After taking a few years to get off the ground, we are happy to finally share with the rest of our Wizards Extreme community the launch of our WE Care Program. 

Since being founded in 2006 by Asad and Matt Naqvi, Wizards Extreme has grown our community by thousands of members. Our reach through our network of partners including but not limited to; Bloguin, ComcastSportsNet, and our friends at 106.7 the Fan has allowed us to grow our brand and WE believe it’s now time to give back.

Our charitable arm, the “WE Care Program” began in earnest last night as we donated 4 game tickets and approximately $50 in canned/boxed goods to our friends at the M100 Foundation and Ms. Sinergy at Velocity 5 for DC Central Kitchen. To that, I want to give a special thanks to the Chairman of the Board of the M100 Foundation, Mr. Irfan Nawaz for providing the outlet to start our giving season off right. 

Our next announcement is also an exciting one for us and our growing community. 

In celebration of the NBA’s decision to end the lockout and come back with a 66 game schedule, we at Wizards Extreme believed that it would only be appropriate to announce our own “WE 66 Plan”. 

As part of this plan, Wizards Extreme will donate at a minimum (6) tickets every 6th home game, including playoffs if the team makes it in. (4) of those tickets will go to Children’s National Medical Center, and a minimum of (2) tickets to a future home game will go to Wizards fans who follow us on twitter and on Facebook.

The morning of every 6th home game until the season ends, we will post a trivia question to our Facebook page and the first fan to answer correctly will win 2 tickets to watch a future Wizards game from our personal seats in the lower bowl of the Verizon Center. 

For those who love calendars that means on the following days we will give out a minimum of (2) tickets to a future Wizards game for FREE.…

January 14th, 2012 - January 30th, 2012 - February 29th, 2012

March 24th, 2012 - April 14th, 2012

In addition to the WE 66 Plan, we will also be organizing at least 2 events over the course of the NBA season to give back to the community. We ask, as we always do from our community, if you have a charity or a cause that is near and dear to you, and we can assist, we will do our best to accommodate.

Before we start this 2011-12 season, allow me to take the time to thank you, the fans of the team and members of our community for your continued support.

Our writers, moderators, and photographers do what they do for Wizards Extreme because they love the franchise, they love this city and because your support drives us.

We don’t claim to be the best, we don’t claim to be the “only”, we simply want to be a positive and productive community of Wizards fans.

Again, on behalf of my team and our current members, thanks for your support!

You are probably wondering, "What happen to the content at Wizards Extreme?" 

Well, I have the answer.

We have teamed up with Comcast SportsNet of Washington to have our content posted over on their "Wizards Talk"



So if you come to the page and are scratching your head, scratch no more.  Check out the link, bookmark it, we have our articles/blog/post all over the Wizards section (along with Frank Hanrahan, Chris Miller, and other CSN elites) 

Wizards Talk on Comcast SportsNet

We will update this site through out the season and we will always be on our FORUMS.  

Yes, I said forums, we haven't forgotten how we got started so please check out the WizardsExtreme.com Fan Forum! 

Also, please sign up so you can join the other WizardsExtreme followers to talk Wizards basketball.
 
I want to personally thank EVERYONE from the past who has helped us get to this level and hopefully you are here for the ride.  We have huge plans for 2012, so we look forward to the feedback and support.  

The Washington Wizards will not be using the amnesty clause on Rashard Lewis once the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) is complete, according to Lewis' agent.

For those not caught up in the legal red tape that is the CBA, the amnesty clause gives NBA teams the opportunity to waive one player from their roster and not have his salary count against their cap.  With many teams over the cap, the clause helps because the release of a player helps the team avoid paying the luxury tax.

When the clause was announced, many believed Lewis would be waived given his $21 million salary.  So why are the Wizards not releasing him?

There are a couple of reasons.  For one, the team is under the salary cap so there isn't a danger of having to pay the luxury tax.  They can afford to keep Lewis on the roster.

Second, While getting rid of his $21 million for this season would be helpful in signing other free agents, the crop of available players this offseason is significantly diluted when compared to years past.

Tyson Chandler?  Nene?  Those are two of the top free agents available, so from a fiscal standpoint, it doesn't make sense to rid the team of Lewis and his expiring deal to bring on an above average player for more years and more dollars in the long term.

Lastly, Lewis' expiring $21 million will be an attractive trade bargaining chip in favor of the Wizards.  There will be plenty of teams looking to get under the cap, or to simply free up cap space, and make a potential run at high prized free agents like Chris Paul, Deron Williams, and Dwight Howard.  Washington should be able to continue its rebuild by acquiring young and relatively inexpensive building blocks to surround John Wall by moving Lewis' contract later in the season.

Remember - acquiring Lewis in the Gilbert Arenas trade wasn't done to make him a staple part of the franchise.  It was to shave off a year of having to pay Arenas, and be one year closer to rebuilding the team the way owner Ted Leonsis visions it.  Not using the amnesty clause fits that plan.

 

A few tidbits coming out of Wizards Nation:

Several players have been working out at the Capital Sports Complex this week but plan on moving the workouts to the Verizon Center once it opens on Thursday.

Training camp begins December 9 and will also be held at the Verizon Center, not George Mason (boo).

Free agency essentially began today at 9 a.m. No deals can be signed, and no players can verbally agree to any contract until December 9, however players and agents can begin talking.

With the new amnesty clause in place, the Wizards will be looking to find their best option in utilizing the new rule. If and when the Wizards do make their move with the clause (most likely making Rashard Lewis and his mammoth contract the victim) they will open up some good cap space to pursue some free agents, even if they re-sign Nick Young.

no comments

I thought I had one hell of a Black Friday shopping, but the NBA out did me!  They had the best and biggest deal. 

The NBA has officially announced that the players association and the NBA owners have reached an tentative agreement on a NBA season.  What does this mean?  Well, let's break it down.

- Training Camps and Free Agency begin December 9th

- 66 Game Season

- Season begins with a triple header on Christmas

- The Wizards are slated to play the New Jersey Nets on December 26th if they stay true to the current NBA schedule. 

This still means the NBA has plenty of details to iron out and also means the Washington Wizards have a lotof work to do themselves.  Some of you probably forgot that the Wizards had a good draft as they selected  with the 6th pick in the NBA Draft this past year (before they hit the dreaded lockout), Jean Veseley.  They went on to select two more players, and both of them are considered steals.  With the 18th pick, the Wizards selected Chris Singleton out of Florida State.  Last but not least, with the 34th pick in the 2nd round the Wizards selected the 6`3 point guard from Gonzaga, Shelvin Mack.  

Here is an update on the Wizards situation.

Recently released and available NOW at your local Foot Locker is John Wall's REEBOK ZIG ENCORE basketball shoes.

There is a big chance Wall may not be able to floss these joints on the court this year because of the NBA lockout but at least now YOU can!

The shoe features Wall's "JW" logo on the tongue and his number "11" and signature printed on the ankle.

Check out the images below!

Listening to sports television and radio shows, along with the general consensus of fans, it is becoming clear that the NBA lockout is having a minimal effect on people.  The majority aren't outraged or feeling emotionally tied to one side or the other - be it the owners or players. 

In fact, people really just don't care.

There are several reasons for the lack of concern.  Topping that list is the NFL season which is five games in, followed by college football and an outstanding postseason display by Major League Baseball.  The NHL just began its season and MMA/Boxing are filling whatever little down time there is for sports fans.

It is easy to understand why no one is making a fuss about two weeks of the NBA regular season being cancelled.  Most won't care if it is cancelled through the end of January.

But if you live in a city not named Los Angeles, San Antonio, or Miami, you should be very concerned as a fan of the sport of basketball. 

So now that David Stern has made it official by saying that the first two weeks of the NBA season are officially canceled, let's get the obvious out of the way. What are the immediate effects on the Washington Wizards.

The Wizards lose five games, three at home and two on the road. If no more games are cancelled which is pretty much a pipe dream right now, we are looking at a season opener at Verizon Center against the Boston Celtics on the 22nd of November.

Why so long you ask? Washington would start the season on a four game road trip against the Lakers, the Kings, the Warriors and Nuggets.

Don't worry, there's more.

We now lose 1 of 2 Verizon Center appearances by Dwight Howard, Gilbert Arenas, Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Deron Williams and Kim Kardashian's husband.

As a result of the missed games the Wizards  will only play the Miami Heat 3x (2 - home, 1 - away), New Jersey Nets 3x (1 - home, 2 - away), Chicago Bulls 3x (1 - home, 2 - away), and Orlando Magic 2x (1 - home, 1 - away).

Cancelled Games:

Nov. 2    New Jersey
Nov. 5    Orlando
Nov. 6    @ Miami
Nov. 11  @ Orlando
Nov. 13  Chicago

If the Owners and Players can't figure this thing out in the next few weeks and Stern keeps cancelling in two week incriments, the Wizards would lose 8 more games in the following 2 weeks:

Nov. 15    @ Los Angeles
Nov. 16    @  Sacramento
Nov. 18    Golden State
Nov. 19    @  Denver
Nov. 22    Boston    
Nov. 25    @ Detroit
Nov. 26    Minnesota
Nov. 28    @ New York

Don't get me wrong, I understand the system is broken and it needs to be fixed but this is the first day for NBA fans everywhere to collectively say "this sucks".

Don't worry Mr. Stern, I feel the same way you look....

Check out this latest mixtape over at HoopMixtape.com (courtesy of YouTube).

This video shows John Wall's insane jumping ability for a 6`4 point guard, along with several other NBA Superstars such as a LeBron James throwing down crazy dunks.  This was recorded from the Chris Paul Charity game couple of weeks back.

Check out John Wall throwing the ball off the wall and doing an insane dunk at the :10 mark:



The NBA season could not arrive any faster. 

Follow us at Wizards Extreme and our team @pdgphotography @abdu11ah @JoeGlo1 @Jerfrederick @bballwiz330 @AsadNaqviDMV 

This afternoon the Wizards Guest Services Team sent out an email to season tix holders with an update regarding the ticket policy.

A few highlights and then the actual letter:

• announcement that games through Saturday, October 15th have been cancelled
• Fans investment with the Wizards is protected
• The NBA has determined that customers who have paid in advance for tix will receive interest (1%APR) on funds related to games not played
• Coming into season, the organization focused on protecting the fans by locking them into a 3 Year Guarantee on full season tix prices through 2013-14 season
• Assurances the leagues efforts are focused on reaching an agreement that benefits all parties
• NBA goal is to secure a business model that enables all 30 teams to compete for a championship, compensate players fairly and ensure a world class experience for fans

Now, enjoy for yourselves....

Now that the obvious is out of the way, I can't wait to get my letter from Derek Fisher telling me why the owners are wrong and that the players want what is only in our best interest as well...

Follow us at Wizards Extreme and our team @pdgphotography @abdu11ah @JoeGlo1 @Jerfrederick @bballwiz330 @AsadNaqviDMV