"If I thought I was doing a poor job and I thought maybe we should have been better, maybe it would...

"If I thought I was doing a poor job and I thought maybe we should have been better, maybe it would have been different," Jordan said. "But we were not on the same page and this is not the team that everyone thinks it should be. If you’re going to do it for marketing, for fans, and for the media, that’s for the wrong things. Be honest and be sincere about where you are as a team. And as an organization. So it didn’t happen. And that’s how I feel about it."
...
Jordan was asked if he believes Arenas can be the leader that Flip Saunders needs him to be for this team succeed, and he didn't exactly give him an endorsement. . .

"He’s capable of leading them in scoring and he’s capable of leading them in having a presence that’s very competitive and that’s very contagious," Jordan said. "I don’t know if he can be a leader -- I just don’t know that, I’m not saying he can’t be, I just don’t know if he can be."

Eddie Jordan discussing the Wizards both this season and last.

To clarify, the first quote was about the Wizards last season, while the second one about Gilbert was concerning his potential as a leader now. I have to say, I partially agree with Eddie on the first quote, and fully agree with him on the second.

2 months ago cuppettcj 7 comments 0 recs |

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Wake me up if and when Eddie says — for the first time ever — that he was at all responsible for anything that went wrong with his team.

by disgrunted on Nov 24, 2009 11:39 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

caron is the mature one who calls gil to sort it out

gil not showing much in the way of leadership skills.

i’m beginning to think maybe all the critics are right, maybe someone else needs to run the offense so gil can just focus on scoring. he’s grossly oversimplifying the offense in his quotes. i wonder how much more time flip and the organization are willing to give him before they pull the plug on point guard gil.

EJ may or may not be right (although it’s looking like he’s right), but one thing is for certain, EJ never had the slack to experiment with gil running the team. he was on a short leash his entire time under EG. flip is running out of slack.

problem is, no offense to earl, but we have no point guard to run the show if we abandon ship on the current plan. might have to overhaul the offense…

by DarrellWalkerFan on Nov 24, 2009 12:16 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

I don't agree with this

he’s grossly oversimplifying the offense in his quotes.

What makes you think that? If anything, Gil’s making it more complicated.

You know you'll get devoured by Cheaney, Wallace, and Juwan Howard.

by Mike Prada on Nov 24, 2009 12:26 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Oops, reply fail

You know you'll get devoured by Cheaney, Wallace, and Juwan Howard.

by Mike Prada on Nov 24, 2009 12:26 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

caron just needs to catch and shoot...

so gil can get his assists. it’s really all a measure of how many assists gil gets as to whether the offense is working.

Arenas said. "It’s not difficult to pick up the offense… If I want to get Antawn off, just like I did in Cleveland, I just do pick-and-roll. If I want to get Randy the ball, I just call two plays. If I need Mike Miller to shoot, I call the play. Certain people just need certain plays. … Caron, he needs isos.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/wizardsinsider/2009/11/arenas-butler-talk-and-resolve.html

Saunders had success with point guards such as Billups, Stephon Marbury and Terrell Brandon. When asked how much Arenas has grasped his offense on a scale of 1 to 10, Saunders replied: “He grasps it a little bit.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/13/AR2009111303889.html

if the offense is to jack up shots – but only when gil passes you the ball, and only in the scope of four or five different plays, then gil is a master of this offense. i mean, gil really makes it sound like he’s got it down to a science. apparently, the “only” thing he needs a better grasp of is when to take over and when to defer. (yeah, right.)

things like spacing and timing and movement off the ball and setting up the pass. eh. just catch and shoot! or i’m going to takeover until this ship sinks completely.

i say replace the captain. give gil a more defined role. either that, or we’re going to have to be very, very patient. my patience is running out. we can always try to come back to this, but for now i say turn gil back into a gunner and run the offense through miller and butler.

by DarrellWalkerFan on Nov 24, 2009 3:37 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

That "only" thing is pretty damn huge

And he’s basically saying he gets the offense in theory and struggles with it in practice. That’s not oversimplifying the offense at all. (I know because I asked the question).

You know you'll get devoured by Cheaney, Wallace, and Juwan Howard.

by Mike Prada on Nov 24, 2009 4:06 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

yay, you asked the question!

(that’ll beat down any argument.)

that wasn’t the only quote. and i interpret his series of answers differently.

that wasn’t the heart of my point anyway. i don’t concede that he has a complete grasp of the offense in his head (or in theory) but let’s move on.

how much longer are we going to wait until he stops struggling with the offense in practice? do we have more time available to do that? how much more?

again, flip might need to revamp.

by DarrellWalkerFan on Nov 24, 2009 5:20 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs