GT #4: 76ers @ Bullets 7 PM (MonSportsNet/106.7 FM)

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

looking at the box score, CJ went 4-14, ouch. But the sixers took 16 more free throws, that's the game right there. Which, by the way, is exactly the number of free throws Maxey took. The most free throws taken by a player on the zards side was Middleton and McCollum with 4.

So, either the refs basically gifted the game to the sixers, or McCollum can't play defense for crap. Or whoever was guarding Maxey. Probably a combination of both.

Maxey dropped 39 on the Wizards in a 47-minute overtime game. No shame in that. Earlier, he had 40 against Boston and 43 against Orlando, both games he played for 41 minutes in each.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

That lineup of CJ, Bub, Tre, Kispert, Bags... wow... I'd like to find the +/- for that lineup.
CJ shot jacking and refuses to play D.
Bub doing his best to cover for CJ and his man but is limited.
Tre doing his best with a bad back and is still learning.
Kispert cant really play D but gives effort.
Bags in there for the rebounds.
6'4" and under at the perimeter, 6'7" dude who plays D like he is 6'3" inside.
I was LOL

It was a great tank loss. I wanted to win this but am over it now.
Look at all the great moments! Sarr with a 31/11 game! Kyshawn with a 20/9 game. Tre with 10 and Cam with 9. The future looks bright.

http://popcornmachine.net/gf?date=20251028&game=PHIWAS

Yeah there were a few tankalicious lines. That one was -4 in the brief time they were out there. If Kispert doesn’t hit open shots he has absolutely no use out there except to look like he’s trying. Bags gives no protection in the paint. CJ is toothless but poised in his ineffective play. Gets open, can’t hit. Cam watches the action unless he has the ball. Is not a PF, playing a position he doesn’t understand. Tre is a rookie. Guaranteed loss every minute they’re on court together. Tanktastic.

Roddy, the popcorn machine appears!

[Kanyewest]

Wizards had 8 guys in double figures in regulation- and Cam Whitmore had 9 points.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

looking at the box score, CJ went 4-14, ouch. But the sixers took 16 more free throws, that's the game right there. Which, by the way, is exactly the number of free throws Maxey took. The most free throws taken by a player on the zards side was Middleton and McCollum with 4.

So, either the refs basically gifted the game to the sixers, or McCollum can't play defense for crap. Or whoever was guarding Maxey. Probably a combination of both.

That’s the difference between having guards who can penetrate all the way to the cup, and not having them. Maxey had 16 FTA’s, Bub 2.

In this draft, Jeremiah Fears gets to the cup.

I think Walter Clayton Jr. does, too.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

For better or worse it's obvious what Keefe is trying to do.....and I hate it.

Keefe: Play badly and I will play you. Better yet, jack up shots and don't play D and you will get in the game.

Ah Bullfeathers. CJ is the only high minutes player who fits that description. All the starters were positive in +/- except George who absolutely was trying hard. Too hard even. He played 40 minutes.

Why are we crying? The young pups and all played well, we were up by 19 before substitutions let the game slip out of hand.

I get if we were trying to make the play in games it’d be better to play JC than Kispert or Cam at forward. But we’ve seen that movie for a decade add a half under Grunfeld.

Yes it feels good to win. Yes you want to reward the effort shown in the first hand with wins at the end of the game. But they closed the game with the lineup that won them that lead. The fact they fell short while Maxey carved them up just reminds you we don’t have that high talent closer yet. We get that guy maybe if we pick high in the lotto.

They’re doing fine. Developing and growing on court in season. Sarr had a monster game against two powerful Centers. George is playing like a grown man. Even Bub showed up better. Let’s take the wins quarter by quarter. If BK is following the directive to handicap the team a bit early then okay. He’s not going to bench CJ while we’re trying to let him rehab his value. At least Middleton still looks like he can play.

I have not watched the games, so this is just a statement without justification: CJ McCollum will have a breakout game within the next three games. He will be the scorer he has always been from that point on. Like Westbrook, he will be respected by Wizards fans. CJ is not done.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

It’s blatantly obvious Keef is under strict orders to tank. Take this as an example:

Read on Twitter

?s=46

As many have noted, this is fine as long as both vets (and Kispert) are gone post trade deadline.

What's Vegas doing with Wizards handicapping with this in mind?

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

With all that’s going on in sports with sports betting being a part of the equation, I often hear the word “rigged” used to explain an inexplicable outcome, I won’t used “rigged” to describe what I felt while watching the Wizards give up the lead to Philly, up a lot with 3 minutes left to play, instead I’ll use ‘staged’ because that’s how it looked and felt.


There is no way that no one on the team had the wherewithal to establish composure as the collapse was happening. It was strange to me how no one on the team really looked too perplexed at the possibility of losing the entire game, when saving the win would’ve been so easy, even if only winning by a single point.

Just utterly bizarre how accepting of the loss Brian Keefe was in the postgame interview, and really the whole team for that matter; I don’t recall seeing anybody that looked dejected.

You read my mind. Isn't tanking cheating?

I have vasillated on wanting lineups by meritocracy with the goal being to win, to wanting what it appears that Keefe is doing, playing just well enough to lose competitively.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

With all that’s going on in sports with sports betting being a part of the equation, I often hear the word “rigged” used to explain an inexplicable outcome, I won’t used “rigged” to describe what I felt while watching the Wizards give up the lead to Philly, up a lot with 3 minutes left to play, instead I’ll use ‘staged’ because that’s how it looked and felt.


There is no way that no one on the team had the wherewithal to establish composure as the collapse was happening. It was strange to me how no one on the team really looked too perplexed at the possibility of losing the entire game, when saving the win would’ve been so easy, even if only winning by a single point.

Just utterly bizarre how accepting of the loss Brian Keefe was in the postgame interview, and really the whole team for that matter; I don’t recall seeing anybody that looked dejected.

Yeah you didn't think it was odd that CJ drove into 4 defenders to try an impossible layup when we were down 3 with the final possession?

That's diabolical.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

With all that’s going on in sports with sports betting being a part of the equation, I often hear the word “rigged” used to explain an inexplicable outcome, I won’t used “rigged” to describe what I felt while watching the Wizards give up the lead to Philly, up a lot with 3 minutes left to play, instead I’ll use ‘staged’ because that’s how it looked and felt.


There is no way that no one on the team had the wherewithal to establish composure as the collapse was happening. It was strange to me how no one on the team really looked too perplexed at the possibility of losing the entire game, when saving the win would’ve been so easy, even if only winning by a single point.

Just utterly bizarre how accepting of the loss Brian Keefe was in the postgame interview, and really the whole team for that matter; I don’t recall seeing anybody that looked dejected.

Yeah you didn't think it was odd that CJ drove into 4 defenders to try an impossible layup when we were down 3 with the final possession?

This is the playbook for this season play perfectly. Showcase the vets show they’re healthy and able to play minutes. Develop the young guys like Sarr. Play hard and competitive for 3 quarters. Blow the game at the end to get the loss and roll out the tank.

This won't last long.
The feds will warn the league on this.


There will be repercussions for tanking, but if there are no ties to bookies, what are the charges going to be?

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

Haha. Wiz incompetence is no conspiracy. We have almost fifty years of evidence. Keefe played the vetrans because he wanted to win. That’s the irony. It wasn’t tanking by intent.

Guaranteed contracts have a lot to do with what are tantamount to guaranteed minutes.

Grayson Allen or Bradley Beal? Who played better? Who played more minutes?

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

If I'm a military commander, I would initially defer to older and more experienced senior supervisors/trainers to lead the youngest and inexperienced by example.

It's just 4 games. CJ and Khris have over 20 years of combined NBA experience. Keep the positive energy and give these guys at least the next 3 to 5 games to lead. It makes sense over the long run.

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

For better or worse it's obvious what Keefe is trying to do.....and I hate it.

Keefe: Play badly and I will play you. Better yet, jack up shots and don't play D and you will get in the game. Do you hear that Justin?

Not sure what you two are so upset about.... The season is going just about perfectly so far.

Pretty much.

Had they beat Philly at 2-2, they'd be on a 41-win pace. Is that what we need?

[AWIZZINGBULLET]

I think it would be the Knicks complaining to the league about us tanking. We would go right back at them and say what about Ewing!!!!

I think the Suns would have the bigger issue with any perceived tanking by us. Good teams like the Knicks understand why up and coming teams would tank, the Suns, on the other hand, are a legitimately bad team and probably wouldn't appreciate a losing, yet probably much better team, playing lame to snatch what benefits they feel their circumstances have naturally dealt them.

I could only liken what they might feel to what we felt a few months back when learning where our draft position would be in spite of the very real struggles that we had endured.

[closg00]

Philly is the only undefeated team in the East, we kept their strike alive.