RealGM

Listening now. Must listen Wiz fans!

http://espn.go.com/espnradio/play?id=13309078

LOL KELLY OSBOURNE

1. Sounds amazing for someone who just had back surgery.

2. Says his symptoms were never as bad as many people with this injury; his pain has been localized to his back -- none in his legs or feet as is common.

3. Expects to miss very little game action -- maybe a couple weeks. Could be ready by the season.

4. WANTS and EXPECTS to play lots of 4. Says we've got Otto, AA, and Oubre at SF. Likes to bang and confident he can guard many East PF's -- especially on bench.

5. Gets the Wiz's desire to preserve cap flexibility for next summer; sounds like he only expects to be here a year.

6. Opted in b/c he didn't have a pre-arranged deal elsewhere and was uncertain about the injury.

7. Sounds like Wiz were up front with him that Pierce was their first choice but they wanted him if he left.

Very smart, engaging, upbeat. Close friends with Gortat. I am optimistic about his tenure here.

No one cares. We have a Dudley thread. Mods, close this thread.

Duds definitely has a future doing a Bill Simmons type show for ESPN - I'll have to take a listen to that link when I have time. Having him and Webster on the same team should be interesting - off the court - reporters should love it. He clearly thinks of himself as a stretch 4 and believes in the power of stretching the floor and team defense. An offense without 3 point shooters is "hell in a cell".

Likeable dude. Very well spoken. Guaranteed media job when he hangs it up. I can dig it.

This was great. I've listened to Dudley before so no surprise how great he is with the media, he always gives a unique insight.

Good on the Bucks for handling his situation the way they did.

Wrt to his back injury, I really doubt there was any 'duping' involved in the trade like some people here were saying, it seems clear that all parties were aware of his status. Doesn't sound crippling and he hasn't had previous surgeries like Martell, I think Dudley will be active by the end of the calendar year.

Also Zach Lowe himself is always a good listen, the talk on the league was interesting.

It was funny when he wanted to hype up the Bucks because they're en vogue. But Dudley kept it real and was like "slow down, they're actually not that good yet" and then Lowe started to say how he really felt about their roster.

I agree there, don't understand how everyone is seeing them as lock for a top 4 team in the East. Uhh their pg is still MCW? And they won't have nearly any floor spacing. Greg Monroe has been oft discussed on Wiz forums, I was never a huge fan. When there were talks of us acquiring him, my main criticism (along with his lack of offense outside of 3ft + poor finishing around the rim + slow feet on defense) is I didn't like his motor. He doesn't consistently have the motor/intensity of a high-impact star player, in Milwaukee he'll get his post-up buckets and rebounds but the Monroe acquisition won't change that team around.

Miami if healthy should be strong this year. There's a lot that could go wrong, but you really can't argue with a Dragic/Wade/Deng/Bosh/Whiteside lineup in terms of fit, versatility, and experience. My problem with them last season was they had no semblance of defense. With Whiteside now protecting the paint and Bosh's mobility on the perimeter, they should be stout.

Indiana could be better than people think (I think Myles Turner will be solid as a rookie) and Ellis could have a near All-Star year. But not sure about the PG at the 4 thing, he's not one of those wings who could last there for a full season. George has no post game and doesn't have the lower body strength to play down there. You could still basically guard him with a wing regardless of where he lines up, and hide your worst defender on one of their non-scorers.

Thank you for including Deng in the Miami lineup. I live down here and to listen to locals or local radio, Winslow has already been anointed the starting SF.

penbeast0 wrote:Thank you for including Deng in the Miami lineup. I live down here and to listen to locals or local radio, Winslow has already been anointed the starting SF.

Winslow will be a non-factor this season, he's not ready to contribute.

I'm not super high on Winslow (I see his most likely case as a smaller, pre-All Star Jimmy Butler with better passing/ballhandling), but atm he's definitely a ways off from playing legit minutes - observing his game in SL he still needs improvements and adjustments.

The underrated 'addition' on the Heat next season is Josh McRoberts, he's gonna be solid glue guy off the bench if he's fully healthy.

Illmatic12 wrote:

penbeast0 wrote:Thank you for including Deng in the Miami lineup. I live down here and to listen to locals or local radio, Winslow has already been anointed the starting SF.

Winslow will be a non-factor this season, he's not ready to contribute.

I'm not super high on Winslow (I see his most likely case as a smaller, pre-All Star Jimmy Butler with better passing/ballhandling), but atm he's definitely a ways off from playing legit minutes - observing his game in SL he still needs improvements and adjustments.

The underrated 'addition' on the Heat next season is Josh McRoberts, he's gonna be solid glue guy off the bench if he's fully healthy.

I dunno. Winslow's a real solid all-around player with an NBA body - pretty much a can't miss player - though I agree that he doesn't have the great upside that some said he did.

Miami best line-up is probably Dragic-Wade-Winslow-McRoberts-Bosh

Really bright guy. Knew that but cool that he understands who he is and doesn't put himself on a pedestal. But very honest as well about his situation.

Color me as one who may have overreacted to the surgery news (I apologize Ernie). It appears that we (royal we) all knew about Dudley's medical condition and it's not a repeat of Webster's experiences.

Dudley only needs to be moving well by the all-star break. He comes across as a guy that's totally centered and self-aware. Wishing him a quick and successful recovery. While he tries to get to 100%, here's hoping that we get playoffs Otto, playoffs Gooden, and improved Hump and Webby.

Go Wizards!

This should be required listening for any Wizards fan, or any NBA fan, in general.
Dudley didn't avoid answering any questions. All straight talk, the whole way through.
Loved how he described his own free agency situation this year, working with his agent and the Milwaukee front office.
I think he'll be an even better influence than any of the so-called "veteran leaders" have been to date, including Pierce.
Also loved that he's good friends with Gortat. Hope his health comes back and EFG (or our future GM, Danny Ferry) can keep him next summer after we bring KD2DC.

WizTom wrote:This should be required listening for any Wizards fan, or any NBA fan, in general.
Dudley didn't avoid answering any questions. All straight talk, the whole way through.
Loved how he described his own free agency situation this year, working with his agent and the Milwaukee front office.
I think he'll be an even better influence than any of the so-called "veteran leaders" have been to date, including Pierce.
Also loved that he's good friends with Gortat. Hope his health comes back and EFG (or our future GM, Danny Ferry) can keep him next summer after we bring KD2DC.

Great LowePods this week with Cuban and Stan Van too. You're not an NBA fan if yuo're not reading and listening to Zach Lowe.

pineappleheadindc wrote:Color me as one who may have overreacted to the surgery news (I apologize Ernie). It appears that we (royal we) all knew about Dudley's medical condition and it's not a repeat of Webster's experiences.

Dudley only needs to be moving well by the all-star break. He comes across as a guy that's totally centered and self-aware. Wishing him a quick and successful recovery. While he tries to get to 100%, here's hoping that we get playoffs Otto, playoffs Gooden, and improved Hump and Webby.

Go Wizards!

I think you were likely right the first time. He's had seriously problems with his back and neck before - among other things - which is why his career has been so up and down. Like Webster, he's often played through these problems - that doesn't mean they didn't exist and haven't taken their cumulative tolls on him. It's easy to be optimistic now - with the season a ways away. Let's see if he's as optimistic in a few months.

Ruzious wrote:

pineappleheadindc wrote:Color me as one who may have overreacted to the surgery news (I apologize Ernie). It appears that we (royal we) all knew about Dudley's medical condition and it's not a repeat of Webster's experiences.

Dudley only needs to be moving well by the all-star break. He comes across as a guy that's totally centered and self-aware. Wishing him a quick and successful recovery. While he tries to get to 100%, here's hoping that we get playoffs Otto, playoffs Gooden, and improved Hump and Webby.

Go Wizards!

I think you were likely right the first time. He's had seriously problems with his back and neck before - among other things - which is why his career has been so up and down. Like Webster, he's often played through these problems - that doesn't mean they didn't exist and haven't taken their cumulative tolls on him. It's easy to be optimistic now - with the season a ways away. Let's see if he's as optimistic in a few months.

I continue to disagree with your assessment that his career has been up and down.

WS/48 by year:
08: .100
09: .114
10: .129
11. .126
12: .121
13: .106
14: .068
15: .116

14 was the clear outlier. Everything else was pretty tightly grouped.

He had a had year with the Clips; I have no idea why. But man, if they hadn't dumped him last summer, he could have been a difference maker for them this year in the playoffs given how close they were. I bet the Clips regret that trade.

fishercob wrote:I continue to disagree with your assessment that his career has been up and down.

WS/48 by year:
08: .100
09: .114
10: .129
11. .126
12: .121
13: .106
14: .068
15: .116

14 was the clear outlier. Everything else was pretty tightly grouped.

He had a had year with the Clips; I have no idea why. But man, if they hadn't dumped him last summer, he could have been a difference maker for them this year in the playoffs given how close they were. I bet the Clips regret that trade.

Ah, I'll tell you! After the Bucks traded for Dudley a year ago, he revealed that he played a large portion of that season with a fracture in his knee, since the Clippers were so thin at the wing with all their other injuries. The Clippers actually used a first round pick to get rid of him because they thought his problems would be chronic. The Bucks training staff was able to use a focused rehab on the muscles around his knee to make him feel "like new" by the time the season started. We had all feared that his knee issues had returned when his jumpshot left him after the all star break, but it turned out to be this new back issue instead.

We all love Duds in Wisconsin, and we hope he can continue to play well for his next contract in Washington. The Bucks didn't really get anything back in this trade, and Dudley was able to clear the air about everything being out in the open, so hopefully we can all remain friends.

fishercob wrote:

Ruzious wrote:

pineappleheadindc wrote:Color me as one who may have overreacted to the surgery news (I apologize Ernie). It appears that we (royal we) all knew about Dudley's medical condition and it's not a repeat of Webster's experiences.

Dudley only needs to be moving well by the all-star break. He comes across as a guy that's totally centered and self-aware. Wishing him a quick and successful recovery. While he tries to get to 100%, here's hoping that we get playoffs Otto, playoffs Gooden, and improved Hump and Webby.

Go Wizards!

I think you were likely right the first time. He's had seriously problems with his back and neck before - among other things - which is why his career has been so up and down. Like Webster, he's often played through these problems - that doesn't mean they didn't exist and haven't taken their cumulative tolls on him. It's easy to be optimistic now - with the season a ways away. Let's see if he's as optimistic in a few months.

I continue to disagree with your assessment that his career has been up and down.

WS/48 by year:
08: .100
09: .114
10: .129
11. .126
12: .121
13: .106
14: .068
15: .116

14 was the clear outlier. Everything else was pretty tightly grouped.

He had a bad year with the Clips; I have no idea why. But man, if they hadn't dumped him last summer, he could have been a difference maker for them this year in the playoffs given how close they were. I bet the Clips regret that trade.

In PPA:

2008: 90
2009: 85
2010: 94
2011: 113
2012: 131
2013: 116
2014: 59
2015: 101

Career: 101

Agree that 2014 was the definite outlier. Otherwise, a solid player.