GT: Wizards @ Warriors, 2/11/08, 10:30 PM EST

[TheKingOfVa360]

This was the worst loss of the year. I'm still in shocked, I can't believe we let them get that offensive rebound and let Jackson hit a 3. The refs were bad but this is EJ's fault. But he won't get fired because we have so many injuries. 8 straight when will the bleeding stop? Clippers?

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

The refs also gave the Wizards 3 or 4 bad calls late.

This loss was worse than bad. EJ was HORRIBLE.

[TheKingOfVa360]

The refs also gave the Wizards 3 or 4 bad calls late.

This loss was worse than bad. EJ was HORRIBLE.

I know. Haywood man handled them in the first half but yet he doesn't get to play much in the second half. It's common sense if you have a 7 footer destroying a small team like Godzilla in Tokyo that you keep him in the game and keep feeding him the ball.

[nate33]

Just a recap of the stupidity that is Eddie Jordan:

The Wizards are up 72-55 at halftime. Everybody understands that it's a bit of a fluke and the Wizards are in for a tough second half.

Golden State starts off the third quarter with a furious rally and quickly cuts the lead to 10 at the 9:45 mark of the 3rd. The score is 72-62.

The Wizards regroup and fight off the rally. The lead remains between 10 and 14 points for the next 5 minutes. Haywood leaves the game at the 5:03 mark with the Wizards up 84-72 . He had 2 points and 3 rebounds in the quarter to give him 20 points and 8 rebounds for the game in 25 minutes of action. (I've got no problem with him getting a rest at this point. It's a fast paced game.)

After Haywood leaves, the lead stays roughly the same for the the next 3 minutes, and then Golden State goes on another run. They score on 6 consecutive possession at the end of the 3rd and the start of the 4th to cut the lead to 7. Haywood comes back in at the 10:15 mark and the lead is cut to 5 on that same possession, 97-92.

Once Haywood gets back in, the Wizards start getting some stops. Golden State scores once more (for the 8th consecutive scoring possession) but Washington stops them on their next 6 consecutive possessions. The Wizard build the lead back up to 11 at the 6:56 mark, 105-94.

At the 4:50 mark, the lead is still 8, 109-101. Haywood has 2 more rebounds and a bunch of altered shots in the quarter and has now posted a 20-10 double double. EJ pulls Haywood out of the game.

This is inexplicable! The pace had slowed down because guys were getting to the free throw line. EJ had also just called a timeout where guys were getting even more rest. Haywood couldn't have been that tired after just 5 minutes of action. Everybody on the message board was screaming at EJ at the time. This wasn't something you only see with 20/20 hindsight. This was simple common sense. Haywood was the difference on defense. It was inexcusable to pull him at this time.

Once Haywood was out, Golden State scored on the next 5 consecutive possessions to cut the lead to 2 at 113-111. The teams trade misses for a minute until the Wizards call a time out with 1:06 to go. The Wizards are still up 2. EJ still doesn't put Haywood back into the game. Golden State gets 3 key offensive rebounds in the last minute of the game and score on second-chances to win 120-117. Ultimately, Golden State went on a 19-8 run in the last 4:50 with Haywood out.

Can somebody who has contact with Eddie Jordan please send this post to him? Is there any way for logic and reason to penetrate his skull?

[clubbing_caveman]

I wanted to calm down overnight before I posted anything.
We played some inspired ball in the 1st and 2nd quarter. We shot lights out for the 1st and 2nd quarter. Minus Blatche, we used our starter too much in the 1st and 2nd quarter. EJ made a couple of good moves by putting Mason in and leaving Haywood in during that 1st adn 2nd quarter.
The team got tired in the 3rd quarter. They were running ragged out there. They didnt play individual D as well (usually the first thing to go when one is tired), and their help D was just not there. Sitting Haywood was probably not the right move, but then again, who would we have put in the place of this tired player that would have made it okay? We had nobody that can clog up the middle like him, and Blatche was being a foul magnet (we can question if they were warranted or not). So, EJ has to do something to keep the game in our favor. He decided a change the lineup. Really, who can we bring off the bench? It was a lost cause, in my opinion. He could stay with some tired legs on the court, and then we'd complain about him not resting our starters, or he could take a chance with the young ones. Look, I dont like EJ because of his style in coaching, his substitutions when we have a healthy team, and his lack of flexibility in offensive style to take advantage of players on the court. However, this isnt the game where we have to yell "fire EJ". He did try to win the game. Yes, we lost a very tough game. We gave it our all. We didnt have all our firepower. We didnt have a bench. Yet we scored 117 pts. This is a dissapointing loss, but we also got good experience for our young players. That will come in handy later this year.

[nate33]

clubbingcaveman, check out my breakdown of the 2nd half.

Haywood had no reason to be tired. He played just 7 minutes in the 3rd quarter, then rested for 7 gametime minutes, then played 5 minutes in the 4th during a timeperiod when there were several free throws and timeouts. Haywood could not possibly have been that tired. He certainly wasn't so tired that he would have been less effective than Darius Songaila.

Haywood had 2 points, 5 rebounds and a block in 12 minutes of the 2nd half. Extrapolated over 40 minutes, that's 7 points, 17 rebounds and 3 blocks. His play gave no indication that he was tired. Following that first, predictable 7-point run at the start of the 3rd, the Wizards were actually +3 with Haywood on the floor for the remaining 9 minutes that Haywood played in the 2nd half. During the 12 minutes that he sat, we were -16.

here is simply no excuse for EJ benching him. None whatsoever. It was a stupid, stupid move. It probably cost us the game.

[fishercob]

Thanks for the breakdown nate. I slept through most of the game.

From looking at the game flow it would seem like EJ's mistake was more about playing Nick Young too much than Haywood too little. Not to say it couldn't be both (they could have been subbed for one another, after all), but Young was terrible, and EJ made a big mistake in going to him for the final 16 minutes after playing him just 4 in the first half.

[TheKingOfVa360]

Great breakdown nate.

[jimij]

I won't crucify Young as result of his minus 21 +-. He didn't get the benefit of our runs in the first half to help him out and he was saddled by playing most of his second half minutes with Songaila as his center which created layup after layup for the Warriors (not to mention a little help from the officials).

What Young did wrong was continuing to take contested shot after contested shot without looking to pass. However, he's young and immature. Eddie Jordan is neither and he completely ceded control of the offense for about 4 or 5 key minutes to a shot jacking rookie. He's the one who is supposed to restrain Nick in that situation.

I was even impressed at times with Young's defense so I think he did okay in a tough situation. The plus/minus doesn't do justice to how he played IMO.

[MD's Finest]

I would definitely consider myself pro Ej but even I definitely felt he didnt do a very good job down the stretch yesterday. I think he panicked a bit when he pulled Haywood because GS started spreading the floor and were forcing Haywood to try to guard Al Harrington on the perimeter where Haywood pretty much has to concede the long jumper to him. I think he could have pulled him but then should have came back with him in the last few miutes where we had the lead and we needed the rebounding, maybe mix in some zones so he doesnt have to go out to the perimeter. I think the biggest problem was just leaving the ball in NY's hand and letting him serve as a stand in Gil. The kid hit some big shots and made some big plays but definitely forced up a few ill advised shots and I just don't like the fact Jamison didnt get many looks in the final few minutes, I understand they were making it hard to get him the b all but if you can get an ISO for NY you can get one for Tawn. Its hard to get too upset with any loss at this point when you are missing 2 of your best 3 and 3 of your top 6 or 7 guys wins are gonna come hard and the fact that they are starting to play well again after looking terrible in a few of those losses is a bit of silver lining.

[miller31time]

I agree.

I don't want to lose sight of the things EJ does well. He has done a marvelous job for most of this season maximizing his injury-depleted roster full of rookies and youngsters. Basically, we have a playoff-caliber team in street clothes right now and we're still competitive with the rest of the guys on the floor.

I want the good things that EJ brings. His offense, his motivation, his management of egos. I don't really want him fired. I just want somebody with in-game strategery skills to handle the last 4 minutes. EG needs to call a meeting with all the coaching staff and lay it out to EJ. For the good of the team, this mindless benching of Haywood has got to stop!

EJ's one hell of a nice guy. He seems like a person you'd love to have a drink with and talk up some sports in the meantime.

But on the other hand, he also seems extremely hard-headed - sort of a "my way or the highway" kind of guy. When he feels his ways are being questioned, he tightens up.

This looks like the reason TT inexplicably decided not to become an assistant coach here, and the more hands-off Ayers in his stead.

Eddie does many things well. He prepares these kids better than most coaches in the NBA. They come to play nearly every night, and are extremely motivated. But when we, as fans, have to talk about hiring an assistant coach for defense and an assistant coach for proper substitution patterns, it just gets too excessive, IMHO. I don't know....he's done a good job, all things considered, but the things he does wrong are so easily correctable with the right mind-set and personality that it's simply maddening when you see it transpire time and time again.

[nate33]

I won't crucify Young as result of his minus 21 +-. He didn't get the benefit of our runs in the first half to help him out and he was saddled by playing most of his second half minutes with Songaila as his center which created layup after layup for the Warriors (not to mention a little help from the officials).

What Young did wrong was continuing to take contested shot after contested shot without looking to pass. However, he's young and immature. Eddie Jordan is neither and he completely ceded control of the offense for about 4 or 5 key minutes to a shot jacking rookie. He's the one who is supposed to restrain Nick in that situation.

I was even impressed at times with Young's defense so I think he did okay in a tough situation. The plus/minus doesn't do justice to how he played IMO.

Agreed. Young did okay. He definitely is looking to shoot rather than pass, but I thought most of his shots were actually pretty good looks. He missed some wide open mid-range jumpers that he generally hits. And his defense was fairly good. He even made a couple of good fouls to prevent easy layups.

And don't forget that Mason played 40 minutes and Stevenson played 40 minutes on one leg. There are no other guards on the roster right now.

A problem was that with Blatche in so much foul trouble, Jamison was forced to spend some time at PF. That made the guard rotation that much more difficult because Nick Young had to handle some SF duties as well.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

Just a recap of the stupidity that is Eddie Jordan:

The Wizards are up 72-55 at halftime. Everybody understands that it's a bit of a fluke and the Wizards are in for a tough second half.

Golden State starts off the third quarter with a furious rally and quickly cuts the lead to 10 at the 9:45 mark of the 3rd. The score is 72-62.

The Wizards regroup and fight off the rally. The lead remains between 10 and 14 points for the next 5 minutes. Haywood leaves the game at the 5:03 mark with the Wizards up 84-72 . He had 2 points and 3 rebounds in the quarter to give him 20 points and 8 rebounds for the game in 25 minutes of action. (I've got no problem with him getting a rest at this point. It's a fast paced game.)

After Haywood leaves, the lead stays roughly the same for the the next 3 minutes, and then Golden State goes on another run. They score on 6 consecutive possession at the end of the 3rd and the start of the 4th to cut the lead to 7. Haywood comes back in at the 10:15 mark and the lead is cut to 5 on that same possession, 97-92.

Once Haywood gets back in, the Wizards start getting some stops. Golden State scores once more (for the 8th consecutive scoring possession) but Washington stops them on their next 6 consecutive possessions. The Wizard build the lead back up to 11 at the 6:56 mark, 105-94.

At the 4:50 mark, the lead is still 8, 109-101. Haywood has 2 more rebounds and a bunch of altered shots in the quarter and has now posted a 20-10 double double. EJ pulls Haywood out of the game.

This is inexplicable! The pace had slowed down because guys were getting to the free throw line. EJ had also just called a timeout where guys were getting even more rest. Haywood couldn't have been that tired after just 5 minutes of action. Everybody on the message board was screaming at EJ at the time. This wasn't something you only see with 20/20 hindsight. This was simple common sense. Haywood was the difference on defense. It was inexcusable to pull him at this time.

Once Haywood was out, Golden State scored on the next 5 consecutive possessions to cut the lead to 2 at 113-111. The teams trade misses for a minute until the Wizards call a time out with 1:06 to go. The Wizards are still up 2. EJ still doesn't put Haywood back into the game. Golden State gets 3 key offensive rebounds in the last minute of the game and score on second-chances to win 120-117. Ultimately, Golden State went on a 19-8 run in the last 4:50 with Haywood out.

Can somebody who has contact with Eddie Jordan please send this post to him? Is there any way for logic and reason to penetrate his skull?

Don't forward that to EJ, it's too complicated.

Forward this:

HAYWOOD IN THE GAME THEY GOT STOPPED SIX STRAIGHT TIMES.

ONCE EJ BENCHED HIM, THEY SCORED FIVE STRAIGHT TIMES.

100% SUCCESS WAS SUBSTITUTED FOR 100% FAILURE

THAT IS WHY YOU LOST YOUR 8TH STRAIGHT LAST NIGHT.

QUIT BENCHING HAYWOOD.

START COACHING AND STOP LIVING and DYING ON 1 on 1 and SONGAILA.

[DC_Ballin]

What a wasted performance by Roger Mason Jr... 32 points on 13-20 shooting from the field. That's efficiency, folks.

[Severn Hoos]

C'mon CCJ, man up and say what you mean rather than beating around the bush like that!

OK, I was the one who suggested the "intervention" theory, and I actually do believe it's worth a shot. We know what EJ does well: Design an offense, motivate his players, and put them in a position to succeed offensively. What he does very poorly is design & implement a successful defensive strategy and manage in-game decisions, rotations, etc.

And BTW, it's not just the Haywood benchings that frustrate me about EJ's decisions. Look at how he rides the Big 3 (plus Stevenson and Daniels, now) and barely plays the other guys. Yet, when a Mason or a Blatche has to play big minutes because of injury, they generally come up big. (The same dynamic is in place re: Daniels as a starter vs. Daniels as a backup.) This looks like the Blake-Dixon effect to me. Guys who can play relatively well given solid, consistent minutes (especially starting), but not so well in short bursts off the bench. There just aren't that many Microwaves out there - most guys need to play their way into a rhythm within a game. Unfortunately, guys like Blatche, coming off the bench with a quick hook, rarely get the chance to play their way into that rhythm, and then get their minutes chopped down further and further. The problem is then compounded by the wear and tear on the heavy minute players. (I don't think the injury rates of the past few seasons are purely either coincidental or placed solely on the medical staff. I think the heavy load these guys are carrying is what is causing them to break down.)

Randy Ayers has come in and (apparently) provided a significant improvement in the defensive schemes & execution. That solves (or at least mitigates) half of my concerns with EJ. Ayers has laso been a head coach - with some success on the college level, less at the NBA level - but he's been in that hot seat. He should be able to go to EJ and make plain to him what so many others see. And he'll have credibility because he already shored up one of EJ's deficiencies. In fact, he's probably the right combination of having been where EJ is right now (as the Head Coach), but not a particular threat to EJ (as Thibodeau apparently was - or was seen to be). If EJ doesn't listen then, well, there truly is no hope for him.

I realize this is going to great lengths to try to accommodate a coach rather than simply replacing him. EJ seems proud to say that he's "not a stats guy" - so get him a stats guy! Have someone doing live tracking of the gameflow. Someone who can chart individual matchups and tendencies over the course of a season (and multiple seasons at that). Follow their advice at least as much (preferably a whole lot more) than your "gut." If he would do that, I do see the Wiz (when healthy) as a 50-win team. I'm not sure I could say that if they were starting over with a new coach, given the realistic options available.

[pineappleheadindc]

I was among the people on the board last night during the game calling for Wood to come into the game. I have never been more irritated at EJ in my life.

Songaila must have photos of EJ sexing a goat in order to get the PT that he does.

I'd trade DSong for anybody on any roster that's in his respective coach's doghouse right now. Anyone. Veteran or young; G, F or C....doesn't matter. Anyone.

[LyricalRico]

I realize this is going to great lengths to try to accommodate a coach rather than simply replacing him.

Yep, EJ is getting his chances. But if a guy really is a good coach, he doesn't need perfect assistants, or the perfect roster, or perfect health, or a perfect schedule. He would find a way to win regardless of the circumstances. EJ hasn't done that consistently

His supporters keep saying "wait until he has this or that". If we're waiting for the perfect situation, we're going to be waiting for a long time. What we really need is a somebody who will manufacture wins with what we have.

[clubbing_caveman]

clubbingcaveman, check out my breakdown of the 2nd half.

Haywood had no reason to be tired. He played just 7 minutes in the 3rd quarter, then rested for 7 gametime minutes, then played 5 minutes in the 4th during a timeperiod when there were several free throws and timeouts. Haywood could not possibly have been that tired. He certainly wasn't so tired that he would have been less effective than Darius Songaila.

Nate, point well made. I was making my comments based on my memory of the game as opposed to the true numbers/breakdown of the game. Now that I know that Haywood had that much time to rest, it does bring into question why he wasnt in the game more during the 4th quarter. As I said, I do have a problem with EJ substitution paterns. Not having a "hot" player in the game, more so a starter, during a critical 4th period is quite questionable.

[Severn Hoos]

Yep, EJ is getting his chances. But if a guy really is a good coach, he doesn't need perfect assistants, or the perfect roster, or perfect health, or a perfect schedule. He would find a way to win regardless of the circumstances. EJ hasn't done that consistently

His supporters keep saying "wait until he has this or that". If we're waiting for the perfect situation, we're going to be waiting for a long time. What we really need is a somebody who will manufacture wins with what we have.

Lyrical, I understand and agree completely - it is infuriating that we have to talk about "EJ-proofing" the roster or hiring specialized assistants (though that's what many teams, including the Mavs have done, with some notable success). I came into the season thinking that EJ needed to get the team into the ECF to keep his job, and I'm still working under that assumption.

But I do worry about what happens if/when we do make a change. There's no guarantee that the guy they get will be better. How will Gil & AJ react (given their FA status)? What will be the impact around the league - where guys like Charles Barkley keep talking about how good a coach EJ is - if they fire him? How will potential FAs view the move?

But most of all, I want to give it one more try because I feel we are sooooooooooo close to being a top-tier team. The Wiz have (mostly) played well against the best teams in the league this year, including on the road and without their two best players. Put it all together, get everyone healthy, PLAY HAYWOOD, scale back the minutes for the Big 3, cut Songaila and Etan (not kidding), and give the young/bench players enough time to gain confidence & develop a rhythm game-to-game, we should win our division and be contenders.

But if we have the same rotations, small ball, no-Haywood, with Etan & Song getting the big/key minutes, then yes - absolutely, it's time for a new coach. Immediately.

[nate33]

If Arenas and Butler come back healthy, and we still lose in the first round of the playoffs, then it's time to fire EJ.

If we make it to the 2nd round, then I don't see how EG can possibly fire him. (It might still be the right move, but there is no way Abe let's it happen.)