Flip Saunders didn't like what he saw in terms of effort and walked off the court in practice today. Practice will resume at 4PM today, which will be closed to media. No specific incident triggered Saunders walking out, but every player interviewed today (Blatche, Armstrong, Howard) said that there was too much barking and complaining about calls. This was approximately five minutes after the media were let onto the main court where practice was being held today. Following Flip walking out, the team started to walk slowly off the court en masse. Hilton Armstrong stopped the team and gathered them together is an attempt to build some unity.
Quick Notes:
- Both Hilton Armstrong and Josh Howard stated that a coach walking off the court has never happened in their NBA careers. It has happened in college before, but never in the NBA. For the record, Flip stated that he has done this before, at least twice a year with other teams
- Andray Blatche stated that two a days in November were going to be necessary until the team improved. His first statement to the press was "What's our record," which was indicative of the frustration of most of the players. He also offered the media hot cocoa and to put our feet up.
- Josh Howard was straight to the point in his session. "We are getting ready to get a paycheck on the 15th. And right now I can honestly say y'all are getting a paycheck for nothing. And I can honestly say that."
Much much more to come in terms of quotes and transcription. See you guys in a bit.