The Official Washington Basketball Thread: Wizards, Mystics etc

[MonkFan8]

If anything the Hickson trade solidifies Cousins spot as the Kings' center for years to come.

Also, there is no way Evans plays the 3. Salmons will play the 3. I actually really like the Hickson move for the Kings and think they could be a pretty good team next season. Their starting lineup is pretty talented and extremely athletic.

The Hickson trade should give us some idea of what people might offer for Andray, and there is no way I'd take a deal like that. Just have to hope Blatche has a good offseason (lockoutlol) and hope he's pushed by Singleton and Vesely, though I don't see Vesely playing the 4 for a few years yet.

[Going Commando]

I think Wall can control Cousins. They played great together at Kentucky and Cousins was raving about how much fun it was to play with Wall at the Rookie-Sophomore game. I wouldn't trade McGee for Cousins though. They averaged the same amount of rebounds and while Cousins did average four more points, he only shot a meager 43% from the field which is abysmal for a C. McGee is also a better shot blocker.

Cousins actually played PF most of last season. He's a rookie and he played fewer minutes than JaVale. His rebound and scoring numbers are likely to rapidly improve, especially as he gets more minutes and doesn't foul so much (JaVale had huge problems with fouls too). His scoring efficiency was down for a couple reasons. First was playing so much PF and shooting longer jumpers (four times more often than he did in college). Second was playing with a very bad PG situation. Like all post players, Cousins needs an elite facilitator to maximize his offensive potential. He settled for bad shots so often, and resorted to finesse moves almost exclusively, because he couldn't get the ball at his spots like he did at Kentucky.

JaVale's scoring probably tails off at 12-14 PPG throughout his career. He's never really going to be a big time scorer. Cousins is going to be one day. He's got legit All Star potential because of it. Cousins is also a lot stronger than JaVale and he's got just as big a reach.

Vesely--Cousins is also a better and more versatile front court combo than Vesely--McGee. Vesely and McGee are very similar types of players and having the two of them on the court together really limits your interior scoring.

[CrypticVillain]

If anything the Hickson trade solidifies Cousins spot as the Kings' center for years to come.

Also, there is no way Evans plays the 3. Salmons will play the 3. I actually really like the Hickson move for the Kings and think they could be a pretty good team next season. Their starting lineup is pretty talented and extremely athletic.

The Hickson trade should give us some idea of what people might offer for Andray, and there is no way I'd take a deal like that. Just have to hope Blatche has a good offseason (lockoutlol) and hope he's pushed by Singleton and Vesely, though I don't see Vesely playing the 4 for a few years yet.

I don't know why Steve keeps on saying Evans is a 3. He might could play the 3, but to me his natural position will always be the 2.

This lockout sucks the big one for real. This has been the best NBA season since Jordan left and they decided to lockout. I just don't understand why these idiots keep on locking out. They are going to mess around and have to go through the government to form these sports leagues if they keep on locking out.

[Going Commando]

If anything the Hickson trade solidifies Cousins spot as the Kings' center for years to come.

Also, there is no way Evans plays the 3. Salmons will play the 3. I actually really like the Hickson move for the Kings and think they could be a pretty good team next season. Their starting lineup is pretty talented and extremely athletic.

The Hickson trade should give us some idea of what people might offer for Andray, and there is no way I'd take a deal like that. Just have to hope Blatche has a good offseason (lockoutlol) and hope he's pushed by Singleton and Vesely, though I don't see Vesely playing the 4 for a few years yet.

I don't think Sacramento trusts Cousins. They've got plenty of insurance at the 5 already between Dalembert and Jason Thompson. They can absolutely move Cousins if they need to.

I think Jimmer factors more prominently in Sacramento's long term plans than Salmons does. He was just tacked on to a bad deal Sacramento took to try and move down to a sensible Jimmer range. He'll just replace Beno Udrih's place on the team, probably as a backup swingman. Sacramento was already starting Tyreke Evans at SF last season. He's bigger and stronger and better than Salmons. He'll start over Salmons and Jimmer probably starts at PG since he's their new golden boy.

All in all, Sacramento is foolishly deconstructing their roster and taking bad deals and making bad picks because their ownership and FO situation is in absolute turmoil and they've got no clear direction to follow.

---------- Post added July-1st-2011 at 01:30 AM ----------

I don't know why Steve keeps on saying Evans is a 3. He might could play the 3, but to me his natural position will always be the 2.

This lockout sucks the big one for real. This has been the best NBA season since Jordan left and they decided to lockout. I just don't understand why these idiots keep on locking out. They are going to mess around and have to go through the government to form these sports leagues if they keep on locking out.

Evans played 3 last year. Marcus Thornton is their 2.

Evans has the body of a 3. He's like 6'6 230 pounds. He's not a spot up shooter with a strong outside game and catch and shoot jumper. He's actually one of the worst catch and shooters in the league. He's a slashing shot creator who puts the ball on the ground. He's either a huge combo guard, or more naturally, a point forward.

Edited July 1, 2011 by stevemcqueen1

[BRAVEONAWARPATH]

Just say no to Cousins.

If you think Blatche is lazy and has an attitude then there's no way anyone should want Cousins.

Weight issues, pouting, cursing out coaches multiple times, threatening to beat up trainers, fights with teammates etc.

No thank you.

[Going Commando]

I think it's reasonable to expect Cousins to behave better here than in Sacramento. I'm not sure how much better, but it could make all the difference in the world.

Sacramento is a very poor situation. Their ownership and leadership structure makes Abe Polin look like Dan Rooney. Their coaches are toothless (and not very good anyway). Their team is comprised of a bunch of inefficient scorers with extremely high usage rates. Their PG is a small forward who can't run plays and just goes one on one for a third of their possessions each game. They're hedging and building redundancy to replace him. They're moving sideways and shuffling to save cash.

This is obviously an extremely frustrating situation for a young and immature player.

Most, if not all of those concerns do not exist in DC. I think we could keep him happy, especially if we find the right coaches to develop young bigs.

If you trade for Cousins, I think it becomes important to find a high character big on the downslope of his career to back him up and teach him how to be a professional.

Edited July 1, 2011 by stevemcqueen1

[Gator Bait]

Evans played 3 last year. Marcus Thornton is their 2.

Evans has the body of a 3. He's like 6'6 230 pounds. He's not a spot up shooter with a strong outside game and catch and shoot jumper. He's actually one of the worst catch and shooters in the league. He's a slashing shot creator who puts the ball on the ground. He's either a huge combo guard, or more naturally, a point forward.

Evans did not play the 3 last year. He played the 1 and the 2. He came into the league as a 1 and then Sactown finally realized he could only go to his right and decided to play him off the ball. Marcus Thorton only started around 20 games for the Kings.....and since when is 6'6 230 a 3's body?????

Typically a 3 is low end 6'7....all the way up to 6'9 +

Where in the world did you come up with Tyreke playing the 3?

[No Excuses]

http://www.sactownroyalty.com/2011/4/1/2085418/tyreke-evans-to-start-as-kings-face-nuggets-in-sacramento

The Sacramento Kings have had a bit of success over the past week playing Tyreke Evans with Marcus Thornton. In some incarnations, the guards play with two forwards and a center. In other, Beno Udrih joins them, effectively making Evans a small forward, where some feel he could be best suited. Tonight, Paul Westphal will go with Evans and Thornton as the guards and Udrih coming off the bench as the Kings face the Denver Nuggets.

Doesn't sound so made up.

Edited July 1, 2011 by No Excuses

[Gator Bait]

http://www.sactownroyalty.com/2011/4/1/2085418/tyreke-evans-to-start-as-kings-face-nuggets-in-sacramento

Doesn't sound so made up.

the kings either played Tyreke with Thorton and Udrih coming off the bench or played udrih at PG with Tyreke at the 2.....the piece you present comes from a local writer who doesn't know what he's talking about (saying tyreke is best suited to play the 3) When the Kings played all three together (which was rare) they would have a classic three guard lineup like they do in college basketball.

[No Excuses]

I'm pretty sure a devoted kings fan knows more about his team than wizards fans. That is only one of several pieces mentioning Evans sliding to the 3 spot in small ball lineups.

Edited July 1, 2011 by No Excuses

[Going Commando]

Evans is the same size as Iguoudala. Paul Pierce isn't very tall either. There are a fair amount of SFs in the NBA about the same size as Evans. Evans is also very strong and has good length/reach so he has the body to contend with the majority of NBA 3s. Evans is bigger than John Salmons is.

Evans's skillset gears him towards SF. He's a slasher, not a shooter, but he also doesn't have an elite first step like smaller combo guards. He's not a great facilitator or floor general either, he gets his assists from going hard to the basket and kicking it out after he's drawn the help. Otherwise he's got an ISO game where he just uses his strength to get to the rim in order to score. He commands high usage rates, he's a bit like Dwyane Wade and LeBron James as a scorer (not as good a shooter as them though).

-- So he can't shoot well enough to play as an off the ball 2.

-- He can't run an offense and is a little big and slow to be a 1.

Lack of a natural NBA position is one of the reasons people were down on Evans coming out of Memphis. He's an NBA 3 by default. The Kings started realizing this at the end of last year and started experimenting with him in this role in the second half.

Marcus Thornton is the long term starting option at the 2 and is the only redeeming result from the K-Mart trade.

---------- Post added July-1st-2011 at 01:17 PM ----------

I'm pretty sure a devoted kings fan knows more about his team than wizards fans. That is only one of several pieces mentioning Evans sliding to the 3 spot in small ball lineups.

Seems like Sacramento will eventually start using Evans a bit like Atlanta uses Joe Johnson. They're really high on Marcus Thornton. John Salmons is probably the 6th man. They'll want to play Jimmer a lot. Four guards that all command high usage and minutes means one of them is going to play SF primarily. Evans is the natural fit.

[Gator Bait]

Marcus Thorton is better suited as the 6th man off the bench. They'll likely pay Jimmer at the point and Tyreke off the ball....eventually the'll realize that Jimmer isn't an NBA PG and he'll get traded. In a league that is headed in the direction of the true point guard (Wall, Rondo, Paul, Williams, Irving, Nash etc.) and someone will get traded.

I actually think there is a possibility that Thorton isn't even on the team when the NBA resumes...he is a restricted FA and someone might swoop in and offer more than Sactown is willing to pay.

[pjfootballer]

Why are you so negative?

This team is headed in the right direction and all you can do is bring up Abe Pollin.

Well, let's start from the begining. I've been rooting for this team since 1977, you know, the only time we've won a championship. Since then, the team has had one "50 win" season (1978- the very next year), have never been past the 2nd round of the playoffs since 1978, consistantly draft in the lottery or the top half of the draft and has never actually gotten better.

Our minds our filled with greener pastures for the future, yet I've been hearing this same song and dance since, well....1980. Bad draft picks, bad free agents, bad contracts, constant injuries and a team that consistantly disappoints year after year will do that to you. Years of watching fans come to the arena, only to root for Bird, Magic, Jordan, Kobe, etc. and not for the home team.

The Pollin reference was in response to the "cool jerseys" article. It seemed like all Pollin wanted to do was sell jerseys and not win championships. He was a good person, but he underacheived as an owner by putting crappy people in charge of the franchise. The writer of the article is more concerned with how cool we look and not concerned with winning.

Pardon me if I'm a little bitter or skeptical of the future of this team. They'll always be the team I root for and I could never root for another team, but 34 years is just WAY too long to wait for at least an Eastern Conference series or NBA FInals appearance. I've maybe watched 3 games in the last 2 years. Not that they are on TV alot here in South Carolina, but I've been pretty apathetic with supporting them. I'm now in a "I'll believe it when I see it mode." Win more than 50 games in a season and MAYBE I'll get excited againg. Until then, it's just the same crap, different year.

Edited July 1, 2011 by pjfootballer

[Going Commando]

\I've maybe watched 3 games in the last 2 years. Not that they are on TV alot here in South Carolina, but I've been pretty apathetic with supporting them. I'm now in a "I'll believe it when I see it mode."

That's all you had to say. Of course you won't see that things have changed and that the future is bright if you don't watch them. You're basing your opinion on past teams that aren't comparable. New ownership and almost an entirely new roster. This team is extremely different from the Pollin years.

[pjfootballer]

That's all you had to say. Of course you won't see that things have changed and that the future is bright if you don't watch them. You're basing your opinion on past teams that aren't comparable. New ownership and almost an entirely new roster. This team is extremely different from the Pollin years.

I keep up with them enough with highlights, being here on ES and online. As far as the games go, I did watch all the summer league games with Wall and Co. Their record the last 2 years speaks for itself. No use in watching them lose all the time. I know it will take Ted a couple of years, but I hate seeing BS articles about how cool our uniforms are. I'd rather read about how we'll win a championship.

[CrypticVillain]

Evans played 3 last year. Marcus Thornton is their 2.

Evans has the body of a 3. He's like 6'6 230 pounds. He's not a spot up shooter with a strong outside game and catch and shoot jumper. He's actually one of the worst catch and shooters in the league. He's a slashing shot creator who puts the ball on the ground. He's either a huge combo guard, or more naturally, a point forward.

I think you already told me this before, if so my bad. It's just the fact that when he won ROY, he was mostly playing the two.

FWIW, I am in the camp of the anti-Cousins. I rather keep McGee.

[BRAVEONAWARPATH]

John Wall scores 41 points in Goodman League debut

Last week, The Post ran an A1 centerpiece on the Goodman League, the summer basketball circuit that has attracted player like Kevin Durant and Gilbert Arenas in recent years. In the story, commissioner Miles Rawls specifically called out a certain Wizards rookie guard.

“The Goodman league is a rite of passage,” reporter Shemar Woods wrote. “Players who want to claim they’re the best in the area must prove themselves on Barry Farm’s court. Rawls wants John Wall, the Wizards’ star point guard, to ‘earn his stripes’ in the league, as Arenas did.

‘He doesn’t have to play for the entire summer, just once,’ Rawls said.”

Well, it didn’t take long for Wall to answer Rawls’s challenge. The guard showed up at the League’s indoor stop at Spingarn High, scoring a game-high 41 points for “Baltimore’s Finest” in a game that also featured Gary Neal, Reggie Holmes, DeMarcus Cousins and Baby Shaq, who has played in every Goodman League game that’s ever been contested.

AFRO sports editor Perry Green wrote about the game here:

Wall, 20, showed off the freak athleticism that made him the No. 1 pick in the 2010 NBA draft, speeding up and down the court to score a game-high 41 points. He even showed off a long-range jumper that he’s been working on this offseason, one of his weaker areas that needed improvement. A few three-pointers in the first half helped Baltimore’s Finest leap out to a 74-56 lead at halftime.

“I’ve been working on it, so I’m getting more comfortable [shooting from range],” Wall told the AFRO. “I just have to keep working and working.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dc-sports-bog/post/john-wall-scores-41-points-in-goodman-league-debut/2011/07/04/gHQAEt9IyH_blog.html

Edited July 5, 2011 by BRAVEONAWARPATH

[CrypticVillain]

I knew I should have went to that game, somebody told me that the games at Spingarn weren't official Goodman league games, so I didn't go. That would have been my first time seeing John Wall ball in person. :doh:

[Rocky21]

You have to hand it to John Wall for playing at Barry Farms. No better way to feel like a local.

And how do you become the AFRO sports editor? I'm jealous.

[BRAVEONAWARPATH]

agentzeroshow Gilbert A. aka Jefe

RT @brob94: @agentzeroshow dou still have love for the DMV?!

1 July

agentzeroshow Gilbert A. aka Jefe

of course the dmv raised me and let me grow..showed me nothing but love even in the dark times...do the same for Jimmy Wall

1 Jul Favorite

[Quincy]

Lol Jimmy. Arenas is channeling R-Truth?

Edited July 7, 2011 by TheCool47

[RichmondRedskin88]

Lol Jimmy. Arenas is channeling R-Truth?

Whats Up?!!! Whats Up?!!! Whats Up?!!

[BRAVEONAWARPATH]

Lol Jimmy. Arenas is channeling R-Truth?

John Wall's nickname is "Jimmy". :2cents:

Its also his twitter name: http://twitter.com/#!/jimmywa11

[Quincy]

Ah, that makes more sense. I always have too much wrestling on the brain.

[No Excuses]

In actually relevant news, it seems like Wall's outside shot is improved by quite a lot. If he can become an average to good shooter, it's going to be damn near impossible to guard him.