49ers vs Washington Wizards Game Thread: TGIF Jan 20th 7:00

[McGully Culkin]

Yes, I agree. Let's coddle Blatche, like the organization has done, and ease up on the booing. I mean, he's been a model of consistency and hard work since he's been here in DC. There is no reason for the fans to show their displeasure with the kid. We just need to be patient with him as he goes through this rough patch.

Ok, so lets boo the guy every time he touches the ball and bring the entire team down with him.

Yea.. That makes a lot of sense.

Like with every adversity, there is opportunity. I laid out how they could turn lemons into lemonade and use this as a chance to extend this new TEAM mentality. If it does nothing to the fans, so be it. It will do something for the team. They are all in it together and they should do something to defend one of their own.

Look, the fans have made their point and they should reserve the right to make it again in the future but as of right now, they are doing nothing more then hurting the team and making the DC market look like a POS because the fans are stupid.

It's bad enough that for marque games half the fans are for the other team. Now we can add to that rounds of booing.

Wonderful.

It was a close game they could have won and production from Dray would have helped. Getting in his head didn't help. What could have been back to back wins against good teams ( one of them being the best record in the league ) didnt happen and it was in reach.

Fans played a role in that not happening and they are idiots for doing so. Do you want this franchise to move forward or not. You can't have it both ways.

Blatche apologists make me chuckle. I want the franchise to move on, but without him. Dude is forever out of shape, in the club, and making bad choices, etc....but nah, his psyche is SO fragile that fans should refrain from booing him. He's a thorn in the side of this franchise...but rather than people show their displeasure, they should bit their tongues. I don't agree with anything you said. You probably feel the same about what I'm typing as well, but coddling this fool is exactly why DC sports will be considered a joke. I'm happy that the fans are booing this guy...hopefully EG hears it as well. This was HIS guy and now we're stuck between a rock and a hard place because it's going to be very difficult to move him. He's brought this on himself. Spare me the sob story about why fans should be better. We've been long beaten down by misguided leadership, false promises, and pipe dreams....this has been a long time coming and I'm glad fans are giving it to this turd.

[hands11]

Clueless

I'm not apologizing for him.

So saying you disagree with what I wrote only shows you didn't read what I wrote. So why reply to my post like you did.

[sfam]

Nick Young

On what happened after the first quarter: "I don't know. I was sitting for a while, but I don't want to make no excuses. I should have gotten back in, and they should have run more plays for me, but there's no excuses."

So why did Flip suddenly decide to sit him in the 2nd?

The WaPo indicated that NY was sitting longer due to a badly cut thumb.

[sfam]

Yes, I agree. Let's coddle Blatche, like the organization has done, and ease up on the booing. I mean, he's been a model of consistency and hard work since he's been here in DC. There is no reason for the fans to show their displeasure with the kid. We just need to be patient with him as he goes through this rough patch.

+1

Yeah I gotta agree with this. Team be damned - Blatche deserves every bit of this. If we are stuck with the guy for another few years, getting continually booed for coming into the season looking like a fat-assed couch potato may change his attitude some in the following offseason. This BS of using the season to get in shape should have long term and continual consequences - if it means booing him every time he touches the ball on his home court, I'm all for it.

Bottom line, the fans aren't tolerating it any more. Perhaps one day, neither will the Wizards FO.

[McGully Culkin]

Clueless

I'm not apologizing for him.

So saying you disagree with what I wrote only shows you didn't read what I wrote. So why reply to my post like you did.

I read every word you typed...and like I said, I completely disagree with you.

If Blatche's psyche is so fragile that he can't play through booing and give his full 50% effort...or the fact that you suggest that fans SHOULDN'T do so, says a lot about the player that EG chose to extend and also plays right into the coddling mentality that you and the front office share.

[TGW]

Hands, you seem to be missing the point of the boos. People weren't booing Blatche's effort last night, which was indeed piss poor. They were booing his effort for the past 2 seasons. They were booing the terrible conditioning, laziness, and overall lack of intensity.

Maybe you're right...the fans don't boo, Blatche goes 3-7 instead of 0-7, and the Wiz win. The point is this....WHO CARES IF THEY WON. It's one lousy game in a shortened season where the team is tanking. Even if they did win, Andray Blatche would still be a lazy, overpaid, out-of-shape bum. The overall picture is that the fans do not support a player who doesn't give a crap about improving. If you have a problem with it, don't watch the games. You have to be smoking to think the team should come out and beg the fans not the boo, and if they were dumb enough to do it, I'd boo the entire team, the FO, and Ted too.

[dlts20]

Wall Cant Shoot, But..........


he cant shoot which makes teams play off him & give him the J but he's not the 1st PG in the league that cant shoot. Rondo and a ton of other guys before that cant shoot but they still make a high percentage of there shots, get in the lane, and cause foul trouble.

The Wolves fans said that Flip lived off of KG's talent and all the Pistons fans said they hate the Offense because its designed to shoot jumpers and thats why they never advanced in the playoffs under Flip because its easy for the top defenses to stop.

Gil could shoot the lights out but dont tell me that Wall cant get to the rim like Gil or get teams in foul trouble like Gil. Its Flip's crap system. We never run that high screen that is the #1 play in the NBA that we use to live off of with Gil & Wood or Gil & AJ. It was autmatic. Gil & Wood would get so close that the PG would always get picked & then Gil was one on one with the Center.

Wall never gets that oppurtunity. Yeah the PG may go under it since Wall cant shoot but it still gives him a running start and puts the defense on there heels. I also dont like how Dray catches the ball out top a ton and even McGee gets it outside too much. I just dont like this system. I would give anything to even have EJ back right now. I think Wall lights it up in that system like Gil & Kidd. Speaking of which, how well could Kidd shoot?

Get Flip's system outta here. Even if we put together a few fluke wins, its still not going to work in the long run. Lets make a coaching trade. We hate Flip and NY hates D'Antoni. Lets trade them for eachother because I honestly think both teams look way better with the other guy

[sfam]

Wall Cant Shoot, But..........


he cant shoot which makes teams play off him & give him the J but he's not the 1st PG in the league that cant shoot. Rondo and a ton of other guys before that cant shoot but they still make a high percentage of there shots, get in the lane, and cause foul trouble.

The Wolves fans said that Flip lived off of KG's talent and all the Pistons fans said they hate the Offense because its designed to shoot jumpers and thats why they never advanced in the playoffs under Flip because its easy for the top defenses to stop.

Gil could shoot the lights out but dont tell me that Wall cant get to the rim like Gil or get teams in foul trouble like Gil. Its Flip's crap system. We never run that high screen that is the #1 play in the NBA that we use to live off of with Gil & Wood or Gil & AJ. It was autmatic. Gil & Wood would get so close that the PG would always get picked & then Gil was one on one with the Center.

Wall never gets that oppurtunity. Yeah the PG may go under it since Wall cant shoot but it still gives him a running start and puts the defense on there heels. I also dont like how Dray catches the ball out top a ton and even McGee gets it outside too much. I just dont like this system. I would give anything to even have EJ back right now. I think Wall lights it up in that system like Gil & Kidd. Speaking of which, how well could Kidd shoot?

Get Flip's system outta here. Even if we put together a few fluke wins, its still not going to work in the long run. Lets make a coaching trade. We hate Flip and NY hates D'Antoni. Lets trade them for eachother because I honestly think both teams look way better with the other guy

I would point out that we recently seem to be interested in defense - we can blame this on Flip as well. This never happened under EJ. If we get another coach, how 'bout we try someone who stillcares about defense?

[hands11]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wiz ... _blog.html

My focus is on what the team is dealing with as a result of this and what the team will do to respond. It isn't about apologizing for anyone.

I expect them to close the wagons. Just like they did when McGee missed those 4 FTAs. That is why the organization brought in a Marine to talk to them. It was to teach them how winners win and how teams band together.

And while they do things like that, McGee needs to work more on his FTs and Dray needs to get on a better diet and put in double the work... including weight lifting. It may be later then it should have happened, but he can make the needed adjustments. He needs to get focused and make basketball 100% of his life for the rest of the season. Eating. Sleeping. Practicing. and working out. He needs to realize this is a critical point in his career. That is true regardless of where he plays. This was the year I always believe would make or break him. Well, all the cards are on the table now. What he does next will be huge.

Nothing will change over night but over time this will be beneficial for the team if these players address what the fans are booing about. And lets be clear. The fans have been booing a lot this year. They booed Wall. They booed the team as a whole. There is only one way to get throw this and that is to move forward. Time to grow up. That includes McGee and Nick as well.

So what would that look like ? I suggested what I thought was an immediate option. Simply cutting Dray isn't going to happen and they are too short handed right now to simply bench him. This isn't Flips fault so firing him makes zero sense. EG cleaned out lots of contracts and left these guys to sink or swim this year. So here they are. If they sink, they are gone. Drays contract isn't so bad he is unmovable. They can trade him or amnesty him. They have options. They are not stuck.

On a separate note, I personally don't like the Dray and McGee pairing so I have zero problem bringing him off the bench. There I disagree with what Flip has done the last two games. But then again, they won one and almost won the other.

[theboomking]

Wall played great on defense but he resorted to hero ball and he could not hit the open shot late in the game.

I thought the way he was brought back with so little time on the clock and us trailing encouraged that style of play. In general, on this team as it is currently constructed, I wouldn't have had a problem with Wall trying to take over the end of the game, if he was doing it by attacking the rim and drawing FT's.

Since Mack had it going offensively and he also ran the team seamlessly, Saunders could have subbed Mack in late on offense. Wall is still struggling to know when to shoot and when to get others involved late in games. It is one thing to shoot your way out of a slump, but to shoot early on the clock when you're 4-15 and the team needs a good shot just kills your team's momentum. I know Wall is the future but I don't see the harm in sitting him down on offense for Shelvin Mack. Wall could come back in later on defense.

If you want Wall to learn how to play at the end of the game in key situations, then you need to play him in those situations, not sub him situationally. Wall's play in the 4th quarter was a huge reason for our success the previous two games.

His shot is broken, horribly.

It's obviously looked pretty bad. It looks like he hasn't been coached on it at all. I can't stand to see it sometimes. Especially when he jumps, hangs for a second, then shoots it when he starts to descend and you know it is going to be short. Wall needs to work intimately with a shooting coach, and he needs to shoot only when he is open, and otherwise drive or pass. Wall shouldn't be working to get open for a jumper.

Perhaps as he does with McGee, Flip could try to get Wall to remember to drive and look for contact late. When teams sag off of him and dare him to shoot, Wall needs to run the offense to get others a touch and to get as close as he can to either draw contact or take a very easy shot. Hoisting up threes late should be a benching-worthy offense. In should come Mack when Wall does that

I agree with this.