They're Baaack! - Wizards at Wolves

Post #1 » by **Klomp** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 5:10 am

Flip Saunders.
Randy Wittman.
Don Zierden.
Sam Cassell.
Ryan Saunders.
Randy Foye.
Mike Miller.
Mike James.

This is the list of coaches and players making their return to Minnesota when the Washington Wizards visit Target Center Saturday night to face the Minnesota Timberwolves. Before going any further, I will provide a link to a very well written article in the Washington Post - A MUST READ!

Saunders went 411-326 in nearly 10 seasons with the franchise, leading the Timberwolves to eight playoff appearances and one trip to the Western Conference finals, all with future Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett. But to this day, the moment that remains etched in his mind is the morning of May 20, 2000, when Malik Sealy died in a car accident. "I think in all my years coaching, that was probably the toughest thing that I've ever had to deal with," Saunders said. "There are times I still wake up now at 4:06, because the call came at 4:06 from the police station."

Saunders said he still gets chills when he enters Target Center and sees Sealy's No. 2 jersey hanging in the rafters. In three seasons with the Pistons, Saunders went 5-1 against his former team and said that it is always special to return to Minneapolis, where he has yet to lose in three games as an opposing coach.

"It's always nostalgia going back there," Saunders said. "The personnel, the players, a lot of those guys aren't there. But [Owner Glen Taylor] is still there, and a lot of the fans are."

Now, my typical thread-starter:

Kevin Love wants YOU!

Post #2 » by **The J Rocka** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 5:49 am

I could see Foye going off

dlts20 · Post #3 » by **dlts20** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 6:17 am

Wiz fan here. We looked pretty lost most of the year with Flip's system. I got scared because it almost started to look like these guys would never fit into the system. Combine that with some injuries and Gil looking like Grant Hill or Penny after the 2 year layoff and it made us suck. However, very recently you can see it finally starting to come together. Everyone is now comfortable with the system, Gil is looking like Gil again, we are getting healthy, and Flip did a beast move a couple of games back where he benched the whole starting 5 midway through the 3rd quarter for taking bad shots and not playing with enough energy. If you know the Wiz then you know that we probably have the worst shot selection in the whole league. Since then we stopped settling for long contested jumpers early in the shot clock, have been attacking way more, and look 10x better.

As for the trade, it started off great. Everyone thought Miller was a beast and Foye seemed like the perfect fit with Gil. Then we had a bunch of injuries including Foye. We signed Boykins and he's been so good that Flip benched Foye when he did come back. Now with us losing a bunch of close games with horrible Stevenson starting, he decided to give Foye a shot and he has started the last 2 games which are both wins. We are 3-1 on the season with him starting and he's getting more comfortable with that group every game. Miller should be back on Jan 2nd and he will be big for us with his style. Miller was supposed to start for us but now I think we will leave Foye as the starter and bring Miller off the bench because you can trust him more in that role. As much as everyone liked Miller the 1st time around, I think they will love him even more this time because the team is alot better recently. He was playing with the scared garbage Arenas, the sucky Butler, and AJ was injuried. Now all 3 are healthy and playing well.

As for this game, I wouldve picked us 100% until Gil got a deep thigh bruise last game that made him sit out the whole 4th. I think he also lost a tooth on that same play. If he can go and isnt limited then I like us. I could see Foye trying to go off and I would be 100% sure that Gil would get an easy 30 if he's right but IDK if he's right and sometimes Gil acts funny and would shut it down. If he's out there not moving well then I hope Flip benches him. If he is moving well then I think he's going to try to attack the undersized Flynn and Sessions. You could put Brewer on him but I think he's too tall to stay with Gil and that will leave Foye to attack those 2. Certainly though, we havent reached the level to say this is a sure win and alot of people may say that you should be favored so good luck but not too good : )

aicnirvana · Post #4 » by **aicnirvana** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 6:36 am

BTW for those who didn't know, this game is also on NBATV! A non-locally televised game!

southern wolf · Post #5 » by **southern wolf** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 6:46 am

I'm guessing Foye will drop at least 20 on us.

Slum_Dillinger · Post #6 » by **Slum_Dillinger** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 6:55 am

Dont get NBATV anymore, great =/

Glad the Wizards finally started using Foye again, was getting irked when he wasnt getting minutes.

Sessions is big enough to guard Foye and not have much problems I think. Im worried about Butler. He hasnt been playing well this year but i dont see anyone on our roster that can really D him up.

Krapinsky · Post #7 » by **Krapinsky** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 7:27 am

aicnirvana wrote:BTW for those who didn't know, this game is also on NBATV! A non-locally televised game!

Nice!

Post #8 » by **Klomp** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 7:51 am

Which also means a League Pass Blackout......

dlts20 · Post #9 » by **dlts20** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 9:37 am

Slum_Dillinger wrote:Dont get NBATV anymore, great =/

Glad the Wizards finally started using Foye again, was getting irked when he wasnt getting minutes.

Sessions is big enough to guard Foye and not have much problems I think. Im worried about Butler. He hasnt been playing well this year but i dont see anyone on our roster that can really D him up.

Butler is probably the main guy who was lost in Flip's system. Gil was struggling but that was more due to injury and confidence. Butler's problem is he's always been more of an iso guy and he hesitates more than anyone in the league and that kills you in Flips system. They will run plays for him but he never shoots it immediatly. Thats never been his game. Finally though he is starting to come around and is just letting it go instead of hesitating. He had 28 & 6 a couple of games ago and had 23 & 10 last game.

The one reason why I always like us against you guys is because we are like the only team in the league that can shut Al down. Wood is one of the best low post defenders in the league and gives Al fits. What have you guys heard about Rubio? Is he playing right now or do they start later? I know you guys are glad to have Love back. He reminds us of our guy Wes Unseld. What are you guys thoughts on Brewer? I thought he was looking pretty bad as a Wolve at 1st but now he seems to be coming around. Is he legit or do you guys not think too much of him? Also, what happened to Sessions? I checked the box score last game and he didnt seem to play that much. Was it just a one game thing or is Flynn just playing so well and Kurt still doesnt like to play both at the same time? How is our boy Pesh doing? Is he still a gunner?

Foye · Post #10 » by **Foye** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 10:14 am

Great that Foye finally gets some PT for you guys.

I guess the Wizards are a team that should be hard to beat - at least on paper. :wink:

A lot will depend on whether or not Flynn can hold his own against Arenas.
Sessions doesn't get too much PT because Rambis does not want to play him and Flynn together.
Pecherov gets almost 0 minutes here. Jawai has taken his backup minutes.
I'm really high on Brewer because of the energy he brings to the court but he really needs to get more consistent and I know others don't like him that much anymore because he'll have a good game, then a bad, then a good and so on.

Anyway, I hope we can win this game and go for our first winning streak.

Tirion · Post #11 » by **Tirion** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 10:58 am

southern wolf wrote:I'm guessing Foye will drop at least 20 on us.

on 20 shots maybe.

dlts20 · Post #12 » by **dlts20** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 11:27 am

Tirion wrote:
southern wolf wrote:I'm guessing Foye will drop at least 20 on us.

on 20 shots maybe.

10-20 50% Thats not too bad

Nah, I know what you meant. I think he will shoot alot better as a starter because he's going to be warmed up and he's going to get alot of open shots with the other guys we have on the floor but he also knows that he's the 4th option

mandurugo · Post #13 » by **mandurugo** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 4:35 pm

dlts20 wrote:What have you guys heard about Rubio? Is he playing right now or do they start later

He is playing now, reports suggest he remains good at assists and breaking down defenses, not so good at jump shots and defense. There is some concern he is being coached to his strengths and not working on his weaknesses.

dlts20 wrote:What are you guys thoughts on Brewer? I thought he was looking pretty bad as a Wolve at 1st but now he seems to be coming around. Is he legit or do you guys not think too much of him?

His defensive anticipation is excellent, his man defense not always as strong as desired - that said most people consider him the best defender on the team. His offense is scary at times, but as he limits his jump shots he is doing better it seems. His best offensive contribution right now is leaking out early on breaks and getting easy (and usually aggressive) dunks. Frequently the highlight of the game. It's still not impossible for him to become a legitimate starter down the road, but he's not much more than a bench player for most teams right now. He seems to be recovered from his injury, but that was significant enough of an injury to make it tough to judge how legit he might be.

dlts20 wrote:Also, what happened to Sessions? I checked the box score last game and he didnt seem to play that much. Was it just a one game thing or is Flynn just playing so well and Kurt still doesnt like to play both at the same time?

Flynn was giving the starting job from day 1, though not on merit. The two aren't that far apart right now, but Sessions is the better play maker. They are too small to play together consistently, but the lack of minutes Sessions gets is hard to justify I think.

dlts20 wrote:How is our boy Pesh doing? Is he still a gunner?

Definitely a gunner.

dlts20 · Post #14 » by **dlts20** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 5:08 pm

I could see more of a Flynn-Sessions backcourt tonight since we start Foye at SG and also like to play Gil with Boykins in the 4th. Gil finally though has been consistently trying to muscle smaller guards so IDK if that will work super well

Foye · Post #15 » by **Foye** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 5:14 pm

dlts20 wrote:I could see more of a Flynn-Sessions backcourt tonight since we start Foye at SG and also like to play Gil with Boykins in the 4th. Gil finally though has been consistently trying to muscle smaller guards so IDK if that will work super well

We certainly won't play that.

If you play Foye at the 2 guard I could imagine that Flynn will guard him and Brewer will guard Arenas. Rambis won't change his tactics for one game.

Post #16 » by **Calinks** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 7:04 pm

Foye said he wants to blow us out.

This sucks that the game is on NBA TV. They should grave a game I can't see. 45 is playing this game already. Boooooo.

Foye · Post #17 » by **Foye** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 7:13 pm

He can blow any other team :lol:

Howler21 · Post #18 » by **Howler21** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 7:30 pm

Calinks wrote:Foye said he wants to blow us out.

This sucks that the game is on NBA TV. They should grave a game I can't see. 45 is playing this game already. Boooooo.

LOL! If he tries to be the one to blow us out we will end up with the win.

Post #19 » by **Klomp** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 8:11 pm

Washington fans don't seem too happy after early results from the trade:

Ji wrote:this trades is as bad as the Chris Webber for Mitch Richmond Trade. I hate you Ernie

Post #20 » by **Klomp** » Sat Dec 26, 2009 8:14 pm

JerryZgoda Gomes to play, Arenas and Boykins game time decisions, Miller out tonite at TC