Last week you voted, and Caron's game winner in Game 5 of the playoffs beat out Nick Young's dunk over LeBron and DeShawn's dagger to beat New Orleans to be voted as the play of the year.

Below you'll see this week's poll and after the jump, you'll get reasons for why each player on the Wizards deserves to be the most improved player this season.

Continue reading this post »

• What's good party people?  While you're checking out the new and improved search feature here, make sure you check out the latest FanPosts and FanShots from this week:
• Mike Jones (who!) confirmed that Gilbert Arenas is still planning on opting out of his contract, despite his injury setbacks.  Later on in the week, he confirmed that he's not a fan of LeBron James.  At least he didn't write a diss track about it.
  
• After making sure everyone knew that he was still opting out, he made sure everyone knew who he wanted to see stay in Washington, by telling everyone on his blog:

The future is the future. I want to be back in Washington, but weird things happen in free agency. If Antawn is not back, then there’s no point in me coming back because he’s part of my success, too. When you’re doing pick and roll with a player like him, they can’t double you, they can’t trap you because you have a pick and pop guy who can shoot the three at your four position. My success is because of him too. If he doesn’t come back, I’m not coming back.

I know everybody is focusing on whether I’m coming back, but I’m focusing on what he’s doing. If he doesn’t come back, then I’m not coming back.

• You'll notice that Gilbert doesn't make the same request for Jarvis Hayes.  From the looks of it, it doesn't seem like Detroit will be either.  At least Jarvis can pass the time with the NBA nickname generator.
• If yesterday's OT thriller turned you into a Jazz bandwagoner, make sure you check out the new SB Nation site for the team, SLC Dunk.
• The Wizards' website is counting down the top 10 moments of the season.  Here's moments ten through six.
• If Bullets nostalgia is your thing, this video of a double OT thriller versus the Celtics should hit the spot.
• If watching a DJ mispronounce DeShawn Stevenson's name is more up your alley, this video should do the trick.
• Finally, NY1 poses the question of "What do we trade the 18th pick for?"  This will be a point of discussion all the way up to the draft, since it seems extremely likely that Grunfeld will look to move that picks, so check it out.
  

Press Conference References:
Washington Post
Wizards Insider
USA Today

Like most postseason press conferences, there weren't any bombshells, but there was some interesting tidbits from Ernie's little chat Thursday afternoon.  Let's start with the big stuff and work are way down.

The core is staying put: Ernie Grunfeld more or less squashed any doubt that he's thinking about a shakeup.  He said he has no plans on making a coaching change, and it looks like he wants to keep the Big 3 together as well:

Our intent all along has been to have both of those players back and to keep our core together. And at the appropriate time, we'll sit down with both of those parties and see what we can work out. We're going to be fair with our players. These players have done a lot for our franchise and we hope to have them here for a very long time.

Granted, Antawn could still end up deciding that he's got a better shot at winning a title somewhere else and Gilbert is liable to do just about anything, so it's definitely not written in stone that they'll both be back at this point, but it seems very likely.

Roger on the other hand...: If you were hoping that you'd see Roger Mason back with the Wizards next season, don't get your hopes up.  Here's what he had to say about the Potomac Rainmaker:

We'd love to have Roger back. I don't know yet. We'll have to wait and see how everything develops from a financial standpoint. ... But we are pretty loaded at that 2-guard position.

Translation: We like Roger, but Nick Young isn't going to get a chance to participate in the Slam Dunk Contest if Roger is eating up all of his minutes.

If you were planning on buying that Brook Robin Lopez jersey, you're probably going to end up disappointed: All 3 reports mention that Grunfeld is open to trading the #18 pick, if the right offer comes along.  In other words, he's saying, "No more locker room re-arrangments, please."  With Young, McGuire, Pecherov, and the still youthful Blatche on the squad, the lack of young legs isn't going to be a concern next season.  Look for Ernie to either swap the pick for some veteran help, or for future draft considerations.  I'm not sure which of the two he's looking for, but I'm pretty sure he'll find it, based on this quote from Ivan:

Grunfeld is one of the most aggressive GM's in the business. When he wants something, he will keep calling you and calling you until he gets what he wants.

I'd hate to be Ernie's pizza guy.

The Wizards might not produce the number of highlights that you'd see with teams like Phoenix and Denver and Golden State, but there were still a lot of great plays from this season from several different players

Which one stands out above the rest?  After the jump, a better look at each of the top play candidates...

No voting for Ramon.

Continue reading this post »

Like Prada said, it's been a great season.   It might not have the best ending, but I still don't think this team has anything to be ashamed of.  Before we start delving into all the off-season stuff, let's give some thanks for the season that was.

Thanks to Ernie Grunfeld for putting together a team that's been able make the playoffs for 4 straight years, something that hasn't happened in the district in 20 years.

Thanks to Eddie Jordan for never giving up.  There were several points in the season where you could've thrown up the white flag and gone into tank mode when different players went down, but you never gave up on this team.

Thanks to Antawn Jamison for being the epitome of consistency and professionalism all season long.  Your 20-10 season won't soon be forgotten.

Thanks to Caron Butler for the big shots, the posters, and everything in-between.

Thanks to Brendan Haywood for finally putting an end to the instability at center this year with career highs all across the board.

Thanks to Antonio Daniels for holding down the fort at point guard while Gilbert was injured most of the season.  Your on-court leadership was a big part of why the Wizards were as successful as they were this season.

Thanks to DeShawn Stevenson for being the Wizards' Iron Man.

Thanks to Roger Mason Jr. for being such a pleasant surprise this season.  You showed this season that you don't have to be a brick layer to have an appreciation for architecture.

Thanks to Darius Songaila for providing some much needed front court consistency off the bench.  Best of luck competing with Lithuania in Beijing this summer.  Hopefully everyone there appreciates your Borat impressions.

Thanks to Andray Blatche for his continued improvement.  You'll only get better as you get more experience under your belt.

Thanks to Gilbert Arenas for trying his best to get back on the court and help the team.  it didn't work out the way we all would've liked, but the intent was clearly there.  Let's hope this off-season finally gets you back to form we all know and love.

Thanks to Nick Young for the dunks.  Here's to many more highlights and dunk contest invite next season.

Thanks to Oleksiy Pecherov for all the humor this season.  Don't get me wrong, your play was solid this year, but the comparisons to Stewie will never stop being awesome.

Thanks to Etan Thomas for showing what true strength is all about.

Thanks to Ivan Carter and Mike Jones (who!) for all the great reporting on the beat this season.  Great work as always.

Thanks to all the great Wizards and non-Wizards blogs for their .

Thanks to WaitingForNextYear and And One for coming over and sparking some good discussion and providing analysis from the other side during the playoff series.  You're welcome here anytime.

Thanks to everyone that's come here and left comments and FanPosts and everything else this season.  Win or lose, you're what makes this fun.

Finally, thanks to Dominic McGuire.  You're what makes the future (and the present) bright.

Copyright 2008 NBAE (Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)

Yup....I was one of those working stiffs rushing to get home for the 6 pm start time. Just as I was getting near my bus stop, Beat It by Michael Jackson came on my ipod....my 'Top 5000 Songs' playlist; I assumed this to be a good sign. I made it in my apartment just in time to see Big Z look like Hakeem Olajuwon before throwing up a fade-away on Haywood heading into a commercial break at the 9 minute mark. 5-4 Wizards.

8:36: Coming out the timeout, DeShawn Stevenson throws up some gar-báge.

Halfway through the first quarter, the Wiz are up 2. I still haven't gotten a feel from this team. I see Caron Butler hustling...Haywood is making some baller moves...but I can't tell if this team wants to win or not. Of course, they've been so inconsistent from quarter to quarter this year....who knows.

The Cleveland crowd seems tame. Stevenson, of course, gets the boo treatment, but it doesn’t seem very strong....maybe the confident attitude of the Cavs has given the fans a sense of complacency. It's in the bag I guess....

4:08: Wow. Caron gets a steal after Wally was lazy in recovering the ball....goes down, looks to travel, definitely got fouled...but the refs give Caron the continuation for the And 1. He was in the act of shooting, but I'm not sure they should have counted that.....even though the foul did cause the travel. I assume the refs made the right call. 16-11 Wizards.

Team - Gilbert < Team + Caron Butler.....for now.

3:54: Oh god, here we go. God damned LeBron James is a sweetheart.

He drives baseline....Darius Songaila obviously fouls him...as both of their arms are locked up....LeBron attempts to pull his arm away and in the process ends up causing Songaila's arm to hit him in the neck/side-face......a complete accident. LeBron acts as if Johnny Lawrence (you probably know him as Billy Zabka) just swept the neck instead of the leg.

Players gather....Anderson Varejao plays instigator and swats Stevenson's arm away for some reason....of course Stevenson overreacts and swats Andy's arm away. Jamison gets heated.

Somehow Wally shoots two techs...still not sure what happened. I know this: LeBron overreacted and the referees overreacted in turn. [Later,  video evidence would reveal that LeBron checked where he did not get hit....and he just received the Sylvester Stallone award for bad acting.]

Dan Gilbert's friend (or at least a dude he knows sitting next to him) throws a towel at DeShawn and DOESN'T get kicked out. Essentially, Gilbert tells security not to toss him. Oh really now.....?

In the meantime, the Wizards have been called for two offensive fouls (Songaila and Stevenson)...didn't really see them.

1:55: It's cleared up that Songaila received a tech (that's just crazy)....and Varejao and Stevenson each got techs...which was justifiable.

1:28: Haywood gets called for another offensive foul....no one could argue that it wasn't a flop on Varejao.....terrible officiating thus far. This is unbelievable. Phil Chenier even points out that the Brazilian Spaz flopped the opposite way that Haywood was going.

Somehow the Wizards are up 20-16 with 8 turnovers in the first quarter....of course at least three of those came from offensive fouls.

0:01: Caron Butler nails a smooth three to end the first, his 3rd. And here I was thinking that I was coming home to watch a basketball game. Wizards up 23-16, Caron Butler has 14 points.

2nd Quarter

Reggie Miller and Marv Albert are absolutely unbelievable....I'm actually disgusted that they are assuming that Songaila intentionally "punched" LeBron. I don't think there is any doubt in Miller's mind that there was a punch there. They actually wanted the refs to review the play and throw Darius out. Perhaps they weren't privy to the same conclusive replays as Comcast....I don't care, they can both still go to hell.

10:28: Unbelievable shot by Caron after losing the ball....I can't even begin to describe what he did..caught the loose rock in the air and then threw the ball in with the clock running down...or something like that. 25-21 Wizards.

I guess the Wiz are winning and stuff....at the next timeout, they are up 30-25. I am still baffled, flabbergasted, shocked at Marv Albert and Reggie Miller. Not only did they think that Darius Songaila's play was a punch, but Albert mocked Eddie Jordan's opinion when the TNT sideline reporter interviewed him about the play.....sarcastically saying something to the effect "Yea, like LeBron James' head went into Darius Songaila's fist." Need I remind everyone that not only does "Marvelous" Marv enjoy wearing women's underwear, but he also has taken part in threesomes involving another dude. Add Marv and Reggie to the list of hack jobs . 

At least the Wizards have seemed to keep their concentration after that absurdity....now I suppose I need to do the same. Marv Albert will not hear the end of this.

[NOTE: I am not whining that a call was made against Songaila....he did foul LeRootyPoo. And while the technical was unjust, I'm not even whining about that. No, I am simply complaining and pointing out the ridiculousness of Reggie Miller and Marv Albert]

Does Gil want to be a Wizard? (TNT Sideline Interview) "Of course...I'd love to come back if they want me to come back."

5:22: DeShawn hits a three....we need him to shut his mouth, play with a chip on his shoulder, use the boos to power him, and step his game up. 37-32 Wiz.

4:44: Empty possession...Mason a runner? Never his shot. Caron misses a fader.

4:21: Stevenson is not feeling his face very well....he nails an open three from the corner....just like you and me, this one was made by penetration. 40-34 Wiz.

3:22: Too many outside shots...Caron takes a bad one, low shot clock though...AJ hustles for a board, gets it out to Stevenson who takes a three himself....miss. The Wiz really need to take advantage of 2nd chances.

TNT is reporting that DeShawn went to a Cleveland mall yesterday with 5 teammates. Why would he do that and why would the Wizards coaching staff allow him to do that? (assuming they knew)....DeShawn Stevenson is not making it easy for me to like him at all. One, what the hell is an NBA player doing at a mall in the first place? Two, DeShawn is doing nothing but looking for trouble.....he's such an idiot. I'd also like to know who went to the mall with him. I'd bet that Antawn Jamison and Antonio Daniels weren't among those who did.

2:26: I seriously can't believe the Wizards have a 42-39 lead.....Cleveland gave some back court pressure and played it tight once the Wiz were in the half court....lack of composure led to turnover #11, shot clock violation.

2:14: But the Cavs make an unforced turnover coming back down the court.

1:55: Turnover again...Butler drives, Haywood rolls, but the pass was too far behind him. The sand paper offense.....not smooth.

1:20: A gimpy AD, who got tripped by Gibson a couple possessions ago, gets a block on Boobie from behind and coasts up court for the layup. He has to check out. 44-39 Wiz.

1:00: Oh my god.....turnovers are crazy....Stevenson got to the basket, passed, and Haywood just bobbled the ball out of bounds.

0:00: Butler misses a trey on LeBron to end the 1st half....it looks like Eddie wanted him to drive as he had plenty of time. Wizards up 45-43 at the half.

Half Stats:

1. The main thing the Wiz have going for them is hot shooting, 17-33
2. The Wizards are also winning the battle of the boards, 16-14 (although the Cavs have 6 offensive to 4 for DC)
3. We all know that turnovers are a killer, 13-9 Wizards (although both teams have 9 points off turnovers)
4. The Potomac Rainmaker chipped in with 6 points off the bench....and he didn't even attempt a three.
5. Caron had 16 points, Stevenson had 11
6. Big Z had 12, LeBaby LeTravel LeBoo-Boo LeBron had 10
7. Bobble-hands Haywood had a +7
8. LeBron James had a -4

Continue reading this post »

(AP Photo/Nick Wass)

I had some pre-game thoughts at the beginning of this game blog, but they were getting a little lengthy, so I posted them on TruthAboutIt.net . Read if you would like.....

Quarter One

Off we go....

Gil starts and is matched up on Delonte West, he was on Wally last game. Butler is still on James and DeShawn is on Wally.

Hubie Brown likes the defensive aggressiveness to start as Arenas is working on deflections.

10:16: Wiz get a steal, DeShawn takes it all the way gets the foul and a goal-tending on LeBron James. The Lock Smith throws up the Rocafella diamond in the direction of the Cavs bench. Not going to talk trash about Jay-Z, huh? 5-2 Wiz.

9:48: Butler gets going early too with a baseline jumper on LeBron....good stuff. The fans seem to be making a nice showing on Sunday afternoon too.

Nice drive by DeShawn past LeBron and a drop off to Haywood for a dunk. 9-4 Wizards.

Gil pulls the chair out from under a posting Wally...loose ball, Cavs get it, lose the ball again but the Wiz can’t take advantage as Gil's lob past was a little too long for Jamison. Turnover.

8:01: Haywood is killing two birds with one possession. Draws a foul on the floor on Big Z and then gets a baby hook. 11-6 Wizards.

7:46: LeBron has hit his first two outside shots....and that's okay, he can score all he wants, just don't let him pile up assists.

7:20: Arenas drives on Wally...easy.....the double must come over and AJ is there for the dump off. 13-8 Wizards.

6:57: Wally hits a fadeaway deuce over Arenas, but Arenas is playing with more intensity on D that I've seen out of him before.

While I like the hot Wiz shooting so far, 7-8, I am not fond of the 4 turnovers, 3 by Gil....but none of them have really been bad turnovers.

3:53: Gil tries to force the ball to Caron who is posting LeBron at the 3 point line....bad idea, LeBron pokes the ball away and ends it with a wicked windmill dunk. 18-15 Cleveland.

1:22: AD hits a jab step back three...huh? 23-22 Wizards.

1:06: The Brazilian Spaz = Mr. Softy miss a lay-up.

0:58: AJ hits another crazy running hook and has his angry game face on. 25-22 Wiz.

0:16: AJ rolls home a trey ball. 11 first quarter points for the man.

LeBron then gets called for an offensive foul as he throws the arm out into Jamison's chest...the tears start streaming. LBJ has 2 fouls and 8 points.

Looks like he may have the case for a measly touch foul. After the last 0:00.7 ticks away, Bron Bron puts on his pacifier in the form of a long sleeve navy blue shirt and whines in Joey Crawford's ear.

Wiz up 28-24 after 1. They were boosted by 11-14 shooting, 2-3 from deep, but we're held back by 6 turnovers, 4 by Gilbert in 8 minutes. The Wiz need to reign it in on their gambles.

Quarter Two

AD, AJ, Andray, D-Song and the Silent Assassin start the 2nd for the Wiz.

10:53: Bad call...the Cavs get a steal, at least Jamison manages to accidentally clock the Brazilian Spaz with an elbow, Devin Brown leads the break, Mason hustles back to attempt a strip, but they call a foul in the act of shooting. The replay reveals that Brown lost the ball going up before he was even touched. Oh well. 29-28 Cavs after FTs.

9:43: Damn...Roger Mason misses an open three, his second. C'mon Rog, you can do this...it was a transition 3 attempt, Hubie Brown would rather him go to the basket.

It's a physical game within legal confines. Mike Tirico points out that there is a lot of bumping, banging and whining happening on each trip.....he fails to point out that Cleveland is doing a majority of the whining.

9:15: MaseOn with a trey ball...that's a way to keep shooting fella. 33-29 Wizards.

9:03: Gilbert checks back in......keep that knee loose and warm - not sure if he was riding the bike during his down time.

Eddie Jordan's small lineup of Daniels, Mason, Arenas, Songaila and Butler is giving up some offensive boards , but Cleveland is not adept at taking advantage. Cleveland has Z, LeBron, Wally, Brown and Gibson on the floor.

7:34: The Silent Assassin's bullets are locked and loaded...very tough shot on the baseline fading out of bounds on the right side of the court (facing the basket) and with the right hand, of course. 37-29 Wiz.

7:17: Haywood comes back in to boost the rebounding game...for AD.

6:50: LeBron James is intent on taking it to the hoop to make Cleveland's 5 point total for the quarter 7, their first points in about 4 minutes. 37-31 Wiz.

6:28: D-Song takes LeBron in the post...a foul is called, but it's not LeBron's 3rd. They somehow call it on Benny Wallace, who was second to foul......the fans give LBJ the overrated treatment.

6:15: "Delonte West out to lunch." Mike Tirico on a Cleveland turnover.

Gil misses a deuce...not in the offense....LeBron gets a power slam on the other end. The Wizards come down, but the offensive flow is clogged. Eddie Jordan timeout. 39-33 Wizards.

Hubie Brown is composing Valentine's Day cards for Darius Songaila.

4:51: The Wiz offense has gone a little cold. Not a FG since Roger Mason at 7:34.

4:20: Haywood is not helping the effort to keep the Cavs off the glass.....they now have 12 second chance points and a 9-1 edge on the offensive boards. 3 on one possession leads to a Delonte West trey. 39-38 Wiz.

3:54: Jamison gets blocked by Wallace and the Wiz can't recover in time to get an attempt before the shot clock goes off.

3:30: West steals the ball from Haywood at the FT line from behind.

3:25: Cavs come back down....LeBron goes hard. Stevenson takes a swipe.....looks to clip ball first but then gets a whole lot of LeBron's face. LeBron gets mad...bodies up....some pride is displayed as DeShawn gets off the floor..the refs do a good job to make peace. Cleveland fans will be pissed at the Lock Smith's swipe, probably calling it cheap head-hunting. He did look to be going to for the ball, but the motion can definitely be taken as an act of aggression as LeBron's headband went flying. A flagrant one is called on Stevenson. Mike Brown sprints out to check on his son, his paycheck, LBJ.

3:08: Wiz play good D....get the ball...but ANOTHER careless turnover. LeBron nails a trey to cap an 11-0 Cleveland run. 42-39 Cavs.

2:43: Caron misses a baseline jumper and then fouls LeBron attempting a long 3 on the other end. The Wizards are losing their composure on both ends. They are making LeBron mad and he is starting to channel than into a display of skills. Thankfully there is a TV timeout.

2:25: The Wizards are even having trouble passing the ball to each other.....nothing is crisp. Finally, AJ earns a trip to the FT line. 44-41 Cavs.

Hubie points out that the Wizards had 14 points in the paint in the first quarter....none so far in the 2nd. What right did they have to become complacent?

1:54: CRAP! Gil takes and misses a trey ball for no good reason.

People on Bullets Forever are calling for an Arenas exit and Mason entrance.

1:33: Jamison shoots a three with 18 seconds on the shot clock. What the hell was discussed during the timeout?

Down the court...Cavs o board....no points...Wizards turnover....huge dunk by LeBron. 51-41 Cleveland.

1:11: Daniels misses an open three...just because you're wide open....eff it. Finally the Wiz get second chance points with an AJ putback.

0:55: Transition D? Seat's taken......Boobie nails a trey. 54-43 Cavs.

0:38: Caron takes another outside jumper...luckily Jamison works on the boards and earns two FTs, but makes only 1. Yup, the extent of the offense in the past 6 minutes amounts to Jamison earning 3 FTs and a putback on offensive board work.

0:05: Daniels drives.....but Stevenson misses an open trey. F-ING OUTSIDE SHOTS!!!!!!!!!!

Wiz were up 8 around the 6 minute mark, but the Cavs made a run....ABC is crediting the hard foul by DeShawn. 54-44 Cleveland at the half.

Run Down

1. Eddie Jordan needs to get real in his halftime speech.
2. 2nd quarter = 5 turnovers, 4-21 shooting.
3. Game: 26-16 boards in favor of Cavs.
4. Double-U, Tee, Eff?
5. Jon Barry thinks that DeShawn should have been thrown out.....dork.
6. Amare Stoudamire looks to be sporting one of the worst blue jean outfits I've ever seen (as if I've seen a "good" blue jean outfit) -- it looks akin to a prison jumpsuit.
7. Gut check time.

Continue reading this post »

Wack Rapper Alert!
(but hey....if it means good luck....)

Copyright 2008 NBAE (Photo by Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images)

[As a result of yesterday's technical difficulties, this game blog also appears on TruthAboutIt.net, along with Jake's Game Thread , a Festivus of Game 3-Related Links , and The Haywood Incident: A Final Thought.]

As I'm sure the guys will do the same, along with SB Nation (as they were having trouble with most of their blogs), we apologize profusely for yesterday's outage. I haven't received word on what officially happened, but let's just say there is a reason for everything and that it led the Wizards to getting their first win in this year's playoffs out of the way. I truly missed the live comments that we've had going for games. Here's to bouncing back on Sunday. And now, I present to you, the game blog (a 63 point swing, how about that?):

David Stern was on Comcast before the game talking with Russ Thaler and Mike Wise of the Washington Post ...who was hitting him with some hard questions, albeit halfway in jest....such as:

Why does LeBron travel worse than Patrick Ewing in the 80s? Laughing non-answer. Or....
Why do superstars get calls? Evidently Stern can prove that this is not true with statistics, but doesn't have the time....yeah riiiight.

Later, Rock Cartwright of the Redskins joins the pregame show. He says that neither Caron Butler parties nor Gilbert Arenas parties have anything on Fred Smoot parties....of course, Mike Wise and Russ Thaler are admittedly put in a rough position.....but they mentioned the Love Boat nonetheless. Unnn-com-for-ta-ble.......

Wow...a lot going on in the pre-game, huh?

Initially, Eddie Jordan said that Gilbert Arenas felt some slight pain and aching in his left knee and that he might not play at all.  Comcast reported this around 7:15.

Then, when the show was thrown to Steve Buckhantz and Phil Chenier, who were "just" handed the starting card at 7:30, Gilbert Arenas' name was on it.

Who knows with this team? As we all are probably well aware, the Wizards had a loose game-day locker room....at least with hair-dos as Caron carved "Tough Juice" in the back of his head , evidently himself, and Andray Blatche and Nick Young were sporting mohawks. My initial reaction is that this team doesn't need to be clowning around...then again, I'd rather have them loose than uptight.

Ron Thompson makes a nice assessment on how Gil starting will affect Roger Mason (as Antonio Daniels will be coming off the bench)....essentially, Ron speculated that Roger might play better because he is used to playing with AD. We will see. Personally, I'm more curious to see how AD will play. (Even though I have a good feeling about the Silent Assassin.) The Wiz have gotten zilch from AD this series. We need his energy off the bench.

Phil Chenier had a recent sit down with Gil:

On yesterday's practice: an "emotional film session" where they knew Eddie Jordan was going to come down some players throats.  He wasn't the usual laid-back Eddie. The most unusual part though was when Gil was talking about Jordan coming down on those who took selfish shots in game 2.....Gil was glad that he only had one instance.....Whhhat? I gotta go back and look at that. Really? Only 1 bad shot from Gil?

Watch Comcast or TNT? How about both....two+ TVs makes it easy, but who do you listen to? I'm inclined to put the volume on TNT. Barkley says that Gil has to "pass the damn ball".....and that seals the deal. I'm going with TNT. I like my hometown guys, but I'm not ready to hear anything slightly bias this game. Of course, we'll have to see how Dick Stockton and Mike Fratello do.....

Arenas is going to be limited to 28-30 minutes....LeBron is miming homeruns on the court during intros....Yankees fans..."great"....and then LBJ does his powder thing. Very original LeBron.

Quarter One

The White-Out looks decent....Bron gets booed as the Cavs get the tip. Caron is defending James to start. He misses a jumper.

Soldier Boy sighting? Nope, not yet...at least not on TV. LeBron blocks a Butler transition layup....and then goes down and gets a layup. Same ol', huh?

10:38: Wiz ball movement gets AJ a lane for a layup...first Wiz points. 2-2 game.

Wally hits and easy step back on Gil...interesting matchup there as DeShawn is on Delonte West.

10:06: Haywood yells after the baby hook. The Cavs go to Wally again cause Gil is on him. Mike Brown will go to whomever Gil is guarding.

Looks like DeShawn has a mohawk too.

9:28: Patient offense....lob to BTH, scores on Big Z and draws the foul...As Ilgauskas is draped on BTH, Haywood stupidly throws a chicken win into his stomach...Big Z then gives a push back. Initially it looks like a tech is just on Z, it's actually a double T and justifiably so...Eddie is pissed. 6-4 Wiz after FTs.

DeShawn gets a steal, but guns a trey.. Nope. Ilgauskas somehow gets a breakaway dunk and BTH smartly doesn't do anything like foul as he was following behind. 6-6 game.

8:51: Gil misses his first 3....high rebound. Two Cavs and DeShawn go up for it..DS gets there first and gets the foul, he really skied on that one.

8:42: Hook Stevenson..LeBron is guarding him and he tries a dribble then guns the rock..a three miss. No need for that BS...

Then Stevenson misses a layup after LBJ (or Wallace) blocked Haywood...not a good start for the Lock Smith.

7:55: Uh oh...getting the calls against LeBron out of the way early..Bron gets a charge called on him.

Gilbert and BTH run a pick and roll....dunk. 8-8 tie. I'm proud of the Verizon center atmosphere....I'm not there but it sounds pretty intense.

Cavs post Wally on Gil...he misses an easy...Arenas drives back at him and gets a lay-in Cleveland didn’t expect drive from Gil. 10-8 Wiz.

5:57: Wallace gives Jamison a bear hug pelvic thrust thingee from the back and picks up his 2nd foul...first commercial break 10-10 game.

Gil goes to the bench and TNT reports that he had an MRI earlier today, the result is a bone bruise. AD is in the game.

5:27: LBJ misses a 3 in the corner, Wallace gets the board. The Wiz don't even pay attention to LBJ going to the hoop to receive pass from Wallace for a dunk. 12-10 Cavs.

AD gets his first layup and looks like himself. Next time down (after a Wally miss), Butler gets his first FG, a midrange baseliner. 14-12 Wiz.

So far on defense, the Wizards are moving much quicker and keeping up with Cleveland's ball movement. This game, they are sprinting to cover their assignments.

3:44: Wiz get into penalty as Joe Smith fouled Butler on a rebound.....seems like the Wiz are going up harder and higher for boards.

3:15: Varejao completely flops....what a douche....but I can't blame the ref for calling a charge as Caron had his arm out there. Butler should know that Andy V. will try to set people up with his dramatics.

Another charge is called...this time on Andray....looks like another good whistle. LeBron is present in the paint, especially on offensive boards, but the Wiz have packed it in, minimizing drives. Another TV timeout, 16-12 Wizards. 5 turnovers for the Cavs, 3 for LBJ...but only 2 points for the Wiz off that. Washington has 4 turnovers themselves.

1:44: LeBron misses an impatient 3...AD jets the rock all the way to the hoop....And 1 on Andy Varejao who judging by his face, has never committed a foul.....ever.

Blatche gets the timing and throws Devin Brown's shit. The Cavs started 6-11 from the field, 1-8 since.

0:09: With the clock winding down, LeBron James goes up, leading with his knee a la Karl Malone. Makes the hoop and 1. Nice move, dick. 21-17 Wizards.

A hard fought first quarter. Wiz were up 9, but it ends 21-17. 

1. Lotta turnovers: 6 for the Cavs, 5 for the Wiz.
   
2. Curiously, Wiz have 5 steals and Cavs have 0.
3. DC is shooting 40% from the field and 5-5 from the FT line.
4. Cavs at 38%, only 1-1 on FTs.

Quarter Two

Both teams start with turnovers. LeBron James on bench to start 2nd.

10:38: MaseON for three. Thanks buddy, bout time....(he missed a layup at the end of 1st). 24-17 Wiz.

Andray blocks Big Z....got to love Blatche's presence to start.

10:06: Mason pump fake....see ya Boobie...ball transfer...and buckets. 2 pointer. 26-17.

9:29: MaseOn again...this one was easy as the Wiz has a 4-1 fast break...Haywood was out high covering a Big Z screen for West, BTH poked the ball away and got the steal. SWARM! 6-0 Silent Assassin run!

Larry Hughes is in the house. Comcast's Chris Miller is interviewing him on the sideline.....and I could care less.

9:04: AD fouled Devin Brown on a 3 attempt.....ok, should be a call....just didn't think they would do it after the shot missed and the rebound was secured (by Varejao I think). Brown makes 2 of 3.

Blatche, Haywood, Mason, Butler and AD in (interesting lineup...I'm down)....Mason miss...Blatche board, kick out to Mason...drive....ball back to Blatche for the dunk. 30-19 Wizards.

MVP so far: Andray Blatche
LVP: DeShawn, 0-3

7:45: Really? Are you kidding me? They call a travel on Big Z? Noooo!! I just heard an 'oink' outside of my 5th floor window. And after that...just as everyone is wondering where LBJ is, Mike Brown gets him off the bench. Pretty good rest for LeBron. Gilbert also checks back in....

7:01: Mason takes a heat check coming off screen...looks like a play run for him, not a bad miss.

Arenas has his point guard head on a swivel coming down the court....Cavs lose Butler, he gets the pass from Gil and a dunk on Andy's back. Mason gets a steal....but misses the three. I would have liked to see Mason not do that. 32-22 Wiz.

6:31: Cavs commit another turnover...their point guard play is terrible. That's their 13th, Delonte has 3.

6:01: Butler hits a trey and everything is going right so far....so far....so far....

Oh, Butler....really? You go for a Varejao pump fake? Cavs points...then a Wiz turnover...trying to go for a homerun pass.

Jamison Block! Benny Wal-lace...wrong direction brah! Wiz get the ball, Jamison runs the court, Gil flips him a no look pass..no basket but foul and 2 FTs. That's the Bill Russell play of the game. 36-24 Wiz.

Hmmm...why is LeBron not going inside as much...scurred? (that's how people say 'scared' in Mur-lin, I mean Maryland)

4:19: Gil with a sweet bounce pass to AJ...he "lulled the Cavs to sleep" - Phil C's words.  But dammit if AJ doesn't miss both FTs.

Tell you what though....as Big Z counters Haywood's points.....the Wiz are doing a much better job with getting hands and eyes in the passing lane when LeBron cuts through.

3:00: Meanwhile...Gilbert Arenas limps into the locker room.

Stevenson rattles home a trey....his face goes numb again...idiot. C'mon, don't do that crap. 43-29 Wizards.

2:33: Butler steal...Mason all the way to the hoop...the Verizon center is going nuts.

The Wizards points off turnovers has picked up....they now have 18.

1:53: Caron hits a running bank...11-2 Wiz run since the 4 minute mark.

0:55: Wow...no really, wow - Caron Butler spins and splits a white guy double team (Big Z and Wally World) he drives and hits a double-clutch hanging one-hander. Amazing. Mike Fratello compares Butler to Elgin Baylor. Barkley would later compare this move to Dr. J. High compliments.

LeBron is a no-go for a shot as the clock runs down...he's pleading his case to the ref. I think I see a tiny Johnny Cochran devil and angel on his shoulders and that's the half.

49-33 Wizards. A great job from every angle...the crowd, the offense, the defense, the coaching. My inner skeptic reminds me that there's a TON of time left. But still, you couldn't script it better.....aside from the part about Gilbert going to the locker room....Cause I've never seen a movie where the supposed good guy gets taken out and the movie gets better, until tonight perhaps. (And no, I'm not counting that movie where Samuel L. Jackson got eaten by a shark, Deep Blue Sea)

Half Stats:

1. Wizards FG=50% (64% in 2nd quarter)- Cavs=39 %.
2. Points in paint 30-12 Wiz.
3. Turnovers: 15 Cle, 9 Wiz.
4. Steals: 9-1 Wiz.
5. FTs 7-9 Wiz, 5-8 Cavs
6. Boards- Cavs up 19-16, 6-2 offensive
7. 3s - 2-8 Wiz, 0-3 Cavs
8. LBJ was 5-11, the rest of Cleveland was 9-25
9. Points: Caron 12, LeBron 11, Haywood 10

Continue reading this post »

Box Score
Game Flow
Live Blog
Pretty much everything else here.

Highest Plus/Minus: Brendan Haywood (+4)
Lowest Plus/Minus: Antawn Jamison (-30)

Before I get into to my "rantcap" (it's a rant, it's a recap, it's a rantcap) we need to establish one thing: Basketball is a finesse sport.  Yes, it requires toughness and yes, it requires some physicality, but that doesn't invalidate the fact that it's still a finesse sport.  There's nothing wrong with physicality and athleticism, in basketball, but if you don't put it together with skill and knowledge of the game you're dead in the water.

Last night, Washington decided to value physicality over skill, and in the process managed to lose the ability to do either effectively.  If you're looking for the exact point in the game where it happened, let me point you back to this moment in the live blog:

 

Gil is now in...and is covering LeBron when the Cavs next get the ball. LBJ easily comes off the screen towards the basket. One. Two. Three. Yep, three steps. Travel right? Nope.. foul on Wizards. 15-11 Wizards.

You could see it on their faces (well at least I think I could see it, the signal was kind of fuzzy out at my place for most of the first half) after the foul was called that something changed.  Up to that point, they were doing things well; Jamison was hot, the defense was solid, and the Wizards were playing like they were capable of playing, but after LeBron got that first foul they just decided to abandon everything that had built up that early lead.  Now I understand the frustration, but 28 other teams had to face the Cavs this year and Cleveland sure didn't go undefeated against all of them.  It's not like the Wizards are the only team in the NBA that has to deal with unfavorable calls with the King, yet they seem to be the only team that sulks about it and tries to completely change their game rather than elevating it to another level.

After that foul, the Wizards managed to go 2-9 from the field (both makes from Blatche, oddly enough), commit a tech, allow LeBron to get a momentum changing dunk, and let Wally Szczerbiak get open for a three in the 3 minutes right after the foul.  It didn't take long, but over that short stretch the Cavs gained something that the Wizards are still looking for.

Confidence.

Teams that are confident that they can win don't abandon their offense and defense so that they can try and out tough the other team.  Teams that are confident don't resort to setting cheap picks (besides Southern Miss of course).  Teams that are confident don't resort to taunting when they're down by sixteen points.  Teams that are confident don't foul players while they're in mid-air.  For the record, I think Haywood's move was more dumb and clueless than it was malicious.  If he was actually trying to hurt LeBron he would've had that cocky smile on his face or something, but when he got ejected he had that "Oh crap, they're running a pick and roll.  What do I do?' face going which tells me the foul was more of a panic move than anything.  Of course, I'm hopelessly biased.

So far in this series, the Wizards have played the role of the bully: Lots of talk, lots of physicality for the sake of physicality, and ultimately a whole lot of nothing when they're paired up against someone their own size.  The worst part of it all is that they don't even have to resort to this stuff.  Like cuppetcj said, the Wizards don't need to reinvent themselves to beat the Cavs, they just need to rely on the skill that got them here.

Box Score
Post Recap
Times Recap
Live Blog (look down)
Gilbertology Recap

The Other Side:
And One Recap
Waiting For Next Year Recap
Le Cavs Recap

(There are many other great links out there. but for the sake of time and my sanity, I'm just sticking to the big ones here.)

Highest Plus/Minus: Andray Blatche (+7)
Lowest Plus/Minus: Brendan Haywood (-19)

All in all, I don't think that was too bad.  Yes, like cuppetcj, I'm  concerned about the late game execution, but I'm not panicking yet.  As a general rule, the home team is going to have the edge in an intense, highly emotional game like that and I think it manifested itself in the closing minutes.

The game reminded me a lot of game 1 of the '06 series, just this time the crowd was in a frenzy because of the smack talk instead of the thrill of making it back to the playoffs.  When you compare the two opening games, you have to say that Washington weathered the opening storm much better this time than they did in '06 where LeBron put up a triple-double and Cleveland dominated throughout.  I know it's too soon to say if the rest of the series will be anything like that one, but I'm encouraged that it was much closer this time around.

Despite losing, I think the Wiz did a lot of things well, including (in no particular order):

1. Rebounding!  Obviously, a lot of the credit here goes to Jamison who pulled down 19(!!!) boards.  He's not going to be able to keep that up all series, but I liked the intensity.  If he keeps that up, he'll be fine.  Haywood had a strong game on the glass as well, not as good as Z, but he kept it close, and I can live with that.  I know Blatche didn't play much, but I'd like to see more out of him on the glass (not to mention scoring).
2. Guarding LeBron when he had the ball.  No, they didn't shut him down, but if you anticipated that coming in then you're going to leave disappointed every time.  For the most part, I think they had a good defensive plan to deter LeBron from driving and creating extra opportunities for himself at the foul line and creating open shots for others.
3. Hibachi!  Gilbert is probably the only player who can go from firing a hideous airball on his first shot to nailing 4 straight bombs from outside and make it look completely natural.  He tailed off at the end, but that happens when you're not 100%.  He showed how dangerous he is, but at this point, I still think he's better suited coming off the bench.  Maybe by Game 3 or 4 he'll be ready, but I'd still hold off on putting him in there just yet.

Now as for what they could improve on (again, in no particular order):

1. Drive. Drive. Drive. Drive.  Memo to Caron: When you take it to the hole, good things happen.  When Delonte West gets to the line more than you do, good things aren't happening.  Cc: Gilbert Arenas (since he probably won't hit 4-5 from deep every game).
2. Guarding LeBron off of the ball.  As good as the defense was on LeBron when he had the ball, it was just as bad when he was off the ball.  Granted, there's no defense for this, but there were far too many times that he was getting open off screens  and getting alley oops.  Yes, I'd prefer having him limited to being just a scorer rather than a slashing/passing/rebounding manbeast, but I'd rather keep him from doing both.
   
3. Make them come outside.  Memo to Antawn: The Cavs aren't respecting your outside shooting skills.  They're challenging you to beat them from outside.  Don't settle out there, but don't let them get away with it either.  Cc: Roger Mason, DeShawn Stevenson.

I think most of the problems from Game 1 can be fixed in time for Game 2, but in order to make it happen, they're going to need to make the realization that Mike Wise talks about in his latest (brilliant) column:

 But you do have to wonder when and if the Wizards are going to realize they have more weapons, more depth and too much talent to let one great player and a smattering of very marginal role players ruin Washington's postseason for the third year in a row.

If they can make that realization and play with the confidence that comes with it, they'll be fine.