Grade The Offseason

[payitforward]

Are they giving grades in the real world now? I must have missed that. I thought everything was pretty much pass-fail. Either you achieve your goal or you don't. Either you win or you lose.

So did we pass or fail? I guess the first question would be 'what is our goal?'

Over the last couple of years, it's become clear that the goal of the Washington Wizards is mediocrity. Respectable mediocrity. I suppose in that sense we may have done ok this off-season. We didn't throw away our chance to achieve our goal to be average.

We got lucky and moved up in the draft. Whether Otto Porter turns out to be outstanding or not, he was a good choice at #3 in this year's draft. Noel might have been better, but we don't know right now whether he will or won't be good. As to Rice, at least we used our high Round 2 pick; that's unusual for the fools who run our show. At least we didn't throw it away.

Re-signing Webster is neither here nor there -- so it's perfect for achieving mediocrity. Great guy but nothing special as a player. As to Maynor, there's no reason to regard him as an upgrade over Price, and Price isn't much. Signing Al Harrington is like reaching blindfolded into the pile of players that are left and grabbing one. Assuming we sign him, I hope he has a good season, but even if he does so what? Is he going to make a difference? No. Is he a step towards rebuilding a team, even an average one? No.

But lets suppose you had a different goal. Lets suppose your goal was to become a team that went deep into the playoffs year after year and challenged for a title often and maybe even won a title or two along the way. A team like San Antonio or, more appropriately, a team like the Thunder.

If that's the goal, then as usual we failed this off-season. We haven't taken any steps in that direction -- other than actually making our picks in the draft rather than, say, falling asleep and missing our turn.

So... translate that into a grade? Sure -- we earned an F.

Over the last ten years, all in all, how many teams have been as bad as the Wizards? How many teams have won as few games and lost as many? I believe the answer is 1 -- Charlotte.

The guys who brought you that sterling decade-long set of results also brought you this off-season. Isn't an F what you should expect? Should you be surprised?

[payitforward]

...The pick of Rice could be a steal.

This is for doclinkin:

The Ted Leonsis Bedtime Song

Glen Rice could be a steal
Glen Rice could be a bust

Maybe he's the real deal
(In Glen Rice we must trust)

Or else he'll have no feel
(be ground into the dust)

Either way -- Ernie has a meal
Win or lose -- Ernie has our nuts.

[Nivek]

Mainly agree with payitforward's post. The analysis, not the bedtime song.

They've assembled a team with a good chance of being mediocre -- assuming Wall, Nene and Okafor remain healthy.

[Dat2U]

Only thing that matters long term is the 3rd pick & John Wall's extension. I'd have waited until the end of October before locking Wall up but there's only minor quibbles there. A discount would have been nice and I probably would have pushed a bit harder for a discount with a 5th year guarantee. I've been an Otto Porter supporter throughout the draft process but I've always had Nerlens Noel ahead of him on my board. Never once in the process did I think Porter was a superior prospect to Noel. So I'm disappointed Noel was not the pick, especially in light that he had been given a clean bill a health. Noel would have answered some long term questions and by resigning Webster and keeping Ariza, we've pretty much ensured that Porter won't contribute much this year (like Noel) unless injuries force him into playing time.

I give Ernie a C. He could have done worse I guess.

[truwizfan4evr]

I really hope Porter play better this regular season. We was saying the same things about Beal and Beal start to improve in the second half of the season last year. I will wait to Regular season to make a judgement call on Porter.

[Ruzious]

The Wiz tagline will forever be "Well, we should be better than last year."

"Mediocre and proud of it!"?

[Higga]

C sounds about right. Nothing amazing, nothing horrible. About on par with what you'd expect from Ernie Grunfeld.

If Wall blows up and has a monster year though, could go up to a B for locking Wall up early.

[DCZards]

But lets suppose you had a different goal. Lets suppose your goal was to become a team that went deep into the playoffs year after year and challenged for a title often and maybe even won a title or two along the way. A team like San Antonio or, more appropriately, a team like the Thunder.

If that's the goal, then as usual we failed this off-season. We haven't taken any steps in that direction -- other than actually making our picks in the draft rather than, say, falling asleep and missing our turn.

I'm curious...what would you have done this offseason that would have moved the Zards closer to becoming a S.A. or OKC type of team?

[Dat2U]

[
As for Noel. MEH. Talk to PHX. They drafted Len over him. Not saying Otto was the right pick or not but clearly there were plenty of concerns about Noel.

Why do keep pointing to what PHX did as some sort of validation? Yes, the Suns medical staff is amazing but their front office isn't. This isn't the medical staff making a decision, this was a front office choice. And they've made one laughable move after another. They wasted a lottery pick on Kendall Marshall last year. They threw guaranteed money & years at Beasley. Nearly every decision they've made recently has been a curious one.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

Are they giving grades in the real world now? I must have missed that. I thought everything was pretty much pass-fail. Either you achieve your goal or you don't. Either you win or you lose.

So did we pass or fail? I guess the first question would be 'what is our goal?'

Over the last couple of years, it's become clear that the goal of the Washington Wizards is mediocrity. Respectable mediocrity. I suppose in that sense we may have done ok this off-season. We didn't throw away our chance to achieve our goal to be average.

We got lucky and moved up in the draft. Whether Otto Porter turns out to be outstanding or not, he was a good choice at #3 in this year's draft. Noel might have been better, but we don't know right now whether he will or won't be good. As to Rice, at least we used our high Round 2 pick; that's unusual for the fools who run our show. At least we didn't throw it away.

Re-signing Webster is neither here nor there -- so it's perfect for achieving mediocrity. Great guy but nothing special as a player. As to Maynor, there's no reason to regard him as an upgrade over Price, and Price isn't much. Signing Al Harrington is like reaching blindfolded into the pile of players that are left and grabbing one. Assuming we sign him, I hope he has a good season, but even if he does so what? Is he going to make a difference? No. Is he a step towards rebuilding a team, even an average one? No.

But lets suppose you had a different goal. Lets suppose your goal was to become a team that went deep into the playoffs year after year and challenged for a title often and maybe even won a title or two along the way. A team like San Antonio or, more appropriately, a team like the Thunder.

If that's the goal, then as usual we failed this off-season. We haven't taken any steps in that direction -- other than actually making our picks in the draft rather than, say, falling asleep and missing our turn.

So... translate that into a grade? Sure -- we earned an F.

Over the last ten years, all in all, how many teams have been as bad as the Wizards? How many teams have won as few games and lost as many? I believe the answer is 1 -- Charlotte.

The guys who brought you that sterling decade-long set of results also brought you this off-season. Isn't an F what you should expect? Should you be surprised?

Charlotte actually made the playoffs in 2010 under Larry Brown. http://www.nba.com/playoffs2010/eastseries2/

The Wizards won games and made the playoffs under Eddie Jordan, but that ended back in 2008.

http://espn.go.com/nba/playoffs2008/ser ... ies=clewas

NOTE: Most "experts" picked Washington to win that series against Cleveland.

I don't know which team I would consider LESS successful between Charlotte and Washington.

[stevemcqueen1]

Charlotte actually made the playoffs in 2010 under Larry Brown. http://www.nba.com/playoffs2010/eastseries2/

The Wizards won games and made the playoffs under Eddie Jordan, but that ended back in 2008.

http://espn.go.com/nba/playoffs2008/ser ... ies=clewas

NOTE: Most of the "expert" had picked Washington to win that series against Cleveland.

I don't know which team I would consider LESS successful between Charlotte and Washington.

We certainly haven't been good. But we haven't been as bad as Charlotte. The Bobcats have one winning season in franchise history--the year that you mention where they won 44 games and got swept in the first round of the playoffs.

They also set the record for worst winning percentage the season before this past one with a dreadful .106. Their franchise winning percentage is .346 all time and since they committed to rebuilding following that 2010 season, their winning percentage is .270.

When you commit to a rebuild, you're going to be bad. When the Gil era fell apart on us and Leonsis took over the team, we've had to rebuild from the ground up. Most teams take at least three years to rebuild unless they somehow acquire a superstar who is a veteran. So far, the only drastic mistakes we've made in the process were:

1.) not committing to rebuilding in 2009, trying to stretch out one last run with Gil, thus wasting an entire year of the rebuilding process.
2.) Whiffing on the 2011 offseason and having every young player from prior to 2010 fail--nearly stalling out our rebuild entirely. We might have had to start over from square one if we hadn't made the Nene trade and amnestied Blatche. Committing to a very different organizational philosophy in 2011-2012--collecting better characters and subtracting the clowns--probably saved our rebuild.

So the rebuild ended up taking two years longer than it probably should have. But 2009 was a difficult offseason because we were going through an ownership transition, and it's tough to get anything productive done immediately prior to that because it causes such a big change in the direction of the organization. And 2011 was an awful draft with a terrible top ten, plus it was a lockout summer that disrupted a lot of teams with lots of young players.

It's frustrating, but it could be worse. Minnesota has been rebuilding for 6 straight years since dealing KG and hasn't had a winning record in 8 years. Their winning percentage during the rebuild process has been .284 compared to our .297. And their not necessarily on firm ground even now. Rubio is still a pretty flawed player and Love's long term future there remains in doubt. Or take Sacramento, who hasn't had a winning record in 7 years and has been full on rebuilding for five years too. Only their rebuild stalled out, they just traded Tyreke Evans, and there is no indication that next year is going to be better.

And at least we got Porter out of taking a year longer than hoped. I think the heavy lifting of the rebuild is over and we're trending up and have a solid long term foundation for the future.

[TGW]

To have a solid foundation, they need a big man. No, not a bunch of 30+ year olds...I mean one legit bigman under the age of 26 that they can proudly say "that's our anchor."

We don't have that. We don't have anything remotely close. More than likely, if one of those types are available, the Wizards will either not have the assets or the guts to pursue one. They never have...they always settle for the guy no one really wants. Even the Wizards best player in recent history—Gilbert Arenas—was unwanted, a "zero", and picked the Wizards on a coin flip to boot.

Anyway, I vote for a grade of C. They didn't address the frontcourt situation, lost Dejuan Blair, who would have been a cheap, young backup, and they're yet again going to have to rely on players like Seraphin, Harrington and Maynor to contribute. All in all, a very Wizards offseason.

[JWizmentality]

Incomplete. I was promised a trade.

[DCZards]

Even the Wizards best player in recent history—Gilbert Arenas—was unwanted, a "zero", and picked the Wizards on a coin flip to boot.

I recall there being at least 2-3 other teams that wanted to sign Arenas when he signed with the Zards. And that "coin flip" stuff was apparently not true. It was a story that Agent Zero made up. Just Gil being Gil.

[montestewart]

Even the Wizards best player in recent history—Gilbert Arenas—was unwanted, a "zero", and picked the Wizards on a coin flip to boot.

I recall there being at least 2-3 other teams that wanted to sign Arenas when he signed with the Zards. And that "coin flip" stuff was apparently not true. It was a story that Agent Zero made up. Just Gil being Gil.

I think I heard that story debunked, maybe straight from Arenas.

Clippers wanted him, and Warriors didn't want to lose him. Can't remember anyone else, but that was a while ago.

[Nivek]

When Arenas was a free agent, he had LOTS of interest and three offers. Golden State offered everything they could, but were limited by CBA rules at the time. The Clippers and Wizards had similar offers on the table. When I asked Arenas directly about the coin flip story, he told me directly it was true. Which doesn't necessarily mean it's true, just that he said it was.

When he was a free agent the 2nd time, he had a max offer from Golden State. He took a little less than the max to stay in DC.

[hands11]

[
As for Noel. MEH. Talk to PHX. They drafted Len over him. Not saying Otto was the right pick or not but clearly there were plenty of concerns about Noel.

Why do keep pointing to what PHX did as some sort of validation? Yes, the Suns medical staff is amazing but their front office isn't. This isn't the medical staff making a decision, this was a front office choice. And they've made one laughable move after another. They wasted a lottery pick on Kendall Marshall last year. They threw guaranteed money & years at Beasley. Nearly every decision they've made recently has been a curious one.

Since he was the consensus #1 leading up to the draft for so long, I say it was a medical decision. IIRC, they commented on it as such.

And it wasn't just them that passed on him. They passed on him with the 5th pick.

To all the posts about what the Wizards have done over the last 10 years. What difference does that make.

They rebuilt the team since Ted bought it. Should have been in the playoffs last year and unless losing Price, Collins and Martin is some kind of season breakers, they will be better this year with the pieces they added. Wall and Beal get playoff experience and they have cap room coming free.

They sucked along the way in rebuilding by design. They were tanking. Last year was a undesigned last second tank because Wall pulled up lame late in the summer and Nene didn't get rest during the off season because of the Olympics. Well Wall is back better then ever. Beal is the real deal. That what matter most.

Off to the playoffs. The team has already gotten more players saying they would want to play here this off season. Its only going to get better. If they play as well as I expect this year, they should be able to land a big fish if they right one is there.

Big decisions to make next off season. But that's a long ways way. They still like have one more move up their sleeve, but it not, just praying for good healthy the rest off season. Hopefully we continue to hear good things about players and their off season programs.

Should be a fun season.

[stevemcqueen1]

To have a solid foundation, they need a big man. No, not a bunch of 30+ year olds...I mean one legit bigman under the age of 26 that they can proudly say "that's our anchor."

We don't have that. We don't have anything remotely close. More than likely, if one of those types are available, the Wizards will either not have the assets or the guts to pursue one. They never have...they always settle for the guy no one really wants. Even the Wizards best player in recent history—Gilbert Arenas—was unwanted, a "zero", and picked the Wizards on a coin flip to boot.

Anyway, I vote for a grade of C. They didn't address the frontcourt situation, lost Dejuan Blair, who would have been a cheap, young backup, and they're yet again going to have to rely on players like Seraphin, Harrington and Maynor to contribute. All in all, a very Wizards offseason.

This seems like moving the goal posts. Why only a big man, and only one under 26? How many teams have such a player?

Shouldn't having three future All Star caliber players at any position be enough? That's what I believe we've got in Wall, Beal, and Porter.

Not getting DeJuan Blair certainly doesn't outweigh getting Porter, or even keeping Webster for that matter.

I understand that we've been bad for a while, but the pity party and relentless negativity from Wizards fans is flat out tiresome.

[TGW]

This seems like moving the goal posts. Why only a big man, and only one under 26? How many teams have such a player?

Shouldn't having three future All Star caliber players at any position be enough? That's what I believe we've got in Wall, Beal, and Porter.

Not getting DeJuan Blair certainly doesn't outweigh getting Porter, or even keeping Webster for that matter.

I understand that we've been bad for a while, but the pity party and relentless negativity from Wizards fans is flat out tiresome.

No, I don't think Beal, Wall, and Porter are enough because I don't think they're good enough to carry a team to a championship.

If you're going to rely on a bunch of guards and wing players to win a title, they have to be special players. Freaks. The best at their positions. I don't see our guys being that. I don't see Porter all of sudden developing Durant like abilities, or Beal becoming D. Wade in his prime, or Wall becoming Magic Johnson overnight.

You may be happy with mediocrity, but I'm not, and unless they get their sh*t straight when it comes to building a championship roster, I will continue to crap on this front office.

[hands11]

This seems like moving the goal posts. Why only a big man, and only one under 26? How many teams have such a player?

Shouldn't having three future All Star caliber players at any position be enough? That's what I believe we've got in Wall, Beal, and Porter.

Not getting DeJuan Blair certainly doesn't outweigh getting Porter, or even keeping Webster for that matter.

I understand that we've been bad for a while, but the pity party and relentless negativity from Wizards fans is flat out tiresome.

No, I don't think Beal, Wall, and Porter are enough because I don't think they're good enough to carry a team to a championship.

If you're going to rely on a bunch of guards and wing players to win a title, they have to be special players. Freaks. The best at their positions. I don't see our guys being that. I don't see Porter all of sudden developing Durant like abilities, or Beal becoming D. Wade in his prime, or Wall becoming Magic Johnson overnight.

You may be happy with mediocrity, but I'm not, and unless they get their sh*t straight when it comes to building a championship roster, I will continue to crap on this front office.

I got an idea. Get you some season tickets if you don't already have them. Then get a bag. Go to every game this season wearing the bag. If you are really committed, wear it while driving to the stadium. Then boo them on opening night. Boo Wall and Beal. Boo Otto. Boo Nene and Webster and Okafor. Boo Randy. Just keep it up. Every game until they win a title. Because anything short of a title right now means everything they have done is wrong and pure crap. Cuz we all know, you have done nothing until you have won a title. They are fools for not rebuilding this team in one year after gungate and going straight to best in the league. You need to go public and let this be known.