Let's Never Speak of This Again: Spurs 98, Wizards 67

by Jake Whitacre on Feb 22, 2009 5:14 PM EST in Recaps

Box Score
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Post Recap
Times Recap
Wizards Insider
Outlet
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Big Shot Rog

Highest Plus/Minus: Mike James (-3)
Lowest Plus/Minus: Dominic McGuire (-26)
Best Five Man Unit: Mike James, Caron Butler, Dominic McGuire, Antawn Jamison, Darius Songaila (+5 to start the 3rd Quarter)
Worst Five Man Unit: Mike James, Caron Butler, Dominic McGuire, Antawn Jamison, Darius Songaila (-6 to start the game)

Four Factors

Stats by StatSheet.com

Photo of the Game

(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Game Thread Comment of the Game: "Isn't Finley like 50 years old?" by Matt K

- Yesterday was a busy day fro me so I didn't really get a chance to make the case that letting Roger Mason Jr. go this off-season was still the right move, even though he's having a tremendous year and and the Wizards are having anything but a tremendous year.

Sure, his outside shooting would be a nice asset to have right now, but he simply wouldn't be getting the quality looks that he's getting in San Antonio because Washington doesn't have anyone that consistently draw people into the post and the team lacks a penetrator that can force the defense to move around and allow Roger to find open spots to shoot. He'd certainly make the team better than it is right now, but the reality is that you just can't keep talent around for the sake of keeping talent. At the end of the day Roger just didn't fit financially or with the rotation of the future.

I'm going to be rooting for Roger in the playoffs this year like most of you will, but I still think Ernie made the right move here, even if the early returns don't show that. Remember when some people thought that trading JC Navarro was the wrong move after he went for 28 in his first game against the Wizards? Roger probably won't end up in Spain at the end of the year like Navarro did, but I think we can learn a lesson from that experience about jumping to quick conclusions on personnel moves. Let's wait and see how Nick Young and Javaris Crittenton (who probably wouldn't be here if Mason was still on the team) develop and see how Gilbert Arenas is when he comes back before we say that letting Roger Mason go was a bad move.

- With all of that said about waiting out the development of some of the younger players comes the understanding that there are going to be some peaks and valleys in their development. Case in point:

It took Ed Tapscott about 15 minutes to come out and address the media. After speaking to the team he had Nick Young, Javaris Crittenton, JaVale McGee and Oleksiy Pecherov in his office, "getting in somebody's butt hole," according to Antawn Jamison.

That won't get them the keys to the Palace of Good Play anytime soon.

- In the 4th Quarter, the Wizards only scored 10 points. Call me cynical, but I think if Tapscott would've just let Mike James take the ball up court and fire away from halfcourt on each possession in that final quarter that he would've made at least 4 shots, which would've been good for 12 points. Maybe I'm crazy.

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I agree with the take on Mason

I root for the home town guy just like everyone else, and he had a big game against us last night, but people in my section we’re going nuts, like we had let LeBron go. At the end of day, he’s a good piece to a team that needs role players. It’s not like the guy is going to average 25 and 5 a game.

On a related note though, 0-9 from 3pt? Eeesh.

by AndNone on Feb 22, 2009 6:10 PM EST reply actions

Why the continual abuse of the young guys?

Granted, none of them seem to have played especially well, but still, they didn’t create a 30+ point loss all by themselves. There’s a world of difference between coaching and just yelling. I don’t think Tapscott gets that, and as former Director of Player Development, he really should.

by Bucky Katt on Feb 22, 2009 7:43 PM EST reply actions

Why do you assume that there is abuse and yelling going on?

There are so many assumptions going on around here, particularly concerning AJ and Taps’ treatment of the young players. Seems kind of silly to me, unless someone has some actual information.

by MR on Feb 22, 2009 9:40 PM EST up reply actions

What do you think "getting into his butthole" means?

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

by Mike Prada on Feb 22, 2009 10:35 PM EST up reply actions

I don’t think we can assume it means “continual abuse” and “just yelling” and not coaching.

by MR on Feb 23, 2009 6:51 AM EST up reply actions

Sorry -

Jamison didn’t say they were getting some “additional coaching”….

He was not quoted as saying “they’re discussing the mistakes made in the game, and how to improve”; or that the Coach was “explaining” , or “talking”, or “teaching”, or “reviewing”….

I’m not so sure what Tapscott could have been angry about though. Especially since the four players he called into his office only really played any significant minutes in the last 8 minutes of the game.

And if he’s angry about the young player’s performance in the last 8 minutes of the 4th quarter – then he should be livid with the “veteran’s” play in the first 4 minutes of that quarter – when they went 1 for 5, including 2 missed lay ups, scored exactly 2 whole points and committed 2 turn overs.

Bullets Forever - where "Dagger ! " happens......

by Rook6980 on Feb 23, 2009 8:50 AM EST up reply actions

I don’t know what happened in that locker room and neither do you. Based on Jamison’s off handed comment I think you are assuming a lot. Tapscott’s comments after the game were pretty tame:

“There are nights in the NBA where you’ve got nothing in the tank. Tonight was one of those nights.”

“This is not a time to harangue,”

And he gave the team the day off.

I mean, the guy is not exactly Bobby Knight.

There are a lot of comments in the Bullets Forever echo chamber about fueds between AJ and the young guys and about Taps and the young guys. I haven’t really heard any actual real information that would lead me to believe that those things are true.

I may be wrong, but all I really see is a coach sticking to a moderately hard line with young players. Certainly a lot of coaches like Riley are worlds harder on young guys. What I don’t see is any real reason to think that there is abuse by the coach or resentment by the young players. Perhaps I’ve missed things. Please correct me if I have.

by MR on Feb 23, 2009 10:35 AM EST up reply actions

None of us are in the locker room, but . . .

when you see a report that Tapscott herds 4 of the young guys in a room after a game, and Jamison says Tapscott got in their buttholes, it’s a pretty safe assumption that he wasn’t exactly calmly going over positioning and schemes.

by Bucky Katt on Feb 22, 2009 10:36 PM EST up reply actions

"getting in somebody's butt hole," good line, lol.

Mason is a good player to step in and play that outside role he’s asked to do which I commend him on but Im not crying that he still isn’t on the wizards and did so well against us last night , lol, i guess like some people are. I felt we did really good on defense, especially Songaila and Mcguire, who showed me a good effort, in the first half and a little towards the second until we couldn’t find an answer for Duncan anymore and their outside shooters began picking their spots really well with Mason being their best shooter. Overall they did a decent job defensively just not enough scoring in the second half. The thing I take away from it the most is the job Songaila was doing on Duncan and the defensive effort Mcguire showed as well. Which is why it was so tough to watch the team crumble towards the end. I have to admit tho their bench is incredible and the way they wrapped up the game was exactly the way an elite team like them should win a game against an inconsistent team like the Wizards.

by purpleonblack86 on Feb 22, 2009 10:13 PM EST reply actions

JaVale's offense...

His positioning was really off for the game. If you watch closely, I counted at least two times where he ran to where there was an iso or got in the way of a move and he brought an extra defender to a spot where they shouldn’t have been. I thought he disrupted our flow… granted we didn’t have much of one, but it didn’t help at all.

by Wizards on Feb 22, 2009 10:21 PM EST reply actions

I'd hate to be...

A young player on this team. Jamison has nothing but negativity, Tapscott calls you into his office after his starters, who played the majority of the game and lost this one (it was long over by the time the kids played), and rips you.

When was the last time Antawn was ripped for his defense? Or Caron? Or Mike James?

I am sickened by the attitude on this team that the young’uns are responsible for this crappy season. The vets are playing nearly 40/game, yet never, ever shoulder any responsibility for this debacle.

by YellaFella on Feb 23, 2009 11:38 AM EST reply actions