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Marcin Gortat wants an NBA championship badly

He would even prefer a championship ring to being the president of Poland, which is a big concession if you know him. Also, the backcourt duo gets ESPN love, the importance of Otto Porter and Glen Rice Jr. injury isn't so bad.

By Ryan Gracia Oct 17, 2014, 10:08am EDT

1. Marcin Gortat talks about Poland

In an interview with Joe Heim of The Washington Post magazine, Gortat spoke about his home country, Poland, his interest in one day becoming the president of the country and which Wizard would benefit most from a visit to his native land. Oh yeah, he also bought a really expensive fish before anything else upon signing his $60 million contract.

I bought a fish for my tank. An expensive one, like $150. It was a lionfish. It’s funny, a lot of people told me it’s going to die in the next two months, but it’s still alive."

Never change, Marcin.

But he has serious ambitions too:

What would make you happier, a Wizards championship or being president of Poland?

Winning an NBA championship, hands down. This is what it's all about. This is my dream.

2. John Wall and Bradley Beal on ESPN

The backcourt duo sat down with ESPN's Britt McHenry to discuss the upcoming season. It's nice to see those guys, and the team, getting some serious national attention.

Don't stress if you missed the interview. We've got you covered with the video and some highlights of the conversation.

A couple interesting notes from it, though:

John Wall said Bradley Beal taught him to eat more. Beal eats like a panda, so they call him Bao Bao...seriously. Love for the @NationalZoo
— Britt McHenry (@BrittMcHenry) October 16, 2014

John Wall told me he thrives off haters. Said he'll tell teammates to make him angry during games. That's when he's at his best #wizards
— Britt McHenry (@BrittMcHenry) October 16, 2014

3. Glen Rice Jr. will be OK

An initial prognosis calling Rice's injury during Wednesday's game a "sprain" will thankfully stay that way after a day of ice and compression showed some improvement. If Rice can be back healthy for the Oct. 29 season opener vs. the Miami Heat, that would be huge. The team can't afford to lose another wing player for extended time with a roster that's already thin on backcourt players.

Wizards Insider J. Michael details the encouraging news from Rice and Randy Wittman.

4. Otto's time to shine?

William Bohl of Hardwood Paroxysm took a look at t hree second-year players who are expected to take on an increased role with their respective teams. Otto Porter was one of those players.

"...he must start translating defensive potential into defensive ability and prove that he’s the kind of shooter he was during his final season in college (43-of-102 from outside and a 48% shooter overall) rather than the guy who sank just 28% of his shots outside 8 feet his rookie year."

5. Wizards to hold Gortat action figure giveaway night

Yes, this is really happening. The Wizards will give away Gortat action figures on Jan. 31st when the team hosts the Toronto Raptors. Gortat is rapidly becoming a cult hero and I couldn't be happier. He's loud, outspoken, and hilarious off the court and mean on it. What more could Wizards fans want?

6. Wizards waive Daniel Orton

This wasn't surprising news, either. Orton hasn't played in any preseason games due to a calf injury and would have had a tough time cracking a roster already deep at the frontcourt positions even if he was healthy.

He will likely take an offer to play in China. This puts the Wizards roster at 17 players, with Xavier Silas, Damion James, and Rasual Butler being the only players on non-guaranteed contracts that remain with the team.