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From Yahoo's Marc Spears via twitter:

LeBron-Heat open @ BOS Oct 26, sources tell Y! Wiz Wall debuts Oct 27 @ ORL. Rumor is Lakers open versus Rockets in Yao's possible return.

I think there's a limited release today and the full schedule comes out in a week, 8/10.

Bummer, opening of the new arena so it's going to be a show.

Oh-yeah, Seraphin vs Dwight, make it happen

This game could be big for McGee's confidence which could effect his play the rest of the way. Hopefully Howard doesnt go for 40 and 20 and shatter his belief in himself the rest of the season

Damn. Would have been nice to open up the season at home for Wall's debut.

Oh well, I guess J-Wall single-handedly destroying the Orlando Tragic will suffice.

I think the Magic should win pretty easily, but it would be great to see Arenas light up Vince Carter

I remember reading somewhere that the Wizards always like to open the season on the road. I'm sure I could use Basketball Reference to confirm that they open up on the road more often than not, but does anyone else recall this being the team's preference?

REDardWIZskin wrote:This game could be big for McGee's confidence which could effect his play the rest of the way. Hopefully Howard doesnt go for 40 and 20 and shatter his belief in himself the rest of the season

McGee getting matched up with Howard would be a disaster. There's no way Saunders goes into the game with McGee seeing extended minutes against the guy.

If the Wizards somehow get a win they start the whole season off with the highest of highs but also expectations. OTOH Stan Van Gundy signed a new two-year deal this offseason, but I think he'd be behind the 8-ball after losing a home opener to the Wiz. The Magic have a lot of pressure on them.

Orlando lost Barnes and Redick wanted to go but his offer sheet to the Bulls was matched. Gortat has wanted out of Orlando for a while. Rashard Lewis had a horrible conference finals. He and Carter will get booed a lot by their home fans if they don't hit shots and that team loses. Carter looks like he's in pretty steep decline. Lewis seems to lack heart and competitiveness more than Carter does. Duhon and Q Rich are their FA additions. I don't see Richardson adding much at all. Duhon might make Nelson look over his shoulder.

This season I believe Orlando takes a huge step backwards. When the Magic lost to the Celtics it reminded me how Denver lost the year the pushed the Lakers in the playoffs. It also reminded me how Phoenix lost the year the Spurs shoved them around. You could just tell the next season wouldn't be as good for that team. Orlando's not going anywhere this season IMO.

Wizards probably lose the opener, but I see two teams heading in opposite directions.

This could be a big win for us. And it's cool we get the first look at the new Orlando arena!

10/27/09: Wiz 102 Dal 91. And we all know how last year went.

hermitkid wrote:

REDardWIZskin wrote:This game could be big for McGee's confidence which could effect his play the rest of the way. Hopefully Howard doesnt go for 40 and 20 and shatter his belief in himself the rest of the season

McGee getting matched up with Howard would be a disaster. There's no way Saunders goes into the game with McGee seeing extended minutes against the guy.

So you propose the Wiz go with Hilton Armstrong? There's really not a whole lot of depth behind McGee this season. Its a gutsy move by EG, but I actually like it. If the Wiz had a veteren center on the roster McGee might defer to him too often and not be assertive. Now he has no choice but to man up and not get embarrassed because there is no safety net.

Chocolate City Jordanaire wrote:If the Wizards somehow get a win they start the whole season off with the highest of highs but also expectations. OTOH Stan Van Gundy signed a new two-year deal this offseason, but I think he'd be behind the 8-ball after losing a home opener to the Wiz. The Magic have a lot of pressure on them.

Orlando lost Barnes and Redick wanted to go but his offer sheet to the Bulls was matched. Gortat has wanted out of Orlando for a while. Rashard Lewis had a horrible conference finals. He and Carter will get booed a lot by their home fans if they don't hit shots and that team loses. Carter looks like he's in pretty steep decline. Lewis seems to lack heart and competitiveness more than Carter does. Duhon and Q Rich are their FA additions. I don't see Richardson adding much at all. Duhon might make Nelson look over his shoulder.

This season I believe Orlando takes a huge step backwards. When the Magic lost to the Celtics it reminded me how Denver lost the year the pushed the Lakers in the playoffs. It also reminded me how Phoenix lost the year the Spurs shoved them around. You could just tell the next season wouldn't be as good for that team. Orlando's not going anywhere this season IMO.

Wizards probably lose the opener, but I see two teams heading in opposite directions.

So how much longer does Howard stay ? Kind of like Shaq didn't stay with his first team. Howard is such an interesting talent but the guy really hasn't lead.

Looking over Orlandos roster, why do you think we would loose ? They don't look so scary.

I will be watching Orten longer term. I think he will stick around in the NBA.

AT orlando, brand new arena, javale going against dwight, jitters for wall, crushing (self placed) expectations on Gil, and either missing blatche/howard all together or having them fresh off injuries? this is as sure a loss as it gets.

i do expect howard to underestimate mcgee for the first 5-8 minutes and mcgee rejecting at least 1 if not more of howard's fga's in an ESPN top 10 sort of way.

also wiz home opener will be against the nets...don't have a date.

that's the rumor i have heard.

We are so kicking their ass.

Orlando is a definitely a team where the sum is greater than its parts. That was especially the case in the playoffs two years ago with Hedo when they made the finals. Same with Wince Carter in the regular season before their playoff meltdown.

However, I think they needed to switch around the deck chairs abit and make some moves this offseason. I sense a bit of staleness with that franchise. Rashard Lewis is a dog. A massive contract with a declining game. The money Lewis, Redick & Gortat make combined is insane considering the lack of production. Duhon was terrible with the Knicks, I don't get that signing either. They have no legit 1st option with Carter in a steep decline (Howard isn't a 1st option type). I would not be surprised to see them take a step back this season.

They could really benefit from a Carter/Arenas swap. Orlando needs a scorer that can create his own shot in the worst way. Right now their best creator is Nelson. That's not going to get them out of the Eastern Conference.

I wouldn't be surprised if the Wizards stole a few of their early games. The Wizards have a ton of new faces and nobody will have a decent scouting report.

I expect the Wizards to slump after a quick start, and then hopefully they'll regroup and put together a strong second-half as their young guys get more experience.

Orlando 104
Washington 102

Arenas 24 pts,5 assists
wall 17 pts,9 assists
Blatche 11 pts, 8 reb
Mcgee 12 pts 1 reb

Ji wrote:Orlando 104
Washington 102

Hope springs eternal...