Wizards vs Nets: Season Opener! [Poll]

[80sballboy]

Ugly game, we are just a perimeter shooting team that's all. This style of play is never going to win anything.

Even with Haywood, we've been that way for four years. Just that we had pre-knee Gil and he can take over from the perimeter or get to the line.

Eddie said Etan not playing was a coach's decision. What? They went small but came back with Brook Lopez at around 5:00 and that's when you bring him back. It's almost like he wanted to give Blatche confidence by playing him but we needed the W. Not sure it would have mattered without the way Vince was shooting it.

[miller31time]

I'm not blaming this loss (or our impending sub-par season) on EJ. We know EJ's positives and we know his negatives. He isn't changing.

What is changing is our team. Without Haywood (as I've said in other threads), we've lost our last line of defense. We've lost that guy who would either give us offensive rebounds, extra possessions, or defensive stops in crunch time.

Remember how we were so happy that Haywood was getting 4th quarter minutes last season?

Do you think it's just coincidental that we were able to win a bunch of close games (MANY more than we statistically should have)? Nope. It was the Haywood factor, among other things.

Losing Haywood was just the final blow to this team. At least without Arenas, we can stay afloat on the strength of slightly above average offense and slightly below average defense. But without Haywood, our offense becomes average (depending on hot shooting nights to keep us in the game) and our defense becomes 1 step below 'putrid'.

[80sballboy]

What is changing is our team. Without Haywood (as I've said in other threads), we've lost our last line of defense. We've lost that guy who would either give us offensive rebounds, extra possessions, or defensive stops in crunch time.

Remember how we were so happy that Haywood was getting 4th quarter minutes last season?

Do you think it's just coincidental that we were able to win a bunch of close games (MANY more than we statistically should have)? Nope. It was the Haywood factor, among other things.

Losing Haywood was just the final blow to this team. At least without Arenas, we can stay afloat on the strength of slightly above average offense and slightly below average defense. But without Haywood, our offense becomes average (depending on hot shooting nights to keep us in the game) and our defense becomes 1 step below 'putrid'.

Our defense wasn't stellar by any means but we lose this game because we can't shoot. If Buter has a normal game we win. I know we will miss Haywood because he was like a goaltender, setting the defense. I still think everybody understimtates Etan's toughness and willing to fight inside for loose balls and post offense. Of course, he can't replace Haywood's defense and obviously McGee is not ready yet to be the backline of defense.

[miller31time]

Our defense wasn't stellar by any means but we lose this game because we can't shoot. If Buter has a normal game we win. I know we will miss Haywood because he was like a goaltender, setting the defense. I still think everybody understimtates Etan's toughness and willing to fight inside for loose balls and post offense. Of course, he can't replace Haywood's defense and obviously McGee is not ready yet to be the backline of defense.

Unfortunately, we were playing the Nets....at home. The Nets are projected to be a bottom-dweller team, so the normal measurements can't be used.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

I didn't see the game and I'm glad. Ugly arse box score ...

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/boxscore;_y ... 2008102927

Boxscore says Jamison shot 6-18 with 1-8 from 3PT and had only 3 rebounds in 37 minutes.

Blatche had 5 turnovers in 27 minutes.

Etan had 10 pts, 8 rebs in 18 just minutes. (EDITED TO ADD: Sometimes Etan can ball after all!)

McGee shot 0-4 in 8 minutes.

Wiz shot 37% and gave up 47% shooting, a continuation of what they did in preseason.

Wizards had 18 assists with 15 turnovers. Jersey had 22 assists with only 9 turnovers.

From the box score looks like the whole team sucks, but I'd point to the guards getting outplayed and to Jamison really putting up a stinker, and Blatche trying to do too much, and EJ for once choosing not to play Etan as all being part of what happened.

[W. Unseld]

The sky isn't falling yet, but the Wiz shots weren't.

Eddie hasn't set his rotation yet and I think that's going to be a tough decision this year, no one really stood out as great, no one stood out as horrible.

Etan did rebound well but I don't think he did much else and some of his offensive boards are negated b/c he doesn't pass out well and he gets a lot of stuff blocked (I thought he got screwed on a few calls but a lot were clean).

Remember, the Nets are almost always a pain in the a$$ for the Wiz and this year they're particularly long and Arvis decided to be Jarvis tonight.

[GilArenas88]

As long as EJ in control of this team we will never ever have any short of real offense,the princeton offense is bs, it always has been, atleast for us. Not only does the offense suck, EJ allows his player to take bad shot after bad shot with no penatly.

As far as the game went I thought Nick and Blatche were decent off the bench, although Blatche made some bone-head plays as usual, overall I thought are bench was decent. Our defense was good in stretches, Vince, Jarvis, and Harris were just making some tough shots.

Jamison and Butler were way off, I don't expect that to last. Etan was decent solid 10 and 8 in only 18 minutes. Stevenson has become a three point chucker did he even take a 2 point shot. Daniels was so-so. McGee had a few nice plays, he's gonna be good I think. McGuire still can't shoot. Songalia garbage as usual.

Althogether not to dissapointed, I have a feeling this season is going to be a lot of ups and downs. We always suck against NJ for some reason, and like I said before they were just money in the fourth when we couldnt mak anything. Hey Orlando lost to ATL by 15, MIA got 120 dropped on them by the Knicks. Philly got beat pretty good. Cleveland lost the other night. I think weree still rusty and will look better and better each game, Im still hopeful on this season to some degree.

[dandridge 10]

I just got back from the game. Really, I just don't see any difference from last year except the absence of Haywood (which, as Miller pointed out, is a huge difference). We still play no defense and take a lot of quick jump shots from outside. We look good when our jump shots are going in, but we look bad when they aren't. The compounding problem this year is that Haywood is not there to protect the middle or to get extra possessions with offensive rebounding.

Blatche is still Blatche...stupid turnovers, lazy fouls, a few nice plays here and there, and very frustrating to watch. I know its one game, but I just don't see this kid ever being consistent. (I am surprised by all the posts though criticizing EJ for playing Blatche more than Etan. What happened to all those posts during the offseason and preseason urging EJ to just play the youngins, even if they are making mistakes? I'm starting to think EJ is damned no matter what he does).

To me, the only bright spots tonight were Brown and McGee. I thought Brown ran the offense really well when he was in and played pretty good defense. I was actually disappointed when E.J. took him out of the game because he at least looked like a bonafide PG, the ball moved when he was in, and he was able to keep up with Devin Harris (BTW, I have noticed throughout the preseason and this first game that Daniels has lost a lot of speed and is becoming a major liability on defense). McGee made some mistakes but I love the confidence and energy the guy brings. At this point, I'd rather see McGee get more minutes than Blatche, just because I think he is more of an investment than Blatche (in other words, the ceiling is higher with McGee).

I thought Young was ok. He made a few nice shots but also took some bad ones. I did think he looked better on defense though. He deserves to continue getting more minutes.

Overall, I was pretty disappointed with the low energy the Wizards played with tonight. I'm not surprised by the poor shooting and lack of defense, because after all, that is the type of team we have. We look really well when our jumpers are going in, and really bad when they aren't. However, I was surprised with the lackluster effort and concentration by some of our vets. I thought we would come out with more energy given the type of preseason we had.

[MJG]

Blatche is still Blatche...stupid turnovers, lazy fouls, a few nice plays here and there, and very frustrating to watch. I know its one game, but I just don't see this kid ever being consistent. (I am surprised by all the posts though criticizing EJ for playing Blatche more than Etan. What happened to all those posts during the offseason and preseason urging EJ to just play the youngins, even if they are making mistakes? I'm starting to think EJ is damned no matter what he does).

Few things on this:

1) People don't want the kids given the quick hook after one or two mistakes. After about a half dozen of them, I think most would be more than happy to send the guy to the bench for awhile.

2) There's a difference between making a mistake and playing flat-out stupid basketball. Going under a pick against a dead-eye shooter, or throwing a weak pass that gets picked off? Honest mistake that hopefully the player learns something from. Shooting contested threes with 18 seconds on the shot clock from the center spot? There's no lesson to learn in that. That's just the player deciding to do whatever he feels like, team and game be damned.

3) The last four or five minutes of a tight game are always going to be an except to the "give the kids some minutes!" cries. If the kids are playing well then by all means keep them in, but if they aren't, you can save the on-the-job training until the next game. The players who have played the best should be manning the court.

[20MexicanosIn1Van]

I was only able to watch the second half so this is what I saw:

a) Dee Brown actually played well I thought, the offense ran much more smoothly when he was in and his defense was pretty good.

b) Why was Blatche on the perimeter? Go into the post! I hope to God the coaching staff didn't attempt to mold him into some perimeter player, rather than trying to make him into a post player. It's like they are allergic to post play, I just hope they don't do this to McGee.

c) McGee, in limited minutes, looked pretty good. His shots all had a chance to go in, and were smart shots (except for that one fadaway). He's quick, athletic, and big; I have high hopes. I like the potential of a Blatche/McGee combo on the court at the same time, and was glad to see Eddie use it.

d) Nick Young took some bad shots, but made more of them than he missed. Combine that with decent D, and he gets the nod of approval from 20 Mexicanos.

[Munson79rip]

There was no rotation tonight, none. Dixon at PG in the first half, Dee Brown in the 2nd half, etc. The players should know their role before game one as that is what training camp is for. It's clear to Eddy Curry he ain't in the rotation in NY.

Butler, 41 minutes tonight......tick, tick, tick, tick, tick

[LyricalRico]

There was no rotation tonight, none. Dixon at PG in the first half, Dee Brown in the 2nd half, etc. The players should know their role before game one as that is what training camp is for.

You would think so, right?

But I still consider last night a victory for the simple fact that McGee played meaningful minutes. It's pointless to care about wins and losses this year because we won't make the playoffs but if McGee can stay in the rotation it'll bode well for the future.

I was also pleasantly surprised with Dee Brown's playmaking. He didn't do ANYTHING like that in preseason but maybe he can be a decent backup PG. Or maybe AD just looks that old (a legitimate possibility).

No Songaila in the second half was another pleasant surprise. The guy has lead in his pants and will be a drain on our cap for the next few years but as long as he's on the bench I can live with that. And Etan showed good effort. He's still too small to finish around the rim, which is why we need McGee.

Finally, I'm officially through with Blatche. The stupid fouls, the turnovers, the lazy jumpshots - I'm done with all of that. I won't be fooled by the occasional block or nifty pass anymore. He has a negative net impact on this team IMO and needs to be used to help us dump Etan, Songaila, and/or AD.

[jholmbe1]

EJ is kind of damned if he does and damned if he doesn't. We all want him to play Blatche and he finally did last night. It was clear pretty early that Blatche was playing out of control with his turnovers and shot selection. None of his mistakes were more obvious than hoisting a three very early in the shot clock with the game still close.

I almost wonder if EJ knew that Blatche didn't have it but just let him go. Perhaps as a way to justify giving Etan 30+ mins from here on out. Who knows we'll be able to tell in the next few games.

On the bright side, Nick Young looked great and much more complete than last year. McGee is gonna be the real deal when he settles in on the offensive side of the ball, he just looked a little nervous/rushed last night when he got the ball. That will change with more minutes. Aside from that, Butler and Jamison will not shoot that terribly often and it's encouraging that EJ went to the bench, I'd like to see Brown off the bench before Dixon.

[nate33]

The biggest bright spot was Nick Young. He looked like a bonafide, starting-caliber NBA player out there. 10 points (5-9 shooting), 3 assists, 2 boards and a steal in just 18 minutes. Project that to 36 minutes and that's a nice stat-stuffing box score. If he continues to board and pass like that, then he is a viable threat to Stevenson's starting spot.

I also liked what McGee did in limited minutes. His box score was lackluster, but he owned the paint. The Nets were afraid to shoot from the middle when he was inside.

[DCZards]

The biggest bright spot was Nick Young. He looked like a bonafide, starting-caliber NBA player out there. 10 points (5-9 shooting), 3 assists, 2 boards and a steal in just 18 minutes. Project that to 36 minutes and that's a nice stat-stuffing box score. If he continues to board and pass like that, then he is a viable threat to Stevenson's starting spot.

I also liked what McGee did in limited minutes. His box score was lackluster, but he owned the paint. The Nets were afraid to shoot from the middle when he was inside.

I also thought Nick played well. The kid knows how to get his shot off. I expect him to be a solid 15-18 pt per game scorer someday.

I too would have liked to have seen Dee Brown get more minutes. I was surprised he didn't get any run in the first half. In his short time in the game, Dee made two sweet passes to open teammates under the basket that turned into easy buckets. AD's my guy but he gave us nothing last night. At least, Dee's a true PG who knows how to run a offense. I expect to see him get more and more minutes.

[WizarDynasty]

good to see that when crunch time came in the post, Blatche followed my advice and mimicked a Hakeem Olajuwon move. That's Blatches best chance of being a super star. Both have the same kind of body mechanics and athleticism in the way they mood. Blatche better hit the old skool film room hard.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

I still think EJ should be praised for playing Blatche and not playing Songaila.

Turnovers weren't as big of a problem as fouls for Blatche all last season and throughout his career. I would rather see Blatche at 22 get to play through his mistakes. Regardless of how bad he's sucking right now, I believe he has the potential to be a good player. Something tells me that he's pressing things due to McGee's presence and due to Haywood's absence--Blatche just needs to stop trying too hard and to let the game come to him. Let him play through it IMHO. Just make sure to play McGee with him some.

Jamison and Butler both had subpar games. Yi and Hayes (just going by stats, because I didn't get to see the game) got the better of them. Daniels and Stevenson were very much statistically outplayed by Carter and Harris. I think Jamison and Butler will get their most nights, but I feel EJ needs to reduce his reliance on Jamison and even Butler on nights when they're not feeling it. The backcourt, however, should be open season for minutes changes. I think Daniels might need to go to a different team and that the Wizards could do just as well without him. Seems to me the Wizards have struggled all preseason to generate offense and to defend but that Young, McGee, and Brown might have the quickness/athleticism to improve those problems. The Wizards are standing around jacking up jumpers and I think a lot of that has to do with Daniels and Stevenson, but those guys have others who can be effective in their spots.

After this loss, I think look at the good things. Dee Brown and Nick Young in limited minutes played well. Etan proved me wrong last night and lets hope he can keep it up. A lot of you like what you saw from McGee.

Lots of thoughts, sorry if I ranted.

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[WizarDynasty]

Javale is going to continue to be a bum until he builds his calf muscles in order to get a burst in his first step.

[long suffrin' boulez fan]

This roster is curious... to give EJ credit, he has a bunch of similar (mediocre) players to choose from so to bury anyone too deeply on the bench is a kind of arbitrary gesture.

On the other hand, playing a "rotation" of 12 guys in an NBA game is insanity. Once again, he seemed to be throwing darts at a roster on the wall.

EJ never really seems to have a medium and long range plan. It all seems seat of the pants. So, for example, although Etan played at the high end of his range last night, it was still a pretty mediocre all around performance by him. In the meantime, he is eating minutes from McGee and, frankly, Blatche. Although Blatche in summer, preseason and last night has been nothing short of putrid, he did do very well last year when starting.

So, here is my modest proposal. Start Blatche at the 5. Back him up with McGee. Leave Etan and Darius parked on the bench until certain games arise when we need them.

Juan has no real upside. He should be deactivated (I hate to say that cuz I love the man). All the sixth man minutes go to N1.

AD, Deshawn, TJ, AJ, AB

Subs, in order: N1, JM, Dom... the rest come in situationally.

[fugop]

You know, Etan actually played really well, all things considered. He was the only starter with a positive +/-, and his numbers per 36 were 19/15, with 10 offensive boards (and 6 fouls). He was under control on offense, and was passable from the line.

I don't know why he was pulled; it's kind of a bizarre question to wrangle with after all these years, but I'd guess it had more to do with conditioning/health than anything else.