Kool-Aid Drinking, Season Turnaround Thread

[TheKingOfVa360]

End of thread.

Yeah we keep giving away games to the Kings

[montestewart]

Sac beats Sack. Let's see, now we have to play .800 ball the rest of the way?

[AFM]

I dont know what to think about this team. Knowing us we'll lose to SAC and beat San Antonio. We look awesome some nights and terrible others. Tonight we looked terrible.
Here's a line up that would have been better than what showed up today:
PG-hands11
SG-AFM
SF-monte
PF-miller
C-Nivek

probably would have beat SAC

[Nivek]

Not sure I'd have been much help at C. Well, maybe as a stretch 5.

[Zonkerbl]

End of thread.

Sigh. All that interesting math for nothing.

[Higga]

Of course we beat the Bulls and Nuggets, but we lose twice to the Kings.

Snap back to reality...

[MDStar]

Yeah, that was most certainly disappointing but it was still just one game. No one ever said that we would win EVERY game and maybe the Kings are a bad match-up for us. I look at it like this, most of us were felt just as disappointed after the 1st Kings game. Then we went 4-2 over the next 6 games. With those two losses being very competitive at the end verse the Clippers and Jazz. Who knows what will happen but to jump off the "Kool-Aid" ship, after one lose, seems a bit premature.

Playoffs were always a pipe dream, however playing above .500 ball is still a major turnaround and still very much in play for this team and one lose two the Kings shouldn't change that perspective.

We are a flaky fanbase!

[nate33]

This is why I changed my avatar earlier this season. When it comes to this team, one must never forget that Lucy always pulls away the football.

[dobrojim]

Yeah, that was most certainly disappointing but it was still just one game. No one ever said that we would win EVERY game and maybe the Kings are a bad match-up for us. I look at it like this, most of us were felt just as disappointed after the 1st Kings game. Then we went 4-2 over the next 6 games. With those two losses being very competitive at the end verse the Clippers and Jazz. Who knows what will happen but to jump off the "Kool-Aid" ship, after one lose, seems a bit premature.

Playoffs were always a pipe dream, however playing above .500 ball is still a major turnaround and still very much in play for this team and one lose two the Kings shouldn't change that perspective.

We are a flaky fanbase!

Big +1 MDStar

[Zonkerbl]

Yeah, that was most certainly disappointing but it was still just one game. No one ever said that we would win EVERY game and maybe the Kings are a bad match-up for us. I look at it like this, most of us were felt just as disappointed after the 1st Kings game. Then we went 4-2 over the next 6 games. With those two losses being very competitive at the end verse the Clippers and Jazz. Who knows what will happen but to jump off the "Kool-Aid" ship, after one lose, seems a bit premature.

Playoffs were always a pipe dream, however playing above .500 ball is still a major turnaround and still very much in play for this team and one lose two the Kings shouldn't change that perspective.

We are a flaky fanbase!

To make the playoffs, the wizards needed to win 17 of their next 20 home games. They just burned one of their three home losses on lowly Sacramento. So basically the hope of a playoff run extends as long as their home winning streak lasts. Didn't last long at all.

[dobrojim]

I'd put it slightly differently

our chances of making the playoffs depend on playing consistently exceptional
ie winning basketball for essentially the rest of the season. Their margin for
error is razor thin. Home losses to bottom dwellers could well end up being
the game(s) that we look at when the season is over, assuming we finish strong
but not strong enough, and say "if only..."

Reminds me of the last CWebb team that lost to the up til then, winless
on the road Denver Nuggets. They ended up missing the playoffs by
something like one game. That loss to DEN also occurred at about
the same time as the late night party at Juwan's Potomac digs that
ended up on the front page of the A section with sex assault charges.
I trust that that won't be happening this year.

[hands11]

As I have been saying, its all about the next 8 games.

And its all about the next game because they haven't lost back to back games since Sun 1/6

No back to back loses and 2-0, 3-0, etc runs mixed in.

I think most of use would still sip the Kool-Aid and call that a season turnaround.

Playoffs was always the Cherry on the cake pipe dream. The hole was just so deep.

But like I posted in the trade thread a few days ago, now is the time to evaluate what to do with this team. Who stays. Who goes. They will get battle tested.

[MDStar]

Yeah, that was most certainly disappointing but it was still just one game. No one ever said that we would win EVERY game and maybe the Kings are a bad match-up for us. I look at it like this, most of us were felt just as disappointed after the 1st Kings game. Then we went 4-2 over the next 6 games. With those two losses being very competitive at the end verse the Clippers and Jazz. Who knows what will happen but to jump off the "Kool-Aid" ship, after one lose, seems a bit premature.

Playoffs were always a pipe dream, however playing above .500 ball is still a major turnaround and still very much in play for this team and one lose two the Kings shouldn't change that perspective.

We are a flaky fanbase!

To make the playoffs, the wizards needed to win 17 of their next 20 home games. They just burned one of their three home losses on lowly Sacramento. So basically the hope of a playoff run extends as long as their home winning streak lasts. Didn't last long at all.

I guess I don't get this side of the argument. My assumption is that the idea of "playoffs" was contingent on us winning roughly 70% of our remaining games. Which if done, would make the healthy version of this years squad, one of the top 4 teams in the entire league. If one believes that is a possibility, regardless of likely it truly is, then i guess losing to the Kings would be disappointing and be considered a waste of a loss. However, if people truly believe that is a possibility, then those same people believe that this team as currently constructed is capable of winning a title.

You can't have it both ways. If a team is capable of winning 70% of its games, then said team should be good enough to win the title. I'm not sure how that can be debated. Basically all i am saying is that if there are those on this board who really believe that this team had a chance to make the playoffs, then EG and Teddy should have a lot more supporters around here than they currently have.

Now if "we" believe that at our best, this team is a fringe playoff team, then one lose to the Kings shouldn't be the end all, be all to the "Kool-Aid" drinking.

Either we believe that we have a great team who just got crippled by injuries early in the year but now as a healthy unit can make a run or we believe that we have an average to pretty good team, who when healthy can hoover around .500. Not sure how one can believe both.

[Nivek]

I agree with MDStar's reasoning here. If the Wizards play out their remaining schedule going say 28-11, at minimum they'd have to be viewed as one scaryass first round matchup. They'd likely face the Heat in the 1st round, so it might be a bit of a stretch to call the Wiz a "title contender," but still.

Going 28-11 to close the season is a colossal IF, of course.

[dobrojim]

I agree as well.

we'll just have to wait and see how close, if at all, they can
come to 28-11.

ps -edit to add - we would then be kind of the reverse of what PHL
did last year. Great start, uninspiring finish before being gifted a first
rnd W against a badly wounded opponent.

[montestewart]

If this team wins 70% of remaining games, that would be truly phenomenal. I can't rule out with 100% certainty such a winning percentage, so I have to acknowledge that it is possible, however improbable, and if winning at such a rate is possible, it's also possible, though quite improbable, that the Wizards could be contenders.

Congratulations, Terd and Ernie. I cannot rule out with 100% certainty that the Wizards are contenders. Well done.

[tontoz]

It is possible i might get struck by lightning when i leave the office today. I am not very worried though.

[Dat2U]

Only way this team goes 28 & 11 over the final 39 games if the NBA changes the rule just for the Wizards where one real win equates to one & half wins and one loss equates to half a loss. So when we actually go 17-22 over the final 39 we can celebrate the fact that here the best losing, non-playoff team to ever not lose in the playoffs.

[Zonkerbl]

A 28-11 team is not one that loses to Sacto at home. That's what I'm trying to say, I guess.

That, plus, all of the good teams have overwhelmingly amazing home records. So losing to Sacto at home, again, not a good sign.

Yes, if they were to win 70% of their games they would be championship contenders. Championship contenders do not lose to bottom feeders at home.

On top of that, they used up one of their three home losses on bottom dwelling Sacto. Again, not a good sign.

Hey. Winning three out of every five games would be amazing. Going 15-5 at home would be an amazing accomplishment compared to where they were at the beginning of the year. But it wouldn't be enough to get them into the playoffs. I think I'm fairly safe saying that, with the loss to Sacto last night, the Wizards showed that they are not getting into the playoffs. Which would have been amazing and awesome and exceeding all possible expectation and all that. But not going to happen.

[hands11]

A 28-11 team is not one that loses to Sacto at home. That's what I'm trying to say, I guess.

That, plus, all of the good teams have overwhelmingly amazing home records. So losing to Sacto at home, again, not a good sign.

Yes, if they were to win 70% of their games they would be championship contenders. Championship contenders do not lose to bottom feeders at home.

On top of that, they used up one of their three home losses on bottom dwelling Sacto. Again, not a good sign.

Hey. Winning three out of every five games would be amazing. Going 15-5 at home would be an amazing accomplishment compared to where they were at the beginning of the year. But it wouldn't be enough to get them into the playoffs. I think I'm fairly safe saying that, with the loss to Sacto last night, the Wizards showed that they are not getting into the playoffs. Which would have been amazing and awesome and exceeding all possible expectation and all that. But not going to happen.

But OKC and Miami both lost to the Wizards. Im not saying we are as good as either of those teams just saying your logic isn't logical.

Teams lose games. And some teams lose games to worse teams regularly because they are bad match ups.

We beat both OKC and Miami last year as well.

But yes, that lose was not a good sign that they will catch fire like they need to if the pipe dream in to come true.

Again, the next 8 games are going to answer most of their questions. Losing by 2 to a team you should have beat is tough but beating good teams that you aren't supposed to be good enough to beat tell you more.