Bullets Forever - Wizards vs. Knicks: Washington loses home opener, 117-110"Ain't No Luck"https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48097/BulletsForever-fv.png2015-11-01T14:50:09-05:00http://www.bulletsforever.com/rss/stream/94135792015-11-01T14:50:09-05:002015-11-01T14:50:09-05:00Wittman shows a different side after tough loss
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<p>WASHINGTON - <span>Randy Wittman</span> took his time in answering the first question after the <a href="http://www.bulletsforever.com/2015/10/31/9652694/carmelo-anthony-scores-37-as-the-knicks-spoil-the-wizards-home-opener">Wizards' opening night loss to the New York Knicks</a>, looking away from the media to collect himself after initially remarking, "it was a tough day."</p>
<p>After a whirlwind 24 hours that saw Wittman go from the <a href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Wizards</a> comeback win in Milwaukee, to Minnesota for the funeral for his longtime colleague and friend, Flip Saunders, and finally back to Washington, he appeared exhausted Saturday evening after the game. There would be no rants on a "<a href="http://www.bulletsforever.com/2013/11/2/5057730/magical-pixels-wizards-vs-76ers-fast-start-finishes-with-an-f-bomb">commitment to playing f***ing defense</a>" or "<a href="http://www.bulletsforever.com/2015/5/8/8573975/randy-wittman-NEXT-QUESTION-john-wall-washington-wizards-medical-staff-clash-wrist-hand-injury">next question</a>"; just somber laments of the team's failure to contain a <a href="https://www.postingandtoasting.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Knicks</a> offense that put up 117 points.</p>
<p>While Wittman's demeanor was different, the content of his responses was familiar. "The commitment to defend is just not there," Wittman complained. "We can talk about a lot of other things and make excuses, but to score 110 points at home and lose by seven, that's what it boils down to, we're not committed right now and we've got to change that." For the second night in a row, the Wizards failed to contain an offense that had, at least last season, ranked among the worst in the NBA.</p>
<p>The Knicks' Carmelo Anthony, unperturbed by any pressure from the Wizards, was a big part of the Wizards problem. Whether it was <span>Otto Porter</span> or <span>Jared Dudley</span> covering him, Melo was able to create a sliver of space where he could get off a shot, scoring 37 points in total. The biggest of which came with 1:35 left on the clock in a tied game, where Anthony beat the shot clock and the dogged defensive effort of Jared Dudley to hit a just-inside-the-line long 2 to give the Knicks a 108-106 lead.</p>
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<p lang="in" dir="ltr">dang melo <a href="https://t.co/kL1MFrgfCP">pic.twitter.com/kL1MFrgfCP</a></p>
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<p>Melo wasn't the Wizards' only problem, though. The Wizards struggled to contain a balanced attack from the Knicks. Langston Galloway hit some big shots and <span>Lance Thomas</span> exploited several mismatches on Wizards' guards in the post.</p>
<p>During the team's first two games, the Wizards had the luxury of being able to cruise a bit, with Wall and Beal taking over in the fourth quarters of each to win the game. Wall and Beal made big plays again tonight, but the Wizards' defense couldn't stop Melo and the Knicks from doing the same.</p>
<p>For Wittman, it's a matter of the Wizards changing their approach to the game. "We've got to change our mindset," he said after the game. "We've talked a lot about offense .... I can't come in at halftime and listen to, we're talking more about what we're doing offensively and we gave up 59 points. So our mindset needs to change."</p>
<p><span>Bradley Beal</span> concurred, saying: <b>"</b>We just didn't guard anybody. We were letting guys catch the ball too easily. We were just letting them do whatever they wanted offensively<b>."</b></p>
<p>The Wizards will have to make adjustments to be able to defend at a level that Wittman finds acceptable. And for all of the justified (and unjustified) criticisms of Wittman during his tenure in Washington, he always manages to cobble together a solid defense with the players he's been given. It remains an open question of whether Wittman can make the Wizards' defense work while continuing to support the team's new fast-paced offense.</p>
<p>But this was just one game of 82, and, for Wittman, the failures during this one game will surely fade compared to the importance of the day that preceded it. Even six years after Flip Saunders was hired by the Wizards, and almost four years after he was let go, the Wizards still retain a connection with his coaching legacy. The Wizards were initially co-coached on Saturday by assistants <span>Don Newman</span> and <span>Don Zierden</span>.</p>
<p>Zierden's ties to Saunders date back to the former's days as a Division III point guard playing pickup ball against the much better D1 player Saunders and continued through the pair coaching together in the CBA and at NBA stops in Minnesota, Detroit and Washington. <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/17/AR2009071703167.html">As he told the Washington Post in 2009</a>, "Most of my coaching games in my pro career have been with Flip, and I think it's the same way with him," Zierden said. "We've really been together at every stage."</p>
<p>Delayed by his friend's funeral, Wittman eventually made it to the game by the end of the first quarter, completing a grueling day with a grueling game that lasted over two and a half hours and saw 62 foul calls. But for Wittman, whether to coach the game or not was never in question. With emotion in his voice once again, he explained why he came back from Minnesota last night: "You know what? Flip would have wanted me to coach. He would have never wanted me to miss a game based on him, I can guarantee you that." He ended the press conference where it began. "It was tough. It was a tough day."</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2015/11/1/9653922/randy-wittman-washington-wizards-new-york-knicksNick Bilka2015-11-01T11:39:55-05:002015-11-01T11:39:55-05:00Wizards vs. Knicks: The BF community roll call
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<p>I enjoyed my extra hour of sleep. It would have been better if we won.</p> <p>The Wizards suffered their first loss of the 2015-16 season with a 117-110 loss to the New York Knicks.</p>
<h4><b>The Stats</b></h4>
<p>65 community members commented 1,100 times in our <a href="http://www.bulletsforever.com/2015/10/31/9649492/wizards-vs-knicks-gamethread-trick-or-treat-we-have-a-home-opener" target="_blank">first half</a>, <a href="http://www.bulletsforever.com/2015/10/31/9649480/wizards-vs-knicks-second-half-gamethread" target="_blank">second half</a>, and <a href="http://www.bulletsforever.com/2015/10/31/9651044/wizards-vs-knicks-postgame-thread" target="_blank">postgame threads</a>. BEALiever led all commenters with 159 for the game. elliotlevy2 added 102 more.</p>
<p>The comments numbers were down a bit from the first two games, but I'd blame it mostly on the kids who were trick or treating, knocking on your door every time a highlight play was made. :)</p>
<h4>Best Comments of the first half</h4>
<p>I don't want to use a comment I wrote per se, but I did make light of the fact that we weren't commenting at the same rate that we usually do.</p>
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<p>WhyKnotUs, loved your response since it was spot on. There had to be a Trick of Treater and possibly a home game effect on things.</p>
<h4><b>Best Comment of the second half</b></h4>
<p>One of the reasons why the Wizards lost this game was turnovers. Washington committed 17 for the night, many at just the wrong moments to the point where I just don't know where to start. Another major reason why was the three point shooting. abala noted this in a comment toward the end of the game:</p>
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<h4>Best Comments of the reaction thread</h4>
<p>The Wizards are 2-1. However, I hate to say that they could very easily be 0-3 right now when things could be looking a lot more gloomy than they are. jazzy1 told it how it is:</p>
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<p>It's great to see that both members of the House of Guards are doing their part to keep each game competitive. However this team has yet to give a consistent performance all game. Yes, it's still early, but the turnovers we've seen in these first three games are still a concern.</p>
<h4>Final Thoughts</h4>
<p>It's a bummer that the Wizards didn't take care of business on Halloween. Fortunately, they have a few days off before they host the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday when they can re-tune their pace-and-space offense and defensive schemes.</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2015/11/1/9649626/wizards-vs-knicks-the-bf-community-roll-call-best-commentsAlbert Lee2015-10-31T22:56:49-04:002015-10-31T22:56:49-04:00Recap: Carmelo torches Wiz in home opener
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<p>John Wall and Bradley Beal combined for 51 points but it wasn't enough as Carmelo Anthony leads the Knicks past the Wizards.</p> <p><span>Bradley Beal</span> scored 26 and <span>John Wall</span> had 25 but <span>Carmelo Anthony</span> stole the show with 37 points as the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.postingandtoasting.com/">Knicks</a> outlasted the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/">Wizards</a> 117-110 and spoiled the Wizards' home opener.</p>
<p>The Wizards had no answer for Carmelo Anthony and that was apparent early. The Wizards trusted <span>Otto Porter</span> early to guard Anthony but he scorched him for 10 points in the first quarter and 18 for the half shooting a very efficient 6-8 from the field.</p>
<p><span>Drew Gooden</span> and <span>Ramon Sessions</span> provided a nice spark off the bench for the Wizards. Gooden scored nine points off the bench in the first half, including two put back lay-ins and per usual, Ramon Sessions continued to thrive in transition keeping the Knicks on their heels.</p>
<p>Even though the reserves scored 24 points in the first half, that wouldn't offset the hot shooting from Carmelo Anthony as the Wizards were down 59-56 at halftime.</p>
<p>Carmelo Anthony continued his hot shooting knocking down his first two three-pointers of the second half as the Knicks stretched the lead to nine, 69-60 at the 7:10 mark. The Wizards looked like a team coming off the second game of a back to back as there was very little energy to start the second half.</p>
<p>On a positive note, Bradley Beal woke up in the second half to the tune of 22 points on 8-16 shooting after going just 1-7 in the first half. Beal was very aggressive in the second half and knocked down a clutch three-pointer as time expired in the third quarter as the Wizards led 90-87.</p>
<p>The lead seesawed back and forth for the entire fourth quarter. Beal had another hot fourth quarter in back to back nights, this time scoring 11 of the Wizards' 20 points in the fourth quarter.</p>
<p>It wouldn't be enough as Carmelo Anthony and some key baskets late from <span>Lance Thomas</span> and Langston Galloway enabled the Knicks to pull away and win this one 117-110.</p>
<p><b>Wizards continue to get to the line:</b> In back to back nights, the Wizards got to the line 20 times in the first half, this time knocking down just 15. Many of these free throw attempts were from the Wizards up-tempo speed with Wall and Sessions drawing contact in transition. The Wizards went 26-32 from the charity stripe for the game; a very efficient 81 percent.</p>
<p><b>The Knicks bench outplayed the Wiz bench: </b>The Wizards bench didn't play bad tonight, the Knicks' bench just played better. The Knicks bench outscored the Wizards' 50-32 and opted to keep some of their reserves in down the stretch. Drew Gooden and Nene combined for 19 points but were horrific on the defensive end. Nene fouled out in just 18 minutes whereas Drew Gooden was often gambling for steals that weren't there.</p>
<p><b>The Wizards defense is very much a work in progress</b>: The Wizards gave up 117 points tonight after giving up 113 the night before. That's just bad. What happened to the Wizards' top-5 defense we were used to seeing last year? Carmelo Anthony torched the Wiz for 37 points. Neither Porter nor Dudley had an answer for Melo tonight. It was very surprising that the Wizards did not double team Carmelo and force other players to beat them.</p>
<p>In addition, the Wizards' big men did not play well on the defensive end. Both Gortat and Nene were in foul trouble the entire night which forced <span>Randy Wittman</span> to put <span>DeJuan Blair</span> in. That didn't go well either.</p>
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<p>The Wizards must clean things up defensively before the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/">Spurs</a> come to town Wednesday night.</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2015/10/31/9652694/carmelo-anthony-scores-37-as-the-knicks-spoil-the-wizards-home-openerAlan Jenkins2015-10-31T00:03:52-04:002015-10-31T00:03:52-04:00Preview: Home opener vs. the Knicks
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<p>The Wizards try to go 3-0 on the second half of a back to back.</p> <p>The <a href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Wizards</a> have started the season 2-0 for the first time in a decade. They go into the home opener against the <a href="https://www.postingandtoasting.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">New York Knicks</a> on the second night of a back to back after a gritty, ugly, emotional win in Milwaukee.</p>
<p>The Knicks -- a.k.a. <a href="http://www.bulletsforever.com/2015/8/4/9094961/seraphin-signs-with-knicks">the new home of #KSLIFE</a> -- have a much-improved roster from last year's 17-win team, surrounding <span>Carmelo Anthony</span> with players like <span>Robin Lopez</span>, <span>Arron Afflalo</span>, <span>Kyle O'Quinn</span>, and rookie Kristaps Porzingis. New York is currently 1-1, having beaten Milwaukee and lost to Atlanta.</p>
<h3>Game info</h3>
<p><b>When: </b>October 31 @ 7:00pm Eastern</p>
<p><b>Where: </b>The Verizon Center, DC</p>
<p><b>TV: </b>CSN Washington and MSG in New York, plus streaming on League Pass.</p>
<p><b>Radio:</b> WNEW 99.1 FM in the DMV and ESPN NY 98.7 for any Wiz fans in the Big Apple. <a href="http://www.nba.com/wizards/wizards-radio-network#stations">Check here</a> for other Wizards-affiliated radio stations.</p>
<h3>Injury Report</h3>
<p><span>Alan Anderson</span> (ankle) is still out for the Wizards. Lou Amundson, Arron Afflalo, and former-Wizard Kevin Seraphin are all currently listed as day-to-day.</p>
<h3>Storylines we're following</h3>
<p><b>Can Otto slow down Carmelo Anthony?</b></p>
<p><span>Otto Porter</span> has emerged as a defensive stopper on the wing for the Wizards, but his most impressive performances have come against tall, lanky shooters like <span>Kyle Korver</span> and DeMar DeRozan. Melo's strength and footwork, particularly in the post, will be a challenge for Otto, and will serve as a decent measuring stick for how he'll do against bulkier wings like <span>LeBron James</span> throughout the season. In the Wizards' preseason game against the Knicks, Melo poured on 21 points in under 25 minutes. Otto also struggled against <span>Giannis Antetokounmpo</span> on Friday night, prompting Wittman to give Kelly Oubre one minute and six seconds of meaningful second-quarter playing time.</p>
<p><b>Can the Wizards win without the House of Guards putting the game on their backs?</b></p>
<p>The young, energetic defenses of Orlando and Milwaukee both gave the Wizards fits, and the 'Zards neglected to return the favor. In both games the Wizards trailed midway through the 4th, until <span>John Wall</span> and <span>Bradley Beal</span> decided to go into beast mode. To be fair to the rest of the team, <span>Ramon Sessions</span> contributed to the heroics on Friday, but it would be nice to not <i>need</i> heroics to win.</p>
<h4>UPDATE: Wizards may be without <span>Randy Wittman</span> tonight</h4>
<p>Wittman is attending Flip Saunders' memorial service in Minnesota, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wizards-insider/wp/2015/10/31/randy-wittman-to-attend-flip-saunderss-memorial-services-saturday/?postshare=141446294720754">according to Jorge Castillo</a>, which could make it difficult for him to get back to Washington in time for tonight's game:</p>
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<p>Logistics make Wittman's availability for the Wizards' home opener uncertain. He could make it to Verizon Center in time to coach the entire game or a portion of it, but could also miss the contest. A Wizards spokesperson said the team is not sure. If Wittman is absent, assistant coaches Don Zierdan and <span>Don Newman</span> would split head coaching duties.</p>
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<p>It's going to be a little more challenging for the Wizards if their coach is not there, but kudos to the Wizards for giving Randy Wittman the flexibility to attend Saturday's service. Some things are more important than a game against the Knicks. This is one of them.</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2015/10/31/9648808/washington-wizards-new-york-knicks-preview-nba-how-to-watchL.W.