You had to know this was coming sooner or later. Flip Saunders is now officially out as the Wizards head coach, according to Michael Lee of The Washington Post. He will be replaced by lead assistant Randy Wittman. When you have some of the most immature talent in the league leading you through a 2-15 disaster of a season, with an offense that is dead last in the entire NBA (and a defense that’s not much better), what do you expect? Washington started slow, and the progress has been so minimal that the front office had no other choice. Read More »
In the fourth quarter in South Beach last night, Tracy McGrady outplayed even LeBron James. We shouldn’t have to remind anyone it’s 2012 and not 2003. But watching T-Mac bang threes (he hit a trio of big ones in the fourth quarter), grab rebounds in traffic and close out the Heat for their first loss of the season, we caught a serious case of deja vu. Miami, after looking invincible at times through their first five games, controlled the game throughout the first three quarters. But with McGrady (16 points, seven rebounds, four assists) turning back the clock, Dwyane Wade (12 points, 10 assists) scoring only three points in the second half, and Atlanta shutting down the fast break with a zone defense, the Hawks walked out with a 100-92 win. Read More »
Already this year, we’ve seen Washington get embarrassed at home in a preseason game and now they’ve lose their opener to the New Jersey Nets after going up 36-12 in the first half. Afterwards, disagreements between players and coaches spilled into the media; Andray Blatche ripped Flip Saunders‘ play-calling and offense after he heard some remarks from the coach that appeared to be directed at him. Sound familiar? With a talented group completely devoid of leadership, these first few weeks of basketball have me worried all over again about that team in Washington. They should be turning a corner this year. But first, they have to get over themselves. Read More »
I was certain I was right. He was young. He was wildly exciting. He got called a whole lot of names, like a lot of other young guys his age got called, and he was going to play for a man known for all of the best and worst in college hoops. But damn, son had game. The type of game that made you go hit up his YouTube mixes at random times. You didn’t realize what you were doing. You couldn’t help it. Yeah, that’s what they call an addiction.
I was convinced. I figured I had just seen the future best point guard in the world. Read More »
Last night in Sacramento, Wizards coach Flip Saunders benched JaVale McGee and started rookies Trevor BookerandKevin Seraphin over him. So how did he respond when Washington was down 116-91 in the waning seconds of the game? Try a dunk attempt from just inside the free throw line. Not smart.
Dating back to the Allen Iverson era — which was here and gone about as fast as A.I.’s first step — cracks in the chemistry of the Detroit Pistons infrastructure have effectively ended what was one of the NBA’s most consistent runs of success over the last decade. While the A.I. situation drew more national attention because of the big names involved, the Pistons’ issues over the last couple of seasons have been just as damaging. Now it’s just getting out of hand. Read More »
One positive from last season for the Washington Wizards is the fact that they have made the first step in the pursuit of better days.
By trading away Antawn Jamison, Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood around the February deadline, the franchise closed the book on a subpar chapter of its history. This turn of events led to another bright spot for their fan to smile about. The Jamison trade allowed always-promising Andray Blatche to show some life in his fifth season. Handed a feature role as the starting power forward, in his last 32 games Blatche averaged 22.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.6 assists. Read More »
With everything that’s going on with the Wizards from the losing to the Gilbert Arenas situation, we’re guessing a lot of that roster is wishing they were playing some place else right about now. If rumors turn out to be reality, then Caron Butler might get that chance. ESPN.com is reporting that the Rockets are interested in trading Tracy McGrady and his expiring contract to the Wizards for Butler and possibly a Randy Foye or Mike Miller. Read More »
As much as the end of a calendar year lends itself to making New Year’s resolutions, it’s also a time to look back and brag or try to forget what you did right and wrong over the last 12 months.
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