Links: Final Word On Andray Blatche, Chris Singleton, Jordan Crawford Come Home
by Mike Prada on Dec 28, 2011 12:04 PM EST
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PrintSome leftover links from yesterday.
- Jason Reid of the Washington Post threw a haymaker at Andray Blatche, saying he's ill-fitted to be a captain and calling out the organization for enabling him. The "captain" stuff is overrated to me -- it's just a ceremonial title -- but the point still stands since clearly the Wizards want Blatche to be a leader. Reid hits hard and below the belt sometimes, but it's what he does. [Washington Post]
- Sites to read before tonight's game against the Hawks. [Peachtree Hoops | Hoopinion | SB Nation D.C. | SB Nation Atlanta]
- The Hawks apparently made an offer for Dwight Howard that will never see the light of day. [True Hoop]
- Wizards players respond to Dray-gate. [CSN Washington (Video)]
- Chris Singleton and Jordan Crawford have a homecoming tonight, so to speak. [Washington Times | Truth About It]
- Speaking of Singleton, gotta love his quotes here. [Wizards Insider]
- The TNT crew talked about JaVale McGee last night. Here's a transcript. [We're Off To See The Willards]
- Linked this in the previous post, but a cool look at the way the Wizards defended Deron Williams' "S" cut on the pick and roll. [Truth About It]
- Here's the first episode of Wizards Magazine. Worth watching. [Wizards.com]
- A Hawks-Wizards history lesson. [Bob Rathburn]
- No, Hamady Ndiaye can't fit into a Mini [DC Sports Bog]
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TNT Crew on McGee
They hit the nail on the head. If Javale had just a few basic back-to-the-basket post moves,( like a drop step, or an up-and-under move ala Kevin McHale, or a jump hook), he would be unstoppable offensively.
Do the Wizards have a Big Man coach? If not, why dont they hire someone?
Charles sounded downright surprised that Javale isnt better than he is
Ted said it’s up to the organization to make the players better, so maybe it’s time Ed Tapscott’s job was finally on the line…there is very little player development going on.
correction: we have been saying this since Tapscott was the interim coach
the way he treated them while coaching, we couldn’t see how he developed players. He was awesome with his quotes before games but not coaching during the game.
i thought he would be back tonight?
And by back I really mean debut
by no more kwame's in dc on Dec 28, 2011 12:50 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
I thought I heard he wasn't making the trip to ATL
but perhaps (and hopefully) I’m wrong. I know Mike had this post https://twitter.com/#!/CraigStouffer/status/151734816361021440 by Craig Stouffer saying he didn’t practice as well.
wow that sucks
He was my favorite player from that awful preseason game. I was looking forward to see him play. And potientally, although not likely, take the starting spot from Lewis. I really like singelton commingle off the bench with Booker to provide that deffensive spark we need off the bench
by no more kwame's in dc on Dec 28, 2011 1:27 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
I had no idea Singleton was so big
that kid is a tree trunk and it’s damn impressive you can throw him on Deron Williams or any PF
I know!! Its scary the way he plays d. And he’s faster than I thought. He can be special and he was the steal of the draft at 19th
by no more kwame's in dc on Dec 28, 2011 1:35 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
That was my impression of him too when I went to Fan Fest
I was like dang this dude is legit big.
I'm a Wizards fan. We've been trying to tell you about Lebron for years. Hated the man before it was cool.
Follow @Dylan___V
by returnofswagger on Dec 28, 2011 2:45 PM EST up reply actions
Singleton appears to be everything people hope Vesley is.
which really makes me question EGs draft strategy doubly so, but at least this means Jan can sit out as long as he needs to and get 100% healthy, no pressure to rush back.
by DCrez on Dec 28, 2011 1:13 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
i love singleton but i think vess can surprise ud
He looked like he knew what he was doing that first preseason. One of the couple bright spots of the game
by no more kwame's in dc on Dec 28, 2011 1:33 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Why would this make you question EG’s draft strategy? I’d say getting Vesely & Singleton is a much better combination than Singleton & another player @ 18. Who else was available at pick 18 that really looks like a solid NBA prospect? Kenneth Faried, maybe, but that’s about it. I’d say EG worked the 2011 draft about as well as could be expected.
if you did not expect much
we are desperate for help in the front court and have been for years
by les boulez bomber on Dec 28, 2011 4:15 PM EST up reply actions
Again
who was available at pick #6 and #18 that would have been better picks than Vesely and Singleton..?
Where is the franchise big man you cherish in that draft?
Bismack Biyombo?
Nikola Vucevic?
Should Ernie have traded up to get Jonas Valanciunas and then wait a year for him to come over?
Should Ernie have traded away all our #6, #18 and our first round pick in 2012 to get Kanter?
Easy enough to SAY the Wizards need help in the front court – harder to actually draft a player that fills that need…..
Which solution would YOU have picked?
I used to have super powers until my psychiatrist took them away.
i've been on record forever saying Markieff Morris over Vesley
but as to the query above, the team desperately needed(needs) shooting and rebounding but Ernie used both our 1st round picks on ostensibly the same player. Everything that people will call a success from Jan this year is something that Singleton can probably do just as well, or even better. Or you could call it vice versa and say Vesley does all those things better than Singleton. Doesnt matter, either you way you have 2 rookies competing with each other to bring the exact same thing to the table while not having addressed the shooting and rebounding the teams needs.
And that doesnt even begin to address the fact after using two 1st round selections on PFs, the players chosen don’t limit talk of drafting yet another PF next season…..on top of the fact that after a promising rookie year, one could argue Booker fullfills the exact same defense/energy role that is expected of Jan and Singleton this year. I dont see the logic.
at any rate, Singleton looked really good the other night, and that’s a positive regardless of anything else
he had no idea singleton would be available when he took vesely
those guys will both get an appropriate amount of minutes – assuming vesely’s career isn’t over due to this minor hip injury. heard that one before.
by DarrellWalkerFan on Dec 28, 2011 5:05 PM EST up reply actions
taking Vesley should have eliminated the need for Singelton
if EG has faith in his own multi-year scouting of Jan anyway. Or perhaps he should have taken Singleton 6th, it wouldnt have been considered a reach and then gone with Faried or maybe a shooter. Or maybe he should have thought that Booker brings the defensive intensity and rebounding we need anyway, so drafting 2 more SFs that cant shoot or handle the ball doesnt make sense.
Look at the shooters on this team, it’s a short list and one of them could have been signed elsewhere leaving us with only broke-down Rashard as a perimeter shooter. Sorry, that is atrocious roster construction imo.
but what if he targeted Vesely and thought Singleton at 18 was a steal
don’t you take the best player available regardless of position?
At this point
its all about assets. You stockpile your young cheap talent and hope that enough of them show enough potential to be worth a semi-elite player if that guy becomes available.
The artist formerly known as ledellforlife.
unless they take forever to develop and you cant gauge what you have when their contract is up and offer 5mm for a guy going for 8-9mm and 6mm for a guy not worth 1mm…and you lose the good player to free agency and cut the bad player and are stuck scratching your head trying to figure out which of you two 3s you drafted can play 2 or 4
by les boulez bomber on Dec 29, 2011 9:27 AM EST up reply actions
their record speaks for themself. there is nothing i can add that is not already painfully obvious
by les boulez bomber on Dec 29, 2011 9:21 AM EST up reply actions
1. You speak as if depth and competition are bad things.
2. They’re both SFs who can slide over to PF (and in Singleton’s case, SG)
3. We need defense (across the board) as bad as we need a shooter on the wing.
4. Singleton should turn out to be a three point specialist.
As I said repeatedly last year …I would have looked to combine picks, take back contracts and swap players for a front court player with pick 6. I liked Williams, Kanter, and Jonas for us.
If the price was too high and I could not make a deal, I would have drafted the best front court prospect at #6. I know there was no superstar prospect waiting there. But this team can neither defend inside nor rebound and they are painful to watch. JVM contract is up in six months; we knew that last year. I would have looked for some front court insurance even if it were not a center and not go into those negotiations with no viable options like EG is doing. If we lose JVM, we have neither a starting 4 or 5 thats young who is sized right for the position. And with AB likely out the door this season, which we also can pretty accurately project, we will not be able to fill both positions with one pick like we need.
Vesly was too raw at #6 for me. He might turn out good, but he did not have visibility with me and was a stretch pick.
At 18, Singleton was my top choice hands down from your good work, and if he was not available, I would have gone with the top rated prospect at 2-5.
We have major projects with all star upside with Wall and McGee. You can not have a team loaded with projects. Pick two upside ones and focus developing them. We will have a third to develop in the lottery next year. That is enough. The other players on the roster should be like NY and Singleton if they are young or Roger Mason and Turief if they are veteran- guys who will do what you ask them to do consistently even if they do not have all star upside
I dont really think it is that tough. You just dont know if you can pull off a trade. I think the tough part was drafting Vesly who had limited film playing against unfamiliar competition out on the wing when he doesnt rebound, defend or shoot and those are the things we need. I would not have included him as a core piece because we already have wall and hopefully JVM continues progressing and we had another shot next year at a potential all star with a lottery pick in a deep draft.
by les boulez bomber on Dec 29, 2011 9:19 AM EST up reply actions
I think JaVale is absolutely a part of the future
No shot at Andray but he should be backup and not a starter. Hopefully the PF deep 2012 draft will be helpful in getting the Wiz solid rebounding and a post presence. With a strong PF in place plus Wall and McGee the Wiz get the offense they need and take some of the burden from Wall. Get a SG in the off season if NiYo is not part of the future (like Eric Gordon) and the Wiz get that much stronger offensively. At SF you give Singleton the job of being a solid defender who also by the start of next year has a reliable mid range jump shot. Vesley and Crawford coming off the bench give the Wiz offense on the 2nd team. Mack is a good 2nd team floor general and Book provides some solid defense as well.
Personally I would love to see that team and it is one that is financially responsible giving the Wiz flexibility to add another player in 2013 if needed.
I think some Wizards players are taking too much criticism
I think Ernie and Fllp need to be absorbing a helluva lot of the blame. The roster is messed up Ernie’s love affair with Blatche is troubling and Flip’s rotations are just so ill fitting its a source of alot of the problems.
So the players almost alone are blamed Wall, Mcgee, Blatche, NY, they are always chastized.
when Arenas was here he became the face of the dysfunction never Ernie for assembling the mess.
I can’t even be mad at Blatche he’s Blatche what the hell do you expect continuing to harp on his failings is almost pointless he shouldn’t even be on this team anymore but Ernoe has this sick fascination with him.
The Wizards have 2 guys on a team full of oung players ayone would want aroun the leaue in Mcgee and all thats it thats one helluva an indictment on the job Ernie is doing. They aren;t building anything they are collecting a bunch of unestablished young players with no reputations around the league.
Instead of saying we’re gonna build around the strengh’s of our young talents mcgee and wall and having a roster and a style of play that would enhance their talnents playing faster paced, being a trapping pressure defensive Flip trots out Lewis ad Blatche in a starting rotation and watch them completely gum up the offense and defense with a lack of mobility and stamina.
Mcgee is a fine center prospect he has a couple low post oves he’s not nearly that raw but he doesn;t get the ball that much and when he gets it he think he has to get it and rush a move at imes he doesn;t unerstand that catching it holding it and throwing a pass to a cutter occasionally would help him and the team.
another coaching failure,
Now Wall is getting ripped from corner to corner by Wizards fans when he has to suffer with Flip and his ridiculous half court scheme’s. Wall doesn’t even know what to do offensively other than to drop his head and charge into the teeth of a clogged lane to force a shot.
why not play the Golden State Warriors style open the lane put some shooters on the floor. Its funny when Mason comes on the floor the offense ran smoother because he’s gonna catch and shoot and space the floor for Wall not get it hold it and go into a Curly neal dribbbling exhibition untill he forces a bad shot.
Tired of blaming the easy targets its Ernie and Flip who are the damn problem with this franchise not the Players. They don’t fit together and aren’t being used in the best way to maximize their talents.
by jazzy1 on Dec 28, 2011 1:00 PM EST reply actions 2 recs
the coaches are chastised as much if not more than the players on this site
a simple sampling of today’s posts proves my point.
dwight howard has had coach after coach, including hakeem and webber, works his ass off, and still hasn’t developed a dominant post game. sometimes it’s the capabilities of the player.
i swear, you could put me out on this team as a point guard and if in two years i wasn’t dropping 15 and 5 off the bench every night several posters here would blame the coaching for my shortcomings.
hey ted – hire a bunch of coaches! then we’ll be awesome!
by DarrellWalkerFan on Dec 28, 2011 1:25 PM EST up reply actions
the sudden surge of discontent towards Flip and Ernie feels relatively new
obviously there have always been folks harping on them, but usually not to the extent of the past few days…..last season was much more “Poor Flip” and “Ernie is executing Ted’s plan perfectly”
i dont know….feels like Flip may actually be on the hot seat, guess we’ll see
In the media not this site per se where are the Its on Ernie and Flip articles in the local news media the Wapo, the Times on the local news
its all players blah blah blah
look at Jason Reid's article, blasts Dray and seemingly Ernie
but ends with something like “Ernie is a good basketball man who knows what he’s doing” or whatever
weak stuff indicative of reporters that dont want to lose access (i am guessing).
reid SHELLS ernie
i don’t think you could ask for harder criticism, and you’re still saying it’s not enough!
by DarrellWalkerFan on Dec 28, 2011 2:44 PM EST up reply actions
well, Reid states emphatically that Dray needs to go
but doesnt say the same for the architect of the whole affair
He said it in an earlier article...
Last year Reid said EG had earned his right to come back this year, but then wrote another article stating he has to show improvement to stay. The media comes down on EG and Flip as well.
oh, he's entirely dismissive of blatche
the article is about ernie, all of it, even the part about blatche.
by DarrellWalkerFan on Dec 28, 2011 4:04 PM EST up reply actions
the coaching may or may not be excellent
the players are definitely not
by DarrellWalkerFan on Dec 28, 2011 2:43 PM EST up reply actions
Who would you guys rather have at this point in his career
JaVale McGee, or DeAndre Jordan?
Swap JaVale and DeAndre before last season, and you'd also swap the RoY title.
JaVale on the Clips would turn Blake into a soft jump shooting PF like Dray.
DeAndre on the Wiz would give Wall the space (and screens) to get to the rim at will.
I disagree
I take the other position stating that McGee becomes better if you have a real PF that can score inside and rebound to compliment him.
by Kuruption on Dec 28, 2011 3:17 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
you mean to all the heavy work…and leave him alone to do what?
what they said about him was spot on…he is too big…too athletic to only get six rebounds
by les boulez bomber on Dec 28, 2011 4:01 PM EST up reply actions
Blatche is making the correct reads
He’s going inside when he is supposed to go inside. Problem is that his decisions come down to making the best of the poor situation that is created by JaVale’s poor decision making.
Watch the video from NBA Playbook.
When JaVale was in the game, there is only one instance where Blatche should have gone towards the basket and didn’t. (Second play, after Deron and Humphries muffed on their PnR defense- Blatche should have quickly recognized the Nets’ mistake and moved in to create a passing lane and put more pressure on Petro. And even in that instance, if the Nets had executed properly, then Blatche’s best play would have been to pick and pop, so his initial read was the right one.) In the rest of the plays, because JaVale was clogging up the area under the basket, Blatche’s best/only play was to hang around on the perimeter.
Then look what happens in the second half of the video. With Turiaf instead of JaVale, the area under the basket is much less clogged. Blatche posts up, makes smart cuts, and hits cutters with good passes. Dunks! Alongside Turiaf, Blatche is a multidimensional inside-outside player who can hurt you with the ball, without the ball, with scoring, with passing. Alongside JaVale, he’s a soft jump shooting cream puff. Same thing would have happened to Blake.
interesting question
I think Mcgee is the better player at this point has more offensive awareness than Jordan does. But Jordan stays in the wheelhouse of what he can do which is catch lobs and block shots.
give me Mcgee sure he makes the ill advised play from time to time but he’s also more active and will give you buckets while on the floor not be someone who clogs the offense up. You can drop it into him.
Jordan is better
he has better IQ and doesn’t make stupid plays.
STRAIGHT CASH HOMIE
by everybodylookin on Dec 28, 2011 1:47 PM EST up reply actions
it also doesn't hurt to have BGriff on the other side
CP3 had to decide which player to lob it to the other night on a fast breadk….choices choices choices. that team is going to make some noise
ENOUGH
The team’s motto should be “LEAVE IT ON THE FLOOR”…..do your talking on the floor with your play and stay off of twitter with any job talk….even if the media asks, doesn’t mean you do a total meltdown
I saw Hoosiers
and a lot of other sports movies. They don’t start with the teams winning their pre-season and early season games.
I watch the really good teams in the NBA – Lakers, Mavs, Celtics, etc…and those teams have layers and layers of nuance to their offenses and defenses. Our players aren’t even at stage 1 of learning an offensive or defensive system. Few of them had much college experience. Flip has spent most of the time teaching them basic fundamentals that, in the old days, players would have known before becoming professionals. He’s had to try to teach them the most rudimentary skills – not an offensive or defensive system. I believe he’s just starting to introduce the next level to them now. It will take more than this year for the players to have a grasp of it. It will take even longer for them to understand the nuances that the good teams get. Our players have upside. Some of them may be core pieces. But it’s going to be quite a process to realize that potential within a team with lots of young and inexperienced players. We’ll get there but right now it’s like the first 20 minutes of Hoosiers – no fun, lots of criticism – fans want it fixed now. They want to be good now. It’s going to take longer than that. I think Ted & Co. realize that. At least I hope they do.
by mogoman on Dec 28, 2011 2:48 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
Judging from 1 game
they are better than last season and I agree that playing experience, and the experience of playing together, is going to take so many games and seasons. I don’t see any “failure” going on. I see improvement. I hope see it again today.
by hambonejackson on Dec 28, 2011 2:53 PM EST up reply actions
reid's article is spot on, not below the belt
i don’t love his redskins columns, but this one seems absolutely fair. it’s the best criticism of ernie that i’ve read in a long time, and reid is right to say it.
by DarrellWalkerFan on Dec 28, 2011 2:52 PM EST reply actions
Only reason I say it's below the belt is it harps on the "captain" thing
Which I think is kinda dumb for a basketball team. But the same points could have been made because captain or not, team keeps propping Blatche up as a leader.
He’s not wrong, just harsh. Didn’t mean it as a negative to say he hits below the belt. Columnists do that.
he takes a swing
but given the benefit of hindsight, i fail to see how ripping the captaincy of arenas and blatche is unjustified or below the belt. protecting those guys from criticism of their actions as captains is beyond charitable.
by DarrellWalkerFan on Dec 28, 2011 3:18 PM EST up reply actions
Yeah I mean it's justified for sure
Just wish he focused less on a title and more on the team’s actions prior to it.
Its a snarky commentary
that simply rips Blatche in general. BLATCHE WANTS THE BALL IN THE PAINT MORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!. SAUNDERS SAYS HE WILL TRY TO GET BLATCHE THE BALL IN THE PAINT MORE!!!!!!!!!!! Exciting stuff.
by hambonejackson on Dec 28, 2011 4:06 PM EST up reply actions
Don't think it's justified at all
It’s basically saying that I (Reid) don’t like Blatche and that’s that. See Zach Lowe’s commentary on the Blatche thing – he wrote what I think about it – that basically it’s innocuous but Blatche gets heat because people are simple and have knee-jerk reactions. Just like when John Wall did the dougie before last year’s first game and Colin Cowherd went nuts. It’s kneejerk commentary, and every comment on this blog is more nuanced than Reid’s entire article. Reid is in the Tracey Hamilton school of repeating simple reactions over and over.
by Kenny Sky Walker on Dec 28, 2011 4:22 PM EST up reply actions
every comment on this blog is more nuanced than Reid’s entire article
now THAT’s harsh. have you read some of these comments?
by DarrellWalkerFan on Dec 28, 2011 5:17 PM EST up reply actions
I think AB is realizing he is gone next year if he doesnt produce. and he doesnt want it to happen because he is genuinely appreciative knowing that they have been patient with him not to mention paying him nicely. and he realized he was most productive and valuable pre-JW when he was the man in the block with the low post moves and wants to return to that role. And he is doing a poor job communicating it…not to mention that the team is not returning to a pre-JW offense
by les boulez bomber on Dec 29, 2011 9:32 AM EST up reply actions
Singleton shoudl start tonight...
need his defensive presence against Horford or J.Smith…have no faith in Blatche defending any of those guys
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