Fantasy Football - Footballguys Forums
This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!
Respectablity is Reached?--Washington Wizards 2014-2015 Regular Season (4 Viewers)
- Thread starter DCThunder
- Start date
Don Quixote
Footballguy
After finally convincing some friends that the Wizards were worth watching, and getting them to go to a game, last night went as I should have expected.
tom22406
Footballguy
When your best shooters go ice cold Beal(14-44),Ariza(5-24)and Webster(10-26)in the last 3 games and your defense gets abused in 2 of those you won't win many games.
The next 3 are on the road against Char,N.O. and the Pacers.Could spell the end for Wittman if they don't turn this around in the next month.
Starting to think he is losing this team or has lost some of it already.
The next 3 are on the road against Char,N.O. and the Pacers.Could spell the end for Wittman if they don't turn this around in the next month.
Starting to think he is losing this team or has lost some of it already.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Not just three straight road games, but followed by a home date with the Rockets to make four games in five days. This is the second-toughest stretch of the schedule. The toughest stretch of the schedule comes three weeks later, when they take five straight losses to end January and start February (@GS, @LAC, vs OKC, vs. POR, vs SA). They could be ten games under a month from now. That could be it for Wittman, although I also think Leonsis might let he and Grunfeld ride out the year and then start fresh this summer. Kendall Marshall starring for the Lakers after the Wizards released him is the latest Grunfeld turd to get the fans' attention.
tom22406
Footballguy
I give up trying to figure out this team after 2 more road wins to easily top last years win total on the road.
They put together 3 strong quarters of basketball and then forgot how to do anything and almost let the Pelicans steal it from them late.
Beal starting to heat up and I have no idea who this Jan Vesely guy is but I find myself rooting for the kid like no other.Vesely can't make anything more than 10 feet away from the hoop but man does he hustle and just get in the way enough to cause turnovers or get a block.
They put together 3 strong quarters of basketball and then forgot how to do anything and almost let the Pelicans steal it from them late.
Beal starting to heat up and I have no idea who this Jan Vesely guy is but I find myself rooting for the kid like no other.Vesely can't make anything more than 10 feet away from the hoop but man does he hustle and just get in the way enough to cause turnovers or get a block.
STEADYMOBBIN 22
Footballguy
tom22406
Footballguy
STEADYMOBBIN 22
Footballguy
STEADYMOBBIN 22
Footballguy
Me and 3 other buddies will be at tonight's game. Should be a packed house. I have mixed feeling on if I want the Heat to care enough to play hard. If the heat tries to win the game then we can at least let the guys see how champions play rather then catch the Heat sleeping.
If Wade doesn't play I could see the hairline go off for 50.
If Wade doesn't play I could see the hairline go off for 50.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Too late. Tom Halberstroh already stoked the fires on this one with an article at espn.com yesterday about whether LeBron has been coasting lately. To which LeBron replied:
"We'll see Wednesday how I'm coasting," James said jokingly as he made his way into the Heat locker room on Monday. "You'll see the numbers I'll put up on Wednesday. Just watch."
Yay! Thanks, Halberstroh!
Don Quixote
Footballguy
Perhaps being down by 34 was the spark.
Still up 21, but I have a bad feeling about this.
Still up 21, but I have a bad feeling about this.
STEADYMOBBIN 22
Footballguy
Well that escalated quickly.
That was easily the most excited I've ever been during a Bullets game. They got rattled a few times when the Heat put the clamps down. Bosh cherrie picked all night but he wasn't as impressive as his stat line might suggest. Wade was clearly hampered after a short burst where the Bullets didn't have an answer for him defensively.
Lebron was clearly not interested in backing up his mouth. Even the Heat fans were screaming for him to get involved. The hairline did have two monster dunks.
Water is wet and Nene causes problems when he isn't taking I'll advised jumpers.
WTF is up with Brewer's bowling slippers?????
That was easily the most excited I've ever been during a Bullets game. They got rattled a few times when the Heat put the clamps down. Bosh cherrie picked all night but he wasn't as impressive as his stat line might suggest. Wade was clearly hampered after a short burst where the Bullets didn't have an answer for him defensively.
Lebron was clearly not interested in backing up his mouth. Even the Heat fans were screaming for him to get involved. The hairline did have two monster dunks.
Water is wet and Nene causes problems when he isn't taking I'll advised jumpers.
WTF is up with Brewer's bowling slippers?????
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
That was glorious. I felt like I was on acid for the first 45 minutes.
Not just a ridiculous performance and win over the two time champs, but also a huge win on the schedule. They now have a shot get get above .500 before that brutal stretch of five games in late January-early February. Would be big not just for playoff positioning but for getting the casual sports fans in the city to take notice.
Not just a ridiculous performance and win over the two time champs, but also a huge win on the schedule. They now have a shot get get above .500 before that brutal stretch of five games in late January-early February. Would be big not just for playoff positioning but for getting the casual sports fans in the city to take notice.
tom22406
Footballguy
And being a longtime Wiz/Bullets fan I know that when the Heat got it to within 9 your butt clinched just a little knowing they could blow this at any time.TobiasFunke said:
It was a great win against what looked to be a very tired or unmotivated Heat team.The ball movement and defensive hustle was outstanding and they took the Heat's best shot and punched right back to close it out.
Good to see a solid home effort against a top team.
The_Man
Footballguy
Bandwagon Cam at Lez Boulez game last night was money.
This is definitely the most fun to watch that this team has been since 96-97. I still remember when they hung so tough with the Bulls in the first round of the playoffs that year and it looked like this team had a future.
That was a long time ago. Hope they can keep it going!
This is definitely the most fun to watch that this team has been since 96-97. I still remember when they hung so tough with the Bulls in the first round of the playoffs that year and it looked like this team had a future.
That was a long time ago. Hope they can keep it going!
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Of course I assumed they'd blow it when the lead was down to 9. Twitter was a mess. The whole game one of the crazier Wizards Twitter experiences ever.
I also thought the Heat looked tired and unmotivated, but they had no reason to be. They hadn't played since last Friday (!) and ESPN published a story on Monday asking if LeBron is "coasting" this year, a narrative that might cost him the MVP if it takes off. I thought we were set up for one of their best regular seasons efforts of the year.
Last edited by a moderator:
tom22406
Footballguy
I don't get to see a ton of Heat games but is Wade basically done or is he just "resting"?
Looks like a shell of himself that is only getting worse.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Bit of both, IMO. Wade's definitely on the downside of his career. He turns 32 tomorrow and has a ridiculous amount of mileage on him. Think of how much basketball the Heat have played the last three years, it's surreal. They sit him all the time now, since they clearly won't face any must wins until May. Still has his moments, though. Last night wasn't one of them.
tom22406
Footballguy
Back to .500 again after beating a really bad Sixers team.The quest to get a game over .500 for the first time since Wall has been here comes next with the Celtics in town on Wed.
After that things get real tough with games @Phx,Utah,GS and the Clippers and then they return home to face OKC,Portland,S.A.,Clev and the Kings.
Let's see what they are made of during this brutal stretch.Best case scenario is they go 6-4 IMO but they very easily could go 2-8.
After that things get real tough with games @Phx,Utah,GS and the Clippers and then they return home to face OKC,Portland,S.A.,Clev and the Kings.
Let's see what they are made of during this brutal stretch.Best case scenario is they go 6-4 IMO but they very easily could go 2-8.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Tonight's the night they finally get over .500. Celtics on the tail end of back-to-back roadies, and they went after the Heat last night since they had a shot at the upset until the final minute. Rondo played 25+ minutes. Wouldn't surprise me if they sit him tonight.
Will be short-lived because of that brutal schedule- I don't recall ever seeing a team play a five game stretch as tough as @GS, @LAC, vs. OKC, vs. POR and vs. SA. But if they can get over .500 before they go 1-4 or 0-5 over that stretch I'll feel a lot better about them avoiding the 7/8 seeds in the East, which really should be the goal.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Come on now. There's a pretty good chance they lose each of their next seven individually, but a seven game losing streak? Even if you only have only a 20% chance of winning each of those games it's still highly unlikely you lose all seven. And they have a better than 20% chance at all of them. They'll probably be close to a pick at Utah Saturday night, the Warriors have been slipping lately, and the Clips are without Paul. The three home games are all against powerhouses, but at least they're at home. 1-6 maybe, but 0-7 would take quite a run of failure. I predict 2-5 with wins over Utah and Portland.
Don't get me wrong, they definitely dug themselves a huge hole last night, and I don't think they get back to .500 this year because of the schedule over the next two weeks. But they're not gonna go 4-16 over their next 20 or something. They're just mediocre, not awful.
Last edited by a moderator:
I missed the Utah game - they should win that one. But they are a mediocre team playing a bunch of really good teams during this stretch. That's why you have to take care of the Bostons of the league at home, so you can build a cushion to weather these rough patches on the schedule.
On the flip side, if they can squeak out a few wins over the next month or so, April is looking really easy - they are capable of running the table at the end of the year.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Yup. Not just the Bostons of the league, but Boston without Rondo and Bradley, at home.
Last time a disaster like this happened (the MIlwaukee home loss) they went on a brief skid afterwards but then recovered nicely. Can't do that now- the first two road games are probably more winnable than the five games that follow.
I suppose it doesn't really matter that much because they're probably gonna make the playoffs regardless, but it'll feel dirty if they don't win at least 40 in the process. And obviously it would be great to avoid the 7 and 8 seeds and have an actual shot at advancing. One playoff series win in 30 years might be the saddest team statistic of our lifetimes.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
I think defensive lapses are actually more common, but I have a theory on the offense too. I blame the persistence of John Wall hero ball, which is really more of a coaching issue.
Check Wall's splits by quarter and by time left in quarter for some evidence His percentages go down as the game goes on and as the time winds down in each quarter. I think it's because they trend away from ball movement to a simple one move pick and roll offense with Wall and Gortat/Nene as the game moves on. They have three excellent 3 point shooters on this team. There's at least two on the floor at pretty much any time. Sure, sometimes Wall kicks it to them off the pick and roll or other penetration as the clock goes down. But I think they'd be much better off running the same offense all game that they run in the first quarter- Early movement with five moving pieces.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
BTW I also think that's a big factor in why they're 2-5 in OT games. I think they're 2-1 in games decided by 3 or less in regulation, but both of the wins were games where both teams mostly screwed the pooch on offense down the stretch (Bulls and Knicks). They actually didn't score a point in the last 2:45 of the Bulls game.
Last edited by a moderator:
tom22406
Footballguy
So we are seeing the same things here,excellent post!
The defense is clearly another whole issue and tend to agree with that as well.
A solid road win last night though in Phx where Beal stepped up huge late and put them away.Wall limited his shots and was getting others involved more often,Nene needs to seriously calm down with the crazy passes and keep it simple because he had way too many stupid mental errors that almost cost them.
My feeling is Wittman is a average to below average coach and if they have a chance to get Karl I would do that in a heartbeat if he wants the job.I just don't see Witt being the guy to bring this team to the next level in order to compete against the big dogs.I think part of the Wall problem is he may have tuned Wittman out on certain things or in the very least he does so in key situations.
tommyGunZ
Footballguy
You don't have a single player who demands a double. Your most dominant offensive player is Wall and the defensive play late against Wall is to play a step off and make him shoot over the top.
You need a wing player whose jumper is wet enough to force defenses to crowd him, yet has enough shakes to create his own shot. I thought Beal had a shot to be that guy, but he hasn't become that guy yet.
Once you get that dominant wing, he can either turn poor possessions into good looks on his own, or he can draw doubles that lead to open shots for Webster and Wall.
A superstar scorer would of course help, but I think Tobias is right. They have very good players in their starting 5 that fit well together and can generate offense just fine through passing and off ball movement. It appears to me that they have improved quite a bit in terms of actually implementing such an offensive system since the first month or so of the season, but it has a tendency to break down at the end of games.
tommyGunZ
Footballguy
I'd defer to Tobias as well since he knows what he's talking about and watches far more Wiz hoops than I do.
But overall I think the "just run the same offense late in the 4th that was successful in the 1st" theory is naive. I'm not saying it should be strictly iso down the stretch, but NBA defenses are too good to simply run regular sets at crunch time without focusing on advantageous match ups.
I know you've spent 15 years watching Kobe, but it's naive to think you need a top 5 isolation scorer to play well in the fourth quarter. It's not like the Wizards need tricky back door cuts or 15 seconds of a motion play to generate offense - they just need to movethe ball around, get Wall in a position where he can catch his defender a little off balance, drive to the hoop and draw a double, or run some quick screening action that makes the defense guard Nene with a smaller player. This isn't terribly complicated, but it requires more creativity than just letting Wall dribble it up and having Nene/Gortat set a pick for him 24 feet from the basket.
tom22406
Footballguy
Great call...........................................................said nobodytom22406 said:TONIGHT is the night they get over the .500 hump!
Gonna be a long wait to get this chance again.Team looked tired in key points last night and the next to last possession where Ariza chucked it up off balance from 3 with 10 seconds left was quite ugly.Kanter could not be stopped and was the difference for the Jazz.
Saw an interesting stat that is a good trivia question.
Gordon Hayward is averaging 17pts,5 boards and 5 assists.Name the last Jazz player to do so?
Pistol Pete Maravich back in the 70's
Yes I'm old enough to say I saw him play and he was a freak
Cliff Clavin
Footballguy
Of course Gunz is wrong!thecatch said:
4th quarter scoring this year: NO, POR, MEM lead. Uh, who are the guys that command doubles on those teams? If we keep going, we get LAC, SAS, MIA, TOR, OKC and LAL to round out the top ten. So Durant and LeBron fit the Gunz criteria. And yeah, I'd agree with him that Durant or LeBron would make your 4th Q offence better.
Clutch scoring this year: POR, SAS, Philly lead. Interesting. I wonder if Gunz can tell us what those offences are predicated on.
If the Bullets picked up an awesome ISO player like Melo they would have a grea.... er. Nevermind. Knicks are 22nd in 4th Q scoring and 17th in the clutch.
What about ISO Joe Johnson? Nope. Bottom half of the league in both categories.
tom22406
Footballguy
So once again(3rd time in a row)they beat OKC at Verizon and did it rather easily.Ariza did a great job in limiting KD in his looks and made him work for all of his 26 points(took 21 shots and a generous amount of foul calls)so all in all they did hold him down as much as you could hope for.
Wall struggled with his shot early but was handing out dimes like they were candy to anybody who was open.2nd half his shot was falling and the beating was on.
Back to .500 again with the Blazers and Spurs up next.A split seems to be the best outcome they can hope for but if the D shows up like it did last night and they continue to move the ball around they have a legit shot to take both.
What a fun team to watch
Wall struggled with his shot early but was handing out dimes like they were candy to anybody who was open.2nd half his shot was falling and the beating was on.
Back to .500 again with the Blazers and Spurs up next.A split seems to be the best outcome they can hope for but if the D shows up like it did last night and they continue to move the ball around they have a legit shot to take both.
What a fun team to watch
I had tickets and was excited to go last night, but then got sick and couldn't make it. Turned out to be a rather boring blow out... In the wizards favor. Very surprised.
On sports center they quoted Durant as saying it would be tough playing here because of all the family and friends (ticket requests etc.). I have no idea what the context was, but in isolation that was interesting as I thought DC might have a decent shot at him in FA.
On sports center they quoted Durant as saying it would be tough playing here because of all the family and friends (ticket requests etc.). I have no idea what the context was, but in isolation that was interesting as I thought DC might have a decent shot at him in FA.
tom22406
Footballguy
Handled the Blazers pretty well last night with some good D and timely shooting and a huge night from Seraphin off the bench.
First time since 09' they are over .500 but with the Spurs in next it could be a short stay if they don't continue this solid play in both ends.
Can't say enough how good Ariza has been for this team,does so many little things that help a team win that he doesn't get much press for it but deserves the praise.
Wall has simply been awesome and it's a damn shame the voters put Irving as a starter in over him but his due will come.He won't garner many MVP votes but he certainly(at the very least)deserves to get some recognition.Looking back at his rookie year tapes to now is almost night and day.
First time since 09' they are over .500 but with the Spurs in next it could be a short stay if they don't continue this solid play in both ends.
Can't say enough how good Ariza has been for this team,does so many little things that help a team win that he doesn't get much press for it but deserves the praise.
Wall has simply been awesome and it's a damn shame the voters put Irving as a starter in over him but his due will come.He won't garner many MVP votes but he certainly(at the very least)deserves to get some recognition.Looking back at his rookie year tapes to now is almost night and day.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
He was just kind of cracking a joke about it- he said he had to deal with 100 ticket requests for this game and then said "imagine if I played here ..." That was it. I didn't think much of it one way or another. I think there's a chance, but it's more about what OKC does over the next three years. If he's happy with their moves I think he stays. If not I think DC is on the short list. It's the obvious choice from a PR standpoint- Durant is pretty much universally adored, and probably the only free agency option that would let him keep that status is a return to his hometown. Plus there's obviously a perfect setup for him here with the young pieces in place who can spread the floor without demanding a ton of shots.
More importantly- this is a helluva run, best in recent memory. Not even close to what any of us predicted for this brutal 7 game stretch; 4-2 so far and it wouldn't surprise me if they won tonight to go 5-2. And both of those losses were in the second of back-to-back roadies. I thought best case scenario was 3-4. And there's legitimate buzz, too. Hopefully the fans start filling the Verizon Center up a bit, that's really the one thing missing from a really fun season so far.
Last edited by a moderator:
I've been really impressed. Obviously they have exceeded my expectations recently. There's a pretty high ceiling and low floor for this team for some reason
avoiding injuries
Footballguy
I thought this exchange was funny.
@WashWizards: It's never too late, come back anytime #WizBlazers RT @trailblazers Is it too late to join the Eastern Conference? Asking for a friend.
@WashWizards: It's never too late, come back anytime #WizBlazers RT @trailblazers Is it too late to join the Eastern Conference? Asking for a friend.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Yup. It'll be real problem at the end of this season though. If they had at least gotten some hints that Porter could eventually be a lockdown defender who could hit some corner 3s they could let Ariza go in free agency and use the money elsewhere. They've already got Webster signed to play the same role, you don't need three of the same guy. But they've gotten no such indication, so they're in a real pickle with Ariza, who has been awesome. Gonna have to make the call on Porter far sooner than they'd like to.
tom22406
Footballguy
Wittman tells it like it is and it's refreshing to hear but I wonder if he gets that this is partly his fault?
After the brutal home loss to the Cavs
And to the Otto Porter situation.Why not send the guy down and let him get some minutes against lesser(we hope)competition?
And as Tobias clearly pointed out this puts the team in a pickle pretty soon with what they have already at the 3.Ariza has been nothing short of amazing for this team and Webster has shown he is a very good bench guy who can step in for a bigger role when needed.Maybe move Porter before the draft if they plan on paying Ariza?
As far as the team goes my thoughts are they are still just average because of the nights they take off and that falls on coaching and the stars.Sure,they can beat almost anyone but just as easily can be beat by anyone(at home no less).
My expectations right now are to get a top 6 seed,advance a round and then get blasted.
After the brutal home loss to the Cavs
This has been a season long crisis for this team and he seems to have(once again)no clue what to do
So yes he does get that he is part of the problem as well but is he a good enough coach to get the best out of what he has?I say no.
And to the Otto Porter situation.Why not send the guy down and let him get some minutes against lesser(we hope)competition?
And as Tobias clearly pointed out this puts the team in a pickle pretty soon with what they have already at the 3.Ariza has been nothing short of amazing for this team and Webster has shown he is a very good bench guy who can step in for a bigger role when needed.Maybe move Porter before the draft if they plan on paying Ariza?
As far as the team goes my thoughts are they are still just average because of the nights they take off and that falls on coaching and the stars.Sure,they can beat almost anyone but just as easily can be beat by anyone(at home no less).
My expectations right now are to get a top 6 seed,advance a round and then get blasted.
Last edited by a moderator:
Don Quixote
Footballguy
I can see the argument for sending Porter down to the D-league, but I think he's too important to send down. He did get 20 minutes in a game just a couple of weeks ago. If an emergency comes up, I'd rather he's still around to get minutes than having to rely on somebody like Singleton. And I think he can learn a lot practicing with the team, which is probably the biggest thing he needs after he missed all of the offseason.
TobiasFunke
Footballguy
Yeah I think that's the reasoning. He's what, the tenth or eleventh man on this team? And I guess more importantly, the #4 wing option. Given what they're trying to do this year they need him on the bench in case there's an in-game injury to Webster or Ariza or one of them fouls out or something.
I get all the jokes about Anthony Bennett since he's the #1 pick and all, but I think Porter looks like the worse pick at this point. Of the 14 other guys in the top 15 I'd rather have 12 or 13 of them, leaving off only Shabazz and maybe Len. And that's in a historically terrible draft.