[Fri. 12/19 - 7:00P] Wizards v. Philadelphia 76ers

[lupin]

This nugget was gleaned from the AP recap:

The Wizards starting lineup announcer remains in a slump as bad as the team’s. He announced Jamison as being from “UConn” instead of the University of North Carolina. A few games ago, he had Jamison coming from “North Carolina University.”

ROTFLMAO

[dandridge 10]

This is getting pretty comical. Its pretty bad when I walk out of a game just happy that it wasn't a blow-out.

The guy that sits next to me was having dinner after the game with Ernie Grunfeld. I told him to tell Grunfeld to PLEASE waive DeShawn because that is the only way Tapscott will not play him.

Looking at the bright spots, James had a pretty good game again. If he keeps it up, he might be tradeable. Also, NY didn't settle for jumpers all game and took it to the rack a few times. Other than that, same ol same ol...no perimeter defense, nobody protecting the rim, and stagnant offense with Butler and Jamison playing one-on-one and everybody else watching.

[MJG]

You can call this team The Blackbirds, because they're four and twenty....


Ugh. Sorry.


Why do we have to choose a season when there are two other historically craptacular teams vying for ping pong balls? How can a team be 4-20 and be THIRD from the bottom? And have TWICE as many wins as the current ping pong ball leader? What does it take for a team to truly tank around here?????

Buck up - OKC beat Toronto tonight

[JWizmentality]

You can call this team The Blackbirds, because they're four and twenty....


Ugh. Sorry.


Why do we have to choose a season when there are two other historically craptacular teams vying for ping pong balls? How can a team be 4-20 and be THIRD from the bottom? And have TWICE as many wins as the current ping pong ball leader? What does it take for a team to truly tank around here?????

Buck up - OKC beat Toronto tonight

Trade for Bosh!! Give them anybody outside of Caron and McGee.

[JWizmentality]

I don't get the love with DeSuck. He tries hard. That's great. He grows his hair and beard different ways. That's charming. He can't feel his face. He has some charisma. Can't wait for the rematch against Cleveland Christmas Day.

Dude is not being paid millions to try hard. EPIC FAIL!

[Ji]

there will come a game soon where there is no game thread...

[doclinkin]

there will come a game soon where there is no game thread...

I've rescued two at the last minute. Both Detroit games. Willing to take a hit for the team. Much respect to the diehards willing to put in the effort and show up. Good thread sashae.

And this was an excellent tank job. Good style points for the last minute loss. Dignity preserved. Someone should be tracking which games we lost with poise intact. Games with 4th quarter leads, late comeback near-wins, games under a two possession difference in the end result. Keeping it close against a powerhouse team, etc. Good games by the youngsters count. Creative sabotage in (mis)managing line-ups. Decent games despite a wink-wink abberant single digit performance by our allstar forwards, All of the above.

Can't have the disheartening double-digit arsewhippings, but anygame where a reasonable case could be made that the addition of a healthy Haywood playing an average game would have won it for us (or say Gilbert on an off night) counts as a bearable thrashing. Yes I got whupped, but they ain't see me cry.

Still only a 15% chance at the number one lotto spot, but that (25%) top chance at the Wonka factory ownership just got a little bit closer. There's no such thing as snozzberries.

[hands11]

Now that was refreshing to watch.

I can deal with a loss as long as I get to see some decent basketball and progress.

The line ups look pretty good tonight.

NY broke the lump. Tapps is working with him. New instruction was ... go play your game but 2 dribbles then do something wtih it be it pass, drive or shoot. Back to back dunks was awesome to see.

James handled the PG job well for 37 mins and nailed some 3s and brought energy. That was a heck of line for him. 4-5 from 3. 6 rebs, 1 steal and 1 block. only 2 turnover. And the guy doesn't look like he will break down. If he keeps this up the EG may have pulled a heck of a trade.

Blatche continues to post decent games as a starter and is getting some burn which is needed for him to grow. Best thing I've seen from AB is he called himself out for not rebounding 2 game ago and fixed the problem himself. Thats maturity we needed to see from him. Added note, no he won't foul out if you start him and play him more minutes.

DMAC continues to get some burn and looks more comfortable on the floor every game.

Dixon settling in as a roll player off the bench were he can be that spark.

CB bounced back and AJ is a warrior playing that well with a messed up thumb.

And DSucks mins were reduced.


These are good line ups, roles and mins. We need to settle in on something and this may well be as good as it gets for us right now. As much as it pains me to say it, DS probably needs to start so all the other lines work well and so NY came grow. Just start him and limit his mins.

Not to bum anyone out but consider these line up and mins with RM plugged in instead of DS.

AB, AB, CB, RM, James

So thats were we are, I think it is mostly worked out as well as it can be for now. Most players did what they needed or can do. We needed more from DS. DSONG could have scorer a little more and we needed to play a little better D. But that pretty much it.

The main thing that needs fixed right now is an upgrade of DS. To bad that wasn't RM. We really need another SG who isn't small like Dixon.

Once GA comes back all we will do is plug him in for James

AB, AJ, CB, DS, GA

But if we had Haywood back and McGee can get enough experience to back up at center then we can start.

BH, AB, AJ, CB, GA - That is the sweet spot I have been waiting to see for over 2-3 years.

Backed up by

McGee, DSONG, DMAC, NY, James, Dixon, DS

And we still have OP, Etan, Crittenton

[LyricalRico]

Now these are the Wizards from last year. Scrappy, hitting the boards, making open shots, and generally making a game of it. They couldn't seal the deal but it really could have gone either way.

From Philly's side, they looked rejuvenated sans Brand. If they go on a run without him and then start losing again when he comes back, what then?

[Severn Hoos]

You can call this team The Blackbirds, because they're four and twenty....


Ugh. Sorry.


Why do we have to choose a season when there are two other historically craptacular teams vying for ping pong balls? How can a team be 4-20 and be THIRD from the bottom? And have TWICE as many wins as the current ping pong ball leader? What does it take for a team to truly tank around here?????

Buck up - OKC beat Toronto tonight

Woo hoo! Bring on the ping pong balls!

I just looked at the standings, and after 24 games, the Wiz are 19.5 games out of First Place in the Conference. We could finish 60 games out! There's got to be some sort of record in reach, given the Celtics' record, and our futility. At least there'd be something to remember this season by. (Besides Blake Griffin, that is.)

[long suffrin' boulez fan]

And this was an excellent tank job. Good style points for the last minute loss. Dignity preserved. Someone should be tracking which games we lost with poise intact. Games with 4th quarter leads, late comeback near-wins, games under a two possession difference in the end result. Keeping it close against a powerhouse team, etc. Good games by the youngsters count. Creative sabotage in (mis)managing line-ups. Decent games despite a wink-wink abberant single digit performance by our allstar forwards, All of the above.

Completely agree. Mad Genius Ed Tankscott made it look effortless. Just take out center, insert Songalia when we get on a roll and up by eight points (watch lead evaporate). When entering the fourth with a realistic chance to win, use DeBrick exclusively as your two.

Genius.

And he even faked arguing some calls and made himself appear to be animated at the end.

Final flourish? Call a timeout and have an Unseld diagram the play. Brilliant.

[doclinkin]

And this was an excellent tank job. Good style points for the last minute loss. Dignity preserved. Someone should be tracking which games we lost with poise intact. Games with 4th quarter leads, late comeback near-wins, games under a two possession difference in the end result. Keeping it close against a powerhouse team, etc. Good games by the youngsters count. Creative sabotage in (mis)managing line-ups. Decent games despite a wink-wink abberant single digit performance by our allstar forwards, All of the above.

Completely agree. Mad Genius Ed Tankscott made it look effortless. Just take out center, insert Songalia when we get on a roll and up by eight points (watch lead evaporate). When entering the fourth with a realistic chance to win, use DeBrick exclusively as your two.

Genius.

And he even faked arguing some calls and made himself appear to be animated at the end.

Final flourish? Call a timeout and have an Unseld diagram the play. Brilliant.

Exactly. Requires a true maestro to pull it off. And an inspired acting job by a committed method actor deeply immersed in his role.

Rooting for losses reminds me a little bit of the Viking berserkers. Or Baer Sarks (bear shirt) since they would run into battle wearing nothing but furs at best. See the thing is the Viking believed you could only get to Valhalla if you died in battle in spectacular fashion. But if you caught a disease and wasted to a withered sack of bones, or fell off a boat and caught a minor case of the drowning; or got kicked in the spleen by an irritated elk or whatever -- you never got to go to the hall of eternal feasts, the bodacious Valkyrie wouldn't prance past on their feathered trotters and jerk you up off the turf. Nah, you'd rot, maybe find a hell, or whatever. At best you'd get to some happy hunting ground or whatever. So essentially you would charge into battle half-hoping that somehow you'd die today in some spectacular fashion. Would have to drive you partly bonkers. Laughing roaring charging into battle. Kill me first, rah!

So here, as a Wiz fan, you have to take a perverse pleasure and enjoy these last quarter losses. You can't just catch a terminal case of the clap from some poxy Briton maid in the first quarter. You can't suffer a serious double digit beatdown by some chubby friar swinging a hefty candelabra. That would be mortifying. Nah, you have to go out with dignity.

And as a Wiz fan it drives you similarly bonkers. So, since we watch the game for enjoyment-- not because our personal egos and emotional well-being are knotted up in the success or failure of a multimillion dollar business enterprise completely beyond our influence, much less control-- it's much more enjoyable when you watch the thing through a prism of delightful conspiracy.

It's all a part of a grand plan. Feel free to suspend your disbelief that the coach is in on the plan. All you need to allow is the idea that this has all been set into motion via careful manipulation by a machiavellian genius waiting in his dark office, playing master puppeteer. Shoot, you don't have to even believe it since the end result is the same anyway: losses help the team earn better talent sometime far down the road. Might as well charge into the hurlyburly swinging that axe and find a way to enjoy the mayhem.

Woo! Go wiz. Almost win!