***OFFICIAL WIZARDS THREAD - WIZARDS TO FACE "WIZARDS, BUT WITH A GOOD GM" IN FIRST ROUND ***

[TobiasFunke]

All due respect to @DCThunder, who started the Wiz respectability thread in the FFA but hasn't been around in over a year.  Hope he's doing OK.

Who's ready for another six months of mediocrity and Bradley Beal stress fractures?

Edited April 13, 2018 by TobiasFunke

[thecatch]

I'm feeling good about their over. 

[TobiasFunke]

Great start to the season, already have a half-game lead over the Warriors for home court advantage in the 2017 Finals

 

[TobiasFunke]

Excellent profile of Scott Brooks from Candace Buckner, the new Wiz beat writer for the Post.

Buckner used to be the Pacers' beat writer, she's one of the best around.  We're very lucky to have her.

[tom22406]

Well so far it's pretty safe to say if this doesn't get Ernie fired I don't know what will.The lack of any help from the bench is a huge hole with this team almost to the point of maybe being one of the worst set of bench players in the league and that's saying something.Wall not going to be pushed in back to back games is fine given he is coming off surgery and I do give Brooks some props for starting Satoranksy over Burke(who is complete garbage)but with Beal looking just very mediocre it's a hill they couldn't climb even over a pretty bad Magic team.

I was thinking maybe they had a shot at the playoffs but just 5 games in I think 35 wins may be the ceiling and maybe a little higher if Beal improves and at this point that is a huge if.

Let's get the Fire Ernie bandwagon going even though it's a few years late.

Edited November 7, 2016 by tom22406

[thecatch]

A 35 win season may get Ernie fired but it looks like it might also lead to John Wall agitating to get out. Hope it doesn't go that way. 

[Don Quixote]

Finding less FBG time these days and just seeing this forum/thread.

And... OTTO!

[tom22406]

Otto has been pretty easily the 2nd best player on this team so far.Thought he could have gotten 40 last night if they really wanted to keep feeding him since he was so hot,that included both ends of the floor.

Beal goes goes down with another injury(seems minor though),color me shocked.Badly needed blowout win and a little better defensive effort and is it just me or is Wall pissed off at the world?2 straight games now getting the boot.

[thecatch]

On 10/20/2016 at 8:07 AM, thecatch said:

I'm feeling good about their over. 

[tom22406]

That was nothing short of pathetic

[STEADYMOBBIN 22]

Ill be at the game tomorrow Vs the Knicks.

[thecatch]

15 minutes ago, STEADYMOBBIN 22 said:

Ill be at the game tomorrow Vs the Knicks.

With 10,000 Knicks fans, unfortunately. 

[TobiasFunke]

This GIF legitimately has me questioning my parenting decisions.  Can I really do this to my kids?  No child should be cursed with the toxic mix of hopelessness and ennui that is Wizards fandom. Maybe I should have a bonfire and burn the Marcin Gortat action figure, the Bradley Beal toddler-sized jersey and the John Wall stuffed doll? 

[tom22406]

2 hours ago, TobiasFunke said:

This GIF legitimately has me questioning my parenting decisions.  Can I really do this to my kids?  No child should be cursed with the toxic mix of hopelessness and ennui that is Wizards fandom. Maybe I should have a bonfire and burn the Marcin Gortat action figure, the Bradley Beal toddler-sized jersey and the John Wall stuffed doll? 

Poor guy 

He has no idea how bad it has been for his parents but he seems to be on the right path.

[TobiasFunke]

6 minutes ago, tom22406 said:

Poor guy 

He has no idea how bad it has been for his parents but he seems to be on the right path.

Apparently this was a Polish family there to support Gortat in particular.  He contacted them on twitter after the game. All's well that ends well.

[Eephus]

I don't know where to start with this roster.  A healthy Beal and Mahinmi will help but not enough to make them contenders.  They're capped out and have a couple of untradeable contracts on the books for years.  Porter is a RFA and has developed well enough to make this a very tough decision.   At least they have all their draft picks but they'll need better luck and scouting. 

[tom22406]

No way Wall sticks around once his contract is up and you really can't blame the guy at all.Odds they max out Otto after this season?

I'm really starting to think now 35 wins is a tad too high given this roster.Can't wait for Porzingis to drop 30 on them tonight

[thecatch]

4 hours ago, tom22406 said:

No way Wall sticks around once his contract is up and you really can't blame the guy at all.Odds they max out Otto after this season?

I'm really starting to think now 35 wins is a tad too high given this roster.Can't wait for Porzingis to drop 30 on them tonight

It's still early. Every year in the preseason analysts underrate the amount of time it takes for new coaches to get implement their systems and get everyone on board. 

[tom22406]

2 hours ago, thecatch said:

It's still early. Every year in the preseason analysts underrate the amount of time it takes for new coaches to get implement their systems and get everyone on board. 

Sure and I get that and hope that is the case but count me in the crowd who thinks they just lack talent once they have to go to the bench and that is something that is very hard to overcome no matter how good the coach or system is.

We saw the bench flash a little tonight but almost give it away at the same time.Still a ways to go for sure but right now I think 35 wins is about what this team is and if they play a little over their heads 38-40.

[tom22406]

Wonder if the defense will actually show tonight against an equally bad Suns team?

And I don't think this really needs to be said but J. Smith and Nicholson are pretty terrible.Bring on that lotto pick!

[TobiasFunke]

18 minutes ago, tom22406 said:

Wonder if the defense will actually show tonight against an equally bad Suns team?

And I don't think this really needs to be said but J. Smith and Nicholson are pretty terrible.Bring on that lotto pick!

Jason Smith current deal:  3 years, $16 million

Nene current deal in Houston: 1 year, $2.9 million.

Score another one for Ernie.

Not ready to give up on Nicholson quite yet, though.  He was semi-competent last year in Orlando.  Also, in looking him up to confirm my recollection I found out he's only 26, which is helpful and also interesting since he looks like he's in his 40s.

[TobiasFunke]

It's tanking time. And unfortunately probably time to send Wall packing. He deserves better, and he's the only thing keeping the Wiz from top 3 picks in the next two drafts.

[tom22406]

I went to the game last night and all I could do was sit and watch what a beautiful disaster that turned into.Started out rather good and then the Magic bench came in and couldn't be stopped by anyone.

Not impressed with Brooks as a coach so far either but I will give him a pass for now given the complete lack of any depth he has on the bench.I also saw no reason Wall needed to play the entire 2nd half given where the score was,that being a back to back and Wall having a minutes restriction just a few games ago.Thank god he did because the rest of the team was a complete mess but that really made no sense to me.Beal and Porter basically watched the entire game.

Bring on these again

Edited December 7, 2016 by tom22406

[tom22406]

2 hours ago, TobiasFunke said:

It's tanking time. And unfortunately probably time to send Wall packing. He deserves better, and he's the only thing keeping the Wiz from top 3 picks in the next two drafts.

Yes that does seem like the best option.No way he sticks around after his contract is up with the way things have been or are going with this franchise and who can blame him.It's always been a dumpster fire.

Still have no idea why Ted is waiting to can Ernie.

[TobiasFunke]

1 hour ago, tom22406 said:

I went to the game last night and all I could do was sit and watch what a beautiful disaster that turned into.Started out rather good and then the Magic bench came in and couldn't be stopped by anyone.

Not impressed with Brooks as a coach so far either but I will give him a pass for now given the complete lack of any depth he has on the bench.I also saw no reason Wall needed to play the entire 2nd half given where the score was,that being a back to back and Wall having a minutes restriction just a few games ago.Thank god he did because the rest of the team was a complete mess but that really made no sense to me.Beal and Porter basically watched the entire game.

Bring on these again

Amazing statistic- before last night the Wizards' starters were tied with the Cavs for the third-best five man unit in the league. Only the Clippers and Warriors starters were better. The Bulls' starters were just behind them in 5th, then there was a massive dropoff to 6th.

That's how bad the bench is. They're taking fringe contender-level performance by the starting five to date and turning it into a 7-13 team.

Also I agree with you about Beal and Porter last night.  They've mostly been very good this year, but they looked totally uninterested last night.  Not sure if it was just a midweek back-to-back lethargic home crowd thing or if there's something else going on in the locker room.

Edited December 7, 2016 by TobiasFunke

[tom22406]

12 minutes ago, TobiasFunke said:

Amazing statistic- before last night the Wizards' starters were tied with the Cavs for the third-best five man unit in the league. Only the Clippers and Warriors starters were better. The Bulls' starters were just behind them in 5th, then there was a massive dropoff to 6th.

That's how bad the bench is. They're taking fringe contender-level performance by the starting five to date and turning it into a 7-13 team.

Also I agree with you about Beal and Porter last night.  They've mostly been very good this year, but they looked totally uninterested last night.  Not sure if it was just a midweek back-to-back lethargic home crowd thing or if there's something else going on in the locker room.

I didn't get to see the final stats from the game but if I had to guess the bench production for the Magic had to have been over 70 points while the Zards maybe got away with 20.Sato didn't even get a sniff of the floor which he has now seemed to land in the doghouse of Brooks.

Your last point about a possible something going on you very well could be right.What was telling to me was Beal and Gortat refused to talk to the press after the game.Own up to it guys,you both stunk and need to admit it.Gortat hasn't been shy(and Beal too for that matter)about voicing his opinion so why silent now?The whole team should have been called out and only Wall and Brooks did it.

Still stand by my 35 win ceiling comment.I don't see many teams in the East that are worse and given how mediocre the division is just a average bench would put them in the hunt but that just seems like a bridge too far unless some miracle happens.

[Don Quixote]

Deadspin calling out Ernie now, too: The Wizards Are Dead, Ernie Grunfeld Has Killed Them

[TobiasFunke]

1 hour ago, Don Quixote said:

Deadspin calling out Ernie now, too: The Wizards Are Dead, Ernie Grunfeld Has Killed Them

Burneko is a longtime Wiz fan, and this was an absolute delight to read.  100% accurate.  It's basically someone writing an article that will be read by a huge audience saying exactly what I would say about this franchise but way better than I could ever say it, especially the creative insults.

Four of the eleven worst players in the league on one team is pretty much the inverse of the stat about the starters I posted above, but is still amazing.  What a ####show.

[thecatch]

If Porter is now a max player, Ernie's drafts are... not necessarily terrible?  Landed 3 max players in a four year span, landed Gortat for a mid round pick. Morris isn't working out, but that was worth a gamble for a mid first. /Devil's Advocate

[TobiasFunke]

15 hours ago, thecatch said:

If Porter is now a max player, Ernie's drafts are... not necessarily terrible?  Landed 3 max players in a four year span, landed Gortat for a mid round pick. Morris isn't working out, but that was worth a gamble for a mid first. /Devil's Advocate

All three were absolute no-brainers though.  Wall was the clear-cut #1 overall.  Beal and MKG were both vying for #2 overall with a big dropoff both in front of them (Anthony Davis) and behind them (ultimately Cavs went Dion Waiters), Hornets went MKG and Beal fell into their lap.  You can give Ernie maybe a teeny bit of credit for getting Porter out of the epically bad 2013 draft, but considering his local ties, the fact that they planned to make a playoff run the next season and he was the most NBA-ready top choice, and the fact that he was projected top three anyway, it wasn't exactly an unconventional stroke of genius.

[Don Quixote]

I don't think people see hitting the high picks as the problem (well, except for Vesely, when a lot of mocks had the Wizards taking Kawhi Leonard and there are reports that they liked Klay Thompson more, but that would have been too "out of the box").

The bench has been a problem for as long as I can remember, which requires identifying some diamond in the roughs and decent FA signings, which Ernie has failed completely at.

ETA: Oh, I guess I should give him some credit for drafting Jordan Clarkson in the 2nd round.  Pretty good value for where he was drafted, and certainly a diamond in the rough.  Too bad he was traded away for cash on draft night.

Edited December 8, 2016 by Don Quixote

[TobiasFunke]

1 hour ago, Don Quixote said:

I don't think people see hitting the high picks as the problem (well, except for Vesely, when a lot of mocks had the Wizards taking Kawhi Leonard and there are reports that they liked Klay Thompson more, but that would have been too "out of the box").

The bench has been a problem for as long as I can remember, which requires identifying some diamond in the roughs and decent FA signings, which Ernie has failed completely at.

ETA: Oh, I guess I should give him some credit for drafting Jordan Clarkson in the 2nd round.  Pretty good value for where he was drafted, and certainly a diamond in the rough.  Too bad he was traded away for cash on draft night.

Not sure if you're kidding on the edit- the pick was traded for cash before it was made, the Lakers chose Clarkson.

[Don Quixote]

16 minutes ago, TobiasFunke said:

Not sure if you're kidding on the edit- the pick was traded for cash before it was made, the Lakers chose Clarkson.

Yeah, just kidding on his "credit" for that.  Grunfeld almost certainly would have picked some international player who there was only a 50-50 chance of ever coming over if the trade hadn't already been baked.

[tom22406]

On 12/7/2016 at 2:56 PM, Don Quixote said:

Deadspin calling out Ernie now, too: The Wizards Are Dead, Ernie Grunfeld Has Killed Them

Standing ovation for this gem

[tom22406]

I also feel really bad for any fan of basketball that had to watch that disaster of a game last night from both teams,It was as if neither wanted to win.

A win is a win I guess but damn that really sucked as a fan of the sport.

[tom22406]

Nice win despite some pretty horrendous defending of the 3's last night.Brooks has very little confidence in anybody past Oubre on the bench given his latest batch of limited rotations he uses and quite frankly who can blame him.If they somehow can keep the starters healthy(I'm looking at you Beal)they can remain in most games but as we all know that's a very big if.

 

[TobiasFunke]

4 hours ago, tom22406 said:

Nice win despite some pretty horrendous defending of the 3's last night.Brooks has very little confidence in anybody past Oubre on the bench given his latest batch of limited rotations he uses and quite frankly who can blame him.If they somehow can keep the starters healthy(I'm looking at you Beal)they can remain in most games but as we all know that's a very big if.

 

They're been playing pretty well for two weeks or so now.  Oubre's development this season has been fun to watch.  It's now a decent core of young talent they've mostly lucked into (only Oubre was anything more than a no-brainer pick). I like what Brooks is doing too, even if he can't rein in Wall's hero ball tendencies in the last three minutes.

The problem is that there's no chance to upgrade the talent around them because of the awful long term deals Ernie handed out this summer.  Also the bench struggles have masked the fact that Markieff Morris has also been pretty terrible all season. They're closing games with Porter at the 4, and I'm not sure it's a coincidence that arguably their best win of the season came when he was out last night.

Also I might change my avatar to this.

[tom22406]

Fun game yesterday to watch and very easily the best win of the season.Beal was on fire and Morris showed up for once and made a difference.Sitting now at 12-14 with the next 10 games looking like this.

@Pacers

@Bulls

@Bucks

vs Bucks

vs Pacers

vs Nets

@Rockets

@Mavs

vs T-Wolves

 

I see 5 wins as possible,maybe 6 or more if things shake out perfect but I could also see the wheels falling off again and they are back where they started a few weeks ago near the bottom.As bad as they've been they are only 2 games out of the division lead which is really looking to be a bunch of very mediocre to bad teams all fighting it out with the exception of the heat who look even worse.

Slowly reeling me back in but I should know better by now.

[TobiasFunke]

2 hours ago, tom22406 said:

Fun game yesterday to watch and very easily the best win of the season.Beal was on fire and Morris showed up for once and made a difference.Sitting now at 12-14 with the next 10 games looking like this.

@Pacers

@Bulls

@Bucks

vs Bucks

vs Pacers

vs Nets

@Rockets

@Mavs

vs T-Wolves

 

I see 5 wins as possible,maybe 6 or more if things shake out perfect but I could also see the wheels falling off again and they are back where they started a few weeks ago near the bottom.As bad as they've been they are only 2 games out of the division lead which is really looking to be a bunch of very mediocre to bad teams all fighting it out with the exception of the heat who look even worse.

Slowly reeling me back in but I should know better by now.

You should let yourself get reeled in.  The organization doesn't deserve fans, but I think Wall, Beal, Porter and Gortat do.  Plus it's fun.  What else are we gonna do to get through the winter?  I'm not getting pulled into the trap of thinking the hockey regular season matters again

Anyway, as fun as the last two weeks have been it's also kind of frustrating thinking about how good a team this could be if a competent GM had surrounded them with a quality supporting cat.  Brooks also deserves some credit I think, he's always been known as a great coach for developing young guys and we're seeing that will Porter and Oubre and with Beal making the leap.

This was gonna be a huge road trip, and it's still big since they're facing the teams they're trying to run down.  But with yesterday's surprise win I think they've bought themselves a little breathing room, they can afford to go 1-2 or maybe even 0-3 and still stay in the mix for those 4-8 seeds.  The real problem is that they can't just catch everyone by mid-March.  They have to pass them, because starting March 18 they go:

@CHA

@BOS

vATL

vBRK

@CLE

@LAL

@LAC

@UTA

@GSW

vCHA

@NYK

 

Ouch.  They'll only have three games left after that brutal stretch.

[TobiasFunke]

Signs of life at the Verizon Center?  Place has actually sounded like a home crowd the last few games of this seven game winning streak at home.  Gonna have to go check this out for myself.

Still hard to balance excitement over Wall, Beal and Porter playing so great with bitterness about what might have been if Ernie had given them a decent supporting cast beyond emerging folk hero Jason Smith.

[tom22406]

On 12/29/2016 at 8:52 AM, TobiasFunke said:

Signs of life at the Verizon Center?  Place has actually sounded like a home crowd the last few games of this seven game winning streak at home.  Gonna have to go check this out for myself.

Still hard to balance excitement over Wall, Beal and Porter playing so great with bitterness about what might have been if Ernie had given them a decent supporting cast beyond emerging folk hero Jason Smith.

Certainly no signs of life on the road.They have been nothing short of putrid the entire year even though they seem to be able to put together a good half most nights.

Jason Smith has been a nice surprise of late with his hustle and ability to knock down the mid range shot.Reminds me a little of how Booker played for them.Nothing flashy but always seemed to be involved some way or another.Really is too bad though that Nicholson plays the way he looks which is old and terrible.Brooks must hold his breath everytime he has to shove him into the game,another classic Grunfeld turd.

Speaking of which I really hope this doesn't secure Ernie another season given the recent run of solid play,that really would be a shame.He must go,no question about that at all.

[tom22406]

Back to .500 in a game I wish I never watched but a win is a win.It was right on par with the NFL action in that it was pretty terrible.Wall looked as though he was still asleep for 3 quarters and Beal goes down quicker than a 2 dollar whore.Soft as charmin

[TobiasFunke]

20 hours ago, tom22406 said:

Back to .500 in a game I wish I never watched but a win is a win.It was right on par with the NFL action in that it was pretty terrible.Wall looked as though he was still asleep for 3 quarters and Beal goes down quicker than a 2 dollar whore.Soft as charmin

You and I must have been watching different games the other day.  Wiz wee iffy in the first half but the second half was as good as they've played all year, getting an afternoon road win (always tough, throws off the schedule)  And Beal fought through his ankle injury and finished the game and will hopefully be ready to go tonight.  Wiz should get Bulls without Wade and Butler tonight, great chance to get on a nice roll here and get a couple games clear of .500 over the next two weeks.

[tom22406]

3 hours ago, TobiasFunke said:

You and I must have been watching different games the other day.  Wiz wee iffy in the first half but the second half was as good as they've played all year, getting an afternoon road win (always tough, throws off the schedule)  And Beal fought through his ankle injury and finished the game and will hopefully be ready to go tonight.  Wiz should get Bulls without Wade and Butler tonight, great chance to get on a nice roll here and get a couple games clear of .500 over the next two weeks.

Just was not impressed with much of anything they did for 3 quarters but were saved by a good 4th and playing a team without it's best player.I should be more thankful for a road win,I get it,but playing the way they did for most of the day will not beat many good teams.I also was aware Beal did finish the game,that was more of a comment based upon how he is most of the time and that is injury prone.I was waiting for him to cry his way off the court again while being hauled off by 2 other players but thankfully that didn't happen .

I did think Morris had his best game of the season though and Oubre is really rounding into a very good bench guy who could be challenging for a starter spot very soon.I do cringe though every time Morris throws up a 3.I would be surprised if he is hitting more than 30% of those but it certainly never stops him from jacking them up or lord forbid Brooks runs a play for that exact shot.

So good win no doubt.Just didn't care for the game at all.

Edited January 10, 2017 by tom22406

[tom22406]

Good to see them recover to beat the Bulls D-League team after an embarrassing 1st half.Wall took over late and willed them to a win.

Not sure of the exact quote Beal gave after the game but he pretty much admitted the team didn't take the Bulls seriously given all the key players out.Certainly looked that way early.

So, 17-10 now over the last 27 after a 2-8 start is still really good progress given the horrendous start no matter how good or bad they may or may not have played during that time.6th seed or higher is within reach and for any real hope of advancing,if they even make the playoffs of course,is a must.The division crown is still up for grabs and after the Hawks dealt Korver and were talking about moving Millsap it sure did look as though they were going to start rebuilding but now I'm not so sure.

Reality for this team is they have a good starting 5,borderline very good,that can keep them in games when they all show up.Getting bench production now from Smith and Oubre has been a nice surprise but past that they have nothing so staying healthy is the only option to remain in contention unless Ernie can bring in some help very soon.

I do feel for Wall,the guy just gives it his all and you could tell late in the game he looked a little tired and he pretty much had to do it alone in the 4th with the exception of Morris hitting 2 3's(yes I did cringe).Without looking at the stats did Beal even play in the 4th?I don't really remember him doing anything despite getting minutes.It's fun watching Wall do his thing but as we've seen in the past the superman act is fun to watch but a very hard way to win.

 

I fully expect the C's to lay a good beating on them tonight,just a gut feeling.

 

[TobiasFunke]

On 11/17/2016 at 8:11 PM, thecatch said:

It's still early. Every year in the preseason analysts underrate the amount of time it takes for new coaches to get implement their systems and get everyone on board. 

Credit where credit is due- looks like you nailed this one. The bench is still a disaster (folk hero Jason Smith aside, of course), but Brooks is maximizing the talents of Wall, Beal and Porter, and along with the Polish Hammer they're dragging the rest of this mess back to competence.

Took my kids to their annual game yesterday, crowd was excellent and the team played some inspired basketball.  Just gotta remember to arrive a little later next time so my kids don't piss their pants when they set off fireballs during the player intros.

[Don Quixote]

I found myself screaming at the TV as John Wall took things over (again) last night.  The way he keeps doing it is really fun to watch.

All things equal, I usually watch the Caps over the Wizards when they are on at the same time, but I'm opting for the Wizards more and more.

[tom22406]

Nothing much to say bad about the team right now.Starting to finally win some road games and are dominant at home the last month and a half.Gotta stay on this roll in what really is a very mediocre to bad East and bank those W's because as TF has stated the road at the end looks really tough.Pretty stoked to see how they play tonight against a team they could possibly catch.

Edited January 24, 2017 by tom22406

[TobiasFunke]

This whole "wearing black" thing tonight feels like it's destined to end in disaster, or at least embarrassment.  Plus last night was the bigger game, a road win against a team they're likely battling for playoff positioning. It was maybe their biggest win of the year.

I know they hate the Cs, but they're not catching them in the standings. I just don't get it.

Edited January 24, 2017 by TobiasFunke

[Swing 51]

'Zards