OT: Wizards in Bad Shape

[Kefka]

Now two games under .500 (27-29), and Jordan's knee injury (surgury showed a tear in the lateral meniscus cartilage in the right knee), what are the Wizards chances of making the playoffs??? Personally I predict Hamilton and Popeye Jones will pull through they make the playoffs as a low seed. Hehe... NBC pulled two Wizards game off their national broadcast schedule.<br /> <br /> <small>[ March 01, 2002, 12:53 AM: Message edited by: Kefka ]</small>

[TennesseeCarl]

Wouldn't it be nice if Kwame Brown hadn't have been the worst #1 pick in memory? And Haywood's been slowly fading into the DNP area on the boxscore.<br /><br /> On a related note, the Grizzlies, with the worst record in the NBA, released Ike Austin. Another one of those great Wizard pickups.<br /><br /> If it weren't for bad luck, the Wizards wouldn't have any luck at all.

[NavyDave]

Kwame isnt the worst pick.<br /><br />If we werent pursuing a playoff run he would get as much playing time as the other highschool kids like at Chicago.<br /><br />Korny heiser and Wil bone keep saying this BS and should be dismissed by Kwame when he breaks out in year three.<br /><br />The injuries to Haywood and Jahidi did cost us in the loss to the Blazers and yet we still almost pulled it out.<br /><br />Atleast this is a young team that wont rollover like our more experienced and wealthy teams in the past.

[bulldog]

As I feared might happen, the Wizards lost their go-to player.<br /><br />If Iverson was lost for the rest of the season the 76ers would be one of the worst teams in the East.<br /><br />Ditto for the playoff hopes of the Celtics if Paul Pierce stepped in a ditch.<br /><br />Let's face it. You lose your #1 player in the NBA and you aren't going to win a championship.<br /><br />And if you are a middling .500 type team it is going to spell disaster.<br /><br />The addition of Jordan and the maturation of Hamilton gave the Wizards a 1-2 punch.<br /><br />Now Hamilton at 24 is on his own. He did put up 31 points without Jordan, but realistically are the Wizards going to get the same scoring, passing and defense from Courtney Alexander that they were getting from Michael? <br /><br />Of course not.<br /><br />Everyone should have known Brown was going to take time, a lot of time. <br /><br />the old adage in the NBA is that big men take the longest to develop.<br /><br />if the Wizards and the fans were in for the quick fix they should have dealt the pick for a veteran as part of a package or selected a player that had some time in college as a backstop.<br /><br />Brown is now 242 and is expected to fill out to 270.<br /><br />He is going to be a much different player at 270. <br /><br />What he is lacking at 19 is quite clearly strength and knowledge of the game.<br /><br />Brown can hit shots in practice. His skills in that regard are not in question.<br /><br />What Brown isn't close to yet is showing a true NBA physical presence on the floor, defending the interior, rebounding the ball against the likes of Karl Malone and Shaq, and then posting up in the offensive zone and knowing how to help set up his teammates.<br /><br />Kobe Bryant didn't do much his first year with the Lakers. If the team's fans had given up on him as soon as the WP 'no nothings' did with Brown the Lakers would not be a defending two-time champion.<br /><br />What do you want? Kornheiser is a New Yorker and followed the Knicks for years.<br /><br />That is enough to warp anybody's mind. <img border="0" title="" alt="[smile]" src="smile.gif" />

[RySkins]

The Wizards have run into many of the league's upper echelon teams recently and have proven that they are not yet at that level.<br /><br />What the Wizards are is a team with one great player in Jordan, one good player in Hamilton, alot of role players who have filled their role perfectly with the team throughout most of the season, and a few young players who are not either physically (Brown) or mentally (Alexander) ready to play at a high level.<br /><br />Without Jordan the Wizards are a team that relies almost solely on their heart and effort to win games.<br /><br />Other than Jordan, the Wizards are a team that is probably greater than the sum of its parts, and I suspect they'll find a way to win a few games and stay within striking distance of the eighth playoff spot until Jordan comes back.

[Kefka]

If you look at the game vs the LA Lakers right after the NBA All-Star game the Wizards were rightfully controlling the tempo of the game. Forcing the LA Lakers to slow down their game and take shots from the perimeter. But, much like our Redskins under Norv, could not hold the lead in the 4th Quarter. I agree w/ you RySkins in that w/out Jordan it will be improbable that they enter the Playoffs, hopefully they do as a late seed.