Bullets Forever - Wizards vs. Bucks: Washington falls to 0-4 "Ain't No Luck"https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48097/BulletsForever-fv.png2012-11-10T12:32:17-05:00http://www.bulletsforever.com/rss/stream/33865212012-11-10T12:32:17-05:002012-11-10T12:32:17-05:00Beal's breakout game spoiled by ejection
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<figcaption>Jason Miller</figcaption>
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<p>Bradley Beal finally gives fans the performance they have been waiting for. Unfortunately, a last-minute ejection after a hard foul on Monta Ellis sours the end of the game. Update: Beal will not be suspended for the hard foul, and he will be available tonight in Indiana.</p> <p>Twenty-two points, four rebounds, two assists on fifty percent shooting--and a perfect eight for eight from the stripe.</p>
<p>That sounds like the exact performance the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/">Wizards</a> and their fans have expected <span>Bradley Beal</span> to have every night on the floor. Based on his confidence and aggressiveness last night, there's no reason to think he won't be able to produce like that every night.</p>
<p>Well, maybe not tonight, since that aggressiveness also happened to manifest itself in a hard last-minute foul on <span>Monta Ellis</span> that could result in Beal missing tonight's tilt against the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.indycornrows.com/">Pacers</a> with a suspension. No word from the league at the time of this posting, but we'll be sure to update later if we hear anything.</p>
<p>If you haven't heard by now, with just under 30 seconds to go in the game last night, Monta Ellis headed for an easy fast break layup. Beal--who probably did not want to give up an easy basket--fouled Ellis hard (Beal claims he was going for the ball). Ellis hit the deck, and as Beal went to help him up, <span>Brandon Jennings</span> shoved Beal in the back. A tussle ensued (though no bodies left the bench), and <a href="http://www.bulletsforever.com/2012/11/9/3625610/bradley-beal-flagrant-foul-monta-ellis-brandon-jennings">officials ejected</a> both Beal and Jennings for with Flagrant-2 fouls.</p>
<p>Beal's foul on Ellis overshadowed a breakout performance by the rookie, who finally took <span>John Wall</span> and coach <span>Randy Wittman's</span> advice and stayed aggressive every second he was on the floor. Despite "feel[ing] like a ball hog" by shooting multiple possessions in a row, Beal has started to train himself to attack and stay aggressive. "It's just that mentality that I have to have, staying aggressive. I don't always have to shoot the ball," Beal said after the game. "I had a few turnovers too, and I have to limit my turnovers. But it's just being more aggressive and stronger with the ball."</p>
<p>Beal showed an uncanny ability during both summer league and preseason to get himself to the free throw line. For a player to have that skill this early in his career is invaluable, and it's equally invaluable to have a player like that on team that hasn't had someone like that for years (HIBACHI!). Hitting all eight of his attempts from the line last night (he also happens to be have made every single FT attempt so far this season, 13-13) showed that defenses will pay, too, if they let him get into the lane. Beal credits Wall with encouraging him to get to the basket: "There's plenty of times where I can attack the basket. [Wall's] perspective from the bench is great, because there's a lot of things he sees that I don't see. He's telling me, whenever I get the ball in transition and there's a big man backpeddaling, attack him. Chances are, you're going to get a foul, and several times I got a foul."</p>
<p><span style="color: #222222;">"He's growing, getting more confident. He's attacking more. Still, he's got areas where he can do it even more," Wittman said. "On offensive rebounds kicked out to him... in scramble situations, you've got to stay in attack mode. But he was better. Anytime he can get to the line eight times like he did I think shows he's being aggressive."</span></p>
<p>As much improvement as he showed last night, he struggled a bit with turnovers (3) and three-pointers (0-4). Both of those come with the territory of transitioning from the college to the pro game, but with how quickly he seems to be gaining his confidence, I wouldn't be surprised if he those areas improved sooner rather than later.</p>
<p>As important as it is to be aggressive, Beal will need to be careful about appropriately channeling that aggression. This will come with experience, for sure, but here are a few quick pointers:</p>
<p>Good Aggression:</p>
<p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/uNpwiHhzPLc" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>Bad Aggression:</p>
<p><iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/mfIpCQJqxm4" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>The difference between the two is simple, but important. Good aggression is controlled chaos. The simultaneous use of intelligence, skill, experience, and adrenaline. We've all experienced that in some way, shape, or form. But there's a perfect balance to those pieces that needs to be maintained. With the fast break dunk, Beal showed intelligence to run the floor and get an easy basket, his skill got him in the air to make a high percentage shot, camp and college gave him the experience to know that when you have a transition opportunity you take it, and adrenaline got him fired up enough to slam it home.</p>
<p>Bad aggression is when the pieces are out of line. If any of those four pieces are outweighing the others, then there's a problem. With the foul, I don't think intelligence or skill were the issue, nor was adrenaline a problem. With more experience, Beal will know that you don't knock a guy out of the air like that--whether or not you're going for the ball. Jennings said after the game that in situations like that, especially at the end of the game, wrapping a guy up is the better play. Beal will know that in time, and luckily last night, Ellis wasn't injured because of Beal's inexperience.</p>
<p>There's still no word from the league on whether Beal will play tonight or not. The team could certainly use his scoring. If he doesn't play, you'll have to chalk it up to a rookie mistake.</p>
<p>UPDATE: Per Michael Lee, Beal is not suspended for his hit on Ellis.</p>
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<p><a href="https://twitter.com/search/%23wizards">#wizards</a> will have Bradley Beal when they take on IND. League determined hard foul on Monta Ellis didn't warrant suspension</p>
— Michael Lee (@MrMichaelLee) <a data-datetime="2012-11-10T22:31:20+00:00" href="https://twitter.com/MrMichaelLee/status/267394034081873921">November 10, 2012</a>
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https://www.bulletsforever.com/2012/11/10/3627186/bradley-beal-breakout-washington-wizards-ejectionAmin Vafa2012-11-09T22:32:39-05:002012-11-09T22:32:39-05:00Beal: 'I went for the ball'
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<figcaption>Brad Mills-US PRESSWIRE</figcaption>
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<p>The three players involved in a late-game skirmish in the Milwaukee Bucks' 101-91 win over the Washington Wizards react.</p> <p>WASHINGTON -- With 30 seconds to go at the end of a seemingly ordinary <a href="https://www.brewhoop.com/">Bucks</a>-<a href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/">Wizards</a> game, <span>Monta Ellis</span> was fouled hard by <span>Bradley Beal</span> on a layup attempt. Ellis hit the floor and tumbled into the row of photographers. Beal quickly extended a hand in what looked like an attempt to help Ellis off the floor, when all of a sudden <span>Brandon Jennings</span> rushed in and shoved Beal in the back. A tussle ensued, and after official review, both Beal and Jennings were ejected with Flagrant-2 fouls.</p>
<p>After the game, each of the three players reacted to the incident.</p>
<p><b>On the foul:</b></p>
<ul>
<li> <b>Beal: </b>"I went for the ball."</li>
<li> <b>Jennings: </b>"With 30-some seconds left, I know a team never wants to give up an easy basket, but in that type of situation I feel like you should just wrap the guy up instead of just pushing him or fouling him once he's in the air."</li>
<li> <b>Ellis: </b>"He just fouled me hard."</li>
</ul>
<p><b>On Jennings's reaction:</b></p>
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<li> <b>Beal: </b>"I guess [Jennings] was defending his teammate, I guess, so he came up and pushed me. It's just all part of basketball. It gets physical. I mean, it is what it is. I just have to deal with it."</li>
<li> <b>Jennings: </b>"I was just trying to protect my teammate. I didn't think I was going to get kicked out for it.... when you see a nasty fall, your first [instinct] is 'Watch out, everyone get out of the way.'"</li>
<li> <b>Ellis: </b>"That's what a teammate is supposed to do. It was a great job. That's what we gotta do. We gotta make our mark. If somebody foul us like that, we gotta react."</li>
</ul>
<p>The play and altercation afterward will certainly come under review by the league, but it was clear from Ellis's body language post-game that he was still not completely over the foul. Bucks coach Scott Skiles and Wizards coach Randy Wittman both claimed they had not seen the replay enough to comment. Skiles said he was trying to make sure his other players weren't getting off the bench to enter the fray.</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2012/11/9/3625610/bradley-beal-flagrant-foul-monta-ellis-brandon-jenningsAmin Vafa2012-11-09T21:26:02-05:002012-11-09T21:26:02-05:00Wizards drop to 0-4 with 101-91 loss to Bucks
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<figcaption>Brad Mills-US PRESSWIRE</figcaption>
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<p>Ejections of Bradley Beal and Brandon Jennings marred a 101-91 Bucks win over the Wizards on Friday. The Wizards fell to 0-4.</p> <p>WASHINGTON -- Another game, another loss. Once again, the <a href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Wizards</a> fought hard, but they couldn't get good possessions when it mattered late and couldn't get quite enough stops to rally in a 101-91 loss to the <a href="https://www.brewhoop.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Milwaukee Bucks</a>. Washington falls to 0-4 on the season.</p>
<p>The most depressing thing about this loss was that the starters played well. The three players who struggled most in the first three games were <span>Trevor Ariza</span>, <span>Emeka Okafor</span> and <span>Bradley Beal</span>. Tonight, those were the Wizards' three best player. This time, though, it was everyone else that played well in the first three games -- <span>Kevin Seraphin</span>, <span>Martell Webster</span> -- that didn't come through. That makes it even harder to figure out the right answer to stop the bleeding going forward.</p>
<p>The game, of course, will be marred by the incident at the end when Beal flagrantly fouled <span>Monta Ellis</span> on the break and <span>Brandon Jennings</span> shoved him aside to get ejected. It was not a good play by Beal to chase Ellis down like that. He deserved his flagrant foul (though I would have gone with a flagrant 1). But Jennings also very much deserved to get ejected because Beal was trying to help Ellis up when Jennings shoved him down like that.</p>
<p>Chronological notes and the good/bad/medium to follow:</p>
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<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">The Wizards caught a major break on the first possession of the game. They brought <span>Samuel Dalembert</span> up high, and for some reason, Emeka Okafor didn't think to drop back and help Bradley Beal as Monta Ellis rubbed off a backpick. Luckily, Ellis missed the layup.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Otherwise, wow, what a start. The thing I liked most was the way the Wizards' primary defenders cut off dribble penetration at the point of attack. There was one play where Brandon Jennings declined a ball screen to go to his favorite left hand. Normally, Jennings gets by his primary defender by catching them off balanced. Instead, <span>A.J. Price</span> did a great job sliding his feet to cut off Jennings at the elbow, forcing a fadeaway jumper, an easy miss and another fast-break layup.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Active hands in the passing lanes was nice too. The Bucks will make you work by throwing a lot of passes around the perimeter, so if you can disrupt them, you can disrupt their offense. Trevor Ariza actually did a really nice job here.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Speaking of former <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nba/teams/new-orleans-hornets" class="sbn-auto-link">Hornets</a> players, Emeka Okafor came to play tonight. He was always in the right spot to cut off dribble penetration, and he blocked a couple shots when players got too deep. There was one play where he stepped up just in time to prevent Jennings from getting to the rim on a layup. Jennings instead shot a one-legged fadeaway that missed.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">It seemed like the Wizards' guards got a bit impatient after the initial burst. At first, they got out of control looking to make spectacular plays instead of making it easy. Then, they got too passive and stopped trying to break down the defense, leading to a ton of possessions where nothing really happened.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Bradley Beal had his issues guarding Monta Ellis. Ellis used screens nicely a couple times to free himself up for open lanes, which he used to drive and find his teammates. Beal can't get hung up on simple screens that easily.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">This is such a tempo game sometimes. When one team is getting easy buckets, it forces the other team into halfcourt sets, which have a higher degree of difficulty. Those misses lead to transition run-outs and easy scores on the secondary break. Rinse, repeat. Early on, the Wizards had control of the tempo. As the first quarter went on, though, the Bucks got a half-court score, got a few stops and then were able to start getting easy points in secondary transition situations. Then, after the timeout, the Wizards briefly regained that tempo, and on we went.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">A solid early performance from Ariza and Okafor. I liked the pocket bounce pass Ariza threw to Okafor to set up the wide-open 16-foot jumper.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Good to see <span>Chris Singleton</span> aggressive early. He still has to become much better at finishing around the rim, but I like that he attacked an <span>Ersan Ilyasova</span> closeout and got his shoulders by Ilaysova's hip on the drive. He missed the finish, but that's an important step in his development.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Not a fan of the Wizards' second-unit spacing. With the lineup they had in there, the obvious play was to get Seraphin some post touches off cross-screens, with <span>Jan Vesely</span> in the high post. Instead, the wings tried to do it themselves a bit too often.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Seraphin did get a couple touches eventually, but I didn't like seeing him flattened by a cross-screen, leading to a <span>Larry Sanders</span> layup. Someone needs to call out that screen so Seraphin is aware.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Martell Webster had a ton of trouble staying with <span>Mike Dunleavy</span> coming off baseline screens. A lot of people do, of course, but Webster should be doing a better job.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">In general, the Wizards' second unit had a really poor gameplan. Rather than pound the Bucks inside and slow the game down, the Wizards ran too much offense through their guards, feeding right into Milwaukee's hands. I know Seraphin had trouble passing out of double teams the other night, but Milwaukee's doubles aren't the same as Boston's doubles. The <a href="https://www.grizzlybearblues.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Grizzlies</a> used their size to muck up Wednesday's game against the Bucks; the Wizards should have tried to do the same.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Oof, Beal's defensive stance against Ellis on one drive. The second Beal opened it up, Ellis zoomed down the lane for a really easy dunk. That's how fast guys in this league are, Bradley.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">It's nice that Price knows he needs to take floaters to get shots over rotating big men. It'd be nicer if he actually made those floaters.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Besides that one awful breakdown, it did seem like Beal gave a pretty good effort defending Ellis. Soon, he'll learn all the ways that Ellis used his quickness and be able to adopt to it.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">However, it is still a bit frustrating to see Beal play so passively when bigs come out at him on pick and roll. There was one play where he had a chance to turn the corner to the baseline on <span>Ekpe Udoh</span> and attack the basket. Instead, he dropped back into no-mans land and threw a slow lob pass to Okafor that was nearly intercepted. It's OK, Brad. Commit a turnover if you must. Just attack.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Man, Trevor Ariza stinks at attacking closeouts.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Okafor continued to do a good job sliding his feet and cutting off dribble penetration. The Bucks offer a good matchup for him because he's not spending very much time defending a major threat. Samuel Dalembert isn't going to hurt you, so Okafor was freer to roam around the lane and assist his teammates.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Welp, <span>Trevor Booker</span> mishandling passes.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">If Ariza can hit a decent percentage of corner threes, he can occupy the same kind of role <span>Kawhi Leonard</span> does for the <a href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Spurs</a>. He just needs to attack closeouts better.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">One thing that prevents Singleton from playing power forward all the time: his lack of big man fundamentals. Stretch 4s don't need to do all the things that traditional power forwards can, but they do need to set reasonable screens and hold onto rebounds. Those were two things Singleton didn't do in the third quarter.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">I like that Beal seemed to be able to create more space to take his jumper, but I still don't think he attacks the basket enough. He has the capability, so you'd like to see him use it more often.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">When you're playing close games, little things really count. Booker cost the Wizards three points by mishandling a wide-open dunk and bringing a ball down on the break instead of going up right away (he got fouled and hit 1-2 from the line). Singleton fumbled a rebound and got forced into a jump ball; the Bucks recovered and scored on the possession. Singleton also messed up a dribble handoff with Crawford, leading to a <span>Beno Udrih</span> steal. Those plays add up.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">I don't like it when guards purposely go away from the screen. Many teams these days "ice" the screen and roll, which is to say that they force the ball-handler away from the screen and to the baseline. On two separate occasions, <span>Jannero Pargo</span> and <span>Jordan Crawford</span> willingly went right into the Bucks' coverages, leading to a baseline trap. Crawford smartly found Vesely for a floater on one of them, but it's a poor strategy because it's feeding into the Bucks' defensive coverages. When it's possible to go towards the screen and mess that coverage up, the guards should do it.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Pargo can't led Udrih drive right to eventually pull up left. He has to know Udrih's tendencies better than that.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Crawford doesn't look healthy. He got no lift on his breakaway layup attempt. It might serve him well to take a couple days or games off to get right.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Ariza's inability to attack closeouts is really problematic when the ball is swinging around and you're the guy they leave in the corner. Once that happens, you have to be able to make a quick decision, whether it's shooting the three-pointer or attacking the closeout. It's the easiest spot in the world for a player because his man is already off-balanced before he catches the ball. If Ariza can't make a play under those circumstances, it's problematic.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">Beal did a nice job attacking the rim on a fast break and forcing his way to the free-throw line. He should do that more often.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">I really like sets where the point guard can run his man into an initial screen, swing it to the big man, and then the big swings it to Beal on the wing for a quick side pick and roll. The misdirection of the previous play makes it easier for Beal to run his man into the screen and make a play. In one case, it was hitting Booker in stride for a dunk with a beautiful pocket bounce pass.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">It's just a killer when you get some momentum going ... and then there's a miscommunication that leaves Larry Sanders wide open underneath the basket. I think that was on Okafor, but it's tough to tell. Regardless, that cannot happen.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">The difference in this game was the way each team attacked closeouts. The Bucks are so good at making quick decisions and punishing you when you're rotating and off-balanced. The Wizards do a horrendous job at making quick decisions when you're rotating and off-balanced. I'm not sure why the Wizards don't practice this well, but seeing as this has become a drive and kick kind of league, it's stunning how rudimentary the Wizards' skills are here. Beal will learn how to do it better because he's 19, but how do you explain Ariza, Price and Crawford?</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: 11.818181991577148px; line-height: 8.999999046325684px;">That last-gasp possession where the Wizards got a steal and nobody shot it? That illustrates the above problem. Nobody can make a play in a closeout situation.</span></li>
</ul>
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<b>GOOD: </b>Bradley Beal, Trevor Ariza, Emeka Okafor</div>
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<b>BAD: </b>Jannero Pargo, Kevin Seraphin, Martell Webster.</div>
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<b>MEDIUM: </b>A.J. Price (played good defense), Trevor Booker.</div>
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<th class="td-left"> <span>Final - 11.9.2012 </span> </th> <th>1</th> <th>2</th> <th>3</th> <th>4</th> <th>Total</th>
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<td class="td-name"><span class="win"> <a href="https://www.brewhoop.com/">Milwaukee Bucks</a> </span></td>
<td>30</td>
<td>26</td>
<td>19</td>
<td>26</td>
<td class="highlight">101</td>
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<td class="td-name"><span class="loss"> <a href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/">Washington Wizards</a> </span></td>
<td>28</td>
<td>19</td>
<td>25</td>
<td>19</td>
<td class="highlight">91</td>
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<p class="foot clearfix"><span class="link-more"><span>Complete Coverage ></span></span></p>
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https://www.bulletsforever.com/2012/11/9/3625080/bucks-vs-wizards-score-final-2012Mike Prada2012-11-09T18:22:03-05:002012-11-09T18:22:03-05:00Discuss Wizards vs. Bucks here
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<figcaption>Geoff Burke-US PRESSWIRE</figcaption>
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<p>Discuss tonight's Wizards vs. Bucks game here.</p> <table cellspacing="5" border="1" align="center" cellpadding="5"><tbody> <tr><th align="center" colspan="3" bgcolor="silver">2012/2013 NBA Preseason</th></tr> <tr> <td width="240"><center><img src="http://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/wizards_alt_logo_hand.gif" height="72" width="80"></center></td> <th align="center" width="20">@</th> <td width="240"><center><img src="http://fantasymortar.com/images/Players/NBA/Teams/Milwaukee%20Bucks%20Logo.png" height="72" width="80"></center></td> </tr> <tr><td align="center" colspan="3" bgcolor="silver"><strong>November 9, 2012</strong></td></tr> <tr><td align="center" colspan="3"><strong>Verizon Center</strong></td></tr> <tr><td align="center" colspan="3"><strong>7 p.m.</strong></td></tr> <tr><td align="center" colspan="3"><strong>CSN, 106.7 The Fan</strong></td></tr> <tr><th align="center" colspan="3" bgcolor="silver"><strong>Starting Lineups</strong></th></tr> <tr> <td align="right" width="240"><span style="text-align: start;"><span>Brandon Jennings</span></span></td> <th align="center" width="20">PG</th> <td width="240"><span>A.J. Price</span></td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right" width="240"><span style="text-align: start;"><span>Monta Ellis</span></span></td> <th align="center" width="20">SG</th> <td width="240"><span>Bradley Beal</span></td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right" width="240"><span style="text-align: start;"><span>Tobias Harris</span></span></td> <th align="center" width="20">SF</th> <td width="240"><span>Trevor Ariza</span></td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right" width="240"><span style="text-align: start;"><span>Ersan Ilyasova</span></span></td> <th align="center" width="20">PF</th> <td width="240"><span>Trevor Booker</span></td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right" width="240"><span style="text-align: start;"><span>Samuel Dalembert</span></span></td> <th align="center" width="20">C</th> <td width="240"><p><span>Emeka Okafor</span></p></td> </tr> <tr><th align="center" colspan="3" bgcolor="silver"><strong>2011/12 Advanced Stats</strong></th></tr> <tr> <td align="right" width="240">93.7 (3rd)</td> <th align="center" width="20">Pace</th> <td width="240">92.5 (9th)</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right" width="240">105.5 (13th)</td> <th align="center" width="20">ORtg</th> <td width="240">101 (T25th)</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right" width="240">105.2 (16th)</td> <th align="center" width="20">DRtg</th> <td width="240">106.2 (21st)</td> </tr> <tr><th height="20" bgcolor="silver" colspan="3">Also see: <a href="http://www.brewhoop.com">Brew Hoop</a> | <a href="http://www.bulletsforever.com/2012/11/9/3622480/washington-wizards-milwaukee-bucks-nba-november-9">StoryStream</a> </th></tr> </tbody></table>
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<p>The <a href="https://www.brewhoop.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Milwaukee Bucks</a> come into Verizon Center tonight after a punishing loss to the <a href="https://www.grizzlybearblues.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Memphis Grizzlies</a> where they got worked inside. That has to be the blueprint for the <a href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Wizards</a> to win this one. Milwaukee has become a small team, and the Wizards' second unit has to make them pay for it.</p>
<p>Of course, they also need to negate Milwaukee's speed advantage. Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis love to put shots up, but they'll also drive to the rim and force your team to drop off everyone else. Milwaukee is a pretty unselfish team that moves the ball well, so containing the dribble of Jennings and Ellis will be critical.</p>
<p>"Tonight, it's going to be imperative to defend off the dribble," <span>Randy Wittman</span> said before the game. "This is a big penetration, draw-and-kick team with guys that can make shots. The more we can control them off the dribble and not have to get into rotations with our bigs coming to help, which opens up the boards, which causes us to have trouble rebounding, the better we can do that, the more success we'll have."</p>
<p>Game begins at 7. Join us in the game thread here. </p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2012/11/9/3624840/bucks-vs-wizards-game-time-tv-schedule-and-open-threadMike Prada2012-11-09T10:25:56-05:002012-11-09T10:25:56-05:00Previewing Wizards vs. Bucks
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<figcaption>Jeff Hanisch-US PRESSWIRE</figcaption>
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<p>After close losses to the Cavaliers and Celtics, the Wizards try to pick up their first win of the season at home against the Bucks.</p> <p><b>Who, when and where:</b> The <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/">Wizards</a> play the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.brewhoop.com/">Bucks</a> at 7:00 PM EST at the Verizon Center. The game will be televised on Comcast SportsNet.</p>
<p><b>Are they good?</b> So far, they've done pretty well, taking down the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.celticsblog.com/">Celtics</a> in Boston and defeating the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.fearthesword.com/">Cavaliers</a> in their home opener. In other words, they've already beaten all the teams that have beaten the Wizards. If they're not good, at least we can deduce that they're at least better than the Wizards at this point.</p>
<p><b>What are their strengths? </b>The Bucks have lit it up from downtown so far this season, shooting 40.4 percent from three this year so far. A big part of that is <span>Mike Dunleavy</span> who is 9 for 11 on the season so far. He's singlehandedly making up for <span>Brandon Jennings</span> and <span>Monta Ellis</span>, who are a combined 8 for 28 this season. Although you can't expect Dunleavy's percentages to remain high forever, he needs to be taken seriously. The Bucks have also done an outstanding job at protecting the ball. They've been top 10 the last three seasons and although they're 14th in the league right now, that should get back to level they expect as the season wears on, thanks in big part to Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis who are both great at limiting turnovers despite high usage rates.</p>
<p><b>What are their weaknesses? </b>Right now, the Bucks are struggling at creating offense for their bigs, <a href="http://www.brewhoop.com/2012/11/8/3616872/bucks-deficiencies-stand-front-and-center-vs-grizzlies">as BrewHoop noted in the recap</a> of the Bucks' loss to the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.grizzlybearblues.com/">Grizzlies</a> on Wednesday night. The only big averaging more than six points per game at the moment is <span>Larry Sanders</span>. <span>Samuel Dalembert</span> and Joel Pryzbilla have helped to shore up the defense somewhat, but they're not providing much offensively, as you'd expect. The surprise has been the play of <span>Ersan Ilyasova</span> has struggled mightily this year after <a href="http://www.brewhoop.com/2012/7/16/3162419/ersan-ilyasova-contract-bucks-5-year-40-million-deal">signing a $40 million deal during the summer</a>. Larry Sanders' growth has been a welcome surprise, but he's still averaging 6.9 fouls per 36 minutes, so they can't rely on him to log heavy minutes on a consistent basis just yet.</p>
<p><b>What might people not know about them? </b>The Bucks have put together quite an unusual profile so far. They're the rare team that <a href="http://www.hardwoodparoxysm.com/2012/11/08/flashing-the-pan/">defends well and can do so while playing at a high pace</a>. We'll see if that keeps up through 82 games.</p>
<p><b>How is Brandon Jennings doing as he begins his contract year? </b>The early returns have been pretty impressive, but he's still showing some signs that make general managers hesitant. He opened the season up with a 21 point, 13 assist performance against the Celtics and followed it up with 13 and 13 against <span>Kyrie Irving</span> and the Cavaliers. Memphis really took him out of his game, however. He needed 20 shots to get 19 points and only had 5 assists as the Bucks picked up their first loss of the season.</p>
<p><b>So can the Wizards win?</b> Let's put it this way: The Bucks have already beaten the Cavaliers and the Celtics, who both beat the Wizards. Logically speaking, the Bucks should be favored here, but the game is D.C. and the Wizards should be plenty motivated after two good efforts against Boston.</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2012/11/9/3614846/washington-wizards-milwaukee-bucks-nba-previewJake Whitacre