizards shot 54.3 % from the field despite none of the big three really feeling it tonight: Arenas (10-24), Jamison (5-8), Butler (4-10). Post-game, Skiles had nothing good to say about the defensive performance, and I must say that I can't recall many big stops on that side of the ball.

Defense remains in absentia: Wizards 104 - Bucks 102

Bogut STRUGGLED. I was worried Brendan Haywood’s length and strength would give Bogut problems and they certainly did. He was getting very few clean looks and his touch didn’t seem to be there even when he did get some looks. On the plus side he was able to dish out five assists, a sign that he recognized it was not a favorable match-up for him.

Boykins comes up big for Wizards - Associated Press

It was Saunders' 1,000th career game as a head coach. He has a 594-406 record. ... Before the game, Saunders said he's adjusting to the number of fans arriving after tipoff at Washington games. "It's something we've got to try to change," he said. "As the team becomes better ... they'll want to come out and hopefully get out here sooner."

Best of Twitterville

Twitter / Mike Jones
Wizards fans only get out of their seats for food. People screaming themselves red in the face over some free donuts.

Twitter / Michael Lee
Poor Andrew Bogut. Gilbert Arenas knocked him to the ground, he stood up, then Caron Butler dunked on him. Stay on the ground!

Twitter / wizznutzz
oh, our bad!!! you not mean massive slobbering. sorry so much!!!! RT @BulletsForever: Earl Boykins does a lot of dribbling.

Twitter / Tas Melas
The ball in Earl Boykins to win the game. Love the call Flip. Brandon fouls him. He didn't think he'd be guarding smaller players in the NBA

Twitter / Truth_About_It
Earl Boykins is the Closer. Flip has only called for Pick&Rolls b/t him & Haywood on last couple of possessions. Wiz up 100-99, 0:59 left

Twitter / The BF gang
So I was hoping for Antonio Daniels instead of Earl Boykins when they signed him. Mea culpa, everyone. Mea culpa!

Twitter / George V. Panagakos
Boykins 11 pts in 4th Q; MVP chants; the man is rolling since he's been in a Wizards uniform

Game #15: Washington Wizards (4-9) vs. Miami Heat (9-5)

DolPhanDave — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 07:04:40 -0000

More photos » by Evan Vucci - AP

Dwyane Wade goes plain DIAGONAL on the Wizards

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Tonight the Heat will play a much different Washington Wizards team then they have seen the previous two times this season. The reason? Antawn Jamison. The Wizards star forward missed the team's first nine games with a shoulder injury, but he has been amazing since returning.

In the four games Jamison has played, he's scored 31, 22, 15 and 32 points while shooting 51.4% from the field. He is also averaging 10.8 boards and 1.5 steals. With Antawn, Gilbert, Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood all in the lineup for Washington, the Heat are going to see a much more powerful, all-around team.

The Heat are coming off of perhaps their most invigorating game of the year but are still dealing with some issues on defense. The Heat have given up 26 three pointers in the last two games, but in those games the Hornets and Magic put up 59 attempts from beyond the arc. That is pretty ridiculous, and one has to assume that the Heat, who opened the season playing great perimeter defense, has somewhat lost their way.

Another thing to keep an eye on is how Mario Chalmers and Carlos Arroyo come back after the stinker they put up in Orlando. Forget about points, when two point guards combine for 3 assists, there is a problem. Granted, the Heat have often been guilty of not moving much without the ball, but either way that is a problem that needs to be solved asap.

GAME NOTES

The Heat have won two in a row overall and six in a row against the Wizards

Quentin Richardson is listed as doubtful, still dealing with a sore back.

The Wiz will be without Mike Miller, who is dealing with a sore calf, Mike James (hand) and Javaris Crittenton (foot).

This is also going to be the 2^nd game in a row that the Heat are nationally televised on ESPN.

Dwyane Wade has scored 40 and 41 points in the two games against Washington this season, his only 40-point games this year (so far).

Another great test for Miami as they shoot for 3 in a row. Tipoff is at 7pm from the AAA.

How does Antawn Jamison help the Washington Wizards? Some stats to consider

Mike Prada — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 06:44:20 -0000

With Antawn Jamison set to make his season debut against Cleveland tomorrow, I thought I'd scan the archives on 82games.com and look at the type of difference Jamison's presence on the floor makes for the Wizards and for guys like Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler. These aren't meant to be conclusions, since the team dynamic now is far different than it was in, say, 2007, but they do provide some interesting food for thought.

Without further ado:

(And in case your wondering, bwoodsxyz will be back eventually, but has a personal matter he's been tending to these past couple weeks. Nothing to worry about (it's actually a very good thing), just something that requires his attention).

The Wizards as a team have always shot better with Jamison on the floor

One of the biggest talking points with Jamison is that his ability to spread the floor and score in so many different areas helped the rest of the team's shooting percentages. The record shows that this point is unmistakably true.

Here is a list of the Wizards' effective field goal percentages since 2004/05 when Jamison has been on the court, compared to when he hasn't.

Year	Wizards' eFG% with Jamison in	Wizards eFG% with Jamison out
2004/05	48.2%	45.9%
2005/06	49.4%	43.6%
2006/07	50.6%	46.3%
2007/08	49%	48.4%
2008/09	48%	47.8%

Interestingly enough, Jamison's effect was much more pronounced in the years Gilbert Arenas did play than in the ones he didn't. Part of that may be due to the way Jamison and Arenas compliment each other on the court. The shooting percentages of the Arenas/Jamison player pairing back this up, even though it took some time to get those up.

Year	Arenas' normal FG%	Arenas FG% with Jamison
2004/05	43.1%	42.9%
2005/06	44.7%	45.2%
2006/07	41.8%	44%

Jamison missed time in both 2004/05 and 2006/07. In 2006/07, the Wizards leaned heavier on their Big 3 than ever before, so it shouldn't be a surprise that Arenas benefited from Jamison's presence, at least from the shooting department.

What about Caron Butler, you ask? That's a bit more of a mixed bag.

Year	Butler's normal FG%	Butler's FG% with Jamison
2005/06	45.5%	45.3%
2006/07	46.3%	47.7%
2007/08	46.6%	45.9%
2008/09	45.3%	44.2%

I guess you could throw out 2008/09, but it's a bit troubling to me that Jamison historically hasn't had much of an effect statistically on Butler's shooting. Butler's shooting has been simply dreadful this season, and if past history is any indication, it might take more than just having Jamison back to fix it.

Nearly every Wizards player shoots above their season average playing in tandem with Jamison than playing without him

Overall,, Jamison tends to have an across-the-board effect in improving individual players' FG% from their normal season average.

In 2004/05, Jamison's presence resulted in a bump in FG% for every key rotation player except Arenas (barely), Kwame Brown, Etan Thomas and Michael Ruffin.
In 2005/06, only Butler (barely) and Ruffin shot worse among rotation players.
In 2006/07, only DeShawn Stevenson, Darius Songaila (in less than half the year) and Ruffin (in limited minutes) didn't see a FG% bump with Jamison in the lineup
Jamison didn't have nearly as dramatic an effect in 2007/08: Only Songaila saw a major bump in FG% due to Jamison's presence. Most players were pretty much at the same level with or without Jamison on the court.
In 2008/09, Jamison's presence gave a significant bump to the following players' FG%: JaVale McGee (+2.5%), Etan Thomas (+2.5%), Andray Blatche (+1.6%), Dominic McGuire (+3.4%) and Javaris Crittenton (+1.8%). He had basically no effect on Mike James and DeShawn Stevenson. Only Butler, Nick Young and Juan Dixon saw their FG% drop with Jamison out there with him.

Obviously, that's not perfect, but for the most part, Jamison helps create better shooting percentages for the Wizards.

Jamison helps Arenas get more assists, but not Butler

Logically, it would seem Jamison helps get Arenas and Butler more assists because of his ability to finish quickly without necessarily creating his own shot off the dribble. The stats back this up in Arenas' case, but interestingly enough, not in Butler's.

In Arenas' three healthy years, he has always dished out dimes at a higher rate with Jamison on the floor than his season average.

Year	Arenas' A/40 season	Arenas A/40 with Jamison
2004/05	5.0	5.5
2005/06	5.7	6
2006/07	6	6.4

That may not seem like much, but consider that Jamison and Arenas nearly always shared the court, due to both playing a ton of minutes for Eddie Jordan. It's incredible that Jamison makes even that much difference in Arenas' assist rates considering how rarely the two played without each other.

That same logic holds for Caron Butler, yet we don't see the assist bump that you see with Arenas.

Year	Butler A/40 season	Butler A/40 with Jamison
2005/06	2.8	2.8
2006/07	3.8	3.7
2007/08	4.9	4.8
2008/09	4.5	4.6

Once again, this provides evidence that it'll take more than Jamison's return to fix Butler's woes.

Jamison and rebounding

Jamison's ability to improve the team's total offensive and defensive rebound percentage when he's on the floor compared to where he isn't is a bit more of a mixed bag than I expected. Consider:

There are two years (2005/06 and 2007/08) where Jamison had a tremendous positive impact on both the teams' offensive and defensive rebounding.
There is one year where he made a tremendous impact on the offensive glass, but not so much on the defensive glass (2004/05)
There is one year where he had a tremendous impact on the defensive glass (crazy, even) and had a pretty significant negative differential on offensive rebounding (2008/09)
There is one year (2006/07) where he didn't have much of an effect on either the offensive or defensive boards.

There are several reasons for this odd trend. The Wizards were fifth in the league in offensive rebounding in 2004/05 but just 25th in defensive rebounding, so Jamison probably caught that bug. 2005/06 was when Etan Thomas missed a lot of time and Michael Ruffin caught the suckitude bug. 2006/07 was when Jamison was asked to leak out onto the break more often than he was asked to rebound. 2007/08 was when Jamison himself had the best rebounding season of his career. 2008/09 was, well, 2008/09.

Anyway, these stats are just meant as food for thought. Use them as you all may.

Briefing: The Wizards are Stumbling out of the Gates, What's New?

JakeTheSnake — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:29:04 -0000

More photos » by Darron Cummings - AP

We have our classic dejected-players-sitting-on-the-bench shot, now we know its time to get worried.

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I saw this tweet before the game and I had to chuckle a bit:

Washington Wizards are off to best start in 3 years, let's see if they can continue tonight against the Pacers

Keep in mind that the team was 2-3 going into last night's game. A below .500 record constitutes the best start we've had in three years. Even with the loss last night, this team has a better record after six games than the last two squads, who both started 1-5. Even though the team from three years ago started 3-3, you may recall that they didn't pick up their first win on the road until December 6th. The last time that you can say the Wizards really came blazing out of the gates, was 2005-06 when the team won five of their first six, and even then the Wizards followed up that start by losing their next five. Slow starts have just been a part of Wizards basketball over the last few years.

In the past, you could blame it on learning the nuances of the Princeton offense. Not only did it take longer for players to get acclimated to the offense, but it also took away focus from learning on the defensive end. So essentially the team was playing catch up with the other teams in the NBA on both sides of the ball to start the year. Instead of learning the Princeton this year, the team is starting from scratch with an entirely new system from a new coach, which takes time to implement.

Returns from the first game of the season were very promising, as we saw last night, there's still a lot that the team has to learn. Some of it involves developing offensive cohesion, some of it involves coming out of the gates with better execution and focus, where they've struggled in their last two losses. A lot of us said before the season that Flip Saunders would have some bumps in the road early in the season as he gets acclimated to his roster and vice-versa. Well, these are what bumps in the road look like. Let's hope that both can adjust accordingly as the season goes on.

Washington Wizards lose third straight, 102-86 at Indiana - Michael Lee, Washington Post

"I was trying to get someone to play hard," Saunders said. "I told those guys, I can't coach effort. You got to come out and be prepared and play hard. "I thought our effort was poor. I was extremely disappointed. I told them I take responsibility because evidently right now we've got to keep pounding away because we're not getting through in doing the things we need to do in order to be successful."

Listless Wizards fall on the road - Mike Jones, Washington Times

He tried the traditional lineup (although it was his third different one of the season thanks to injuries). He tried a small lineup. He played Gilbert Arenas on the ball. He played him off the ball. He used all 12 players at his disposal. But none of that did the trick. The Wizards put on a listless performance and fell 102-86, their third straight loss. Although the score indicated otherwise, the Pacers' play couldn't exactly be described as dominant.

Wizards lose to Pacers, Jamison chews out team - William Yoder, Agent Dagger

It's only the sixth game of the season and it looks like Flip Saunders may be running out of ideas. The Wizards head coach addressed the criticisms of the past games. Critics said Caron Butler had to get more aggressive offensively, and the former all-star put up 24-12. The Wizards bigmen got into foul trouble early in the teams last two losses, but tonight Haywood played 35 minutes and grabbed 19 rebounds.

Pacers 102, Wizards 86 - Michael Lee, Wizards Insider

Nick Young and Paul Davis were the only two players who didn't commit a turnover on Friday. It was the third consecutive game in which the Wizards had more turnovers than assists. It's easy to lose three in a row that way. "If we keep playing like this," Arenas said, "we're going to keep getting our [butts] whipped."

Pacers 102, Wizards 86: Washington minus two starters equals yuck - Craig Stouffer, Washington Examiner

Mike James turned the ball over and missed his first shot almost immediately after entering the game in his first appearance of the season. Pretty much summed up the night. James still played 22 minutes, finishing with 6 points and 3 assists.

After loss to Pacers, Jamison blasts effort - Mike Jones, Washington Times

"We've got to get better as a team," Haywood said. "Everybody from the starting unit to the bench, you have to be ready to play at a certain level. And if you're not, then don't play. That team played very hard tonight, and I'm not sure that we, as a unit, as a team, matched their energy. Everybody has to come out as a team and match their energy night in and night out. "You're not always going to make shots, but you can control your effort."

Pacers 102, Wizards 84: Inspired Pacers Roll Past Wizards - Tom Lewis, Indy Cornrows

Second-year center, Roy Hibbert set the tone early with a couple of hook shots and blocks along with a few rebounds all delivered with a genuine enthusiasm that lifted teammates and fans alike. No doubt, playing against his home town's Wizards gave Hibbert extra motivation. He was so pumped at times it seemed like he was high fiving family and friends back in D.C. right through the television screen. Roy finished the first half with 12 points, 8 rebounds and 3 blocks.

Not a bad start for Hansbrough - Mike Wells, Pacers Insider

Hansbrough looked like a fullback when bullied his way to the basket for 13 points and five rebounds in 14 minutes. Coach Jim O'Brien said before the game that Hansbrough wouldn't play more than 16 minutes. The stat that stood out was the 10 free throw attempts. Hansbrough's either going to get called for an offensive foul or he's going to get fouled when he goes up for a shot in the paint.

Postgame Report: Pacers vs. Wizards 091106 - Conrad Brunner, Pacers.com

[The Pacers] two victories are most encouraging because of how they were accomplished. They didn't ride hot shooting or explosive offensive runs. Granger scored 22 points but shot 7-of-21 (3-of-11 from the arc). As a team, the Pacers shot just 40 percent but they had strong balance. Dahntay Jones scored 18 with five rebounds, five assists and two steals; T.J. Ford had an odd double-double for a 5-10 point guard with 10 rebounds to go along with 18 points; Roy Hibbert had his third straight double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds, adding five blocked shots. "Winning solves a lot of problems in this league," said Ford. "We’re still getting familiar with each other and the system. Everybody’s role is evolving."

Best of Twitterville

Twitter / Michael Lee
Pacers are shooting 39.4 percent and leading by 13?!? Are the Wizards even into this game? No energy right now.

Twitter / Jared Wade
I'm a big fan of these TJ Ford 1-0 breakaways. Pacers up 18. HandsBro and AJ Price not looking like rooks.

Twitter / Agent Dagger
it'd be good to see "the takeover" right about now...#wizards

Twitter / danny rouhier
Watching Hansborough get buckets on your team is like watching your own rectal exam. #Wizards

Twitter / Mike Jones
Davis gets a standing ovation from a pair of dudes who have been calling for him to enter the game since halftime. Davis knocks down a J.

Twitter / George V. Panagakos
Awesome game for fantasy owners tonight, not such an awesome night for Wizards fans. Wizards blown out 102-86 by the Pacers on the road.

Twitter / Truth_About_It
Against the Nets, Paul Davis was the human victory cigar. Against the Pacers, he's the human toilet brush.

Twitter / wizznutzz
Twan HATES honeydew!!!! @MikeJonesTWT "A fruit platter lay shattered on the floor with slices of honeydew" http://is.gd/4Pybf

14 players in a new system: Mike Miller

Mike Prada — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:14:34 -0000

More photos » by Haraz N. Ghanbari - AP

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We all know Mike Miller is going to play this year. He's proven this preseason that he's an efficient, if reluctant (at times) scorer, an excellent rebounder for a guard and a very underrated passer.

However, it's still up in the air as to how exactly Miller will be used. Miller's a paradox of sorts. On the one hand, with his shooting and versatile offensive game, he could pretty much fit in with any combination. If he were to play a ton of minutes with the starting lineup, for example, he would make everyone's job easier because he can shoot the ball so well. As he's talked about so many times in interviews this preseason, with him on the floor, defenders are going to have to choose whether they double off him and make him shoot or stick to him, which would give the other Big 3 players more time to go one-on-one. That split second of indecisiveness could be all this offense needs to click.

On the other hand, we've also seen Miller display an annoying passivity for stretches because he's trying too hard to fit in. This was a problem in Minnesota, where he suddenly stopped shooting in an attempt to play like Magic Johnson, and we've seen it here too, particularly when he has been paired with the starting lineup. While he has a game that screams "complimentary player," he also has enough skills where he should be put in a position to make more plays. That would mean playing a lot of times with the second unit, because Miller will have to tap into those facilitative skills in order to get the team to perform.

It's a dilemma, that's for sure. We also haven't even talked about his defense, which isn't so awful that it kills a team, but also isn't good enough to help a team when paired with other poor defenders. So where do you play Miller most? Make the jump to discuss.

Why he should start: Because nobody else has really separated themselves from the pack, and Miller is clearly the best player that's competing for the position. Often times, simple is best. Start your five best guys, and you won't have to worry about all the mind games and extra strategy that comes with saving one of your top five for the bench. Miller's game also can help the Big 3, as mentioned earlier.

Why he should come off the bench, but play starters' minutes: Miller's defense is pretty poor, and defense is the type of thing where you need to set the tone at the beginning of the game. Miller's facilitative skills can also help Randy Foye, who seems to play best when he isn't the only one making plays for people.

My best guess: I see the latter situation happening for Miller. He'll play starters minutes and he'll finish most games, but I don't see him starting for two reasons. One is the defense factor -- Miller isn't good at it, and this team will need to play it better from the start of games. The second reason is to best prevent the "passive Miller" from showing up. If he's placed in the game and told to make plays, it'll keep him more in the flow for when he has to come in and play in the fourth quarter with the starters.

Washington Wizards "beat" Philadelphia 76ers in preseason: Final wrap

Mike Prada — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 14:47:44 -0000

More photos » by Matt Slocum - AP

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Also see: Quick game recap | Morning Briefing

Highest plus/minus: Fabricio Oberto (+7)
Lowest plus/minus: Andray Blatche (-6)

Four Factors (bold is very good, italics is very bad)

Team	Pace	Off Eff	eFG%	FT/FG	OREB%	TOr
Washington	92	97.8	48.2%	12	31.8	19.6
Philadelphia		96.7	45.6%	20	16.3	13

Before we fret about the ending, let's keep a few things in mind:

We were missing our best player, our third-best player and our marquee offseason acquisition. Philadelphia was missing nobody.
We were on the road
We were in the second game of a back-to-back
The unit that closed the game (Mike James, Nick Young, Dominic McGuire, Andray Blatche and JaVale McGee) is never going to close games in the regular season. In fact, it's quite possible none of those guys will be in our closing lineup if everyone is healthy. To be fair, 76ers fans will probably respond correctly that they aren't going to close any games with the lineup of Louis Williams, Willie Greene, Jason Kapono, Jason Smith and Marreese Speights, but that's a hell of a lot closer to their closing lineup that ours was.
When it was our "starters" vs. their starters, we outperformed the 76ers.

Now, the ending was really bad, no question. JaVale McGee made a boneheaded play to go for the spectacular finger roll (he wasn't fouled either), and Nick Young made a dumb defensive play on Willie Green. The unit also made several mental mistakes down the stretch that aided Philly's comeback.

But there was a lot more good than bad to come out of this game. In particular, the following stuff was good:

Rebounding: The 76ers were the second-best offensive rebounding team in the league last year, but they had just seven offensive rebounds last night, and three of those came in the fourth quarter. This is significant for two reasons. One, Philly was bricking a lot of shots, so there were a ton of offensive rebounding opportunities to be had. Two, the Wizards have been awful on the defensive glass this preseason, so this was a huge step in the right direction. What was the cause? I thought Fabricio Oberto was a huge presence here -- he did a great job of sealing off his man and being in position to grab the rebound. Seven defensive rebounds in just 25 minutes is excellent, and more importantly, he helped prevent the 76ers from grabbing offensive rebounds even if he himself couldn't get the defensive board.
Shot defense: Granted, the 76ers are a pretty pitiful perimeter shooting team (which will kill them this year if they stick with their starting lineup), but the Wizards did a great job of packing the lane and contesting outside shots. An eFG% allowed of 45.6% (Philly's mark) is very, very good for any defense.
Transition defense, combined with good offensive rebounding: Not sure how many fast-break points the 76ers had, but anecdotally, it appeared the Wizards did a great job with their floor balance tonight, which is key because the 76ers kill so many teams in transition. What makes this more impressive is that the Wizards actually did a great job on the offensive glass at the same time, mostly because of Brendan Haywood's work inside. Often times, you have to surrender offensive rebounding opportunities in order to get back, especially against a team as athletic as Philadelphia, but the Wizards were able to do both.
JaVale McGee: Yes, he went back to pogo-stick McGee in the last couple minutes, but by and large, McGee played extremely under control in his 15-minute stint. Unlike the Atlanta game, where he had seven offensive rebounds and zero defensive boards, McGee contributed on the defensive glass (5 defensive boards in 15 minutes). He also was in position most of the time on defense, save for a couple late breakdowns where he allowed Marreese Speights to get inside too easily.
Andray Blatche's jumper: I know what you're thinking. Get inside, Andray, and play like a big man! But as much as this makes sense, it's also worth noting that the lane gets very clogged when Blatche is in there with another big like Haywood, Oberto or McGee, all of whom either like to play inside or should like to play inside. If Blatche can hit jumpers as proficiently as he did last night while still grabbing six boards in 22 minutes, he will be a helpful player.
Brendan Haywood: He just obliterated Samuel Dalembert in the paint. Destroyed him. Dalembert hit a couple tough shots, but Haywood didn't allow him to sniff the glass and was able to get some offensive rebounding opportunities himself. He looks like he's back to form. Alas, I wish he got more post-up opportunities than he did. Too many mid-range contested jumpers from Randy Foye and Caron Butler

Some negatives? Foye continues to struggle running the offense. He had a stretch in the third quarter where he got hot and started to play well, but the end line (17 points on 14 shots) is less efficient that you'd like. I still think he's best suited to play off the ball running off screens, because he has great form on his jumper and just doesn't seem like he knows what to do once he gets inside. I know he missed a lot of Js tonight, but that's because he was taking difficult shots.

He also just doesn't have great PG instincts right now. There was one play where the Wizards would have had a fast break off a long rebound, but Foye just kept running upcourt with everyone instead of getting the ball from the big guy. It's little stuff like this that hurts the team and makes it feel like Foye's a misfit as a point guard. I still contend that he's best suited to play a lot with Mike Miller, with Miller running the point in the halfcourt and Foye coming off screens ready to shoot without dribbling.

I also thought Nick Young's defense on Andre Iguodala was pretty poor. Yes, you want Iguodala shooting jumpers, but he was wide open coming off screens several times in the third quarter. I wonder what's really hurting Young on off-ball screens so much. He clearly is working hard, but his technique just seems poor. It seems like it's really easy for an offensive player to run him into those screens because Young isn't doing enough to force the offensive players' action. Hopefully someone can help him with this, because I don't think his defensive struggles are from a lack of effort. They're from a lack of fundamentals.

All in all, good performance from the troops, win or lose. If that phantom foul at the end doesn't happen and we lose 89-88, I'm still happy. The bottom line in preseason isn't wins or losses, it's how you look, and I thought we looked very good tonight.

Morning Briefing: Finally, A Wacky Ending That Goes Our Way

JakeTheSnake — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 13:13:29 -0000

More photos » by Matt Slocum - AP

about 1 month ago: Washington Wizards guard Mike James (13) takes a shot as Philadelphia 76ers forward Jason Smith (14) and guard Willie Green (33) defend in the final seconds of a NBA preseason basketball game, Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2009, in Philadelphia. Washington ahead 90-89. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

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Sure, this probably wasn't a foul, but after years of being subjected to this, this, and this I can live with something going our way, even if it was the wrong call.

Game Hub | Boxscore

Wizards triumph in reunion with Jordan - Michael Lee, Washington Post

For the first time in more than six years, the Wizards looked down at the opposite end of the bench and attempted to beat Jordan, the man who led the franchise through its best four-year run in the past three decades before getting fired last November. The Wizards emerged victorious, 90-89, after a comedy of errors in the final seconds -- JaVale McGee missed a layup with 14.5 seconds left, Nick Young fouled Philadelphia's Willie Green with one second left and Green was called for fouling Mike James on a three-point attempt with 0.3 of a second left.

Wizards hold off Sixers - Mike Jones, Outlet

A comedy of errors best describes the Wizards' final stretch. JaVale McGee pulled down a rebound and went the length of the floor rather than sending an outlet pass to a guard, or at least getting to his team's offensive end and holding the ball while waiting for backup. Instead he took off from about 15 feet out and tried to lay the ball in but was stripped of the ball on a WHAT-WAS-HE-THINKING?! play. Says McGee: "I was thinking about dunking it, but he smacked my arm like five times and they didn't call it. But I definitely feel like I should have held on to it. But I got to halfcourt and waited, then it just opened up for me so I went with it."

76ers edged by Wizards in preseason game - Kate Fagan, Philadelphia Inquirer

The 76ers would never be this forgiving during the regular season. Last night, on what should have been a no-call, a replacement referee blew his whistle with three-tenths of a seconds remaining. Afterward, the Sixers chalked it up to preseason rust - theirs as well as the referee's.

Wizards survive gaffes - Mike Jones, Washington Times

"Well, some guys played better, but then again some guys showed that, in late-game situations, you don't want them in there, so you found out a little bit of both," Saunders said with a relieved chuckle. "That's what they call a learning tape, a learning experience."

Wizards Survive Themselves, Beat Philly 90-89 - Kyle Weidie, Truth About It

Last night’s 90-89 win against the Sixers in Philly got a bit goofy toward the end. After the game, Flip Saunders said, "That’s what they call a learning experience," which sort of means, ‘We better not pull any of that B.S. during a regular season game.’

Sixers comeback falls short; lose to Wizards 90-89 - jsams, Liberty Ballers

I almost became angry, than I remembered it's still pre-season.

Phantom Call? Kate Fagan, Deep Sixer

The Wizards called a timeout then inbounded the ball on the sideline. Wizards guard Mike James heaved a three at the buzzer, which fell short. The game appeared to be over, the Sixers PR staff even dropped the streamers they save only for victories. But, within James' final attempt, one of the referees saw a foul on Green -- who appeared to be far away from James -- and blew his whistle. Multiple replays seemed to show James went untouched, but I was squinting at the little TV box on press row, looking at the Comcast broadcast. The closest Sixer to James appeared to be Jason Smith.

James' 2 final-second free throws give Wizards win - The Associated Press

A sparse crowd attended the game with patches of empty pockets of seats in the lower level. The final Bruce Springsteen concert ever to be held across the street at the Spectrum may have played a role.

Wizards (3-3) at Sixers (5-1) - Michael Lee, Wizards Insider

Toronto Raptors forward Chris Bosh became an Internet hero last week when he went to court to win back his online identity. A federal judge in California ordered a cybersquatter to surrender the Internet domain names of Bosh and 800 other athletes and celebrities. Bosh now owns the domain names rights to several Wizards, including Butler, Blatche, Dominic McGuire, Javaris Crittenton and assistant coach Sam Cassell. Blatche and McGuire didn't even realize that someone else owned their domain names, to which McGuire said, "I need to call my lawyer." Bosh said he would give away the domains for free. "I want mine," Butler said recently. "I'm going to hit him up."

Ugly Loss Decided By Ugly Call - Brian Ward, Depressed Fan

Through the beginning of the third quarter, Wizard guards were driving the lane with reckless abandon. That all stopped when Jrue came into the game. He picked up his man at half court and barely gave him room to breathe. He fought over, and bounced under screens, never leaving his man for more than a second, no matter who the big involved was. He's got the defensive chops right now. I finally see what Eddie Jordan was talking about when he said that some time soon Jrue is just going to "get it."

Best of Twitterville

Twitter / The BF gang
Apparently it takes playing against their old offense for the Wizards to exhibit some sound defense.

Twitter / Fidel Gonzalez
If the ball is in the air, and JaVale is around, don't even think about it. Maniac McGee.

Twitter / The BF gang
Just when you start taking JaVale McGee's length and leaping for granted, he tips in a ball that was literally 14 feet in the air.

Twitter / Michael Lee
DeSahwn Stevenson just hit a 3 and waved his hand over his face. It looks a lot cooler when the Wizards are up by double digits than down 20

Twitter / Johnathan D. Tillman
*sigh* Javale McGee #badbusiness

Twitter / Mike Jones
Give me whatever Antawn Jamison's on. Dude's already doing full weight-lifting regime again. Said he has full range of motion in shoulder.

Morning Briefing: We've Seen This Before Too

JakeTheSnake — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 12:37:21 -0000

More photos » by Gregory Smith - AP

Sign #48 that it is garbage time: Mike James is busting out the one-handed runners over the outstretched hands of Jason Collins.

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Game Hub | Boxscore

I hate when analysis gets boiled down to someone saying that a team won because they "wanted it more" but it's hard to find another explanation for last night's game. I also hate it when games boil down to one team having more healthy bodies than the other, but again, that's what we had to deal with last night. The good news is that last night was just a preseason game, so there's no point in crying over spoiled milk that doesn't count toward the final standings, but boy, I could go with less games that remind me of last season.

Hawks 113, Wizards 95 - Michael Lee, Wizards Insider

I know Gilbert Arenas and Mike Miller were both in their hotel rooms sick, but that didn't mean that the rest of the team didn't have to show up. The Wizards were understandably shorthanded without their starting backcourt and with Antawn Jamison sitting at the end of the bench and wearing a suede brown sport coat. But the team was out of this game before the start of the second period. It was mostly an eyesore the rest of the way, as the Hawks led by as many as 25.

Hawks Down Wizards Like Falcon’s Balloon; Atlanta 113 – Washington 95 - Kyle Weidie, Truth About It

Make no mistake, there are lots of reasons for continued optimism, but this team still has its work cut out. Hey at least the Wizards have Flip Saunders as their coach and not Jim Zorn. After the game, Saunders said, "The thing that was disappointing. I thought this was a good opportunity for some guys to step up and say, ‘Here’s what I can do.’ And no one, I don’t think anyone really did that." Zorn would have said something like, "This was a growing game … let’s stay medium. Hip-hip hooray!"

No Arenas provides a familiar scene for the Wizards - William Yoder, Agent Dagger

Coming off the bench, Nick Young turned in an offensive performance that makes this Wizards fan hopeful about the teams second unit going into the season. Young scored 15 points on five of eleven shooting while burying two out of three three-pointers. Also coming off the bench was veteran point guard Mike James. James had yet to see many minutes this preseason as the return of Gilbert Arenas and the acquisition of Foye. James took advantage of the opportunity. The point guard added six points and eight assists in 24 minutes Monday night.

Contagious is the Hawks' new buzzword. - Sekou Smith, Hawks Blog

The Hawks didn’t just run circles around the Wizards Monday night. They ran them ragged. So much so that Wizards coach Flip Saunders polished off the night like this: "I hope our guys worked on their conditioning, because from the standpoint of our game plan, we didn’t execute anything tonight. What i thought was disappointing was that this was an opportunity for some of our guys to step up, but no one really did that. We have to do all of the little things offensively and defensively to stay in the game. We definitely won’t be able to play this team this way in the regular season."

Hawks 113 Wizards 95 - Bret LaGree, Hoopinion

Nick Young makes one appreciate Jamal Crawford's relative versatility as a basketball player and restraint as a shooter.

Atlanta Hawks 113, Washington Wizards 95 or where optimism should be desperately rationalized - hawksdawgs, Peachtree Hoops

Jeff Teague continued his good impression from the radio to reality. He took multiple bad shots. Shots that were far beyond rookie heaves He made a couple of passes that were questionable. But the rest of the time, he made other 19th picks of the last couple years look silly. He may not be a top five draft pick contributor, but I struggle to see how he does not have that talent. On the other hand, anyone that expects such is totally, straight against the wall crazy.

Washington Wizards players express mixed emotions about facing Eddie Jordan in preseason game against 76ers - Michael Lee, Washington Post

Butler said that Jordan and the Wizards had a great opportunity for a deep playoff run when they had the best record in the Eastern Conference for the first half of the 2006-07 season. The Wizards' season collapsed when Butler broke his hand and Arenas injured his left knee. That season, the team finished 41-41 and got swept out of the first round. "That would've been our most successful year with him as the coach, but unfortunately, it didn't work out like that, and that's just the luck of the draw," Butler said. "I know he's going to have a lot of success in Philly; and seeing what I'm seeing in practice and the disposition of the players, I know we're going to have a better year here. I wish him the best and obviously I know he wishes the same for me. We're just anxious to get started in our new journeys."

Agent Zero plans addition - The Reliable Source, Washington Post

Okay, we forgive Wizards superstar Gilbert Arenas for quitting his addictive blog: He's just too busy being a dad. "Gilbert takes the night shift," said his fiancee Laura Govan. "He's so diligent when he's home -- takes the kids to school in the morning, picks them up after practice, changes diapers. He's amazing."

Best of Twitterville

Twitter / SEAN K.
The hawks are killing the wizards right now. Its like 3000 to 6

Twitter / Truth_About_It
Glenn Consor: "It's nice to see Mike James make a runner."

Twitter / Truth_About_It
Yea, stopped listening/keeping track of the Wizards preseason game a long time ago. Wiz down 94-73 to ATL with 8:37 to go.

Twitter / Bret LaGree
@Truth_About_It You're missing Vincent Grier's pre-season debut. Maybe his pre-season finale, too, I guess.

Twitter / Michael Lee
Poor Vince Grier. Mike James tried 2 give him his first shot of the preseason, but Teague kicked the ball out of bounds with 0.4 secs left

Twitter / Arthur Triche
@MrMichaelLee C'mon Wizards, at least make it interesting...

Twitter / Michael Lee
At least somebody is into this game for Washington. Flip just got a T. When Mo Evans missed the tech, Flip said, "Ball don't lie."

Twitter / Michael Lee
When Joe Smith miss both FTs, Flip said, "Ball really, really, really don't lie!" Sam Cassell almost fell from his seat.

Twitter / JaVale McGee
Wow Taylor swift sold ten million albums...is that going diamond?