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BRAVEONAWARPATH

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BRAVEONAWARPATH

BRAVEONAWARPATH

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Click on the link to read the rest.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/04/AR2010110407337.html

Andray Blatche finally rounding back into shape for Washington Wizards

Andray Blatche was scoring at will on his Washington Wizards teammates during a one-on-one drill this week in practice. He shook JaVale McGee with an up-and-under-move, darted around Hilton Armstrong and used a nifty behind-the-back dribble to pass Yi Jianlian.

Matched up again with McGee, Blatche tried to make a finger roll but McGee snatched the ball with his right hand and cupped it by his hip before landing. The sequence served as an example of Blatche's ability to score in a variety of ways on the low block, but also showed why he has been slightly reluctant to stay there through the first three games of the season.

"He does not have the same explosiveness that he had last year," Coach Flip Saunders said of Blatche, who is working himself back from breaking his foot last June. "As he continues to get in shape that explosiveness will come."

Since returning a few days into training camp, Blatche has been trying to get his conditioning back to where it was before the injury. He is taking extra sprints after practice, showing up at 10 p.m. to shoot and said he recently decided to remove red meat from his diet. But getting in shape remains a challenge.

Blatche admits that he often has a hard time sleeping at night and rarely closes his eyes before 1:30 a.m. If he's in bed before then, he'll click the remote and watch some television until he dozes off. But staying up late usually leads to cravings for snacks.

"I eat late, that's how I gain weight," Blatche said.

He once could cover for those poor eating habits through extra training, but they became a problem when the foot injury made him more sedentary. It also made his recovery more difficult.

"I hadn't been on the court for four months, so that's tough," said Blatche, who is averaging 15.7 points and 5.7 rebounds this season. "Without basketball, I lost some of my rhythm. I'm trying to gain it back. I'm just taking it a game at a time. Once I get it, I'm going to get back to the type of player I know I can be."

Blatche offered a glimpse of that near the end of last season, when he averaged 22.1 points and 8.3 rebounds over the final 32 games, and earned a three-year extension worth $28 million. But he said he is not seeking to duplicate that production this season now that he is surrounded by more talent, including No. 1 overall pick John Wall and summer acquisition Kirk Hinrich. Gilbert Arenas and Josh Howard will also eventually return from injuries, with Arenas listed as a game-time decision for the Wizards' game against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on Friday night.

Blatche has had to make some adjustments this season, as he regains his form and finds a comfortable role, but said he isn't motivated by detractors who referred to his late-season run as a fluke that came as a result of limited options for the Wizards.

"My thing is this: I'm not here to prove anybody wrong. How they feel about my game, that's how they feel. I'm worried about my team," Blatche said. "If people get mad at me that I'm not getting 20 and 10 every night and we're winning, I don't care. If we're losing, then that's going to be problem. If people get mad that I'm not doing what I did last year, then that means they want me to be selfish. I'm not a selfish player. We have better players, so I have the opportunity to pass the ball more."

After a rough outing in the season opener against Orlando, Blatche is starting to find his groove again, averaging 20.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in the past two games. He had season-highs with 23 points and eight rebounds in the Wizards' 116-115 overtime win over Philadelphia on Tuesday. He provided the decisive points with 7.1 seconds remaining from the foul line, where he made an impressive 13 of 14 free throws.

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

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

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I made a point of watching him Tuesday night. Blatche passed the ball twice the first 12 or so times he touched it. I was calling him the Blackhole (what goes in doesn't come out) all night. And it wasn't like he wasn't passing it cause he was getting nice looks. Hardly. But hey, maybe he felt he had to as Gil and Howard were out. I just know I'm still not sold. And saying the right things means very little. Words are words.

And he still doesn't go up strong. I don't care if he's fat or not. He's always done that and it drives me insane.

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dg28daman

dg28daman

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I made a point of watching him Tuesday night. Blatche passed the ball twice the first 12 or so times he touched it. I was calling him the Blackhole (what goes in doesn't come out) all night. And it wasn't like he wasn't passing it cause he was getting nice looks. \

This is the main reason I can't sell myself on Dray yet either. It's easy to put up numbers by being a chucker on a lousy team, when Gil and Josh come back, that'll show me if he really wants to win, or if what we're seeing is what we get.

Edited by dg28daman
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G.A.C.O.L.B.

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

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The gawd Buckhantz was just on 980. He dropped something I didn't know. A record John Wall set Tuesday night. He is the first player in NBA history to have as many as 29 points, 13 assists and 9 steals in a game. Not rookie, PLAYER. In the third game of his career. Also if he gets 10 assists tonight, he breaks Oscar Robertson's record for assists in the first four games of a career. I'm officially as hyped as I've ever been as a Wiz fan. Hopefully the Curse doesn't kick in :(

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Going Commando

Going Commando

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And the only player I'd trade Wall for is Durant. I think he's going to go down as (at least) the second best player after Jordan. I'm not sold on Howard being a player who can put a team on his back like Durant or Wall can.

I don't think I even need to say anything about Lebron.

Never underestimate Cowherd's stupidity.

But in regards to the part I quoted, put the debate this way:

Durant might go down as the best combo 2/3 ever, second best perimeter scorer ever.

Wall has the ability to go down as the best pure point guard ever.

Now thinking about it like that, which one would you rather take? I think positional importance has to figure strongly into the equation. Perimeter scorers who can give you 24+ points a game are a dime a dozen. There's never been another player like Durant before, but you can get a guy who'll give you close production nearly every single year. PG and C are the two most valuable positions you can build around and there are swarms of good 2s and 3s in the league right now. If I were building a team with the ability to choose from every player in NBA history, my first pick would be Kareem and not Jordan or Bird.

Point guards with no weaknesses and freakish athletic gifts (speed, length) like Wall are extremely rare. Also factor in Wall's youth, precociousness, and leadership skills. He's captaining a team as a 20 year old rookie, two years removed from high school. I think he's the most desirable building block in the league outside of Howard.

Edited by stevemcqueen1
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No Excuses

No Excuses

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Even when Rose and Tyreke Evans came in the league, their jump shots were highly suspect. Wall will no doubt get better and that's why I like having Gil around him. No better person to help learn how to shoot than a guy who practices close to a 1000 shots every practice. For all of Gilbert's problems, his practice and training intensity is something everyone on our team can learn from.

McGee should have a good game tonight. Mosgov is the type of scrub that McGee always dominates. Gilbert coming off the bench but I hope we use him a lot more than Hinrich in the 4th quarter. I just hope that Flip doesn't go full retard with Wall-Gil-Hinrich line up. Thornton has been one of our better defenders late in games.

Edited by No Excuses
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ACW

ACW

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The gawd Buckhantz was just on 980. He dropped something I didn't know. A record John Wall set Tuesday night. He is the first player in NBA history to have as many as 29 points, 13 assists and 9 steals in a game. Not rookie, PLAYER. In the third game of his career.
Those are such arbitrary numbers though. I'm sure he was the first point guard named John Wall who left after his freshman year at Kentucky :pfft:
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Skin'Em84

Skin'Em84

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Those are such arbitrary numbers though. I'm sure he was the first point guard named John Wall who left after his freshman year at Kentucky :pfft:

If he got 10 steals, would he be the first triple double of Pts, steals and assists though?

What do you think the odds of him having a good night like that in the next few years and possibly getting 10 rebounds as well?

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No Excuses

No Excuses

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Thank god for the nba lottery...

never thought i'd utter those words as a wizards fan.

I've never had a problem with the NBA lottery system. I think it's fair that a sport that has the ability to be dominated by one individual sets restrictions on teams blatantly tanking.

I do question whether the process is run fairly or not (not that I'm complaining). Seems a bit odd that we would win the lottery with such low chances. Couldn't have been that it was because an iconic owner died (had great ties with Stern), new owner with huge pockets took over and a potentially big market was on the line. I'm pretty confident that Stern envisioned Leonsis to turn the Wizards into what Leonsis has done for the Capitals.

But then again, one has to wonder why he hasn't helped the Knicks, who are by far the biggest market just waiting to explode again on the NBA scene. Seems like the Knicks just can't catch a break.

Eh, **** the conspiracy theories lol.

Edited by No Excuses
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