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John Wall, Big Z Highlight Predicatble Wizards Loss

T Lamont — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 16:58:43 +0000

After the Miami Heat suffered a surprising loss in Cleveland, they headed to Washington.

Clearly, D.C. would have to be at the top of any teams’ list of preferred destinations following an unexpected defeat. While Miami didn’t look sharp in this contest either, it turned on the jets in the fourth quarter and left the Wizards in the dust.

But what the Heat did not anticipate was that they would have a fight on their hands – literally. In the second quarter during a Miami possession, Zydrunas Ilgauskas had just received a pass from Eddie House at the free-throw line extended area. Washington center JaVale McGee got a quick hand on the ball and tipped it away, however, Big Z quickly recovered, and was protecting the basketball with both arms elevated and elbows pointed. Wizards point guard John Wall, who was covering House, saw the ball slapped loose (by McGee), and vacated House to apply some pressure to Ilgauskas.

The rest was history.

Predictably, Wall and Z got ejected from the game.

Sure, Wall was clearly fired up about getting clocked with an elbow. And he was probably even more fired up when Big Z continued to keep his elbows in his (Wall’s)face.

But as I continued to watch the video, I couldn’t stop laughing for a few reasons…

Wall Getting Pushed Around Like a Rag Doll – After stinging Big Z’s ribs with an MMA-style forearm, Wall proved that he wasn’t going to back down from Ilgauskas. Although the rookie didn’t back down, in the technical sense, he was clearly a push-over. Seemingly, with the might of about 40 mortal men, Zydrunas moved Wall back about 6 feet without even extending his arms. Imagine a kangaroo trying to wrestle a grizzly bear. Yeah.

Howard and McGee – Juwan Howard has a reputation for protecting his teammates. And now, he has a reputation for being a fake tough guy. As JaVale McGee comes to the aid of his teammate, Howard comes out of left field to take a cheap shove at McGee. Now, watch the two carefully for the next seven to eight seconds. Did you see it? Howard definitely broke free and had a chance to do something. Obviously he wasn’t as mad as he looked.

JaVale McGee’s Boxing Stance – After getting surprised by thatshove from Juwan Howard, an official made sure that the two didn’t re-engage physically (although they could have). But McGee backed up a bit and started what appeared to be a Mohammed Ali shuffle. Nice job JaVale. Perhaps we can’t get this video over to Wall so that he can know what to do the next time that he tangles with a super-heavyweight.

But, oh no, the humor doesn’t stop there. Check out this post game interview with John Wall. Make sure you watch it all the way through.

Did someone fart at the 0:56 mark of the video? Apparently, the culprit tried to sneak it in during Wall’s response to a question, but didn’t consider that he could speak and hear at the same time. Busted.

Another 16-point loss by the Wizards, nonetheless, an entertaining night of basketball in the nation’s capital.

Cavs Making History…Without King James

T Lamont — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 14:16:48 +0000

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The Cavs, once a nightly staple on SportsCenter, have become just that again, but for all of the wrong reasons.

Monday night, the Cleveland Cavaliers lost their 25th straight NBA game – all in the same season.

That’s something that no other team has done in the history of the league.

Reflections on the Cleveland organizationduring the King James’ regime revealed what many people didn’t want to believe – that LeBron was an overworked slave. The proof is in the pudding, which would be the team’s lack of success this season.

But a struggle was suspected. A catastrophe – maybe not. But should it have been?

It’s amazing to fathom. This team, which won 127 games in its last two full regular seasons, was hinged on James being a part of the organization indefinitely. And now, what has developed is what happens when a team of role players – none of whom have an ability to create a shot for himself – tries to compete in a league saturated with players who have that ability (particularly given that most of the players grew up imitating Michael Jordan).

Unlike other futile teams, the Cavaliers are unable to put one consistent mismatch on the floor. A starting unit which includes Ramon Sessions, Anthony Parker, Christian Ayenga, Antawn Jamison and J.J. Hickson is very troublesome, indeed. On pure adrenaline perhaps, the Cavs stormed out of the gate to win seven of their first 16 games. Albeit, Mo Williams and Andersen Varajeo were healthy, it was still quite stunning to see their early season success. But upon further examination of Cleveland’s lineup, one would have to wonder…

How much longer can this losing streak go on?

Dejected looks on the faces of Cavs players have been a common sight this season.

At some point, the Cavs will break this infamous streak, but it won’t be a predictable event. Every other team in the league has at least one dynamic, All-Star caliber player. Minnesota has Kevin Love. Sacramento has Tyreke Evans. New Jersey has Devin Harris and Brook Lopez. Even Toronto has 20-plus point scorer Andrea Bargnani, and budding star DeMar DeRozan. On the front of a consistent lack of success this year, the Cavs can only be matched by the Washington Wizards on the road. The Wizards have lost every game they have showed up to play away from home, dropping their first 25 games. Thus, the date of February 13 versus Washington (at the Q) has been circled as a possible end to the Cavs’ streak. But it more likely may be an end to Washington’s streak. The Wizards have actually posted an above .500 record at home (13-12), and indication that they simply need maturity and the requisite mental toughness to compete on the road.

And unlike the Cavs, they have direction in the form of a highly touted draft pick (John Wall) and some talented pieces (Nick Young, Andray Blatche) whom they feel will aid them in an attempted return to respectability.

But at the conclusion of this season, Cleveland should have a stranglehold on being the team with the highest probability of attaining the top pick in the 2011 NBA Draft.

And all of a sudden, the Cavs are back where they started eight years ago.

“With the #1 pick in the NBA Draft, the Cleveland Cavaliers select…”

Who will it be this time? Unfortunately for them, it won’t be another LeBron James. The road back to contention will be much longer, and will include more than one lottery pick.

But for Cavs’ fans, hopefully, it won’t include many more historical feats like the current one.

Magic Make Pressure-Packed Trades for Turkoglu, Arenas

T Lamont — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 04:19:26 +0000

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One week before Christmas, the Orlando Magic were feeling the pressure.

Two seasons ago, the Magic made a surprise appearance in the NBA Finals. That year, Orlando dispensed of two teams who fans gave a better chance of advancing to the Finals – the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics (albeit without Kevin Garnett, who was injured at the time). The team from South Florida did it with relative ease, earning a championship date with the Lakers. Although they were unable to cash in on the ultimate prize, a line had been drawn in the sand. The expectations were high, and fans and analysts began to tag the Magic as a franchise to reckon with for the forseeable future.

But what happened next? The business of the National Basketball Association took priority over the continued development of the franchise.

Much of the team’s dismantling came at the hands of Hedo Turkoglu. He was the driving force behind Orlando’s postseason surge in 2009 and, predictably, was in the final year of his contract. What Turkoglu did was no different from what players do frequently – outperform their normal standard level of play, and make a splash in the free-agent market. And the Turkish import did just that, landing an overpriced, 5-year, $53-million deal with the Toronto Raptors.

The Magic, realizing that they now had a playmaker void on their roster, traded for the athletically talented, poorly driven Vince Carter. While he and Dwight Howard might have been a match made in video game heaven, the promise that general manager Otis Smith hoped for never materialized. Orlando perhaps experienced its worse nightmare – that their decision to let Turkoglu walk had turned around and bit them on the backside.

Yesterday, they banked on yet another hope – that the franchise could rekindle the magic that existed when Turkoglu was on its roster. Orlando made two notable trades, and let’s take a look at the potential impact of each one:

Magic get Turkoglu, J-Rich and Earl Clark for Vinsanity, Pietrus and Gortat

Jason Richardson, doing what he does best these days...

Otis Smith gets his man (Turkoglu), but the cost was way too steep. Let’s just assume that Turkoglu was still playing at the level that he did when he left Orlando. In that case, this deal would be understandable. However, even if Orlando got the old Turk back, what the Magic coughed up for him may have still been considered a bit too much.

At this point, we’d be safe to ignore the unproven Earl Clark in this transaction. In addition to Turkoglu, the Suns gave up Jason Richardson for the combination of Vince Carter, Mickael Pietrus and Marcin Gortat. Carter and Richardson are high-flying, 3-point shooting scorers who have very similar styles…and in the same offense, should produce very similar results. Right now, that looks like a fairly even swap. But the deal gets sticky from here.

Turkoglu for his former teammates Pietrus and Gortat? That’s basically trading one skill set for another. In the long run the Magic have to ask themselves “do we have anyone on our roster who will attempt to play tough defense against a player like LeBron James?” They did until yesterday. Or perhaps they need to ask themselves “do we have another capable big who knows our system to back up Howard?” Once again, they traded that person away. Pietrus, in particular, is an effective two-way player. His long-range ability also adds a great fit as yet another floor spacer, which is one of the biggest assets on a team built around a bruising center. But since Stan Van Gundy had limited playoff success last year without Turkoglu, he may be willing to part ways with the team’s existing offense to adopt a different scheme. Seeing that Hedo was money on pick-and-rolls, the team may revert to more movement.

Magic get Gilbert Arenas and send away Rashard Lewis

The universe – or at least those in the Washington D.C. metro area – were wondering when the other shoes was going to drop for the Wizards. Washington finally got rid of the high-priced shoe, and they managed to get a fairly good return (as far as talent level goes). So from Washington’s perspective this deal was a must because it allows them to get help at the small forward position (and based on the matchups, possibly power forward), while enabling sharpshooter Nick Young to get more guaranteed burn.

It’s a little more baffling from Orlando’s perspective. Van Gundy will need to quickly decipher how, when and where he will play Agent Zero. Orlando has more traditional positional players filling the point guard (Jameer Nelson) and shooting guard (Jason Richardson?, J.J. Redick)spots, therefore, it remains to be seen as to whether Arenas will be providing firepower off the bench. But one thing about Gilbert – he will be much more assertive in key moments than VInce Carter could ever dream of. And that may be the single attribute that was imperative to the Magic.

Can Arenas' game-changing abilities make Orlando forget about Rashard Lewis' big shots?

Overall Assessment: Orlando may have hurt itself. Over the past year and a half, there’s no evidence that Hedo Turkoglu even remembers how well he played when he was a member of the Magic. Can he really pick up where he left of at the drop of a hat?

The separate deals seems to be solely focused on one aspect of the game – offense. Neither Arenas, Richardson nor Turkoglu pride themselves on defense, yet they got rid of two tough guys who did – Pietrus and Gortat. The new offensively minded players come into town to complement a roster that is already heavily offensive. Including Matt Barnes over the summer, Orlando has now parted way with three key defensive-minded role players.

Is it any wonder why Van Gundy can’t return this team to greatness? Can a team really expect to dethrone the Celtics without rugged defenders? How would Orlando plan to thwart the superior athleticism displayed by the Heat’s trio of James, Wade and Bosh?

With these deals Orlando may have wielded their wands, but it’ll take some real magic for this new unit to achieve the desired goal of an NBA Championship.

It’s Clear…Arenas Wants Out of Washington

T Lamont — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 01:27:05 +0000

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A few games into the preseason, Gilbert Arenas has clearly been shown the writing on the wall…as in John Wall. And, of course, he doesn’t like it.

The Wizards’ selection of #1 NBA Draft pick John Wall was predictable, and they were hoping that Arenas could handle the demotion of not having the ball at his constant disposal like the professional that he has never been. Well, so far he has been unable to do that.

Arenas sat out of last night’s game against the Atlanta Hawks. Knowing that veterans usually don’t lace them up (and if they do, they don’t go hard) in preseason contests, this alone was not a surprise. However, when asked about his absence from the lineup, here’s what the $111-million-dollar man said:

“I told (Nick) I’d sacrifice playing tonight so he can get some time in because I know he’s kind of frustrated he’s not getting a chance to crack the 3 position, especially since we’re going three guards. So I told him I’ll go and fake an injury or say something’s wrong with me so you can start.”

On the surface, this seems to be on par with the traditionally peculiar behavior of Agent Zero. But digging a little deeper would allow us to notice that Arenas was also an inconsistent participant in Washington’s training camp, missing three of the final four camp sessions. Gilbert cited a sore leg and a sprained ankle as the ailments keeping him out of action of those occasions. Nonetheless, Wizards coach Flip Saunders said that Arenas was fined for his revealing, yet truthful remarks (after all, he lied to Saunders about his status).

Arenas did play in the team’s first three exhibition contests, and did what was asked of him. He played his part in the offense, running off of screens (a la most shooting guards) and preparing to catch and shoot or attack off the dribble. But it was also easy to see that Arenas was simply going through the motion, and was a bit disconnected from the emotional, motivated play that drove him to superstar status early in his career.

Arenas has put in a lot of hard work to get to where he is today.

Last night, Arenas was unable to check his ego at the door of the Verizon Center. Instead of focusing on developing chemistry with the team’s new point guard stud, Gil would rather pass that opportunity to someone else – someone who is not commanding one of the biggest salaries in the NBA, as he is. In the blink of an eye, Arenas had abandoned what initially made him special. Beginning in Golden State – after being selected early in the second round (and consequently, not receiving a guaranteed contract) – Gil fought for what was his. He had the utmost belief in his ability and proved it with his play on a struggling team. The Wizards put their trust on the line by offering a talented, but ultimately unproven, guard with the chance to lead their franchise. The journey from Arizona to Golden State to Washington had many obstacles along the way, but Arenas accepted every challenge and conquered them in his own, mercurial way.

Arenas has entertained us with his flashy personality, edgy behavior and refreshing honesty. And some might feel that Tuesday night’s incident was no different. But in some manner, Wall’s immediate ascension to franchise player is irritable to Arenas – and his latest reaction was the only way that he knows how to handle such situations…jokingly.

Washington’s new center of attraction, Wall, is enjoying a productive preseason – and has done nothing short of dazzle onlookers. Along with veteran newcomer Kirk Hinrich, the rookie Wall has been elected as captain of the team. The organizational shift towards youth seems to be a battle that Arenas is unwilling to fight. The Wizards have had unfulfilled seasons over the past few season – each one with the hope of a return to All-Star form by Arenas. Each time, the team’s hopes have gone up in smoke.

Arenas is not naive, and his history demonstrates that he is not one who is unfamiliar with the business of the NBA. He is simply playing the hand that has been dealt. And after receiving a hand that isn’t to his liking, he is about to fold and take his chances with another hand.

But Arenas had better proceed with caution. After all, who knows how many hands are willing to take a chance on him.

Wizards Win NBA Draft Lottery

T Lamont — Wed, 19 May 2010 04:30:55 +0000

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If a franchise is fortunate, a year of futility can be a good thing.

The Washington Wizards, who held a 10.3% chance of landing the top pick in June’s draft, won the NBA Draft Lottery tonight. This will mark the second time that Washington has landed the pick.

And we all know what happened the first time. That’s right – we were introduced to the abysmal Kwame Brown…courtesy of the greatest player in the history of the NBA. How ironic.

But this year’s projected #1 selection appears to be a little more of a sure thing. Kentucky guard John Wall – a multiskilled athlete with great floor presence - will join the recent influx of talented playmakers in the NBA.

John Wall would make scoring a little easier for Andray Blatche.

The 2009-10 season proved to be a real test for the team from the nation’s capital. The Wizards entered the campaign amid lots of excitement as this year figured to be the first in some time that Washington would field a fully healthy team out on the court. But the team didn’t play up to level that was anticipated, and injuries began to slowly take pieces away from the puzzle.

The biggest headline came late in 2009, when Washington’s star player, Glibert Arenas, got into an altercation with guard Jarvis Crittenton involving guns. Gilbert was suspended for the remainder of the year, served some time, and the Wizards went into free-fall mode.

Their disastrous season has them poised the pick the most talented player in the draft. They still have the dangerous (in more ways than one) Arenas on their roster. Josh Howard, who saw little action due to an injury immediately after the Wiz acquired him, has great length, athleticism and versatility. With some impressive scoring and board work late in the season, Andray Blatche proved that he will not be the next Kwame Brown.

So, there’s a lot for D.C. to look forward to – starting with a can’t miss selection that even Washington won’t screw up.

Well…maybe…