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The Official Washington Basketball Thread: Wizards, Mystics etc

BRAVEONAWARPATH

By BRAVEONAWARPATH
in The Tailgate

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G.A.C.O.L.B.

G.A.C.O.L.B.

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It's their fan base, not the franchise. It's gigantic despite the fact the Knicks are just as basketball irrelevant as the Wizards were before this season. Pop over to the Knicks board on RealGM and it's the biggest and most active board I think. Either them or Chicago. That's a loooot of masochistic fans. I'm not sure there is anything else quite like it.

I really wonder how the Nets being in Brooklyn is going to affect the Knicks. If at all.

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BRAVEONAWARPATH

BRAVEONAWARPATH

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Click on the link to read

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2310568-john-wall-on-cusp-of-entering-nba-mvp-conversation

 

 

 

John Wall on Cusp of Entering NBA MVP Conversation

 

Behind 24 points, 11 assists and six rebounds from their All-Star floor general, the Wizards picked up their 20th win of the season with a 102-91 victory over the New York Knicks to kick off the NBA's five-game Christmas slate. It was Wall's 17th points-assists double-double of the season and ninth outing with at least 20 points and 10 dimes, both of which are tops in the league.

 

Wall tied center Marcin Gortat for the team lead with a plus-11 point differential, which basically equates to business as usual for the former. During Wall's 1,011 minutes this season, the Wizards have outscored their opponents by 8.5 points per 100 possessions. That net efficiency rating is higher than the ones put up by 29 of the 30 teams in this league.

 

When Wall takes a seat, so does Washington's effectiveness. In the 348 minutes Wall hasn't played, the Wizards have been outscored by 5.8 points per 100 possessions. That net rating would check in at 25th, nestled between the rebuilding Utah Jazz (minus-5.2) and the nine-winLos Angeles Lakers (minus-6.2).

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BRAVEONAWARPATH

BRAVEONAWARPATH

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Click to read the rest

http://www.csnwashington.com/basketball-washington-wizards/talk/after-27-games-wizards-put-starting-five-floor-together

 

After 27 games, Wizards put starting five on floor together

 

NEW YORK -- Just two days ago, coach Randy Wittman spoke of his "dilemma" with Nene, who desperately wanted to return to the starting the lineup but couldn't because of a minutes restriction and needing to have him available for the fourth quarter. For the first time all season, the Wizards had their entire starting five begin a game together.

 

Kris Humphries returned to his role coming off the bench to back up Nene at power forward.

 

"I just wanted him to get comfortable back playing first and I thought it was just time," Wittman said of

 

Thursday's 102-91 win at the New York Knicks. "What better time than Christmas to get him back going? He’s still on a restriction, but I thought it was time to get our units back together and I thought Kris showed how comfortable he was playing with that second unit."

 

 

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BRAVEONAWARPATH

BRAVEONAWARPATH

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Click to read the rest.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/wizards/john-wall-provides-a-lesson-to-other-washington-teams-young-stars-need-time/2014/12/26/11e4f5ec-8d3b-11e4-9e8d-0c687bc18da4_story.html

 

 

 

John Wall provides a lesson to other Washington teams: Young stars need time

 

 

On Christmas Day on national TV, the New York Knicks paid John Wall a big backhanded compliment, a testament to how wonderful he has become. They couldn’t stop him, so they tried to goad and goon him. Quincy Acy, a bruiser off the bench, took a cheap flagrant foul, then stood over theWizards guard to try to instigate or intimidate. Wall shoved back. Acy took a lame roundhouse swat and got heaved.

 

The Knicks admitted that, after watching Wall rain 24 points, 11 assists and six rebounds on them, their only hope for a late comeback was to agitate him out of his normal game or hope he would overreact and get ejected.

 

That’s how far Wall has come. He is second in the league in assists and steals, guards so well he’s in the top 10 in some all-around defensive metrics, scores 18 points per game and leads Eastern Conference guards in all-star votes. Most important, he’s a leader who owns the closing minutes of tight games for a 20-8 team with dreams of the NBA Finals.

 

It took five years.

 

 

Edited by BRAVEONAWARPATH
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Going Commando

Going Commando

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I like Boswell, but it feels a bit like he's forcing it with that article.  I don't think he's kept up with the pulse of the Wizards, particularly during the early Wall years.

 

I NEVER got the sense that the organization wavered on Wall for a second.  They've known they wanted to build around him since they drafted him.  The only controversy about the max contract was with fans, who tended to be on the chicken little side because they hadn't witnessed success in forever and had zero faith in management.

 

The only fans that called Wall a bust were the ones who weren't really watching.  Most of us have been very confident in him since draft day.  The ones on RealGM calling for him to be traded for a Kyle Lowry or whomever are the impulsive tinkerers and delusional arm chair GMs that truly believe they could run a team better than real life GMs.

 

And Wall had holes in his game but never really sulked or had attitude problems or let turnovers effect his night, this part is a stretch by Boswell.  Bad shooting, yes, occasionally effects his level of aggressiveness.  But that's every basketball player except the Nick Youngs and Jamaal Crawfords of the league.  Wall's problems on the court really only came about because he was young and parts of his game were in a natural period of development, and because the team was dysfunctional.  It's hard to be a great PG when you aren't playing with any players with starting caliber offensive skills and it's hard to be a good defender at any position when the whole lineups are a mess and in constant fluctuation.

 

The TO criticism is pretty trumped up too.  That's the kind of thing a non-basketball person would fixate on, as if it were comparable to TO problems in football.  The best ball handlers in the league are the ones who lead it in turnovers every year.  It's part of the job.  You're an anomaly when you are a high usage facilitator that doesn't turn it over well over three times a game.

 

Also, basketball is different than baseball and football.  Unlike in football, creme de la creme talent like Wall has more of a chance to succeed in spite of organizational failures surrounding him.  And unlike in baseball, prospects are not nearly as much of a crap shoot and you can tell fairly early on when a player really really belongs and that he's going to end up being good.  Baseball prospects usually take a lot longer to develop to the point they can just play everyday so you have to make projections that are years and years out.

 

FWIW, I don't get the sense the Nats have ever wavered on Harper or Strasburg either.  Just the obsessive, tinkering, Chicken Little fans like Slateman.

 

The Redskins are the only incompetent, dysfunctional organization in town that's ****ing stupid enough to kill the Golden Goose like they've done with RGIII.

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Going Commando

Going Commando

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Also, Boswell shows some NBA ignorance when he says bad NBA shooters seldom become good.  We're not talking about a 30 year old seven foot center.  We're talking about a 20 year old PG.  Young players always get better at NBA-level shooting and perimeter players that can't shoot have become fantastic shooters over the course of their careers.  Hell, Trevor Ariza couldn't shoot until last year pretty much.  Then he makes 150 threes at over 40%?  Shooting is one of the few things that does regularly improve.  Serge Ibaka is shooting threes now.

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Sticksboi05

Sticksboi05

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Shooting is the easiest thing to improve. It's repetition and muscle memory. Can't teach someone to pass like Magic or Bird. Can't teach someone to see plays in advance like Nash. Can't teach athleticism. Shooting, there's really no excuse if you're not a better shooter by the time you're in your prime.

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Going Commando

Going Commando

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Phil Pressy, had to look him up by his number.

I want to say "blow out win"... But I watched the last game.

 

I'm not liking how the game has been called.  We're playing with a tighter whistle despite the fact we've been the aggressive team.  I can see this keeping Boston around.

Pick and Roll not give and go Cedric Maxwell.  The Celtics should be able to do better than this guy.

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