The Washington Wizards have exceeded their output from last year, but fallen well short of their preseason expectations. With all of their big names gone, the Wizards must now look to a new leader for the future.

The future of the Washington Wizards rests with Andray Blatche.

A month ago, that statement would have shocked even me. Blatche hadn’t shown himself to be capable of being the centerpiece of a team, let alone a starter. But upon assuming the starting role from veteran Antawn Jamison, it was apparent that Blatche had finally come into his own.

While he is still young, and still untested over the long haul of the NBA season, Blatche has shown a surprising efficiency on the floor without much veteran help around him.

Contrary to popular belief, the Wizards are better moving forward without Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood and Antawn Jamison.

ESPN analysts John Hollinger and Chad Ford conducted a team by team ranking and assessed their futures based on their current players, the free agent pool, the draft, available money and management. The Wizards landed 29th on the list, with the Charlotte Bobcats bringing up the rear.

Hollinger and Ford have apparently stopped paying attention to the Wizards, because their future looks brighter now than it did earlier this season when Washington was projected to be a playoff team.

If nothing else the season Washington has had thus far proves you cannot make such lofty projections about any team.

The Wizards as a whole are far from perfect with their roster right now. Their leading statistical producers are all but gone, with only Gilbert Arenas still (technically) on the payroll. With Josh Howard done for the season, it is unlikely the team will exercise the option on his contract.

Who can the Wizards turn to in their time of need?

There is no definite answer to that question right now because the Wizards are still in the early stages of a rebuild. They have four picks in the draft, two in the first and two in the second, as well as some space under the cap. The only question mark is Arenas, who is set to be sentenced for felony gun charges on the 26th.

No matter the outcome, the Wizards dug their own hole and it is going to take a lot of shoveling to dig their way back out.

In the face of so much change in the middle of a season, it is easy to write off whatever successes or failures befall a team. The Wizards have splite their last 10 games and 3-3 since trading Jamison. It says a lot about players when they can be traded and play .500 ball when they hardly know each other.

The Wizards have shown more chemistry through six games than they had all season before the trade deadline.

With all the roster turnover Washington has seen in the last few weeks, it would be understandable, if not already understood, that they’d be content to pack it in and try to get a better shot at the first overall pick in the draft. Blatche, along with Randy Foye, Al Thornton, Mike Miller, JaVale McGee, James Singleton, and Quinton Ross, beg to differ.

Only McGee, Blatche and Thornton are contracted through next season. Miller and Singleton have expiring contracts, Ross has a player option, and Foye has a qualifying offer.

This Wizards roster is playing for the future right now. Everything they do right now matters moving forward. It decides who stays, who goes, who the team targets in the draft and free agency. McGee and Thornton have to worry about the team looking to upgrade in the offseason, so they need this time to impress management enough to earn their minutes.

Blatche looks to be the safest player of the bunch and rightfully so. He has been with the team the longest.

It says a lot about a player who had brought so much off the court baggage with him to finally emerge as the player he was drafted to be. Blatche, just a second round selection, had shown flashes of his potential in limited minutes, and showed development early this season in place of the injured Jamison.

Now he’s averaging around 24 points and 10 rebound since taking over the starting power forward spot. That’s power forward, not center, which everyone seems to list him or discuss him as.

Even though he has only been the starter for a handful of games, as consistent and surprising as his output has been, it is dangerous to put so many of the team’s hopes on his shoulders.

If it is affecting him, he hasn’t shown it one bit.

The most extraordinary part about Blatche’s emergence is the efficiency he has shown therein. He has shot better than 50 percent as a starter, a number of which have been mid-range jump shots. He is also rebound especially well and pitching in a handful of assists in the process.

His steady improvement each year he has been in the league is obvious in his statistics.

His rookie year, he played in 29 games and averaged 2.2 points and 1.3 rebounds per game. Compare that to the 58 games he has played in so far this season to go with his 11.3 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.Constant improvement has been the name of  Blatche’s game, even if he has been inconsistent in his overall effort.

However, Blatche’s season totals do not tell the story of how huge he has shown up in Washington’s last nine games.

Over the nine game stretch Blatche has served as the Wizards’ starting power forward, he has set career highs in points (36) and rebounds (18). Only in his last game against Milwaukee on March 5 did he score fewer than 18 points. A player who has often been considered a project now occupies the active leading scorer title for the Wizards after just nine games.

That says something about Blatche’s character, which has fallen under question in the past.

He is very deliberate in his game, and if a team gives him any room to shoot or drive, he does it. He is developing that killer instinct that all great players need. He has always had potential, but plenty of players with potential burn out before it is ever realized.

At 23 years of age, Blatche shows no signs of burning out looking for his game. He has found it.

It is impossible to say exactly what the future holds for the Wizards or Blatche. A clean slate could be the best thing for Blatche’s career and Washington’s endeavors moving forward.

Matthew Brown

Matt is a student at the University of Maryland and is a featured writer for BleacherReport.com as well as WizardsExtreme.

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It’s not to say that these were signs that the Wizards were going to improve on their performance from Wedensday night but it seemed as though the players had gotten the taste out of their mouths and were ready to move on.

The crowd at Verizon was actually pretty decent considering it was a Friday night, playing the Bucks and coming off a really bad game. However the energy level seemed to be lacking from the opening tip.

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When the game started it looked as though the Wizards picked up right where they left off on Wednesday night.

In the first half the Bucks really controlled the game shooting 47.7% from the floor while the Wizards put on a 13 for 41 shooting performance or 31.7%. Washington was out-rebounded as well by a margin of 28-20, but the most most glaring statistic was the assist differential of 16-3 in favor of Milwaukee.

Frankly,you’re not going to win a lot of games when you start off games like that. Basketball is a game that works at it’s best when the ball moves. It doesn’t matter at what level you play at, if you don’t share the ball your chances of winning decrease significantly.To add to that the Wizards are currently the third worst team in the league in assists per game, averaging 18.8 and to put that into perspective only Detroit and the Nets are worse. That is not good company to be in.

Part of the problem and it was mentioned by Flip after the game is that they are not getting into their offense and Saunders specifically pointed out Randy Foye.  It’s really not rocket science. If a team isn’t getting into it’s offense, your not going to get a lot of ball or player movement. That turns into a ton of 1 on 1’s, bad shots and turnovers. All things that we saw tonight.

The second half included more of the same as the Bucks opened up as much as a 31 point lead which included highlight reel dunks, behind the back passes and blocked shots. The leader of the dunk and block shot parade was Andrew Bogut who simply had his way with the Wizards defense. Bogut finished with 19pts, 10rebs, 4 assists and 5 blocked shots all in 3 quarters.

The Wizards fans who decided to stick around started the boo chants with about 7 minutes remaining in the game and the Wizards trailing 61-92.

The Wiz just didnt’ seem to have it tonight. It was the first game that I’ve seen since the trade where the pre-All Star Break Wizards attitude consisting of lackadaisical defense, lazy effort, bad shots, no ball distribution and just no energy were evident.

There is no reason at all that Milwaukee or any team for that matter should walk into the Verizon Center and blow out this Wizards team by nearly 30 points.

There was a lot of talk about fatigue after the game and you can see these guys are not giving up but they do look drained.

If you’re looking for a bright spot Andray Blatche who didn’t have a great night, did say all the right things after the game.

I haven’t had the chance to see Andray in the locker room until recently but he seems to be growing up before our very eyes. He understands that teams are going to start focusing on him, and his response was that he’s got to watch some film and figure out how to get his teammates involved.Not exactly the old Dray we’ve all been used to.

When asked how he planned to get over this loss, 7 Day Dre responded, “I’m gonna go home, go to sleep, wake up and come back in and get to work”, “we’ve got a game Sunday”.

Let’s hope the Wizards can get some rest, get a good practice in and get some teachable moments from this game. The painful part is watching the mistakes and the fans let the team have it tonight, but like the Nike commercial says, everybody gets knocked down, how quick do you get back up.

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Joe Glorioso

WizardsExtreme Correspondent

WE From the Floor

The story from the floor is always different than the one you see on TV or even from the stands. What I saw tonight was a team that started off solid and quickly fade into the background as the Wizards could not keep their heads above water. There was plenty of hustle on both sides of the ball but too many guys were missing too many shots. Defense wins championships but the simple act of the ball going through the hoop doesn’t hurt either.

On the floor I was able to see and hear Wizards players shouting directions, keeping the flow moving but it all in vain as the Bucks took it to them in old fashioned gritty basketball. Some of the upsides were seeing the newly acquired players get some burn time. Javale McGee plays hard but has some ways to go as he cannot match up against other big men. It was a display of doing 2 things right to end up making 3 mistakes to follow that kept them out of it. As Andray Blatche told me after the game something to the effect of, you wake up the next day and you put it behind you. Our little boy, growing up before our very eyes.

My shot of the game is Mike Miller during free throws. He has been a ghost for the most part and I am perplexed. he is the #1 3 point shooter in the league and has more hustle than John Travolta. Why have you forsaken us Mike? WE need you

Matt Naqvi

Wizards vs Bucks, March 5, 2010 Wizards Extreme Exclusive Pictures

WIZARDS HEAD COACH FLIP SAUNDERS

On tonight’s game:

“Some of our mistakes carried over to defense and carried over to offense and we missed layups and shots.  Right after the trade the adrenaline kicked in and we were playing really well together.  Milwaukee plays just like us but they have been playing together for a longer period of time.  We are still trying to work on our execution.  We have to stick to playing in our system because sometimes players try to do too much and it hurts us sometimes.  That is why we must play together.  Now we have to look forward to future games.”

On Al Thornton:

“He has been very sore.  He is just hurt and he’s not use to playing the minutes that he’s playing right now.  When Josh (Howard) went down all of a sudden he had to step up and work a little more.  I think that has taken a toll on him.”

On Shaun Livingston:

“I think that he can create and do some things.  He has size on him.  He got us into our offense a little bit quicker tonight.”

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WIZARDS GUARD MIKE MILLER

On tonight’s loss:

“We have to bring energy.  That’s what was disappointing tonight because we have been playing hard.  Tonight they outworked us.  When we’re undermanned like we are we have to move the ball and play together.  In order for us to be good we have to share the ball and play hard.”

On ball movement:

“When we move the ball we’re a much better team.  It’s more important than ever to move the ball, get each other involved, and play harder than the other team.  We didn’t do that tonight.  When we move the ball we’re a much better team.”

WIZARDS FORWARD ANDRAY BLATCHE

On lack of energy:

“It’s not that, we’re just having tough games, and some shots aren’t falling.  We’re just not playing with the same fight and chemistry, and we need to get back to that.  We need to have that same hunger inside of us.”

On how to put tonight’s game behind him:

“Go to sleep and wake up.  There are 82 games in a season.  You can’t let one ruin the rest of the season.  These kind of games happen to every team in the league.  We have another game coming up on Sunday.”

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BUCKS HEAD COACH SCOTT SKILES

On tonight’s game:

“We were really focused tonight.  We kept them under 20 points all four quarters.  Our defense was active; our ball movement was great again.  We played like we had something to play for.  It was a great effort by everybody who stepped on the floor for us.  It was a lot of energy, a lot of boxing out.  When we are at our best is when we get stops.  We rebound the ball, get out on the open floor and play our offense…and we were able to do that.  I was overall very pleased with our approach.”

On Brandon Jennings:

“I thought he and Luke (Ridnour) were both very good.  They both make good decisions with the ball. Brandon Jennings has been able to be very active while struggling to shoot the ball.  Brandon is able to be a factor even when he is not having a good scoring game.  His defense has improved his picking up NBA concepts and NBA games.  He has a handle on our players and all of the things that go along with being a point guard.”

On Andray Blatche:

“Blatche has got a lot of moves.  We were really in tune tonight on defense tonight, and Luc (Mbah a Moute) set the tone.”

BUCKS GUARD BRANDON JENNINGS

On the team win:

“Tonight was another night that we did a good job of moving the ball and when that happens that’s when we can’t be stopped.  I felt like we came out early and got the lead which opened everything up for us.”

On being a leader on the court:

“Right now my shot isn’t falling so I have to find a way to help the team and be the floor general.  I feel I’m most effective by getting my teammates in the game and being the General on the floor.  Tonight I saw the open pass a lot. Most important was us getting the win tonight.  We were clicking tonight and guys were knocking down shots.”

On playing Cleveland next:

“We are excited about tomorrow; Cleveland is the top team in the Eastern conference.  We are going to go in there focused and ready to compete with them.  We have been playing well recently and we know they will play well so we have to do our best tomorrow.”

BUCKS FORWARD KURT THOMAS

On the game:

“We will play well as long as we continue to share the ball like we did tonight.  Brandon Jennings was outstanding.  He used the floor well and spread the ball around getting everyone involved.  Everyone started to pass the ball and guys really shot the ball well.  As long as we continue to play like that it doesn’t matter who plays in the game.”

BUCKS CENTER ANDREW BOGUT

On the game:

“We had (27) assists and (51) rebounds.  The ball was moving out there and everyone was scoring.  We were playing real well together tonight.  I missed some blocks in the first half and got a couple of fouls.  I just stayed in and tried to help my teammates.  Brandon (Jennings) didn’t score much but he knows that we don’t need him to score.  People were getting on him because he didn’t score but he put defensive pressure on the other team and in the last few games he has been getting good steals.  He is a good point guard and he is doing good things for us.”

On his play:

“Whenever you’re trying to get the ball down low and getting baskets and dunks it helps to close the game.  I just kept doing what I was doing.  I missed some shots but I got a couple of lucky plays and tried to stay with it.  I got dunked on nicely as well which is part of getting blocked shots.”

PostGame Interviews

Randy Foye

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Al Thornton

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JaVale McGee

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In the 2^nd quarter, Washington was up most of the time with smart defense and good ball movement. I would have like to have seen more aggression out of Randy Foye and Mike Miller. I can’t remember the last time I saw Miller shoot more than 4 shots in a quarter, and while he is one of the most unselfish sharp shooters in the game, I believe the Wizards would be better served if he jacked up some more.   Newly acquired Sean Livingston made his Wizards debut with 31.8 seconds left in the first half but ended the game with 0 points and a -9 +/-.

Prior to the game I spoke with Gus Johnson (famous CBS voice for the final 4) and he told me how surprised he was with how much the team had changed for the better without the “superstars.” It seems as though Gus is not alone in his assessment, as pretty much everywhere I go, people stop me and say that this team is a bit more exciting to watch than they were to start the season.

In the 3^rd quarter, Blatche decided to carry the Wizards and his all around efforts on both offense and defense were simply fun to watch. Between blocked shots, rebounds and his signature reverse layups, it seems as though the trades that have allowed Dray to get more mintues have unearthed the potential he has always been said to have. The play that had me take notice was was the charge he took. A CHARGE PEOPLE!  When was the last time when the big 3 were on the court you remember anybody taking a CHARGE!

In the 4^th quarter, Dray’s good play continued but he was joined by JaVale McGee. I saw a lot of great passion by the young big man.  The surprise of the night was when they showed Comedian Mike Epps at the game but there was nothing funny about the Wizards comeback. The crowd went crazy as Miller hit a 3 and went even crazier as he hit the LAYUP to go up one!  It went right down to the wire but Al Harrington proved to be too much with a layup as McGee tried taking the charge.  Harrington then missed his free throw to make it 112-110. That’s when Randy Foye provided a clutch jumper that tied it up followed by a HUGE McGee block that sent the game to overtime.

On Wizards first possession in overtime, Foyes fired up an airball that seemed to set the tone for the entire OT session. It felt like the loudest scream all game was when the Knicks Harrington missed two free throws to give the crowd free Chick-Filet.

Final Thoughts: The Wizards fought hard but could not finish it out at home.  Blatche had 8 turnovers but had impressive stats otherwise with, 26 points, career high with 18 rebounds and 6 assist.  Overall, the team fought hard but just could not get over that hump for the win.  McGee had a quiet 18; all of his points were mostly in the paint of course.  Foye was feeling it throughout all 4 quarters, but went completely dry in overtime. It was an entertaining game to watch and experience and this game showed there is a big learning curve for this young Wizard’s team.  But, like my mama used to tell me, one step at a time.

Asad Naqvi – aka Man In The Field

Wizards Extreme.com Correspondent

WIZARDS HEAD COACH FLIP SAUNDERS

On the game:

“We got into foul trouble and our best guys were on the bench.  Harrington went crazy hitting threes, but  we didn’t finish out quarters at all tonight.  The first quarter we were up by ten and they made six points in the last 45 seconds, then we didn’t finish out the end of the second and third quarter.  I’ve always said if you could win the first four minutes and the last four minutes of the quarter you have a pretty good chance of winning the game. “

On JaVale McGee:

“He was involved in the last two minutes in numerous plays.  He’s probably been in more plays that it mattered that we win or not in this game then he’s played his whole career in the NBA so far.”

On the game:

“That’s part of the learning process.  You look how the team does and they did some special things.  It’s just a consistency stand point and it becomes frustrating at times.  The longer they play hopefully the consistency will come farther and fewer in between.”

WIZARDS FORWARD ANDRAY BLATCHE

On tonight’s game:

“That was one of the toughest games to lose, especially when we are playing hard.  It seemed like when they would make a big play then we would make a big play.  We were able to make it to overtime and to lose in overtime is a painful way to lose.  We just have to learn from it and continue to get better.  I thought it was a great game.  It was going back and forth; both teams were playing extremely hard.  It was an exciting game.”

On his improving game:

“This is all new to me.  I’ve never been the go-to guy.  I feel like I’m adjusting, learning and I feel like I’m getting better.  There are going to be some games like this but I’m going to go home, watch film and figure out how to get better from it.  I just have to keep my head up, continue to watch film and get better.”

WIZARDS GUARD RANDY FOYE

On tonight’s game:

“It was definitely frustrating, especially the way that they won by making a buzzer beater.  I have to give New York credit because they played hard and they finished the game off.  They made it tough because they put a bigger guy on me.  I guess they knew that I was going to get the ball so they put Chandler on me and it was tough for me to make shots.  I was a little frustrated with my play in overtime because I think that I could have helped the team out a little more.”

On the Knicks:

“The Knicks always play hard and they keep on grinding. If they have open shots then they take them, and if not they try to get the ball moving and find Lee, Harrington, or McGrady in a mismatch and go from there.  I’m still trying to finish the year strong and take it one game at a time.  I’m trying play as hard as I can and I’m trying to learn as much as I can from my coaches.”

WIZARDS GUARD NICK YOUNG

On tonight’s game:

“Players always try to find a way to get their team going, and I always wanted to hit one of those types of shots.  I know that I’m a three point shooter so I took the shot. I try to bring energy and stay out there on the court doing everything that I can.  When my teammates believe in me the sky is the limit.”

WIZARDS CENTER JAVALE MCGEE

On the last possession:

“I tried to block his (David Lee) shot and I feel like nine times out of ten I’m going to block that shot.  He put it right in the right spot and I just missed it.”

On playing better:

“I’m just trying to be more patient and trying to show Coach that I can be a consistent player.  I wanted to come out quick and provide a lot of energy.  I felt like when I entered the game the energy level was a little low so I tried to bring it up.”

On tonight’s game:

“I felt like tonight showed that we are competitors and that we showed everybody that we aren’t just a bunch of guys put together.  We’re a team.  We want to show everyone we want to win.”

Javale Mcgee speaks!

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Randy Foye

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Al Thornton

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Sean Livingston

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7 Day Dray

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James Singleton

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Flip Saunders Post

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Flip Saunders Pre

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Wizards Shoot Around

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Al Thornton gives WE a shoutout

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The primary cause for concern early on was finding a player to keep Gasol in check.  JaVale McGee was assigned this duty and it became painfully clear he could not keep up with the opposing big man. It wasn’t a function of brawn and brute versus JaVale’s lanky frame but one of a finesse player who knew how to exploit a less technical player. Lets be honest neither one of the Gasols’ are known for their brute force in the paint but it was enough to over come the Wizards lack of a quality big man.

I miss Brendan.

The Wizards offense was another issue this game as neither Randy Foye or  Mike Miller were able to find their strokes. Foye, who has been the defacto starting point guard, kept the ball moving like a hot potato but on more than several straight series the solid movement led to a missed shot. Miller who is currently the leagues best 3 point shooter was quiet and played the role of distributor. He was active but gave up multiple shots trying to create for his teammates which led to several turn overs. Tying too hard? Some might say so.

The sparse audience at times could be heard yelling at Miller to shoot knowing his pass first attitude. Sometimes you have to just have to take the reigns.  Selflessness is a quality trait you want on your team but when there are struggles abound I think someone needs to authorize the use of deadly force. Miller isn’t the leagues best sniper by accident.

The game also brought to town a new comer under the guise of a 10 day contract named Mike Harris. He arrived the night before and came in to provide relief of injury sidelined Josh Howard who is cursing his ACL in his knee as we speak. Harris comes from the D League and is known as a solid player who averages 26 points. His time was limited to the last 24 seconds of the 1st and the last few minutes of the 4th but after shaking off the jitters he seemed to be comfortable running the floor. Time will tell if he can last longer than the 10 days he has been put into service for.

The game was standard issue Wizards basketball with several punctuations of cheers and excitement but it seemed the team was tired, trying a bit too hard and still nose deep in a Chemistry 101 book that plagues teams that find themselves in rebuilding mode.

The loss of Josh Howard just days after his arrival is another blow to the grand scheme Ernie Grunfeld has been busy formulating but as the team has done previous I am sure they will find a way to turn glitter into gold

Nick Youngs Facial

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WIZARDS HEAD COACH FLIP SAUNDERS

On Josh Howard:

“We miss him as another option.  What usually happens is that when you lose a player everyone steps into different roles.  We liked Al (Thornton) off the bench because he gave us great pop, now he now has to be used in a starting situation.  The guys are just adjusting to new roles.”

On Andray Blatche:

“Andray is going through the learning process right now.  I talked to Andray and told him that he has to learn how to make the easy play out, hit our guys and trust his teammates to make plays.  It’s the first time in five years that he has had someone trying to trap him with the ball.  When you have never gone through that it can be a shock to start with but he’ll continue to get better as he does it.”

On trusting your teammates:

“I told the guys that when you’ve been a guy that has been carrying the team at times you start to think you need to do it all the time.  That’s when we start to get into problems, especially in committing turnovers, trying to make the home run plays.  I told the guys we need to just trust your teammates and the system and let it all develop.”

On Memphis:

“What happens sometimes when you aren’t making your shots is that you start to lose some energy.  One of Memphis’ strengths is they have guys that get out and like to run.”

On our effort level:

“I think overall our effort level was good.  Memphis is a great rebounding team and we battled on the boards and led for most of the game until we went through that stretch to start the fourth quarter.  I thought it was a good solid effort though.”

On Al Thornton:

“I thought Al (Thornton) played well tonight.  He gave great energy.  I felt that overall he was our best rebounder on the floor tonight.  I thought early on he did a good job on Rudy Gay.”

WIZARDS FORWARD AL THORNTON

On the game:

“We played tough.  They scored easy.  We tried to make it tough on them but they got to the basket at will for layups and dunks.  I thought we came out and played hard and played with intensity.  We made some mental mistakes on defense.  You can’t let a team like that get to the rim at will and get layups.  They were able to get easy layups and get out in transition.”

On having five games in eight days catch up to them:

“You could say that a little bit but that’s no excuse.  Every other team is playing like this.  We can’t use that as an excuse.  We have to grind it out.”

On guarding Rudy Gay:

“I think I did well.  I tried to make him make tough shots and he just made all of them.  At the end of the day Rudy (Gay) is going to take enough shots to get his.  He’s up there in terms of scoring the ball.”

WIZARDS FORWARD ANDRAY BLATCHE

On the game:

“We just were off today.  We didn’t have it as much; I didn’t get some key rebounds and if I did things would have been different.  We are still growing, they had a lot of second chance shots and if they didn’t have a lot of those shots it would have been a whole different game.  We are still working hard and playing together, we just made a couple of mistakes.”

On his play:

“In the first quarter I came out and I was getting things in but they made some adjustments in the second half and stopped sending guys in.  As a player I had to realize what was going on and try and get other people off.”

GRIZZLIES HEAD COACH LIONEL HOLLINS

On tonight’s game:

“The first half was not that pretty but we bounced back as a team.  In the fourth quarter I thought that the bench did a great job.  O.J. (Mayo) got hot and carried them.  They defended and rebounded which extended the lead and we were able to come away with a win.”

On the bench:

“For the last few games I think that changing the rotation has helped us.  We guard the basket a little bit better and we get offensive rebounds and finish.  We have been playing a little more confident.  I have been searching for the right combination to come off the bench and I think that tonight we found the right combination.”

On Marc Gasol:

“He ran the team. He didn’t do too much.  He just did what we asked him to do.  He shot when he had the shot and he passed when he had to pass.  He did his best.”

GRIZZLIES FORWARD ZACH RANDOLPH

On the bench:

“Our bench has been playing great.  Sam (Young) and Marcus (Williams)…so that’s what we need to win.  We need everybody.  I think we have guys that can definitely help us…Jamaal (Tinsley), Marcus (Williams), Hasheem (Thabeet) can all help us.  We just have to find the right combination.  Find who’s going to produce in the minutes he gets.”

On the team:

“We have to keep working.  Last night was a big game and it hurt us, but we bounced back today and played hard against a good, scrappy young team, and these are the types of games we have to win.”

GRIZZLIES GUARD MARCUS WILLIAMS

On the team:

“We started slow in the first half, then in the beginning of the fourth quarter O.J. (Mayo) got hot and he picked us up, then Coach (Lionel Hollins) put the starters back in and they finished it up.”

On his role:

“I think that Sam (Young), Haddadi and I know that we’re going to play and that we’ve got to play valuable minutes.  We know we have to play hard.  We know we have to bring something to the table in order for us to compete at the end of the game.”

GRIZZLIES FORWARD RUDY GAY

On the fourth quarter:

“We picked our intensity up.  O.J. (Mayo) gave us a good lift and he pushed us into what we needed to do and we played like we were supposed to at that point.”

On making an effort to hit the offensive glass:

“We had to.  (James) Singleton was killing us on the offensive glass and it was helping them win so we had to do the same thing on the other end.  We did that and in the end became opportunists.”

GRIZZLIES GUARD O.J. MAYO

On the fourth quarter:

“My teammates and my coach did a great job of getting me juiced up a little bit, and somewhere deep inside I found the energy to get it going a little bit.”

On hitting the offensive glass:

“(Andray) Blatche, (JaVale) McGee, and (Fabricio) Oberto did a tremendous job in the first half.  (James) Singleton too.  Coach (Lionel Hollins) chewed us out about it at half time and let us know that no one feels sorry for us having back-to-back games and that we needed to find a way to get this win tonight.”

On tonight’s game:

“It’s a new Wizards team.  Mike Miller and (Randy) Foye are playing really solid, and bringing in (Quinton) Ross and (James) Singleton, you really just didn’t know what to expect, and it was a little difficult for us in the first half.  We felt we had to come out with a concerted effort in the second half to come out with a lot of energy and do what we do well like rebound, run and just play well together.”

On JaVale McGee:

“Another one of our peers.  McGee is a great young player.  I think you’ll see him match up against Marc (Gasol) for years.”

Mike Harris post game answering random questions?

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Mike Harris at shoot around

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New man crush, James Singleton

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7 Day Dray

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Flip Saunders post game

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But this group as it has for the little time they have been together, rebounded and fought their way to a solid victory over a good Chicago Bulls team. Things got a bit dicey at the end of the game and Derrick Rose did his best impression of Michael Jordan in the clutch, trying to put the Bulls on his back, but Chicago just couldn’t capitalize at the end.

The Wizards were led yet again by the new go-to guy in Andray Blatche who finished with a solid 25pts and 11rebs on 8 of 13 shooting in just over 41 minutes of play. After the game Blatche continued to show off that 1000 megawatt smile that seems to have come about in the last couple of weeks.

Asked about Blatche’s play after the game, Saunders was very honest in his assessment and while stating that this is the most consistent Dray has been in his career, there is still much room to grow.

For yet another night though, the Verizon Center took delight in watching a team get down by double digits, only to lead a charge, and finish the game with strong, solid defensive play as well as clutch shots.

Al Thornton played another solid game by chipping in 7rebs and 17pts, none of which was more important than a clutch fade-away-esque move in the paint towards the end of the game.

What amazed me more than anything was watching the 5 of Blatche, Quinton Ross, James Singleton, Randy Foye and Mike Miller finish the game. This team has taken on a new identity in the last 4 games and it seems to be that if you don’t bring your A game you are going to have to work your ass off to beat them or you’re going to get beat.

From a fan perspecitve, two of our newest Wizards, Quinton Ross and James Singleton have taken on some old roles. Ross it would appear is in the role that Deshawn Stevenson was supposed to excel at, locking down defenders, while Singleton is the new “old” Dom McGuire, our energy guy. The best part about it all is that the whole team is feeding off the energy and the fans are getting into the mix as well.

After the game, James Singleton said it best, “basketball is a game, and it’s meant to have fun”. If the Wizards can keep up this type of play, they will not only find themselves with a re-energized fan base, but they might just shock the hell out of some teams sitting ahead of them in the East.

www.wizardsextreme.com

-Joe Glorioso

WIZARDS HEAD COACH FLIP SAUNDERS

On the new guys on the team:
“As a coach, that’s what you enjoy when you have a group like we have, and they want to learn, so when you tell them something, they’re trying to trust it. When you get your players to trust what you’re doing, what happens is they do it a lot more aggressively and you usually have a little better outcome.”

On the four games since the All-Star break:
“We’ve fallen behind by 7-10 points every game and we just keep on battling. You’re talking about a team that’s led the league in rebounding. I wouldn’t say that we’re exactly an imposing line but everybody we have, and we play everybody, has had contributions and some guys get a hook because they know if they don’t move the ball and play the right way they aren’t going to play. So we’re getting the right idea as far as moving the ball and playing the right way and understanding mismatches.”

On tonight’s game:
“To be down 10 and lose Josh (Howard), who was on a roll when we lost him, for these guys to fight the way they did shows character and how hard they play. Before the game I said ‘playing hard is a talent and a lot of people take that for granted, but some guys have higher motors and can play harder than others and some are better jumpers than other guys.’ We’ve got a group of guys that have high motors that play with a greater volume of aggression and intensity. What’s happened is, the new guys are playing that way and now all of a sudden Andray (Blatche) and JaVale (McGee) and those guys have fallen right into place.”

On the 3rd quarter:
“I think our players have more of a sense of urgency. Not to take away from the guys we had, but I think at times they thought they could just play and we’ll get back into it when we have to, and that doesn’t always work. So I think we played with a greater sense of urgency.”

On Andray Blatche:
“He played well when we didn’t have Antawn (Jamison) at the beginning of the year, but his mindset has changed. I think it’s not just because those guys aren’t here but I think the changes he’s seen us do with our team all along, the way the organization has been handled, these guys can see, ‘they’re not messing around.’ He has had a different attitude from the standpoint of a more serious approach prior to the game, during the game, and after the game. For the first time he’s been the most consistent he’s been in his career for the last four games, and that’s just the beginning. As I’ve told him ‘when you start playing like this, your expectations become higher. Not only that, now teams are going to set their defense up to defend you and stop you from going into your key moves.’”

On the uncertainty of the players:
“I think they understand that if they play well and do good things, good things happen. Every time they step onto the court they are being judged by fans, by media, by other teams’ coaches, by other teams’ general managers and so I think a lot of those guys take a lot of pride in playing well.”

On playing well as a new team:
“A lot of people don’t know where some of these guys went to school. These are guys that have been behind the eight-ball and so they are used to being an underdog. No matter what we’ve had from a team standpoint, we’ve played our best four games our last four games. I don’t care what anyone says as far as what their talent is or how much they are being paid or who they are, as far as I’m concerned, it’s how they perform. To our guys credit they are playing very well. Am I surprised how well they are playing as a team that’s basically only been together a week? Yes, I’m surprised. It says a little bit about them.”

WIZARDS GUARD MIKE MILLER

On Andray Blatche:
“This league is about opportunity. You have a guy who is 20-and-10 in front of you for your entire career (in Antawn Jamison). It makes things a little more difficult but this is about opportunity and he is stepping up. The whole thing is about sustaining. One thing you realize with Jamison when he was here was that it was 20 and 10 every night. You could bank it. If he wants to take it to the next step that’s where it is going to be but right now he is playing unbelievable basketball.”

On tonight’s game:
“We play with energy. That’s one thing with this team. Even with Josh (Howard) going out early we continued to play. We went down 10 against a good Chicago team and came out in the second half with energy and confidence and went to work.”

On Randy Foye:
“Randy (Foye) is capable. Again, the opportunity. He is getting the opportunity and making the most of it. He’s a good point guard and really knocks down shots and had a great turnover situation tonight.”
WIZARDS FORWARD AL THORNTON

On tonight’s comeback:
“We just came out with a defensive mindset and attacked the basket and were aggressive on the offensive end. I think our defense says it all, especially in the third quarter.”

On Andray Blatche:
“I didn’t know he was that good. I knew he was talented but he’s a player. He’s a player. Down the line he can be an All-Star. He can’t be stopped when he gets the ball in the block. They got us in it the other day. I didn’t know he was that good.”

WIZARDS FORWARD ANDRAY BLATCHE

On team chemistry:
“Let me tell you one thing, it was just so crazy. When all these guys got here the chemistry was like we’ve been together since the beginning of the season. We all have one thing in mind and that’s winning. We all are working hard together competing and everything is paying off well for us.”

On his recent play:
“I have an opportunity, and I’m the type of person that is going to take full advantage of it. I’m going to try and help this organization win as many games as we can for the rest of the season.”

On the team’s attitude:
“I feel like we have a group of guys that are on the same mission and we all are playing hard together and we are winning. It’s a great feeling right now for us.”

On the team’s hustle:
“All of the new guys brought so much more energy to the team and our fans have been coming back to us and been great and getting excited. That’s what we need. We are feeding off of their energy and that has been great for us.”

On being a leader:
“I feel like a leader. I feel like I’m leading my team in the right direction. I’m just really excited. I’m just truly blessed. I’ve been through a lot of stuff and God is just finally making my plan work out for me.”

BULLS HEAD COACH VINNY DEL NEGRO

On the third quarter:
“I felt in the third quarter we were terrible. We had too many turnovers and the Wizards really pushed the fastbreak on us and got some easy baskets. When the Wizards were able to do that they got their confidence up and the crowd back into the game which put us back on our heels on the defensive end. When that happened we couldn’t do anything constructive offensively to put pressure on them. They simply out worked us.”

On the Wizards:
“The Wizards are playing with good energy and have developed a little bit of confidence. They have obviously had to deal with a little bit of adversity this season but they are playing hard and have good players. Andray (Blatche) played well. I thought (Al) Thornton was a big player for them tonight. Randy (Foye) did a nice job and James (Singleton) on the glass tonight hurt us. Overall the Wizards out worked us tonight and we didn’t get out in the open court and attack like we normally do.”

On playing better:
“We just have to get back to basics. We have five games in seven nights. A few of our guys struggled tonight and so we have to get back to guarding the glass and get some easy baskets. We have to learn how to get some easy baskets so we can try and prevent another team from getting back into the game like the Wizards did tonight. When we did start to attack we didn’t execute enough. We shot a high enough percentage tonight to win, just that third quarter really hurt us tonight. We have been doing a good job of executing lately; however in that second half we couldn’t get anything going.”

On Joakim Noah:
“I thought Joakim Noah moved pretty well tonight, he has to get back in game condition and that will take some time. He is going to have to catch up to the “timing” of the game, but he gave us some good energy and worked hard on (Andray) Blatche. We will see how he feels tomorrow and come up with a plan for him and if he can practice he will. Once he starts to feel better we will extend his minutes and build up his conditioning.”

BULLS GUARD DERRICK ROSE

On the game:
“It was a learning lesson for me tonight. I have to learn how to stay aggressive and put pressure on the defense. It’s hard playing back to back games. It seems like every time you wake up there is a game. We just have to figure it out and stick with each other so we can win games.”

On the new-look Wizards team:
“They are going to Blatche inside like they should, and have a great group of young guys. I am very surprised with how well they are playing together. They’re a young team, but if they can play they can play. They know the game of basketball and they are finding a way to win games.”

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Al Thornton came right into the game and acted like he was part of the team for more than a week.  The amazing part of it all is that this group of outkasts is now playing as if they have been together for years.

Andray Blatche came out with a purpose and his intensity on both ends of the court allowed the Wizards to stay close with Denver.Fan favorite Mike Miller went 0-3 in the first half. The energy was the key here folks, McGee and Blatche were making me drool and made me say WOW quite a few times.

The Wizards picked up the intensity and the shooting in the last quarter.  I feel like Phil “Flip” Saunders is not keeping the same rotation he had in the 1^st half. After the game, he said that he planned on playing the whole team A LOT for the 2^nd half of the season.   James  Singleton had the crowd rocking as he blocked a JR Smith dunk attempt which was followed up by a BIG Earl Boykins layup.

With about 10 minutes left in the game and it actually felt like a playoff crowd.  The crowd at Verizon Center has been more into the game after the Caron/Haywood/Jamison trades oddly enough.  Al Thornton has showed a really aggressive side and provided a little bit of toughness in my opinion.

This was one of the more exciting games I’ve seen this year, and probably more then when we had ALL our players healthy in the beginning of the season.  The Wizards played solid D and they really played as a team now.   I noticed that in this game  every Wizard on the court touched the ball before the ball was shot which you never saw with the Big 2 and Haywood.

My final thoughts are that WE appear to have a young nucleus and the people who trashed these trades should probably reserve judgment for a little bit.  Yeah its early to tell, but the trade so far, is better than a C, I’d give it closer to a B.  I asked Josh Howard after the game about getting into to the playoffs, he laughed and said “I always think about the playoffs” (see the video below)

PLAYOFFS!?????

Yes people, PLAYOFFS, may not be as far fetched some were thinking it would be.

Asad

Wizards forward Al Thornton (14), making his debut for Washington after a trade from the Clippers, gets a pat on the chest from teammate James Singleton during a 107-97 victory over Denver. (Peter Lockley / McClatchy-Tribune / February 19, 2010)

Game Chat Replay

<a href=”http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=4293e6fb3b” mce_href=”http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=4293e6fb3b” >Washington Wizards vs Denver Nuggets with Asad Naqvi</a>

Postgame Quotes

WASHINGTON WIZARDS VS. DENVER NUGGETS

FEBRUARY 19, 2010

WASHINGTON 107, DENVER 97

WIZARDS HEAD COACH FLIP SAUNDERS

On tonight’s game:

“Al (Thornton) played with a great amount of energy.  I told the guys at the shoot around, ‘we have to play like a bunch of mad dogs’ and that’s how we played tonight.  We went after loose balls, we went after rebounds, we didn’t give up on plays and then the crowd gets into it and the crowd keeps our guys juiced up.”

On making changes to the team:

“When we made the decision to make changes, we thought about the type of players we wanted to bring in here.  Whether the players were going to be here long-term or not is something that will be decided but we wanted players that had high basketball I.Q., that played really hard and didn’t give up on plays and were hungry.  If we get that, we’ll start setting the tone on how we want to play down the road.”

More on making changes to the team:

“It’s the group of guys and how hard we’re playing.  When was the last time you saw Nick (Young) diving on the floor for loose balls?  It becomes contagious.  When you see a guy like Al Thornton going after it on the glass or Josh Howard, as a teammate you say ‘I’ve got to get on board,’ and that’s what everybody’s done.”

On Andray Blatche:

“Andray (Blatche) had a great first half and carried us in that half and when he picked up his fourth we went to the bench and those guys started playing well.  Even though we didn’t play Andray or JaVale (McGee) down the stretch those are the guys up on the bench cheering the whole time in the fourth quarter, we haven’t had that this year.”

WIZARDS FORWARD AL THORNTON

On defensive play:

“There’s been a knock on me that I don’t play any defense so I just tried to come out and play defense the best that I could.”

On tonight’s play:

“We all came out and played hard.  That’s something that they preach out here to just come out and play hard and that’s what we did tonight.”

On guarding Carmelo Anthony:

“I just tried to get up in him and make him frustrated.  Once Carmelo gets into a groove and gets his shot going he’s very hard to guard.   I just tried to get in him and frustrate him a little bit and make him shoot off balance shots.”

WIZARDS GUARD JOSH HOWARD

On what he brings to the game:

“Energy and hustle.  That’s all I’ve been doing since I’ve been in the league is playing hard.  I’m just going to continue to do it while I’m here.  That’s it; hopefully it will trickle down to the rest of my teammates.”

On preparing for tonight:

“We are professionals.  We have been playing this game for a while and guys know how to play.  We just went out there and did what we had to do.”

On the rest of the season:

“We have 28 games left.  Guys are hungry.  Guys want to win.  I know me personally I want to get into the playoffs. There’s a lot of goals right there to achieve.  We just have to go out there and play.”

WIZARDS GUARD MIKE MILLER

On tonight’s play:

“We played hard.  The bottom line is that when you share the ball people play hard, it’s a completely different basketball.  Everyone is excited about moving the ball. Everyone is excited about each other’s success.  That’s just the start of it, now we just need to continue to work on it.

On tonight’s win:

“Hopefully it will carry over to tomorrow.  This is a big win for us.  We are headed in the right direction.  You saw how hard guys are playing and how excited they are.  That’s a sign of a good team.”

WIZARDS FORWARD JAMES SINGLETON

On Al Thornton’s defensive play:

“I knew he can do it because he’s an aggressive defender.  People don’t think he can play great defense but I know he can play great defense.  You saw that tonight.  You have one of the premier scorers in the league and he was held to 23.”

On the crowd:

“The crowd is always the sixth player.  The louder they get, the faster we go, the harder we play.  You have to have fun out there.  It’s a basketball game, you have to have fun.”

NUGGETS HEAD COACH GEORGE KARL

On tonight’s game:

“I think Flip did a great job of going small and figuring out an offensive attack.  We were not executing our offense right.  The Wizards had trouble scoring, but when they went small they got their offense in a better flow than we did.”

More on tonight’s game:

“Our bench had a lack of defense and they let (Nick) Young come into the game and (Al) Thornton into the flow of the game.  Defensively we were playing well enough, but the collapse of our offense created big shots for the Wizards.  We take quick shots and take tough shots, but there’s a fine line between and good shot and bad shot.”

On the Wizards:

“Coming into the game, we had respect for (Andray) Blatche and we didn’t do a very good job on him in the first half…(Josh) Howard, (Al) Thornton and (Nick) Young are offensive guys who can make shots and Flip is a good offensive coach.  It seems like there was more energy on their team then they had all year.”

NUGGETS FORWARD CARMELO ANTHONY

On tonight’s game:

“I don’t like making excuses; they played hard.  They came out to play and the new guys played extremely well.  They caught us on a bad night and they won the game.”

On the newest Wizards:

“I just wanted to win.  I have played against these guys several times before.  The only thing that is different is that they are playing under a new system.  I think that Flip gave Al (Thornton) some confidence and Josh (Howard) as well. They all came out and played hard tonight.”

NUGGETS GUARD CHAUNCEY BILLUPS

On the Wizards:

“It’s like they’re starting all over again.  Guys are going to be out there playing extremely hard, trying to earn the coach’s trust, and earn some minutes.  All the new guys came out and played so well and so hard.  They had an effect on the game.”

On playing against former coach and current Wizards Head Coach Flip Saunders:

“Flip is very familiar with me and my game and what I like to do.  I don’t know if it really worked.  I still got what I wanted all night but at the end of the day they got the win.  It was a disappointing loss for me but I’m happy to see Flip have some guys who play how he likes to play — hard and until the buzzer.”

On scoring just 15 points in the fourth quarter:

“That’s a first for this team.  They really got it rolling.  We turned the ball over a lot early in the fourth quarter and they were on a run and we couldn’t stop them.  On the other end they took us out of some of our sets.  They changed up the zone and the man.  It was a tough situation.”

Video Recap

Earl Boykins aka Earl MANkins

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Josh Howard

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Flip Saunders usually comes out and addresses the media for a few minutes prior to the game and he did come out briefly but was quickly called back into the locker room by the Wizards PR to what could only have been the announcement of Antawn Jamison being traded. We were all left starring at each other, left to imagine what had just happened until Flip came back and addressed us. Still nothing was mentioned about a trade and Jamison’s name remained on the scoreboard in the starting lineup.

Then with 5 minutes to go before tip off, it happened, the Washington Wizards continued the implosion of a team that before the season was said to be “ready to compete for a championship”.What followed was an exit video of Antawn Jamison and according to Michael Lee from the Washington Post, his last words to fans which were, “I love them more than they love me.”

So the Wizards would take the court with a lineup that included Mike Miller, Randy Foye, JaVale McGee, Andray Blatche and Nick Young.

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What ensued was a back and forth game that saw the Wizards go up by double digits going into the 4th quarter and then finish off a not so good Minnesota Timberwolves team. The Wizards were led by Andray Blatche who poured in a career high 33 points, JaVale McGee who had season highs 14pts, 11reb and 5blks. However, we have to mention the contributions from the newest Wizards, James Singleton, Josh Howard and in a limited role Quinton Ross.

You won’t really be impressed by the stat line as much as the hustle, energy and overall basketball sense these guys brought to the game tonight. Singleton was out-jumping everybody around him, Howard looked to be playing with a chip on his shoulder and as you’ll see in his post game interview, I believe he’d love to stick it to the Mavericks.

Look, nobody is going to claim that the Wizards have arrived and I don’t believe the roster purge is done, but for one night, the Washington Wizards gave the fans something to cheer about. They looked like a team playing with some desire. What started off looking like it might be a high school basketball game in an NBA arena, ended up being an overhauled Wizards roster leaving to a standing ovation.

What’s next? Who knows, but if this is the way the Wiz are going to play for the rest of the season, with passion, energy and hunger, Wizards fans might just enjoy these last two months of basketball. Then again, let’s put this into perspective, they beat the Timberwolves, let’s see what happens when a grown ass basketball team comes to town on Friday.

The Nuggets ain’t no Timberwolves.

Catch a copy of the transcript from tonight’s ComcastSportsNet Live chat here..

Heard after the game

WIZARDS HEAD COACH FLIP SAUNDERS

On Andray Blatche:

“Dray was a lot different.  He was a more aggressive player and a more intense, consistent player.  Sometimes when you bring people in, they take the guys that you have and bring them along right with them.”

On the last couple of days:

“If I hadn’t been in the CBA and gone through that I probably would have gone crazy.  I told the guys beforehand, ‘this doesn’t change going through games.’  I plan to stick around to compete and win.  Everyone in the NBA is a good player.  There are bad teams, but even bad teams have good players.  What has to happen is you have to learn to play well together and sometimes the whole can be better than the parts and that has to be our marching orders on how we have to play.”

On tonight’s game:

“Tonight was emotional for the players, but even during the game and at the end there was as much emotion in the new guys as the guys we’ve had all year, so I would say we have pretty good chemistry at this point.  But that’s one game, now we get to play Denver and that’s a pretty good team, so we’ll see where we are.”

On the locker room:

“Our younger guys are standing up.  Nick and those guys are different right now.  Whether they are finally realizing that this is a business, or that if you don’t perform at a certain level things can happen no matter who you are and that you have obligations to live up to, those guys have had a different sense of urgency as far as on the court.  They know there’s not a comfort level.  I think in this league the teams that have success are the ones that play with a sense of urgency.  Even if it’s a team that’s good, there are only so many opportunities to win a championship so you have take advantage of it at that point because it may not come again, so you have to create that sense of urgency.”

On the younger players:

“Just because they’re there that doesn’t mean they are going to play.  They have to play the right way in order to earn their merits.  This way nothing is given to you and you have to earn everything.”

WIZARDS FORWARD ANDRAY BLATCHE

On career night:

“I can’t remember the last time I played 32 minutes and got 22 shots so it was a lot different for me but I stepped up to the job and I took care of my business and I had a lot of great guys around me chipping in.”

On gaining confidence:

“This gives me a lot of confidence.  It gave a lot of our players confidence.  I don’t want this whole thing focused on me because we are a team.  Mike Miller played great, James played great, JaVale played great.  I just happened to catch fire and things were rolling for me.”

On tonight’s play:

“I’m just knocking down the open shots when it’s available and trying to be aggressive on the block… It was a good feeling.  All my moves I have been practicing were working for me so I kept going to them and taking advantage.”

On the fans:

“I don’t want to let them down.  I love it here in D.C., I’ve been here for five years.  I’m going to try to make the organization happy.”

WIZARDS GUARD MIKE MILLER

On his shooting:

“I picked my spots.  I told you from the beginning I’m going to pick my spots.  Fortunately tonight, I made a few.  I got aggressive there for a little bit when the game got close down the stretch.”

On tonight’s game amidst distractions:

“We’re going to play basketball.  The ball was popping tonight, which is a good thing to see.  We played hard.  We got on the ground for loose balls.  That’s what it’s going to take for us to win.”

On moving forward:

“It’s going to take a bunch of us.  Obviously, with where our record is at, we’re going to need to bring everyone together and go out and play hard.  We played hard tonight.  We have Denver on Friday and we’ll be able to test ourselves there.”

WIZARDS GUARD RANDY FOYE

On his expanded leadership role:

“I always try to be in a leadership role as a point guard just trying to be vocal and trying to direct the team in the right way.”

On the rest of the season:

“I think the focus now is to try to go out and win as many games as we can – stay focused on the little things and get the job done.”

On team recording 24 assists:

“The ball was moving.  We got the ball moving around and when guys were open, we passed it to them.  We had confidence in them to knock down shots, especially in that third quarter.  Josh was in the open area – the mid range – and he was knocking down shots.”

On the youth of the Wizards:

“The main thing for us as young guys is to try to get better every day.  You have to know this season is a grind.  There’s ups and downs. There are still 31 games.  The main thing is that we have to understand that we have to go out there every night and try to do that.  Even when you’re not scoring or you’re not grabbing rebounds you have to do other things to make your team win.  ‘Dray did an unbelievable job tonight attacking their guys and getting their bigs in foul trouble.  JaVale did a great job on the boards.”

WIZARDS GUARD/FORWARD JOSH HOWARD

On his first game:

“It means a lot, a whole lot to just come into a new organization and show them that I want to be here.”

TIMBERWOLVES HEAD COACH KURT RAMBIS

On tonight’s game:

“The game did not feel any different for us tonight.  I felt that we had a lack of effort and we were not doing the right thing.  We didn’t get as many stops as we should have gotten.  We didn’t put on the defensive pressure.  We turned the basketball over a lot and we didn’t rebound well either.  In critical moments we did not do the right defensive things.”

On Darko Milicic:

“As of right now I don’t know what to expect from him.  He was drafted pretty high in the draft and he has great potential.  He’s a 7-footer with a lot of capabilities at both ends of the floor.  This is a great opportunity to see what he can do.”

TIMBERWOLVES FORWARD KEVIN LOVE

On tonight’s game:

“The whole game felt weird.  Washington went on a big run, then we went on a big run.  They came back, then we came back, and then Washington pulled ahead for good towards the game.  It was just a weird game.  Antawn didn’t play because of the trade and they made a huge trade earlier in the week.  It was just a little different feel for both teams.”

On Andray Blatche and JaVale McGee:

“Andray (Blatche) and JaVale (McGee) both stepped up and played well for Washington tonight.  After not playing big minutes early in the season they stepped up into bigger roles tonight.”

Postgame Interviews

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Goodbye Antawn, you will be missed!

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JoeG signing off!

No Gilbert Arenas, low win total, a team without an identity.

The Wizards have been treading water for much of the last three years in hopes that Arenas would triumphantly return from multiple knee surgeries to fulfill the $111 million contract he signed to stay with the team. In a show of true generosity, he turned down the $124 million they initially offered him in hopes that they’d sign some good free agents.

He failed to consider that one of his stipulations was that the team retain Antawn Jamison, who cost a paltry $50 million before they even think of offering their max deal. In fact, when all was said and done, it came down to the Wizards trading dead money players and a few draft picks away just to make room for Arenas’ sizable contract.

Suiting up for a different court these days

Arenas is done for the season and likely done in Washington, much like the last two years, only this time it is because of suspension and not injury. Suspension that could have been avoided had Arenas not reverted to childish behavior and tried to defend his actions with his goofballing ways.

All that remains is a move to void Arenas’ contract and the Wizards will have begun the long overdue rebuild.

Players like Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood, and Jamison have become D.C. household names in the last four or five years. I appreciate everything they brought to the Wizards, as do the rest of their fans. But sometimes you have to look past what familiarity has done for the team and toward what it can do for the team in the future.

The group of players assembled over the last few years was good enough for a second round playoff appearance four years ago. It is time to move on.

After talks had gone off and on for several weeks, the Wizards finally made the first move towards rebuilding. They sent Butler, Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson to the Dallas Mavericks for Josh Howard, Drew Gooden, Quinton Ross and James Singleton.

While it may seem like the Wizards got the raw end of the deal, in fact they have made a huge first step towards rebuilding.

As it stands now, only four players are officially contracted for next season, disregarding Arenas. Ross has a player option for next season, Howard has a team option and Randy Foye has a qualifying offer. It isn’t a stretch to think that none of them suit up with the Wizards next season, though Foye has earned a some respect with his play.

Among the players that are contracted for next season are JaVale McGee, Nick Young, Andray Blatche and Jamison. There is still time to make a few moves, but there is one scenario that could prove to be very interesting.

By the way, McGee is a great athlete who has seen very little time in his career. With Haywood gone, fans could be in for a treat if he can hit the ground running and doesn’t lose much time to Gooden.

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Let’s say the Wizards make no other major changes and just play the season out  to the tune of 20 to 30 wins. They win the draft lottery and get John Wall out of Kentucky. Wall runs the point, Young and Foye rotate between point and shooting guard positions, Jamison moves to the small forward spot, Blatche takes the power forward spot and McGee takes center.

How dynamic of a line-up is that?

I know, it is absurd to think the Wizards will stop at trading Butler and Haywood, but they could be an interesting team next season even if they don’t win a whole lot. The Thunder weren’t winning much and now they have assembled an array of talent in Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Jeff Green and James Harden. Guess who has a winning record now?

It takes a few seasons of being at the bottom before you can rise to the top, and this season could be the first step towards rebuilding over the next few years to get those young talented players through the draft. If there is one thing that has hurt the Wizards more than anything it is the draft.

Haywood was the only starter they had drafted and now he’s gone. McGee hasn’t seen much action, Blatche is an on again off again knucklehead, and Young is streaky at best. And Dominic McGuire has a nice spot at the end of the bench.

The best thing the Wizards can do is make moves now so they can be active when the deep free agent pool comes on the market after the season. Even if they don’t get one of the biggest names out there, it’d be nice to see them make a run at someone. The Wizards do not have a future right now because they haven’t drafted it.

With the change in ownership still going through, it is not out of the realm of possibility to see the Wizards shift their management structure to a more traditional approach that utilizes the draft as well as other teams. I for one am still waiting for the team to redeem itself from Kwame Brown.

The Wizards are not going to be good for the next few years. It is better to see a few familiar faces off to greener pastures than cling to the fantasies of what could have been. Butler meant a lot to the Wizards and the D.C. area alike and deserves nothing but the loudest of cheers whenever he steps on the court at the Verizon Center from now on.  I hate to see him and Haywood go, but like any fan I want to see this team win more than anything else.

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The Wizards today began the process of “retooling”. The trade sends out a fan favorite in Caron Butler, one of the best quotes in the locker room in Brendan Haywood, and Soulja Boy’s favorite player Deshawn Stevenson  to the Dallas Mavericks for James Singleton, Quinton Ross, Drew Gooden and Josh Howard.

We will be talking about this deal for the next couple weeks and from everything that is being reported by the likes of Michael Lee, Mike Jones, Truth_AboutIt.net and BulletsForever I don’t believe we are done dealing.

I’m not surprised at all the different emotions coming from fans on sports radio @ 106.7 the fan DC, message boards and the Wizards blog-o-sphere. It’s a bit of a frustrating time for all Washington Wizards fans and it’s not just this trade that contributes to that but the combination of bad news that has surrounded this team in recent months.

While we are talking about bad decisions, our cash considerations got a big fat DNP last night at the Rookie vs Sophmores game while DeJuan Blair and his lack of ACL’s was doing this…

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Now, to your new Washington Wizards…

James Singleton

2003 All-Ohio Valley Conference 1st Team
2004 Italian LegaDue Championship Player of the Year, Forward of the Year and Import of the Year
2005 Italian SerieA All-Star Game MVP

Singleton was undrafted and started his professional career in Italy playing with the Sicc Cucine Jesi (Lega2) during the 2003-2004 season, averaging 20.8 points and 12 rebounds per game.

He received Eurobasket All-Italian Lega2 Player of the Year award. He later signed with the Olimpia Milano (Serie A) team. He averaged 11.5 points, 8.6 rebounds and two steals in 46 games during the 2004-2005 season, helping his team reach the Italian SerieA League Finals. He was named Most Valuable Player of the 2005 Italian League All-Star Game.

During his tenure, Singleton was a fan favorite for his high-flying acrobatics and his tenacious defense.

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Interesting connection in the video below. Sam Cassell critiques one of our newest Wizard when the two where together with the Clippers. Looks like we have might have another prankster on our hands too.

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Finally enjoy a much more entertaining Singleton highlight mix

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Quinton Ross

WAC Player of the Year honors: 2002–03
First Team All-WAC honors: 2003
Ap Honorable Mention All-America: 2003

Another former Clipper who was in LA with Sam Cassell.

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Drew Gooden

2003 Cover athlete for EA Sports NCAA March Madness 2003

2007 NBA Eastern Conference Champions with the Cavaliers

Big 12 Conference Player of the Year

Andrew Melvin Gooden … was nicknamed “The Truth” in college … opened the Drew Gooden Reading and Learning Center at Cleveland’s East End Neighborhood House in September 2005 … won the NBA Community Assist Award in October 2005 … named the Al Lerner Community Service Award winner at the Greater Cleveland Sports Awards in February 2006 … has been named among professional athletes as “Good Guys in Sports” by The Sporting News on three occasions … his father, Andrew Gooden, played basketball in Finland … plays the piano … after his sophomore season in college, played against Michael Jordan at Jordan’s camp in Santa Barbara, Calif.

The Wizards are the 8^th team Gooden will have played for after stints with the Memphis Grizzlies (2002–2003), Orlando Magic (2003–2004), Cleveland Cavaliers (2004–2008), Chicago Bulls (2008–2009), Sacramento Kings (2009), San Antonio Spurs (2009), Dallas Mavericks (2009-2010).

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Josh Howard

Howard spent a year at Hargrave Military Academy in Virginia and then went on to Wake Forest.

Deciding not to forego his senior year at Wake Forest University, Howard became the first member of his family to graduate from college.

He was the unanimous selection as the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) player of the year in 2003 (first since David Thompson in 1975) and led Wake Forest to its first outright regular season league championship in 41 years. He is the second (after Shane Battier) ACC player to amass 1000 points, 500 rebounds, 200 assists, 200 steals, 100 blocks, and 100 three-pointers.

Howard was named the national player of the year by FOX, College Insider and Basketball Digest. He was also a finalist for the John R. Wooden Award and the James Naismith Award in 2003.

In his senior season, Howard averaged 19.5 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 2.1 apg, and 1.5 bpg,and won multiple awards, including ACC Player of the Year, All ACC First Team, ACC All-Defensive Team, and AP First Team All-America.

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Here are a couple of highlight mixes to get you excited about Howard’s athletic ability when healthy.

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and here is one last one with an interesting choice for the musical background

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Before the game I had the chance to speak with Ronny Thompson about a myriad of things from Greg Monroe, to the current Wizards roster, other teams reasons for success and even a little bit about the ownership situation.

For purposes of this game recap I’ll stick with discussion about Monroe. I am a big fan of Greg Monroe and this weekend I posed the question to the twitterverse, “Would Greg Monroe and the Wizards be a good fit?”. The answers were a mixed bag.

Ronny tonight summed it up best saying, “Greg Monroe would be a good fit on any team”. Without getting into all the details of our conversation, as I have to save some things to write about later, the last point Thompson made about Monroe made the most sense and was something I was able to apply to tonight’s Wizards vs Celtics matchup.

Ronny said, “the thing with Monroe is he’s not going to come in and try to be Batman, he will play Robin and that’s why he’ll be successful.” He then added, “Greg will be completely satisfied with a 12 point 11 rebound night, as long as it helps his team win”.

This discussion naturally took us into talking about the Wizards current makeup and I think the one thing we both were very much in agreement about was that this squad as constructed does not have the right balance of players.

The Wizards played a Boston team last night that understands the importance of team ball, role players, star players and listening to their head coach. You consider the Celtics are a team loaded with some pretty big ego’s yet they manage to win a ton of games because they can manage having Uber-headcase types like Rasheed Wallace coming off the bench.

After the game Michael Lee posed a question to Mike Miller regarding the Wizards good ball movement in the first half and lack thereof in the second half.  Miller’s quick response was something along the lines of, “were we winning in the first half, right?” and moved on to the next question.

This is just one microscopic piece of a larger problem. Look, we can harp on all the little things the Wizards don’t do such as not passing the ball enough, taking bad jumpshots, not communicating on the floor, dribbling the ball too long, coming out of time outs with horrendous execution. All of it contributes to the losing going on, but like any other organization in sports, it starts at the top and filters all the way down.

We have a franchise without an owner, a GM who is coming up on the biggest trade deadline this franchise has witnessed in quite some time, a coach who signed up to win a championship with a core of 3 former all stars and a squad who seems to be losing the will to play as the season wears on.

You look at a team like the Celtics and then you look at the Wizards and you can only shake your head and wonder how much longer before we can get this thing turned around?Well, the optimist in me would not have you look at Boston, but the team that helped Boston win its last championship. It’s going to take a rebuild the likes of the Oklahoma City Thunder to get these Wizards turned around.

For the time being though, I guess we’ll have to temper our expectations to getting a three game win streak. Boston was not willing to help us do that last night, so the Wiz move on to NY to see if they can start up a new streak.

- Joe G.

Game Recap in words, pictures and video…

WIZARDS HEAD COACH FLIP SAUNDERS

On the fourth quarter:

“The Celtics bench was big in the fourth quarter.  I think that in the fourth they got extremely aggressive and we missed a lot of shots around the basket.  There is no question that Antawn was bothered around the basket.  I think that a lot of the guys were frustrated, especially Antawn.  We played hard but we did not play as well as we needed to in the fourth.”

On the Celtics:

“I think that everyone on their bench played well.  Tony Allen, Rasheed Wallace and Glen Davis played big down the stretch.  Those guys were huge for them.  Those guys added freshness to the team.”

On Earl Boykins:

“I think that Earl came in and did a great job guarding Rondo.  Rondo was getting where ever he wanted in the beginning of the game and early in the third quarter.  Earl played him at a better angle so we decided to go with him.”

On Andray Blatche:

“I think that he had a great first half.  The second half I think he played hard but he doesn’t have much to show for it because he missed some crucial shots around the basket.  In the second half three shots within six feet of the basket came up dry.”

WIZARDS CENTER BRENDAN HAYWOOD

On the fourth quarter:

“Boston really clamped down during those last six minutes which caused us not to get any real good looks at the basket.  You have to give Boston a lot of credit.  As a competitor you have to play through every play and you can never think that it’s over.  I think whenever a team only scores 10 points you have to credit your opponent for playing good defense, but is also shows that we have to do a better job of executing on the offensive end.”

WIZARDS FORWARD ANDRAY BLATCHE

On the fourth quarter:

“We struggled a little bit, but we had opportunities in the fourth off of their turnovers, but we didn’t convert.  I can’t say that their defense got too much better in the fourth.  I think we all missed some shots that we normally make.  Once the pressure was there we became a little tight with the ball movement.”

WIZARDS GUARD NICK YOUNG

On the fourth quarter:

“It seemed that Boston picked it up defensively.  I felt we had some good looks at the basket but they just weren’t falling.  It seems like a lot of the games have been like that this year.  We had them on their toes, but once it got to the three-minute mark they turned into the Champion Boston Celtics.  We just have to pick it up against New York (Knicks) and get a win.  We are going to get three wins in a row this season…and very soon.”

WIZARDS GUARD RANDY FOYE

On the game:

“Earl did a great job.  He scored and got the team in great sets.  We had a chance to win and just couldn’t pull it out in the end.  I just try to be ready to jump back in the game and stay warm as I can so that when I’m put back in I’m loose.”

WIZARDS GUARD EARL BOYKINS

On the fourth quarter:

“I think we have to give the Celtics credit, but at the same time we were able to run our offense and got the guys we usually do some shots, but we just didn’t execute off of those shots.”

CELTICS HEAD COACH DOC RIVERS

On the win:

“It was a good team win for us.  I thought a lot of guys did a lot of really good things.  Rasheed (Wallace) and Kevin (Garnett) did a terrific job.  I thought the second unit held their own and got us a lead.  We didn’t turn the ball over down the stretch.  We didn’t give up offensive rebounds down the stretch.  We got stops.  It came down to a couple of possessions.”

On holding the Wizards to 10 points in the fourth:

“That’s what we haven’t done.  Our offense has been sketchy in the fourth.  Our defense has been worse.  Today, I thought both things came through for us.  I told our guys with five minutes left that if we don’t score again we have to win the game.  I thought they had the focus on the defensive end.”

On finishing their four game road trip:

“Before the stretch, I thought this would be the toughest of the four in some ways because it was the fourth game.  I thought if we lost that first game it could be a tough road and it ended up being that.  This last game I thought, either way – win or lose – today would be difficult emotionally.”

CELTICS FORWARD PAUL PIERCE

On injuring his foot:

“It rolled over when Caron landed on it.  I think I have a mid mild foot sprain.  I’ll check it out tomorrow and get an x-ray.  I feel good but I did have pain in the foot.”

On the Celtics defense:

“I thought we really grinded it out.  I liked the way we played defense in the fourth quarter, finally.  We haven’t been bringing that same consistency in the defense in the fourth quarter.  Tony Allen really gave us a big lift.  It was great to see him go out there and get extended minutes in the fourth quarter and really come through.”

CELTICS FORWARD TONY ALLEN

On extended fourth quarter minutes:

“Coach put me out there to defend and make plays.  I was fortunate enough to do that.  Caron Butler got going.  My role was to go out there and contain him because he’s a great player.  I think I did a pretty good job of that and we were fortunate enough as a team to clamp down and we got the win.”

CELTICS GUARD RAY ALLEN

On ending losing streak:

“When you lose a couple in a row, the next time you win is definitely a relief.  It snowballs in both directions.  It’s important that when you lose you stick together and get that ball rolling again.”

On fourth quarter defense:

“That’s what we talk about all the time – getting stops and making them uncomfortable.  They hit a couple big buckets and times but I think we still kept that uncomfortable throughout the game.  Antawn never got to his comfort zone.  Caron hit some tough shots but for the most part defensively we at least pushed him out a little bit.”

CELTICS GUARD RAJON RONDO

On ending losing streak:

“We just needed to get a win regardless of the past two games.  We wanted to come out tonight and end the four games in five nights on a good note.”

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