SB Nation User Blog: LoneWiz54

RIP Nick Weatherspoon

LoneWiz54 — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 00:38:26 -0000

Editor's Note: Sad, sad news. RIP -PM.

Former Bullet/Wizard Nick (Spoon) Weatherspoon passed away Friday. Thoughts and prayers to the Weatherspoon Family. Spoon was a 6'7" swingman that was a fan favorite during his time in DC and was a member of the NBA All-Rookie team his first year with the Bullets/Wizards. Weatherspoon left Illinois after the 1972-73 season as the school's career scoring leader with 1,481 points. The cause of death has not been disclosed.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=3651268&campaign=rss&source=NCBHeadlines

Give the Kid (McGee) a break!

LoneWiz54 — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 05:11:50 -0000

First and formost he is a Wizard!!! I would hope you would want him to develop in time.

It is not his fault, EG drafted him, rip him if you don't like the pick. This pretty much sums it up in what Wizards got with McGee

From ESPN Summer League site;

DraftExpress President Jonathan Givony

DraftExpress president Jonathan Givony has joined me courtside to give his thoughts on the first half of Wizards vs. Blazers.

TrueHoop: Washington's JaVale McGee didn't look good at all out there. What did you notice?

DraftExpress: No surprise here whatsoever. This is how he looked in college often. The Wizards would be the first ones to tell you that he is two or three years away. Still, you can't ignore his physical tools. The guy is a freak, look at his arms and athleticism. He just needs to learn how to play.

So, no he is not going to score 18 points or play defense like BH. He is just going to learn how to play the game for the next few years, pretty much like BulletProof has done. He was not drafted for immediate impact.

Another ...Tyson Chandler?

LoneWiz54 — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 18:21:20 -0000

I have read where Chad Ford of ESPN considers McGee another Andray Blatche (I fail to see what is wrong with that, on the court). If you look at the dozens of highlights on McGee you will find that this guy, like Blatche, can handle the ball, run the floor, and shoot, like a guard. He is as agile as anyone on the team. The major difference between McGee and Blatche it seems is

1) McGee looks to be more mature and has proven he is willing to work on his strenght and conditioning (has already added over 8 pounds of muscle since end of college season)

2) McGee is more of a defensive force. He can take over games once he gets his defensive footwork down with his shot blocking

If you really want to see what Wizards will have, maybe as soon as the middle of next season, take a look at Tyson Chandler of the Hornets, both phtysical build and playing style for what the Wizard would need from him next year. You can not deny this guy's physical skill set and that is something you can not learn.

Not for those that hate McGee

LoneWiz54 — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 13:48:38 -0000

From DraftExpress,

-JaVale McGee seems pretty confident that he won’t slip past 19…

-At #18, it looks like the Wizards are trying to decide between JaVale McGee and Darrell Arthur. It appears like both players will be there.

I could live with either, though McGee looks/acts soft as butter, he is a shot blocker coming in and we need a backup center that can do SOMETHING. He is basically what this draft is all about, a bunch of young bigs that you have to decide which one has potential and which one can help your team now. He can come in and close the lane for Wizards in a back role right now.