Take 2: Getting to know the WizFans

[GhostsOfGil]

i have read realgm for years and joined after being constantly disappointed in epsn's forums. sometimes at work i spend more time reading this site than actually doing work.

my father was a huge basketball fan, so growing up i spent alot of time listening to him talk about the all time greats. i really started following it around the end of the jhoward days and since then have been a die hard fan. i only missed 3 games last season and usually try to get to the VC around 15+ times a year. my favorite player is still gilbert arenas although i really miss the days of old tmac.

my favorite memories are gilberts last second shot in game 5 over hinrich, gilberts 60 point game in la, and gilberts game winner against utah which i was there for.

believe it or not, i kinda miss the days of chris whitney knockin down threes and jahadi white grabbin boards.
i try to get into football every year but usually end up arguing with my friends about how basketball is better.

o ya i hate lebron james... a lot

[RickRoll_inDC]

name: gilbertgoes05- because I was young and stupid and uncreative when I joined 5 years ago. Actual name is Ben.

19 years old, going to college in the great state of Iowa, and I'm still a fan of Gilbert. Haven't been on the boards for most of last season because it was too depressing.... but I'm back now and don't plan on leaving any time soon- unless of course we somehow get LeBron because I would find a new team to root for. That's how much I don't like LeBron.

Why I'm a wizards fan from IOWA: Well, my dad was a Baltimore Bullets fan because they were the good team then and the only team on TV apparently. I was brainwashed as a kid to be a bullets fan and now wizards fan. When I was a baby my mom bought me a Michael Jordan Bulls jersey and my dad wouldn't let me see it. He did a good job of turning me into a Wizards fan. A few years later I got a Chris Webber jersey and I've been a wizards fan for my whole life. Really only fully started following after Kwame was drafted- of course I was only 10 years old.

That's me in a nutshell

[sfam]

Name: sfam - used to stand for "Scifi-ActionMan" when I hung out on RottenTomatoes.com. I have a hard time remembering lots of different usernames so I sort of boil them down to a few. I'm also skinsfanno9 on extremeskins.

Age: 43

My deal: Married, with two kids (12 yr old daughter and a 17 yr old son that somehow loves Lebron James - yes I've failed here, but at least he likes the Redskins). I'm an independent consultant working on various social software efforts for a number of Federal government agencies. I also carve pumpkins, like insanely (http://www.fantasypumpkins.com) and occaisionally watermelons (search watermelon death star if interested - you should find one as recent as last week from a place called "foocamp")

Wiz Fan Creds: We moved to DC from Ann Arbor in '76, which coincided when I first started getting into sports (I had just started getting into watching the Lions before we moved). I remember very well the two championship contests with the SuperSonics in '77 and '78, probably because my father actually took us to a Bullets game that year (that's a big deal for a 10 yr old kid). I also ran into Wes Unseld outside the Baltimore Aquarium soon after he retired (he was surrounded by kids - looked huge), which got me even more excited to watch. I'd put myself as a bigger Redskins fan (which most who lived through the 80s probably were), but I've loved the resurgence of the team in the last decade compared to the previous two. I think Ted is perfect for the job and excited to see where they go. I don't have season tickets, but usually get a small ticket package from the Wizards, and then catch a few more games a season.

[JWizmentality]

Name: sfam - used to stand for "Scifi-ActionMan" when I hung out on RottenTomatoes.com. I have a hard time remembering lots of different usernames so I sort of boil them down to a few. I'm also skinsfanno9 on extremeskins.

Age: 43

My deal: Married, with two kids (12 yr old daughter and a 17 yr old son that somehow loves Lebron James - yes I've failed here, but at least he likes the Redskins). I'm an independent consultant working on various social software efforts for a number of Federal government agencies. I also carve pumpkins, like insanely (http://www.fantasypumpkins.com) and occaisionally watermelons (search watermelon death star if interested - you should find one as recent as last week from a place called "foocamp")

Wiz Fan Creds: We moved to DC from Ann Arbor in '76, which coincided when I first started getting into sports (I had just started getting into watching the Lions before we moved). I remember very well the two championship contests with the SuperSonics in '77 and '78, probably because my father actually took us to a Bullets game that year (that's a big deal for a 10 yr old kid). I also ran into Wes Unseld outside the Baltimore Aquarium soon after he retired (he was surrounded by kids - looked huge), which got me even more excited to watch. I'd put myself as a bigger Redskins fan (which most who lived through the 80s probably were), but I've loved the resurgence of the team in the last decade compared to the previous two. I think Ted is perfect for the job and excited to see where they go. I don't have season tickets, but usually get a small ticket package from the Wizards, and then catch a few more games a season.

Yes, yes you have epically failed as a father. You must now come to grips with your failure, do the greater good, and kill your son.

[sfam]

Yes, yes you have epically failed as a father. You must now come to grips with your failure, do the greater good, and kill your son.

Well, I must admit I did act less than fatherly during the Cleveland-Boston series (Boston is my second fav team all the way back from the 80s). After listening to him go on about how great the Cavs were, the Boston series couldn't have been any funner!

EDIT: as weird as it is, my son's second favorite team is the Wizards (Arenas & Caron were his fav players - Caron used to work out in the offseason at Lifetime Fitness in Centreville, where my son went to play BBall a number of times).

[RickRoll_inDC]

Name: sfam - used to stand for "Scifi-ActionMan" when I hung out on RottenTomatoes.com. I have a hard time remembering lots of different usernames so I sort of boil them down to a few. I'm also skinsfanno9 on extremeskins.

Age: 43

My deal: Married, with two kids (12 yr old daughter and a 17 yr old son that somehow loves Lebron James - yes I've failed here, but at least he likes the Redskins). I'm an independent consultant working on various social software efforts for a number of Federal government agencies. I also carve pumpkins, like insanely (http://www.fantasypumpkins.com) and occaisionally watermelons (search watermelon death star if interested - you should find one as recent as last week from a place called "foocamp")

Wiz Fan Creds: We moved to DC from Ann Arbor in '76, which coincided when I first started getting into sports (I had just started getting into watching the Lions before we moved). I remember very well the two championship contests with the SuperSonics in '77 and '78, probably because my father actually took us to a Bullets game that year (that's a big deal for a 10 yr old kid). I also ran into Wes Unseld outside the Baltimore Aquarium soon after he retired (he was surrounded by kids - looked huge), which got me even more excited to watch. I'd put myself as a bigger Redskins fan (which most who lived through the 80s probably were), but I've loved the resurgence of the team in the last decade compared to the previous two. I think Ted is perfect for the job and excited to see where they go. I don't have season tickets, but usually get a small ticket package from the Wizards, and then catch a few more games a season.

Yes, yes you have epically failed as a father. You must now come to grips with your failure, do the greater good, and kill your son.

complete failure as a father...... my dad would have killed me if I had been a fan of some other team- like boston or something

[montestewart]

^
I'd just like to add that I admire a son that chooses his own path and father that can let as on be his own man. Still, the Cavs suck!

[gesa2]

Name - gesa2 is an acronym for my family GregElainaSamanthaAlexandraAnna. Married with 3 daughters 16, 14 and almost 12. I'm 45 years old.

I grew up in upstate NY, a fan of Syracuse basketball the Knicks and the Buffalo Bills. It killed me for Ewing to be drafted by the Knicks like it would for LeBron to come here now, I loved me some Derrick Coleman and Pearl Washington back then. I played hoops for my HS team, but 6'5" guys with center skills and white man's disease don't play D1 ball. Came South to go to W&M, then med school at MCV. Moved to Fairfax in 1991 for family medicine residency, ready to drop any remaining NYC ties by then (I'm still a Syracuse fan tho).

Me and a buddy got a 10 game package about 20 rows up near center court at the Cap Center (250$!!) for the '92-'93 season. That was my first steady exposure to live professional sports, and by season 2 I was hooked, and already a Bullets fan. I loved the scrappy loser years before Webber Howard et al. We didn't have great talent, but we played hard. Then Webber, Howard, Rasheed and Gheorge - we should have dominated inside for a decade!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsq0oZQLJhI

I left Virginia to move to Kentucky in 1999 when I took a student loan repayment job at a Community Health Center near Huntington WV. If anything my zeal for the Wizards has gotten stronger since I left. There aren't any professional sports within 3 hours of here, so NBA Season Ticket is my friend. Found RealGM looking for better info on the draft a few years ago, and have been lurking with sporadic posts since. I don't do any other chat boards, but the Wizards page is my homepage at work, and I read here everyday. I've gushed about posters before, but the humor, intelligence and passion for the Bullets/Wizards here is really great stuff.

I love Gilbert as a player and for his unfiltered genuine personality. I can forgive the guns. My logical brain has a tougher time with the knees and the 80 million dollars. It would still be so much sweeter for him to find maturity and success here than somewhere else; I hope it still can happen.

[DallasShalDune]

Name: TJ

Locale: Kansas City.

Username: Dallasshaldune. When I first came to the board those years ago, my screen name was bobbyboucher with some numbers. I had a weird fascination with Adam Sandler comedies, which stymied from my age--15. Yes, that makes me merely 21 years of age. Dallasshaldune, however, is a character I made up for a story I wrote in high school, of the fantasy genre. I'm an English Lit major, and I'm going to teach High School English when I graduate college here in Missouri. I'm a big reader, of both high Literature and escapist fantasy/sci-fi/horror. I hate Stephanie Meyer and Dan Brown both, with a fervent passion. I love music (indie/mainstream alterantive/classic rock/folk) and movies (classics and mind-f*cks. Godfather, Lord of the Rings, the Dark Knight, On the Waterfront, and Lawrence of Arabia are examples of flicks I love).

Marital Status: Engaged to my lovely high school sweetheart. She'll watch games for me and keep me updated when I'm at work, she's so dedicated. A Wizards fan by default.

So why am I a Wizards fan? I've never lived in DC. I have never been to DC. I have seen the Wizards play in person, but I'll get to that in a second. The reason I became a Wizards fan is because in 2001, when MJ jumped on board to play for the team, I was in 7th grade and very interested. I used to watch MJ abuse the opposition when I was really young, with my dad. I remember MJ's shot over Russell, even though I was in the single digits in age. I remember being so pumped, and so excited that MJ, Pippen, and Phil went out on top. MJ's comeback was huge in not only getting me into the Wiz, but it made me interested in the NBA, obsessed even. Watching pro-basketball has been a very worthwhile hobby of mine consistently since. I remember watching stupid scores go up on box scores on line. MJ's game winner v. New Jersey... that was the most epic score change of my life. I had no idea of what happened, but I knew that we won, and Jordan probably hit the shot.

When MJ left, I flirted with changing my favorite team, and especially during Gil's first year with the Wiz, when we were so bad, I was ready to give up the Wizards for the Suns, or maybe the Hornets, but in the end, I couldn't get away. Just when I thought I was out, they pulled me back in!

I saw the Wizards play once. I was in 8th grade, and my aunt bought me tickets to Chicago and to MJ's last game in Chicago, as a Wizard. It was one of the highlights of my life, and most definitely the highlight of my sports life. The Wizards lost, and one of the banes of my existence, Christian Laetner, played the best for us that night, but being at the United Center, for such a thrilled crowd to watch Jordan's last game, it was intense.

I cheered loudly for the Wizards, to the dismay of the people sitting around me.



And I still love Gilbert, btw. I hope we don't trade him. I can't wait to see him and Wall in the same backcourt.

[Gilfanatic123]

My deal: I'm 21 years old. I'm a college student. I just really like a lot of sports. I've been playing sports since I was younger. I am into reading, video games, and movies. The usual hobbies. I like writing a little bit. Politics interest me somewhat. I like following politics to see what the daily trends are, see what people believe in. I think it's important to know what other people believe in the country to form my own opinion. I am thinking about majoring in political science and communication. That's pretty much me. I like reading too. I read a lot.

Wiz Fan Creds: I have been a fan of the Wizards since Michael Jordan played for them. I've only been more seriously following basketball from a few years ago. I used to not understand the game that much so I don't think I understood what was going on a long time ago. But now I am more apt in understanding what's happening, and, whats' going on at what particular time, and what not. There was one time when I almost stopped being a Wizards fan last year... but now I have cable and I'm able to watch the Wizards all the time, so I guess I have an excuse for not watching the Wizards before that much of the time.

[miller31time]

Just to update, I'm now 21 (going on 22 soon). I am in my first apartment with some buddies of mine. I now work for Outback Steakhouse as a waiter and I have just one more semester at Towson University before I'm free at last.

Carry on...

[no D in Hibachi]

Name: Luke
Locale: Denver, CO
Age: 27

User name: No D in Hibachi is pretty lame, but I became a member right at the peak of the Hibachi era, shortly after Gil ripped off his amazing 60 and 54 point performances against LA and Phoenix. In spite of his offensive greatness I was constantly throwing stuff at the TV because he'd let wastes of flesh like Eric Snow blow by him for uncontested lay-ups. I never quite understood how someone so talented, quick, strong, smart, and totally in control like Gil could be such a waste defensively.

I grew up in Northern Virginia as a huge sports fan, loved the O's, Skins, and C's. My kindergarten teacher was a big Celtics fan and would talk about Larry Bird. I loved her and so I became hooked on the C's. Finally in 1994 my dad bought tickets to go to the old USAirways arena to watch the Celtics play the Wiz. By this time I was 11 and totally captivated by the fab five movement and the game against the C's was the first game after Webber was traded to the Bullets and Howard signed. I still remember the 'we want webber' chants before he checked in off the bench. From that point on I've been a huge fan.

I remember we were too poor to buy cable/HTS so I used to listened to all the games on the radio with an unrivaled passion. Nothing stood between me and the AM 570 Bullets broadcasts. The only time I've not avidly followed the Bullets/Wiz since was after Webber was traded for Richmond. I just couldn't believe how pathetic that trade was, still can't. It took me a couple seasons to rebound, but I'd occasionally tuned into a game or two just to catch Ben Wallace lay the wood with a ferocious dunk. Dude could soar back then. It was actually winning the 2001 lottery that brought me back to full-fledged fandom again. It seemed like things were on the rise with a new top pick a few youngsters and no Wes. I still haven't quite gotten over the Kwame bust, but oh well.

My favorite Wiz/Bullet of all time is Gil, with Blatche as a close second. A Gil trade would destroy me. If he were moved I think I'd have mutual rooting interest, the Wiz would no longer be my lone prized jewel. Each of the last few years I've had unbridled optimism going into the season causing me to play "i'm gay for gilbert arenas" youtube clip. My wife hates that song like I hate Glee, but that's another story. I still hold out hope that Gil will have a monumental revival and silence all the nay-sayers.

After high school I pulled the steaks and moved camp to Idaho for college where I met my smokin hot wife, who ironically enough was from Laurel, MD. We got hitched, moved back to DC, but decided DC wasn't for us any longer, too expensive, and moved to CO. We have a 16 month old boy and I am a CPA during the week and my wife and I cater Carolina style pig pickins during the weekends. I now loathe the O's and no longer passionately follow the Skins. They're still my team, but Snyder and extremeskins.com killed it for me. Any webpage that has a 16,000 post thread dedicated to Colt Brennan scares me and makes me not want to be associated with the franchise.

[JWizmentality]

Just to update, I'm now 21 (going on 22 soon). I am in my first apartment with some buddies of mine. I now work for Outback Steakhouse as a waiter and I have just one more semester at Towson University before I'm free at last.

Carry on...

Twat.

[miller31time]

Just to update, I'm now 21 (going on 22 soon). I am in my first apartment with some buddies of mine. I now work for Outback Steakhouse as a waiter and I have just one more semester at Towson University before I'm free at last.

Carry on...

Twat.

[MJ7]

Name: Gary Farmar.
Location: Washington DC, born in Los Angeles though.
Age: 19.

I've been a fan of the Wizards for quite a long time, I never liked the Bulls but was obsessed with Jordan, when he came to the Wizards I was ecstatic I felt like my dream came true. Kobe Bryant was a superstar that I thought would explode later on in his career, I noticed his unique style and similarities with Michael Jordan and I knew he would be great too. I'm a club goer and I enough partying, I feel like I know the game of basketball well and can't wait to continue posting.

User name: I picked MJ7 because I loved Michael Jordan and I liked Kevin Johnson, sadly both players at one point didn't fit my criteria, being a Washington Wizard.

[nate33]

bump

[montestewart]

cleek+wall, you ask how I became a fan of this sexy team? This big, strong, sexy team. Gee man, where to start?

See, dog, first of all, I'm a Taurus, and you know the deal with that. All I can say is, I spent years recovering from multiple bullet wounds, when suddenly, some wizard waved his wand at me, and I've been a big ball fan ever since.

[7-Day Dray]

Name: 7-Day Dray. Inspired by my favorite player, or used to be favorite player, Andray Blatche. Joined this board under the name 'DMVLeGenD', but made a new account just so I could get a new username (didn't know you could change your username on the same account before I made a new one).

Age: 16

My deal: Born in DC, and raised in PG County, MD. Currently attend DuVal High School in Lanham, MD. Just living life like the average teenage boy. Going to school, still worried about shoes, clothes, and girls. I also love playing sports (basketball and football) and video games.

Wiz Fan Cred: Been a fan of this team since I started watching the NBA in 04. Haven't attended a game yet (money's tight), but will hopefully attend one soon. Try to watch every game I can. Favorite all-time Wiz player is Gilbert Arenas. Favorite moment as a Wizards fan was when Gilbert hit that game-winner at Chicago in the 05 playoffs.

[willbcocks]

Name: willbcocks --> This is my real name. The day I joined this site was not a high point for my creativity...

Age: 25

My deal: I managed to accumulate the number of posts I currently have my first two years in college at UVA. Then I went to Australia my third year, was busy my fourth year, and have lived in Japan the last three years. During my time in Japan, I have not only not been able to watch any Wizards games, but I also have not have internet access at home (I have found that cutting off internet at home is the biggest gift of free time you can give yourself ), so, yeah, the posting has dried up completely.

As for what I have done here in Japan, first I taught English for two years in a small town on the JET Program, which mainly consisted of me sitting in the staff room teaching myself Japanese. Now I am getting my master's degree in international relations at Waseda university in Tokyo, with tuition and living expenses on the Japanese government's dime. Sweet sweet deal. And this summer I am in the political section of the American embassy in Tokyo on a 3 month internship. After I graduate, I'll try to join the foreign service, and if that doesn't work out, I'll probably move to China and study Chinese.

Wiz Connection: Grew up in Arlington, always played basketball, and began to follow the wiz right before going to college. Was a kwame fan but...well, you can't win them all can you?

Geez willbcocks. Do you even like the United States? You are never in the country.

What does that have to do with anything? Plenty of people who don't like the United States live here - many of whom even "serve" in elected office...

Update: Now I'm married and in the foreign service, assigned to the Philippines. In 2013 I'll be assigned to a consulate in China. But I do like America and get to represent it overseas!

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

I'm divorced. Family court is rough and at 51, I look back on some choices with regret. At the same time, I feel very blessed to be in my right mind and in reasonably good health. My kids are well. I feel good about maintaining my integrity and being there for my kids at all times.

As for myself, read my posts over the years. Put the pieces together and whatever that mosaic reveals, that's who I am to you.

My opinions about basketball related matters probably won't be offered in this forum much longer. I don't want to spam the board, willb, or to overpower with one man's opinion.