SB Nation - JaVale McGee

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

Wizards lose to Heat: Final wrap, including some questioning of Flip Saunders' in-game strategy

Mike Prada — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:36:55 -0000

More photos » by Nick Wass - AP

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It's true that a large reason (okay, fine, very large reason) last night's game against the Miami Heat was so frustrating was the outcome. To lose in the final seconds because of two missed free throws and two poorly-executed late-game plays against a team that you should probably beat really hurts.

But the truth is, I don't think I would have felt so good about this game even if we had pulled it out. The way we started the game was so frustrating and should never happen at a home game. Even if we had managed to come back, we did it by once again abandoning a lot of our principles. Gilbert Arenas almost won the game by himself, but with the exception of the brief moments Mike Miller displayed his toughness after the shoulder injury, this was a team reverting back into a one-on-one approach. Too many players either didn't show up or didn't get a chance to show up (or both).

There are a lot of reasons for those problems, and it's tough to nail down exactly who deserves the lion share of the blame. We'll try to do so below the jump. But several people involved with the team took a questionable approach to tonight's game. That list, sadly, includes head coach Flip Saunders, as we'll discuss below.

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Four Factors: (Bold=very good | Italics=very bad)

Team	Pace	Off Eff	eFG%	FT/FG	OREB%	TOr
Miami	89	104.5	54.2%	20.8	22.2	19.1
Washington		100	40.9%	26.8	30.2	13.5

Snap reaction: This looks like a Four Factors chart we'd see a lot when Eddie Jordan was coaching. Terrible shooting defense, poor shooting offense, a lot of turnovers forced and not a lot of fouls committed on defense. It's the first time out shot defense has not been good, which I guess is a good sign. Overall, looking at this, it's a pretty big surprise that the Wizards were even as close as they were.

Lineup Details (via Popcorn Machine)

Highest individual plus/minus: JaVale McGee (+11 in 8:18)
Lowest individual plus/minus: Brendan Haywood (-18 in 36:00)
Best five-man unit: Randy Foye/Mike Miller/Caron Butler/Andray Blatche/JaVale McGee (+8 in the second quarter)
Worst five-man unit: Gilbert Arenas/Randy Foye/Caron Butler/Fabricio Oberto/Brendan Haywood (-12 in the first quarter)

Snap reaction: I was surprised to see Haywood's plus/minus so low, but he basically only played when Dwyane Wade played, so that explains a lot. That also explains a lot of why McGee's plus/minus was so good.

Let's start with Flip Saunders. After four games of nearly flawless in-game management, I thought Saunders made some decisions that can be questioned. Among them:

Starting out with Mike Miller guarding Dwyane Wade and Caron Butler guarding Quentin Richardson: I'm still scratching my head about this decision. I guess Saunders wanted Butler to focus on finding his offense, because he had been struggling, but that obviously didn't work out. Wade is an incredible player, no doubt, but Butler's ability to move laterally would have given him more trouble than Miller, who just can't slide his feet fast enough. Instead, Miller laid way off Wade, Wade got into a rhythm, Miller got into foul trouble and Wade couldn't be turned off. Meanwhile, Butler, who has always been prone to lapses off the ball, allowed Quentin Richardson too many open looks from three, and Richardson burned the Wizards every time.
Going to a zone in the second quarter: I get the logic here - nobody can stop Wade, so throw a different look at him and maybe it'll mess up his rhythm. But with a team this behind in basic defensive principles, I don't think it's a good idea to have them try to pick up an exceedingly complicated scheme to go along with their basic scheme. I'd like to see them master the basic scheme first.
Not going back to JaVale McGee after his boneheaded play in the second quarter: At the time, I also wanted McGee out for the game after he tried to go from the free throw line to the rim. But looking back, McGee did help the club when he was in the game, and Miami had trouble dealing with him. It might have been better to reward him for his energy and give him another chance.
Not giving Dominic McGuire a shot: I'm still wondering why McGuire isn't getting his chances. I'd think he could at least guard Wade for stretches, and with DeShawn Stevenson shooting so poorly, I'm less inclined to worry about McGuire's perimeter shooting problems.
Allowing Gilbert Arenas full freedom: A lot of this is on Gilbert, as we'll discuss below. But if you were watching ESPN, you heard that Saunders basically encouraged him to attack and call his own number. That might be wise in the fourth quarter, but in the third quarter, the emphasis should have been on getting some of the other players in the game. Yes, it's true Miami couldn't guard him, but the other guys have to stay involved.
Keeping Mike Miller in the game after he was initially hurt: Not sure how I can excuse this one. I mean, I'm sure Flip wanted him out of the game, but Miller insisted he come back, so this isn't all on the coaches. But once it was clear his shoulder was bothering him, I'm really surprised it took so long to get him back out of the game. It's game five, not game 65.

So, all those were decisions I didn't agree with. But let's be honest, tonight's loss is also on the players. The way they came out in that first quarter was pretty unacceptable. It is true that one of Flip's jobs is to get his team ready to play, but that's also the players' jobs. Caron Butler, in particular, came out so poorly last night. He wasn't shooting when he was open, which is a killer in a continuity offense. If he's not playing well, this team is in real trouble, as we saw last night.

It was around this point that Gilbert Arenas decided to take over. He hoisted 27 shots and had 15 free throws, but also only had three assists. The only time the offense really ran well, in fact, was when Arenas was not in the game (though, to be fair, neither was Wade). Obviously, in the long run, that's not a sustainable way to win. If I had to break the game down into stages, here's how I'd do it.

Quarter 1, first part: Everyone comes out flat, Gilbert defers most of the time.
Quarter 1, second part: Gilbert decides he's the only one who's in the game and tries to score every time down. His teammates remain flat.
Quarter 2, first part: Gilbert goes out, everyone else in the game realizes they need to step up and come to play, and they rise to the challenge.
Quarter 2, second part: Gilbert comes back in, still doesn't fully trust his teammates, but does pass a bit more. However, Wade hits some big shots and the Wizards fall back by 9.
Quarter 3: Gilbert gives up the ball a bit more, but still shoots a lot. The offense runs very well, led by Brendan Haywood early and Mike Miller late.
Quarter 4: Gilbert gets into a duel with Dwyane Wade, everyone else gets freezed out, Gilbert and the team lose.

It's hard for me to fully blame Arenas in Quarter 1. It was clear nobody was in the game, and Gilbert has every reason to think that he needs to carry more of the load himself until his teammates ido get into the game. But once the Wizards cut the lead down, Arenas should have committed himself more to stepping back a bit and playing more under control. Obviously, in the fourth quarter, he should get the ball, but there were too many times when he predetermined what he was going to do instead of trying to create for others.

When you do too much freezing out of your teammates, it has an effect. Butler never got back into the game after the beginning. Yes, a lot of that is on him, but he also didn't exactly get a ton of good chances in the second half. Randy Foye also didn't do much tonight, in large part because most of his shots came off the dribble when he was paired with Arenas. The Heat played him pretty well, but he still gets hurt when Arenas predetermines what he's going to do. It speaks to Arenas' incredible physical skill (he's officially back there) that he can score so many points when he predetermines like this, but it's still not good for the entire team. I don't think it's a coincidence that the Wizards' best lineup tonight didn't include Gilbert.

It's early, and his mental game still isn't there, but it should be noted that Arenas did not play particularly well despite his high point total.

More notes:

The unquestioned MVP of tonight's game was Brendan Haywood. He dominated Jermaine O'Neal, scoring 16 points and notching 11 rebounds while holding O'Neal to just four points. He also was absolutely flawless helping out on defense tonight, particularly in the fourth quarter. On offense, after a bit too much forcing early on, Haywood didn't do anything out of his comfort zone, and that made him a far more effective player. The Wizards don't come anywhere close to winning tonight without Haywood's contributions.
Lots of people are annoyed that DeShawn Stevenson was on the court at the end of the game. I don't really have a problem with it, because Stevenson was doing a good job on Wade in the fourth quarter. Wade did most of his scoring damage against other guys, not DeShawn. Now, DeShawn's play at the end to go one-on-three wasn't a smart one, for sure, but with Miller injured and Foye very incapable of guarding Wade, I'm not sure what else Flip could have done. Normally, I'd think Miller closes that game with Butler guarding Wade, but Miller was hurt, so Flip was stuck.
Gilbert is right about Caron Butler when he criticized him for taking too long to make decisions on the court. Caron can't be pump-faking and surveying the defense in this system. However, I would also like to see some different plays be run for Caron in order to empower him more. Maybe more post-ups like Tayshaun Prince used to run? I'm not sure.
I have to admit, I was impressed with how well-coached Miami is. They have little talent, but they execute extremely well. Credit Erik Spolestra for that. Then again, I am a bit confused as to why Michael Beasley didn't play very much.
Getting Antawn Jamison back will be such a big help. Right now, Fabricio Oberto is being completely ignored on offense. You can't do that with Jamison in the game.

All in all, considering where our team is at now, it's not terrible to be 2-3. I just wish I didn't have to feel so queasy about this game, win or lose. We should have taken this one.

Wizards lose to Cavaliers: Final wrap and a word about our half-court offense

Mike Prada — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:17:33 -0000

More photos » by David Liam Kyle - NBAE/Getty Images

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Last night, in our emotional game recap, I mentioned that last night's game proved that we're still not there when it comes to the true contenders for the title. It was a bit of a snappy line that was put there in effect, in part because it sounded right and in part because there was something more to it that I needed time to think about.

Well, now I've thought about it and I realize what I meant.

The sign of a true contender is one who can run their half-court offense effectively in the face of stepped-up defensive pressure. A true contender trusts their offensive system and offensive sets enough to run them better when the defensive pressure increases rather than abandoning them. The Wizards didn't run their halfcourt offense well last night. Therefore, they aren't there yet.

More below the jump, but first, some numbers.

Four Factors: (bold=very high, italics=very low).

Team	Pace	Off Eff	eFG%	FT/FG	OREB%	TOr
Washington	88	102.3	42%	46.4	29.3%	14.8
Cleveland		115.9	48.3%	22.1	26.5%	8

Lineup stats, via Popcorn Machine

Highest individual plus/minus: JaVale McGee (+1 in 11:24)
Lowest individual plus/minus: Mike Miller (-16 in 34:36) and Randy Foye (-14 in 19:30)
Best lineup: Gilbert Arenas/Mike Miller/Caron Butler/Fabricio Oberto/Brendan Haywood (+6 to start the game)
Worst lineup: Gilbert Arenas/Randy Foye/DeShawn Stevenson/Andray Blatche/Brendan Haywood (-9 in the fourth quarter)

Think about it for a second. When did the game turn? In the second quarter, when the Wizards started fouling too much on defense. What happens when you foul? The other team goes to the free throw line. What happens when the other team goes to the free throw line? You're constantly taking the ball out of the basket. What happens when you constantly take the ball out of the basket? You have no transition game to rely on to use your speed advantage. How do you win when you can't rely on your transition game? You need to execute your half-court offense well.

That didn't happen at all. Credit Cleveland's defense for a lot, of course. They basically decided to play Gilbert Arenas straight up and let him try to score, and it worked tremendously. But eventually, with the game slowed down and the Wizards frustrated by perceived bad calls, they stopped running the sets and instead broke plays to make mad dashes to the rim. They figured that the refs were calling the game tight and could take advantage by creating contact. That worked, in a sense, because the Wizards ended up with 41 free throws (which was 14 more than Cleveland despite referee mistreatment, for what it's worth). But all it did is slow the game down even further, which works to Cleveland's advantage.

It wasn't just Arenas either. Caron Butler, after an excellent offensive first quarter where he did a great job of running LeBron James off picks and tiring him out, didn't do the same in the third quarter. When he did get the ball in the second half, the offensive flow just stopped as we waited for Butler to size up his defender, jab step, then either shoot or drive. Those types of things hurt your offensive flow, even if the play is designed to get Butler isolated somewhere. Randy Foye slugged his way through 19 minutes and just one assist, while Brendan Haywood continues to look for his offense a bit too much for my taste.

The Wizards' halfcourt offense needs quick and decisive moves to work. It's all a bunch of cuts and screens that fold into each other. If you take too long on one play, then you hamper your chances of continuing the offense. Too often, there was a lot of sizing up the defense rather than just going and making a play right off the bat. That, along with driving just to draw fouls, slows down the pace of the game and only exacerbates Cleveland's size advantage.

The good news here is that, if this is the problem, the remedy may simply be more time in Flip Saunders' system. That'll occur naturally as the season goes on, as everyone gets more comfortable running those sets after so many years in the Princeton. Here's hoping that time can heal those wounds.

Other notes:

Mike Miller took just three shots last night (although he did draw a number of fouls). Frankly, it's just mind-boggling how this happens. He does so many things that just make you wonder, like throwing the ball into JaVale McGee in the post with the shot clock running down. The Wizards really need to do something to force him to shoot instead of relying on him to find his offense. For example, why not let him come off the bench and start DeShawn Stevenson? Miller could come in for Caron Butler and immediately become the second- or third-best offensive player in the lineup. Then, run some plays for him and have him handle the ball in pick-and-roll situations.
I was very disappointed that Foye, Arenas and Miller never shared the court last night. I guess Flip Saunders was concerned with how they'd match up defensively with LeBron James in that lineup, but LeBron only played 36 minutes. Why not play that lineup during that stretch? Cleveland has small guards anyway. Instead, either Butler or Stevenson was in the game at all times. I think that was a mistake. UPDATE: As Aldo points out, they did end the second quarter together and were outscored by six points. My bad. Of course, the Wizards were playing Caron Butler at PF, but the point still stands.
It's only four games, but I'm a bit worried with how much Brendan Haywood is looking for his own shot. I talked to him after the Nets game about this, and he sounded so happy that he was shooting. He pointed out that he's taken 32 shots in three games (not including last night), and that it would have taken a month in the Princeton offense to get that many. This may be true, and I'm not opposed with the occasional post touch for Haywood, but Haywood is one of those guys whose efficiency goes down with increased usage. Since his efficiency was such a huge part of his value in the past, it's important his usage remains low. Don't force things, Brendan. Run the offense.
Once again, Fabricio Oberto did some positive things, but it was amazing how little respect Cleveland showed for him. Anderson Varejao basically didn't guard him the halfcourt offense. This is where Antawn Jamison's return will help most. The spacing with Oberto on the floor is brutal.
Andray Blatche didn't play badly, but he still needs to work on improving his play when he runs into a little adversity. He wasn't the same after he picked up those three fouls.
A positive sign: JaVale McGee has put together four very good games. He hasn't played much, but he's doing several positive things out there. I like his aggression fighting for offensive boards.

And finally, a note to Cleveland fans...

I imagine if you check out our game thread, you'll be a bit put off by all the whining about the officials. I understand that -- you want to enjoy your win and you don't want to deal with comments that make us seem like sore losers. But please, consider a few things.

Game threads are our sounding board. They're meant to be where we make our snap reactions to plays. They're meant to be places where our passion shows itself the most. Everyone on this site is a smart, rational fan that, like any other, is prone to emotional anxiety in the heat of the moment. So don't use those comments as fuel to your long-standing belief that Wizards fans are either stupid, crybabys or sore losers. Consider context first. Understand that those threads, and the immediate post-game threads that follow, are meant to be venting places when the Wizards lose. We do plenty of self-analysis, so don't say all we do is whine about the officials. To make an analogy - coaches complain to the officials during games all the time, but nobody would consider them whiners. It's just what happens in the heat of the moment. We understand that and we ask you do too.
Please, please, please admit this is a rivalry and that you dislike the Wizards and their fans emotionally. I mean, your own local broadcast had a poll running that said "Which Wizards player do you hate the most?" We're willing to admit that our hatred for the Cavs affects us, please be willing to do the same. And please, the players on the Cavs don't like the Wizards either, as much as they may say otherwise. As long as you're willing to admit your biases, we're willing to talk to you, because we're all aware of ours. The second the tone turns into "You pathetic Wizards and your fans, you're not our rival, we don't care about you," is the second things go south. It's wrong and you all know it.
You are welcome to comment on here, but please understand you're talking on someone else's turf. You may not agree with us or our rules, but you need to be respectful of the location. So don't come on here to pick fights. Don't call us whiners even if you believe we are. Be careful with how you phrase your comments because you know we're a sensitive lot. It's not the fairest way to talk in the world, but that's just how it is. You wouldn't go over to someone's house and tell them that their cooking sucks or their house isn't clean enough.
Finally, it is possible for us to have intelligent, rational discussion as long as we set some ground rules.

Thanks. If you are here to comment rationally and follow those ground rules, we look forward to hearing from you.

Briefing: That's the Blatche We've Been Waiting For

JakeTheSnake — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 17:58:59 -0000

More photos » by Nick Wass - AP

about 1 month ago: New Jersey Nets guard Chris Douglas-Roberts (17) is fouled by Washington Wizards center JaVale McGee (34) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

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Game Hub | Boxscore | Game Flow | Four Factors

Let's get a couple of things straight about last night:

That was the Andray Blatche that we've been waiting for all of these years. Those glimpses of talent that have kept us patient through the boneheaded passes, the clumsy attempts at running a fast break, and the run-ins with the law are finally coming together and we're starting to see the whole package come together. It's a beautiful thing to watch, especially if you've watched since the early days and how he's progressed over time.
If you take tonight's game as the mantle by which Andray is judged for the rest of his career, you'll be severely disappointed. Even Tim Duncan would look inconsistent if he was asked to score 30 points in 27 minutes while shooting over 80% from the floor. Things won't come as easy as they did tonight for Andray, but the key is to make sure that even when his shot isn't falling that his approach and effort stay up; because on the nights when shots aren't going down, there has to be something to anchor your performance. If he can maintain that focus on the nights where things aren't going his way, then we'll be able to say with confidence that Andray has turned the corner and realized the potential that he's given us tastes of for the last few years.

Anywho, here are your links. We've got analysis on Andray's breakout game, Gilbert's performance on the second leg of a back-to-back, and the meeting between Chris Douglas-Roberts and JaVale McGee that you see in this picture.

Arenas’ Efficiency and Blatche’s Consistency: Wizards Scorch Nets 123-104 - Kyle Weidie, Truth About It

Andray Blatche looked more comfortable than he ever has in a Wizards uniform en route to a new career high 30 points and a Wizards 123-104 win against New Jersey. Sure, he had Yi Jianlian and Eduardo Najera guarding him. But Wiz fans are used to Blatche being his own worst enemy, and not necessarily a Halloween nightmare to whomever is guarding him. After the game, Flip Saunders praised Blatche for his methodical offensive movement, his ability to read the defense, and overall, his consistency to this point of the season. But no one is going to get too excited over the Blatche they’ve seen so far.

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

Coming into this game, the Wizards were without Butler and Jamison, which meant that someone had to step up tonight besides Arenas, and tonight that person was Andray Blatche, who had a career high 30 points. There were the 18 foot jumpers that came after a behind-the-back move; there was an up and under move. At one point, Blatche even passed up an open shot to get Nick Young his first basket late in the game. That type of unselfishness is usually not a part of Blatche’s game. In just 26 minutes of play, Blatche had 30 points, and he shot a blistering 83% (15-18 from the field). After the game, Haywood remarked, "My son, my son, I’m so proud of my son." When one writer asked Saunders to comment the full array of new moves Blatche unveiled tonight, Coach Saunders quipped, "He had never seen those shots either, and if they hadn’t gone in, he’d have never shot them again."

Arenas and Blatche dominate as Wizards scorch Nets - Matt Kremnitzer, Krem's Sports Blog

Again, it's obviously too early to know if Blatche can keep this level of play going, but it is acceptable to look at his performance last night and wonder exactly how good he can be. According to Basketball-Reference.com, since 1986-1987 only 11 players have had games where they shot better than 83.0 percent on at least 18 field goal attempts while also recording six rebounds and two assists. Some of those players include Dominique Wilkins, Clyde Drexler, Carlos Boozer, Shaquille O'Neal, Rashard Lewis, Shawn Marion, Charles Barkley, Karl Malone, and Kevin McHale. That's certainly not a bad group of players to be associated with, although Willie Anderson and Loy Vaught also accomplished that feat within the same timeframe, so take that for what it's worth.

Wizards 123, Nets 104 [UPDATED] - Michael Lee, Wizards Insider

"He's played fabulous since Tawn went down," Gilbert Arenas said. "We've been waiting for this, for four or five years now. He finally decided this would be the year. He put in the work and it's showing." It's showing in Blatche's jumper. He made his first five shots on Saturday, including some ridiculous turnaround jumpers and a long baseline jumper that made Jamison, one of his harshest critics, get out of his seat and applauded. Blatche finished the night 15 of 18 from the floor and scored the most points by a Bullet/Wizards without a free throw since Rex Chapman scored 32 in a game back in 1992. That's taking it back. . .to when Blatche was six.

Thoughts On The Game: All Trick, No Treat - Sebastian Pruiti, Nets Are Scorching

Speaking of Andray Blatche, he absolutely killed the Nets last night. Don’t get me wrong, I am not taking anything away from this kid, he had a great game, and he will be a great talent in the future, but you can’t let him get 30 points exclusively taking jump shots (15-18 shooting). When you allow Gilbert Arenas to go off, you have to stop everyone else (the let him get his philosophy). When you let 2 players score 62 points on 24-31 shooting, you probably won’t win the game. Despite being a bulldog, Najera wasn’t quick enough or tall enough to stick with Blatche. I don’t know how Sean Williams has been doing in practice, but you need to give him a chance to stop him. Instead, Lawrence Frank just sat on his hands while he watched Blatche embarrass Yi and Najera.

Blatche leads Wizards to blowout - Tyler Green, Agent Dagger

The emergence of Blatche, who is averaging 21 points a contest through the first three games, is going to be huge for the Wizards since their stars continue to be decimated by injury. The 6’ 11" forward has been an enigma in his first three years in the league, and seeing him finally put it together is a godsend for the Wizards, who lack depth in the front court.

Arenas passes back-to-back test in Wizards win - John Mitchell, NBA.com

Twenty four hours after his team fell to the Atlanta Hawks, Arenas put on full display the myriad skills that have made him a three-time all star in the Wizards' 123-104 victory over the New Jersey Nets in Washington's home opener. Arenas, who last played in back-to-back regular season games back on April 11 and 12 of 2008, led the Wizards with a game-high 32 points, marking the first time he has eclipsed 30 points in a game since Nov. 14, 2007.

Balance key as Wizards win - Mike Jones, Washington Times

"We have a lot of depth," Arenas said. "Everybody can contribute. We get everybody back, we can be even deadlier. Right now, we just have to maintain until Antawn and Caron get back." The Wizards shot 61.5 percent, their best performance since Dec. 18, 2002, against Memphis. The Wizards, who also boasted a .643 clip from 3-point range (9-for-14), left the court to a standing ovation from the fans who last season suffered through a 19-63 campaign.

Arenas puts on a frightfully good show - Gene Wang, Washington Post

Although he began with a turnover in the game's first minute, Arenas settled down soon after and made a driving layup with 9 minutes 46 seconds to play in the opening period to give Washington a 7-6 lead. Then 40 seconds later, Arenas made a three-pointer, and it was clear something special was in store. The most raucous applause of the game came at the conclusion of the first quarter, when Arenas swished a jumper from just inside 40 feet with 0.2 of a second to play.

NJ Nets seeing red after lackluster effort in 123-104 loss to the Washington Wizards - Dave D'Alessandro, NJ.com

"McGee gave me a really hard foul, and as the NBA goes, you have to protect each other," the Nets second-year wing said after his team was pummeled by the Wizards, 123-104, at their Verizon Center home opener. "It’s an unwritten rule. You protect each other. And (Brendan) Haywood told me that’s what McGee was supposed to do. What can I say? I have to respect that. But we have to do that, too." Veterans would merely call this a time-honored NBA lesson; for the voluble Douglas-Roberts – a renowned practitioner of the old-school game from the playgrounds of west Detroit – it was more of a manhood thing. So he called out his Nets teammates, which wasn’t hard to do. They fell to 0-3, it had little to do with Devin Harris missing the game because his groin strain flared up again, and it had everything to do with playing defense that was, as Lawrence Frank termed it, "Pitiful."

Best of Twitterville

Twitter / Washington Wizards
http://twitpic.com/nqtq0 - A giant Wizards logo hung in the mid air before the Wizards 2009-10 home opener at Verizon Center.

Twitter / The BF gang
I really like the Arenas/Foye/Miller threesome out there. So hard to help out on Gilbert with those two in. Great situational lineup.

Twitter / Michael Lee
Blatche trying to take a charge? I think I know what his Halloween costume is today. A baller. Dude has 16 pts.

Twitter / Mike Jones
Andray Blatche's harshest critic in the past, Antawn Jamison, gave him a standing ovation after another big shot.

Twitter / chad dukes
Gil to the ref: "you didn't see me push him, you just saw him fall! You weren't even looking!"

Twitter / Ed Henry
Wizards blowing out Nets by 21 with @wolfblizercnn & @johnkingcnn and Dana Bash in the house http://yfrog.com/748nwj

Twitter / Truth_About_It
Paul Davis sighting ... looks like he's the Wizards' version of a human victory cigar -- D.C. up 121-94 with 3 minutes left.

Twitter / wizznutzz
Incites: NJ's Lopez need neck shave like Ledell need neck; 7-day Dre need 10 more days contract! An how many cigs Oberto bummed from Vlade?

Twitter / A.I.
the wizards actually dont suck! this new coach of theirs is very promising...

Twitter / Sue B
wizards won, that's appropriate for Halloween

Twitter / Jimmy
This dude Andray Blatche on Washington shot 15-18.. the whole Wizards team didn't miss s***!

Twitter / November
Wizards get their 2nd win of the season by the end of October. Last year's 2nd win: November 25. #NBA

Twitter / JaVale McGee
@cdouglasroberts stop tryna dunk on me lol

Twitter / Chris Dougey-Roberts
RT @bigdaddywookie: @cdouglasroberts stop tryna dunk on me lol<<I respect your foul my dog. I love that about you. (pause)

Twitter / JaVale McGee
@cdouglasroberts fasho

Twitter / Chris Dougey-Roberts
RT @bigdaddywookie: fasho<but don't do that shii again! I owe you one!! & change that picture man. You loom like on of the DeBarge's.

Twitter / JaVale McGee
@cdouglasroberts lol...

Thursday Practice Report: Andray Blatche’s late-night workout, Randy Foye says playing with Gilbert Arenas off the ball is "easy," and Javaris Crittenton’s injury isn't getting better

Mike Prada — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 20:34:58 -0000

Andray Blatche works with Assistant Coach for Player Development Gene Banks, as Paul Davis looks on. Via my IPhone.

Coming off a big win over Dallas on Tuesday, the Wizards were in pretty good spirits after practice today. Flip Saunders said the club went through a very good practice and emphasized the importance of maintaining those winning habits throughout the "process."

Once again, Gilbert Arenas did not talk to the media, telling NBC's Lindsay Czarniak that he only talks when they make him. So, once again, nothing new on that front. However, there's a lot of interesting nuggets to chew on from today. Make the jump to read about Andray Blatche's late-night workout, an update on Javaris Crittenton's injury, some thoughts about the Randy Foye/Gilbert Arenas backcourt and more.

Andray Blatche isn't resting on his laurels

Andray Blatche had an outstanding first game of the 2009/10 season last Tuesday, notching 20 points, 7 rebounds and only 3 fouls in 35 minutes. But as we all know, Blatche has had plenty of good games in his career. Sustaining that success has proven to be an elusive quest for the 23-year old.

After practice today, Blatche made it clear that he knows his big opening game means nothing if he can't sustain it.

"Tuesday's in the past," Blatche said. "Right after the game, Flip came up to me and said, ‘Last game don't mean s***,' excuse my French."

So how did Blatche try to build on last Tuesday's performance? He called Sam Cassell late last night and asked him to come in to do a workout with him. Blatche said they came to the Verizon Center at around 11:15 and went until about 12:30 in the morning.

"[We worked on] all the situations that would be in the game," Blatche said. "Post-ups, pick and pops, stuff like that. All game-type situations."

It's yet another example of the new "Seven-Day Dray." When asked whether he would have ever come in for a workout that late in the past, Blatche said no. He also joked that the empty arena spooked him a bit.

"Man, it was a little scary, I ain't gonna lie," Blatche said. "I called my best friend. I had to go to the locker room by myself, I was a little scared. It's so quiet, and dark a little bit. I'm telling you all, it's different at nighttime, but I was alright."

Eventually, though, the conversation veered back into Tuesday night. Blatche said Fabricio Oberto did a great job guarding Dirk Nowitzki, and also praised the team's pick-and-roll coverage. He also once again sung the praises of Flip Saunders' offense.

"It just seems like you're always moving, you're always setting picks, you're always rolling, always popping," Blatche said. "You're always doing something. Last year, you set one screen and you stand still and you waiting for something. This year, we're always moving and sharing the ball a lot more."

Even Antawn Jamison admits he thinks Blatche's new approach is paying dividends.

"I think he's getting it," Jamison said. "I think he understands that it's not about what [he] does on gameday, or the day before, or the night before. Little things like that will help you stay consistent and be able to do that night in and night out."

Video below, courtesy Truth About It:

Javaris Crittenton's injury gets worse

Those of you looking forward to seeing Javaris Crittenton return to the court will need to wait a lot longer. Crittenton was limping around on crutches today, with yet another boot on his injured ankle.

Team spokesman Scott Hall told me that Crittenton went to get "an exploratory scope" last Friday that revealed nothing new. Hall didn't mention anything about how long Crittenton was expected to be out, nor did he say that the injury got any worse.

However, Mike Jones talked to Crittenton, and Crittenton told a slightly different story. Crittenton told Jones that he had surgery last Friday to clear up some torn cartilage that had been found in previous X-Rays. But Crittenton also admitted that he was hoping to get this procedure done sooner.

"I wish the procedure would have been happened, so I could have recovered by now," Crittenton told Jones. "They actually saw it on the X-ray a long time ago, but they had to continue looking at different cat scans and X-rays to get it done."

Would having the surgery earlier have changed things? Did they really see these problems a long time ago and unnecessarily looked several more times before having the surgery? I don't know. I think there's a lot of information missing here. But it certainly seems odd, doesn't it?

Crittenton said he has two more weeks of recovery, followed by four weeks of rehab, which means he'll be out at least another six more weeks.

Randy Foye and the "small" backcourt

As I mentioned yesterday, when Gilbert Arenas and Randy Foye played together last Tuesday, the Wizards outscored the Mavericks by 14 points. When I asked Saunders about why he turned to that pairing despite not using it much in the preseason, Saunders joked that "there are a lot of things I do during the regular season that I don't do in preseason." I then asked when we might see it in the future.

"You'll see it a lot," Saunders said. "A lot of it depends on the defensive end. If we're playing Kobe Bryant at the 2, you might not be able to put Randy on Kobe because of Kobe's size. A lot of that is going to depend on defensive matchups. There was a situation in Dallas where they played a couple smaller guards."

Foye said he was wondering when he was going to get a chance to play more with Arenas, but added that "[Saunders] probably didn't want people to see it."

"When you put us in together, Dallas didn't have an answer to that," Foye said. "With two scorers in there together, because if you pay too much attention to [Arenas], you gotta help, then we kick it out to me for an open shot. It's the same [vice versa]."

I was particularly struck with what Foye said later, when he talked about how his mentality and comfort level change when he plays with Arenas.

"When you play with someone of that caliber, it's easy," Foye said. "Everything else comes easy. Like, when they were pressing at the end, they couldn't get the ball, because we could both break the press. When they press and denied him, I got the ball, and when they doubled me with his man, I passed him the ball. It just makes it so much easier playing with another ball-handler."

Foye also praised Saunders' strategic instincts, saying, "it's like he's playing chess up in his head." Regardless, with so many teams nowadays playing small backcourts, the Foye/Arenas backcourt should be a regular staple.

Other stuff:

Flip Saunders was asked again about Nick Young not playing at all on Tuesday. "We haven't really talked," Saunders said. "I think he knows what he's got to do." When asked what he has to do, Saunders said, "Be more consistent, as far as what you're doing. You can't rely on making shots as a criteria for whether you are going to play." Saunders added that Young did some extra work yesterday and that "he'll get an opportunity." Young himself slipped out the door before anyone could talk to him.
Antawn Jamison was there shagging rebounds for JaVale McGee, and showed no major limitations on his shoulder. It's obviously not in game shape, but it wasn't in a sling or anything. That's pretty encouraging.
DeShawn Stevenson was asked about his thoughts on Antonio Daniels potentially signing with Cleveland. In typical DeShawn fashion, he responded in a way where you wonder whether he was joking or being serious. "Traitor," Stevenson said. "I don't talk to nobody that plays to Cleveland." Chris Miller then said to Stevenson, "I'm sure you have a reaction to them starting 0-2." Stevenson's response. "Yeah, yeah I do," and then he walked away.
Saunders said that while his top eight players will remain pretty consistent, his rotation is not 100% set in stone right now, saying that JaVale McGee in particular had a great practice and may play more tomorrow against the Atlanta Hawks. "Now, we're playing a team with a lot more athletic ability, where a guy like JaVale could have an impact."

More pictures:

BWood working on his free throw stroke.

Caron Butler works on his shot while Randy Wittman looks on

Dominic McGuire works on his shot while Nick Young looks on

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: Wizards Squeak Out a Win 101-98

JakeTheSnake — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:56:32 -0000

More photos » by Duane Burleson - AP

2 months ago: Washington Wizards center JaVale McGee (34) gets a high-five from a teammate after scoring against the Detroit Pistons in the fourth quarter of a preseason NBA basketball game Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2009, in Grand Rapids, Mich. McGee scored 12 points to help the Wizards to a 101-98 win. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

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Unlike the last time Washington and Detroit had a get together, I don't think last night's match-up will blow up the talk radio lines, but it did lead to some nice reactions from the media.

Game Hub | Boxscore

Wizards challenge new-look Pistons results - George Pangakos, Washington Wizards Examiner

With 2:21 to go in the game the tide would change, as McGuire blocked a Jonas Jerebko jumper which led to a Mike Miller three point dagger, the score 95-91, Wizards. The Pistons Austin Daye looked for contact and sunk 1-for-2 from the free throw line to give Detroit some swing, but McGee came back with a connection from James to make it 97-92, Wizards, with only 1:10 to go in the game. In the final minute, Detroit needed a spark. Bynum went for a drive and scored three points on an and-one situation from the line, making it a two-point, 97-95 contest in the Wizards favor. James missed a three point shot with 39.5 seconds left, and it looked like Detroit might tie or steal the game, but Miller came up big for Washington with a pass interception. The Detroit turnover led to two free throws from Nick Young, who sank both, 99-95, Wizards, with 12.7 seconds remaining.

Wizards 101, Pistons 98 - Michael Lee, Wizards Insider

Flip Saunders said after the game that he is trying to help McGee "fight through that wall" by playing him extended minutes, to see if he can produce even while fatigued. Saunders was pleased to see McGee finish strong in the fourth period, when he scored eight points -- all on dunks. "He's been good," Saunders said of McGee, who is averaging 11.8 points and shooting 73 percent from the floor. "He's been very productive with what he's done. I tell our guys, 'If he's even, he's ahead.' No one is going to jump with him. Just throw that thing up there and let him go get it." McGee can always be spotted putting his index finger up whenever he runs down the floor. The kid is ever ready for the lob. "To me, that's the easiest way you get the ball in the rim. 'Cause ain't nobody going to jump with me," McGee said. "Even if they do, I can catch the ball over them. So that's the easy play. It's harder for me to go to the post and pass it to me. I got to look around and make the play."

Wizards pull one over on Pistons in Grand Rapids - Vince Ellis, Detroit Free Press

It was the Pistons' first exhibition loss, and the main culprit was a defense that allowed the Wizards to shoot 46.8% Tuesday night -- a far cry from the 39.9% the team brought into the game. "I thought it was a good test for us," Pistons coach John Kuester said. "It just gets back to transition defense. You've got to make sure you get back."

Game Notes: Jonas Jerebko has his best game, but the Washington Wizards beat the Detroit Pistons - Full-Court Press, Patrick Hayes

The Wizards don't have a very good defensive backcourt, but they do have really big guards in Gilbert Arenas, Nick Young, Caron Butler and Mike Miller, which perhaps caused some shooting problems for the smaller Gordon and Stuckey. The smallest guard, Will Bynum, however, continued his great preseason with 23 points. He's leading the team in scoring this preseason at about 18 per game.

Pistons-Wizards Game Wrap - Kevin Sawyer, Detroit Bad Boys

Will Bynum nearly pulled off a victory by himself, by Gilbert Arenas and the Washington Wizard ultimately prevailed, 101-98. The loss was the first of the pre-season for the Pistons, who fall to 3-1. Nonetheless, Detroit remained competitive in spite of facing the Wizards’ A-Squad. Chris Wilcox got the starting nod, not Ben Wallace, who had been effective in spelling the injured Charlie Villanueva.

Arenas and Wizards Slip Past Pistons, 101-98 - Packey, Motown String Music

Arenas netted 24 points on 9-11 shooting in just under 28 minutes of action. The Wizards led by as many as 13 points when Arenas was in the game and by seven when Arenas saw his last action of the night after the third quarter. Thanks to monster dunks from Michigan native (and my high school), JaVale McGee, the Wizards were able to hold off the Pistons' fourth quarter push and prevail 101-98.

Arenas Speaks -- Finally! And Briefly - Michael Lee, Wizards Insider

Arenas, holding back a smile, slowly buttoned his shirt, with his back to reporters. "C'mon, Gil. It doesn't matter how long it takes you, they ain't going nowhere ... You're almost out of buttons!" Antawn Jamison tried to help Arenas from his corner locker room stall. "You guys can talk to me. I'm ready," he said. Mike Miller, standing near Arenas, also tried to deflect attention. "You can talk to me. I'm wearing LeBron's shoes tomorrow. I figure you guys want to talk about that."

Flip not flopping on philosophy - Vince Ellis, Detroit Free Press

"I think as a coach you always learn," said Saunders, who also coached the Minnesota Timberwolves. "There are a lot of things that I brought from a standpoint when I was in Minnesota, and there are a lot of things that I learned in Detroit that I brought to Washington with the idea of always trying to do things to help give your players a better opportunity to have success."

It's Time for Washington Wizard Andray Blatche to Push Beyond His Potential - Michael Lee, Washington Post

Blatche might appear to be a bit tardy in making his declaration to finally get serious about his career, but for Antawn Jamison, one of Blatche's most vocal critics, it's better now than never. "He's put a smile on my face," Jamison said. "That's what we need out of [Blatche]. If we can have him playing at a very high level, it makes us even more dangerous. I want him to achieve the best out of his talents. I thought in the past, he could've did more. But just seeing his approach and the way he's been playing and how seriously he's been playing, that's a good sign. He can make this season really good with his play."

Top Tweets

Twitter / Truth_About_It
Evidently, Flip Saunders said that Gil Arenas has been his best "off-ball" defender in the preseason.

Twitter / Michael Lee
This unit with CB, AJ, GA, FO & MM is looking really good. Miller not interested in scoring but doing everything else - 8 rbs, 3 asts. 58-48

Twitter / Michael Lee
Don't know if he needs to get fined 25 Gs every game, but Arenas is balling without all that extra money weighing him down. Got 21 pts

Twitter / Mike Jones
Gilbert Arenas scores a preseason high 24 points, and drops 5 more dimes.

Twitter / Mike Jones
But with six turnovers against Det, he's now got 18 in four preseason games. 7.75 assist avg not as impressive considering 4.5 TO a game.

Twitter / Truth_About_It
The young guys hold off Pistons ... Wizards win 101-98. @bigdaddywookie has 12 points, 10 coming from dunks.

Arenas and Wizards Slip Past Pistons, 101-98

Packey — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 02:41:50 -0000

More photos » by Duane Burleson - AP

Although it may look like it here, the court was not too slippery for Gilbert Arenas to play tonight. Good thing for the Wizards because he paced them to victory. (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

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Flip Saunders decided the Van Andel Arena court was not too wet after all for his injury prone star, so Gilbert Arenas started.

And then he dominated.

He proved to be too much for the Pistons and was the key in building a lead big enough for his team to sustain in the fourth quarter.

Arenas netted 24 points on 9-11 shooting in just under 28 minutes of action. The Wizards led by as many as 13 points when Arenas was in the game and by seven when Arenas saw his last action of the night after the third quarter. Thanks to monster dunks from Michigan native (and my high school), JaVale McGee, the Wizards were able to hold off the Pistons' fourth quarter push and prevail 101-98.

Detroit had a chance to tie the game or take the lead with under 20 seconds to go, but Ben Gordon turned the ball over forcing the Pistons to foul and fall even further behind. After Washington hit four free throws (with a Gordon miss mixed in there), Austin Daye nailed a three with just under two seconds left to pull the Pistons back within three, but there wasn't enough time on the clock to pull off the miracle comeback at that point.

For the first time this preseason, the Pistons found themselves fighting an uphill battle. They were shooting just 39% at the half, yet were only down one point. That, to me, is somewhat comforting. For playing a team that many "experts" think will leap frog the Pistons in the Eastern Conference this year, they battled tough despite clearly having an off night with their strokes.

The Pistons' quartet of guards shot a combined 36% (19-53), so on nights like these, it'll be nice having Charlie Villanueva pick up some of the scoring slack. It'll be nice having him help out no matter what kind of shooting nights these four have, but you know what I'm saying.

Some other notes/thoughts:

Tayshaun Prince did not return after halftime due to a cut on his big toe. Man stuff. He was having a pretty good game, so it's too bad he didn't return.
Detroit hung with the Wizards in every facet of the game really. They were outrebounded and assisted, but only by three and four respectively. Detroit had more steals, less turnovers, and out-shot the Wizards from three-point land, 41% to 27%.
Will Bynum fought through his early struggles and scored 16 of his 23 points in the second half. The Wizards radio announcers were loving them some Will Bynum.
Kwame Brown, Ben Wallace, Chris Wilcox, and Jason Maxiell put up some good numbers again. A combined 7-14 shooting (21 points) and 21 rebounds. Butler, Jamison, and McGee combined for 39 points for the Wizards, though. Kwame had his second near double-double of the preseason with nine points and 11 rebounds.
I get the feeling that Coach Q played Jonas Jerebko a lot tonight to allow himself a good look to figure out if this kid is a serious candidate for playing time this season. In 27 minutes, Jerebko had nine rebounds and nine points.
Austin Daye showed off the three point shot, as he was 2-2 from beyond the arc. He had 10 points in just about 15 minutes.
DaJuan Summers did not play. Coach's decision according to the box score.
Detroit falls to 3-1 on the preseason and return to action on Thursday against the Mavs in Dallas. This game will be on NBATV.
For Wizards coverage, you can meander over here.
No highlights up on NBA.com as of an hour after the game. I'll put them up here as they become available.