How Can the Washington Wizards Improve to Contender Status? posted by Chase Hughes

Last night I was listening to an interview with former NBA head coach P.J. Carlesimo on 106.7 The Fan.  He was commenting on the opening days of the NBA regular season, specifically about the Eastern Conference and his thoughts on who were the better teams.  Not surprisingly he named the top three teams as the “factors,” those being Cleveland, Boston, and Orlando.  He said that there are not any teams even close to those three but on the outside looking in is the Washington Wizards.  The Wizards were the only team he mentioned as the fourth best team and he said this about three times.  These comments got me thinking about what the Wizards need to do this regular season to take the next step and breach that label, in what areas can they improve to develop into the fourth Eastern Conference power? 
First of all, this piece is not in discussion of anything to do with the playoffs, I am not assuming that the Wizards are clearly the fourth best team or that they will even make the playoffs at all.  What I am saying is that the Wiz are in that second tier bunch that follows the top three, which in my opinion also includes the Toronto Raptors, Atlanta Hawks, and the Philadelphia 76’ers (3rd tier: MIA, CHI, NJ, DET).  Carlesimo added that this is the way the East is presently, that come December we could be talking about another team that has emerged or perhaps a top team will regress and make way for one that is on the brink.  We know that this is Gilbert Arenas’ team but what pieces need to fall into place for Washington to make that jump?  I offer several possibilities, some more plausible than others for how the Wizards can materialize into a contender:

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5 Predictions for the 2009-10 Washington Wizards posted by Chase Hughes

  1. Gilbert Arenas will average over 8 assists per game –            It is quite obvious that with all the new offensive weapons and a healthy roster, Gilbert Arenas’ scoring average is going to go down.  He isn’t going to be able to keep up a 29.3 ppg season like he did in 2005-06.  My guess is that his numbers will drop down to around his career average of 22 ppg.  Maybe even a little bit lower as there are going to be plenty of guys begging for the rock.  Scoring averages aside, with Gilbert Arenas back in the line-up everyone will benefit.  Gil still gets respect for his scoring capabilities, as evidenced in the two games last year in which he tallied 20 assists and no turnovers.  He has the ability to draw the double team and help defense, much like Kobe, Dwyane, and Lebron, giving him opportunities to pass the ball off to the open man.  In the two games he played last year, you could see that Gilbert still has a quick first step but is more cautious with it.  That hesitancy makes opponents play on their heels which allows Gilbert to blow by them on a drive and get the basket or draw the foul.             What is going to happen is Gilbert will come out this season as a type of player we aren’t used to seeing wear number “0.”  His essentially two years away from the game have undoubtedly changed his perspective as a floor general.  What will emerge is a Gilbert Arenas that involves his teammates while still showcasing the killer instinct that makes him the great scorer he is.             Gilbert’s career assist average is 5.5 apg, a great figure for a small forward but not up to par with the best point guards in the league.  Here are his assist averages over a few seasons:
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Thunder continue to make small moves in the right direction. posted by john howard

The Thunder traded away Damien Wilkins and Chucky Atkins for Etan Thomas and two second round picks.  The move was an even swap money wise.  Wilkins and Atkins make nearly 7mil together and that is what Thomas will make this year.  The Thunder are well under the cap and Thomas' contract expires this year.  So, not only will they have freed up money next year, they will also have 5 draft picks.  2 in the first round and 3 in the second round. 

So, financially and on paper it makes a lot of sense.  Also, the Thunder were heavily loaded with guards.  Sefaloosha and newly drafted James Harden have the 2 guard covered.  And Russell Westbrook is the starting point guard.  Shaun Livingston has played well enough this summer to be the back up.  Second year player Kyle Weaver can play both and is ever improving.  So, there just wasn't any room for those other 2 guys. 

Etan Thomas will likely take the role that Malik Rose played last year.  A veteran with leadership and tough inside defensive play.  This was yet another brilliant move by the front office.

For Minnesota, Atkins gives them some insurance at point should Ricky Rubio not show.  Also, Wilkins is in his last year and this is a make or break  year.  He has shown sings of being a contributor in this league.  If he breaks through this year, then the management looks like a genius.  If he flops, they clear up 3mil in cap space and it's no big loss.  It's a risk worthy of a second round pick.  And, Atkins is worth the insurance of a late second round pick.  So, this was a good move for them as well.

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Richardson traded again. This time to Minnesota posted by john howard

Quentin Richardson has traveled from New York to Memphis to Los Angelos, and now to Minnesota.  He takes with him $9mil for one year.  Last season he earned 3 wins for the New York Knicks (a Howard Sports statistic).  In return, the Clippers get Sebastian Telfair (3 wins), Craig Smith (2 wins), and Mark Madsen (0 wins). So, it was a good trade for the Clippers.  They gained a backup to Baron Davis.  Minnesota meanwhile gets to unload a huge salary after this season.  Richardson also fills a void that was created when Foye was traded to Washington.  Also, Ricky Rubio doesn't appear to coming soon.  After the terrific play of Flynn this summer in Las Vegas, Telfair became expendable.

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Minnesota summer league a success posted by john howard

Minnesota has a long way to go, but they made progress this summer in Vegas.

Johnny Flynn is the real deal and should be the starting point guard from day one.  He averaged 15 points and 7 assists.  And, shot lights out!  Over 50% from 3-point and 91% from the line. He had over 5 turnovers, but that is to be expected.  Scoring and dishing at that level in summer league shows that he is going to be a good player.

Wayne Ellington also showed that he can play.  He averaged 14 points and 3 rebounds while also shooting lights out. 

Corey Brewer was the 3rd leading scorer at 12 ppg and played solid. He isn't the player that I thought he was going to be, but he can still contribute.

Oleksiy Pecherov was acquired this summer from Washintong.  He 9pts and 7 rebounds and shot well below 40%.  He will be a bench player at best, but is still developing.

Bobby Brown and Gerald Henderson are two other notables that played, but not much.

Overall, Minnesota did very well in Las Vegas and they have 2 new players they are going to really like.

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Minnesota Timberwolves posted by john howard

The Minnesota Timberwolves are in a world of hurt, and it's likely to get worse before it gets better.  Ryan Gomes, Al Jefferson, and Sebastian Telfair each earned 3 wins last year, while the rest of the returning roster earned 8. That is a total of 17 returning wins. When they traded away Foye and Miller, they unloaded 6 wins to acquire the 5th pick.  That pick usually earns 4 wins.  So, they traded away wins form something they hope pays off in the future.  With Ricky Rubio, Johnny Flynn, and Wayne Ellington as rookies, statistically, they should acquire 9 wins.  That would be a dismal 26. That number could even be lower if Rubio decides to bolt.  Also, 2 wins, Ollie and Carney are free agents.  This could be another, long hard year for the Timberwolves.  The bright side is that Jefferson didn't play all 82 games, so his win total of 3 should go up.  But with the surrounding cast, not by much.Continue reading "Minnesota Timberwolves"

New York and Rubio posted by john howard

New York, I don't care what you need to do, get Ricky Rubio.   He has a chance to be special.  There is no player on your team now that can be special.  He wants to play where his name will be known and New York is it.  He would be great in that style of play. Also, being on the east coast would make him seen more.   I think they could work something out.  Especially if there is a chance that he could play in Europe and not for Minnesota.Continue reading "New York and Rubio"

National Champs send four in NBA Draft posted by Christopher Arroyo

The people who saw the 2009 NBA Draft on Thursday were in for a special treat when they saw Blake Griffin go No. 1.

 

Very predictable however.

 

Then, Hasheem Thabeet went No. 2, which was also predictable. Then things got a bit interesting.

 

The early shocker was Stephen Curry going number seven to the Golden State Warriors. But what was really neat was that all of the North Carolina players that declared were drafted.

 

The first Tar Heel chosen was Tyler Hansbrough, who went at number 13 to the Indiana Pacers. This was a good pick, for the Pacers and here is why. Indiana is not known to carry much toughness, especially in the frontcourt.

 

If you had the treat to see this guy in college then you would know that he’s the real deal for toughness. I think he will start the season on the bench, but he will emerge into that starting position around December.

 

The second Tar Heel chosen was Ty Lawson, who was picked by the Minnesota Timberwolves. Now I know many of you were wondering why Minnesota picked four guards in the first round, which three were point guards. But, rest assured, they ended up trading Lawson to the Denver Nuggets for a future first round pick.

 

This is the BEST team for Lawson. You’re putting one of the top, and under-appreciated, point guards in the draft on a team that is surrounded with rising talent. He is also going to appreciate being an apprentice to Denver’s Chauncey Billups.

 

Probably the most respected guard in the league and known for his patience and leadership on and off the court. Sadly, he will be a bench player for a few years but, learning under Billups will definitely make him one of the top point guards in the league. This was really the best move of the draft Denver should be strong under the point guard position for at least the next 10 years if all goes well.

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OH-HUM THE 2009 NBA DRAFT posted by Andy Natalie

1 Clippers                      Blake Griffin PF
2. Grizzlies Hasheem Thabeet C
3. Thunder James Harden SG
4. Kings Tyreke Evans SG
5. Timberwolves Ricky Rubio PG
6. Timberwolves Jonny Flynn PG
7. Warriors Stephen Curry PG
8. Knicks Jordan Hill PF
9. Raptors DeMar DeRozan SG
10. Bucks Brandon Jennings PG
11. Nets Terrence Williams SG
12. Bobcats Gerald Henderson SG
13. Pacers Tyler Hansbrough PF
14. Suns Earl Clark SF
15. Pistons Austin Daye SF
16. Bulls James Johnson PF
17. 76ers Jrue Holiday PG
18. Timberwolves Ty Lawson PG
19. Hawks Jeff Teague PG
20. Jazz Eric Maynor PG
21. Hornets Darren Collison PG
22. Trail Blazers Victor Claver SF
23. Kings Omri Casspi SF
24. Mavericks B.J. Mullens C
25. Thunder Rodrigue Beaubois PG
26. Bulls Taj Gibson PF
27. Grizzlies DeMarre Carroll PF
28. Timberwolves Wayne Ellington SG
29. Lakers Toney Douglas SG
30. Cavaliers Christian Eyenga

SF

     The Clippers picked their "10,000th" lottery pick in NBA Draft history. And it is yet another shame that a guy like Blake Griffin will waste his talent for a few floundering years for the most disorganized sports franchise on Earth. The Clippers are a joke. And I was a huge fan of Elgin Baylor but his time in Clipper-dom has been the usual failure of a franchise to be even relevent. Other than the teams history dating to a time in Buffalo, the Larry Brown years of 1992 and 1993 are the only Clippers teams that did anything. Actually they had a winning season in 2005 and 2006 at 47 - 35. Anyhow the list of good players that have been selected there and then left are mounting. So I expect Griffin to display his talents and then be courted by a team that knows what it is doing. Other than that the 2009 Draft was a bit of a sham. How is that? Well what does it say that the LA Lakers ook some cash for their 1st round pick?  The Orlando Magic decided to deal for aging Vince Carter instead of taking a player from this litter. The Cavaliers felt the acquisition of Shaq held more value than any of these players. Even the Golden State Warriors traded their new pick Stephen Curry to Phoenix for Amare Stoudamire. Honestly the level of USA basketball talent has diminished. Many argue that NBA players are better than ever. I believe those people depend on earning money from the NBA so therefore they continue to lie about the quality. Hey I am guilty of still loving the NBA but the new generation of players are not that fundamentally sound. Oh, they are 10 times the athletes of Magic Johnson or Larry Bird, Julius Erving or Jerry West but they can't pass, dribble, or shoot like those NBA players did and like NBA players should. I think this is borne out by the decline of the USA's ability to dominate a World that has gotten better. (And yes there are Continue reading "OH-HUM THE 2009 NBA DRAFT"

Minnesota Timberwolves now own the draft posted by john howard

First the Tiberwolves get rid of Kevin McHale. Then, they go crazy.  Minnesota traded away Randy Foye and Mike Miller to the Washington Wizards for Oleksiy Pecherov, Etan Thomas and Daruis Songalia, and the 5th overall pick.  Minnesota now has the 5th, 6th, 18th, and 28th overall picks in this week's draft.  They are looking to ship the 5th pick with the 18th to move up to number 2.  Doing that would allow them to draft either Ricky Rubio or Hakeem Thabeet.  As of right now, the roster has huge holes in it and some overload as well.

pg--Sebastion Telfair, Kevin Ollie, Bobby Brown--Telfair has had his moments, but not enough of them. Ollie is a free agent.

sg--none--Foye and Miller accounted for 26 points a game.

sf--Ryan Gomes, Rodney Carney, Corey Brewer---Brewer only play 15 games last year. Carney is a free agent.

pf--Al Jefferson, Brian Cardinal, Craig Smith, Mark Madsen, Etan Thomas, Darius Songalia--an all-star

c--Kevin Love, Jason Collins, Sheldon Williams--Collins and Williams are free agents.

Stephon Curry and Tyreke Evans both should be available at 5 and 6.  Minnesota could take both.  The 5th spot has produced 10 starters with 5 all stars in the past 14 years.  While the 6th has generated 7 starters with 2 all stars.  The 18th pick has given 2 starters and 1 all-star. Finally, the 28th has produced 2 starters and one all star.  The chances that all 4 picks will produced all-stars is very slim, but together they 11 all stars in the past 14 years gives them a really good shot of landing at least one.  This was a really good move by Minnesota.  They really weren't getting much better.  They still may not this year becuase they will be so young.  But there is hope now up north.

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Dirk doesn't start, Mavs lose to Wolves (AP)

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Iverson voted to start in All-Star game; Nash, Duncan claim starting spots (The Canadian Press

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