That, however, doesn't mean the 8-32 Wizards are giving up on the season. The second half won't feature a throwing-in-the-towel-type demise in an attempt to better position themselves to win the lottery for this summer's draft, and it won't be an attempt to give their younger players more experience for next year.

"I will not be a part of that," team captain Antawn Jamison said. "We're playing, and we're playing to win."

Said teammate Mike James: "Yeah, the fight's still there. It's got to be there. If it ain't, it's going to be even longer of a season, so we have no choice. We got to fight."