At the NBA trading deadline last night, the Wizards, flummoxed by a disappointing 10-32 season, dealt away three players from their frustrating roster—Ronny Turiaf, Nick Young and that clown prince of on-court antics, JaVale McGee.
So Long, JaVale McGee, and Thanks for All the Tricks
Wizards Double Accumulative Frontcourt Experience
The Wizards added a veteran presence with the acquisition of center and power forward Ronny Turiaf from the New York Knicks.
The Saturday Morning Post
Good morning, Washington. For many of you, the holiday gluttony has persisted beyond Thursday, but if you can manage to move this afternoon -- and you didn’t spend all your precious cash on Black Friday -- you can capitalize on Shop Local First Day, when independently owned stores across the District offer discounted merchandise.
Authorities Still Searching For Former Wizard Crittenton
Last Friday, former Washington Wizard Javaris Crittenton -- a key player in the Gungate drama that enveloped the team in 2010 -- was charged with murder in connection with the shooting death of 22-year-old Jullian Jones in Atlanta earlier this month.
Capital Punishment Provides a Unique Slice of Washingtoniana
The scene this past Saturday was typically D.C. A packed gym, representative of city demographics with basketball interest, served as the tiniest of temporary meccas for the basketball world.
How The Wiz Kids Spend Their Summer Vacation
How are the Washington Wizards spending their summer vacation? Hooping, planking, pranking, promoting strip clubs and, of course, tweeting. (My goodness, the tweeting.)
Summer Basketball in the City
Now that we're in the middle of the dullest month of sports imaginable, basketball fans don't have to wait until November to watch their favorite college and professional teams tipoff. In fact, there are several opportunities to watch some star-studded pickup basketball right here in the District.
It's Gilbert Arenas Against The World
Former Wizards star Gilbert Arenas has never been shy about airing his thoughts on Twitter. In fact, Arenas' stream of consciousness blasts have kind of become the stuff of legend -- you never know what's going to happen or who Agent Zero will throw under the bus.
The Kiss That Saved The Draft
The Washington Wizards lost the NBA Draft Lottery back in mid-May, chance pushing where their 23-59 record was slotted back two spaces to the unenviable position of sixth. “Jan Vesely,” I sarcastically said to one of my team rooting cohorts, “he sounds like ‘such’ a Wizard.”
John Wall Falls Short At The Lottery, But Is Still Winning
Around 6 p.m. on Tuesday night, John Wall confidently strode into the NBA Draft Lottery media room, flanked by a member of the Wizards' press relations staff and an NBA escort. He pointed and smiled at a few people, gave former Georgetown and current Detroit Pistons center Greg Monroe a half hug/half handsake, and then did the same to projected number one pick Kyrie Irving. Then he smiled and shook hands with some members of the Washington D.C. media, before finally settling down in his designated area for interviews. He looked like a young man who ready to take on any and everything thrown his way.
Wizards Unveil New Uniforms, Logo
The Washington Wizards unveiled a new logo and uniforms this morning, switching to a familiar red, white and blue motif and bringing back a font and logo which harkens back to the team's glory days. The design brings all of Leonsis' sporting interests -- the Wizards, Capitals and Mystics -- under the same patriotic theme.
The Wizards Spring Forward, But Will They Fall Back?
Two weeks ago against the Miami Heat, the Washington Wizards played their hearts out for three quarters, only to fall short in the fourth, 102-90. John Wall was ejected, but Jordan Crawford stepped up admirably and scored 39 points in a valiant, but losing effort. After the game, the Heat's Dwyane Wade had some interesting comments about Crawford's performance.
The Wizards: The Little Team That Could And Almost Did
Remember in Return of the Jedi, when the Ewoks battled the Evil Empire? The Ewoks had the homecourt advantage on the planet of Endor, but their weapons of choice were of the primitive variety -- rocks, logs, rope and so forth. The Empire had superior weaponry, but the unfamiliar terrain prevented them from steamrolling their lesser competition right away. The Ewoks sprinted to an early lead, then the Empire delivered a series of crushing blows to pull into the lead. But thanks to their overwhelming numbers and perhaps a bit of the Force, the Ewoks eventually won, and they joined the Rebel forces in the victory celebration.
My decision to use a 28-year-old movie to prove a point may be a bit farfetched, but the Ewok/Empire battle in Jedi is analogous to last night's Heat/Wizards game.
'Our Time': Great For VCU, Not So Much For Wizards
It's "our time" for VCU head coach Shaka Smart and his Final Four-bound Rams. But for the Wizards -- who trained on VCU's home floor in 2009 -- when is that time going to come?
Riding The JaVale McGee Wave
JaVale McGee's play, wildly inconsistent and frustrating -- but, at times, thrilling -- is the epitome of this year's Wizards.
Ted Leonsis' Little Monsters
The blogging owner of the Washington Wizards loves to feed the monster and to have the monster fed to his benefit. But does it have to be so scary?
Is This The Wizards' New Logo?
Rumors began swirling around Twitter and the Internet this morning that this jacket shows off a leak of the Washington Wizards' new logo, circled above -- which basically is just a re-coloring of the team's current brand with the franchise's traditional red, white and blue hues.
How To Cure The Malaise of Wizards Fans
The final attendance number on the stat sheet I received at the end of last night's Washington Wizards game told me that there were 17,865 fans in the Verizon Center. My eyes told me there were really only 10,000 fans there (if that), and of that number, only about 7,000 or so were Wizards fans -- the rest came to see Stephen Curry, Monta Ellis and the rest of the Golden State Warriors.
John Wall Versus Kwame Brown
Wall's adjustments to the NBA are two-fold. On one hand he has to run the Wizards, take on guards like Derrick Rose and Steve Nash, and develop into an elite NBA player. But off the court he has just as formidable challenges like cooking, laundry and determining who he can and cannot invite into his inner circle. So what can he learn from former Wizards number one pick Kwame Brown's experience?
Who Is John Wall?
John Wall has appeared in 39 out of 51 possible games this season. After a fast start out of the gates, who does he compare to now? (Photo: AP/Patrick Semansky)
Return of the Gilbert
Friday night, the Washington Wizards will take on the Orlando Magic. This is one of a handful of games -- along with Celtics, the Heat and the Lakers -- that should sell out the Verizon Center, and bring droves of fans to downtown D.C. bars. But if you're still skeptical and bit hesitant to commit your time and money to a 13-35 (0-25 on the road) team, allow me to give you an addition reason to tune in on Friday: Gilbert Arenas.
Twenty The Hard Way
Going into last night's contest, the Wizards had dropped 19 consecutive road games, and I knew that their 20th chance to break that streak would be intriguing. Either they would finally get off the proverbial schneid and get that first road win, or they would sink even deeper into the abyss of losses.
Consequences of A Bad Win
"Fifteen years and I've never seen anything like that in my life," was the third sentence from Flip Saunders' mouth at his post-game press conference after the Wizards' 136-133 overtime win versus the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday night. His first line: "Are you sure I have to do this?"
A quick-witted reporter retorted, "Well, we got to write something."
To Blatche Or Not To Blatche, That Is The Question
At the beginning of the 2010-2011 season, there was every reason to believe that Andray Blatche was going to vault himself from an inconsistent player to a bonafide All-Star candidate.
John Wall's Infectious Emotion
Fans feed off John Wall's emotion and then return that energy back to him and his teammates in a spiral of basketball goodness.
Gilbert Didn't Complete Me
1988 was a great year to be 13 years old and living in the Washington D.C. area. In March of that year, I saw Michael Jordan play in person for the first time, as his Chicago Bulls played the Washington Bullets at the Capital Center in Landover, Maryland. Jordan scored 25 points, but there were none of the fancy breakaway dunks I had come to appreciate -- still it was a thrill for me to see the man play just a few hundred feet away.
Patience With The Impatient
Being a Wizards fan requires patience with yourself -- and patience with the impatient.
Slam Dunk Contest Audition Fail
As the Wizards struggled to yet another embarrassing road loss last night against the Sacramento Kings, center JaVale McGee -- who has a penchant for always trying to make highlight-reel plays at the cost of developing a well-rounded game -- decided that there was probably no better scenario than his team being down 25 points with seconds to go to try his hand at replicating the immortal Julius Erving/Michael Jordan dunk from the free-throw line.
'Tis The Season For Moral Victories
If you are a Washington Wizards fan, and you stayed up late enough last night to watch them meet defeat at the hands of the Los Angeles Lakers, 115-108, the pessimist in you had plenty of ammunition.
Are The Wizards Worth Watching This Year?
With a 5-12 start most recently capped by another sub-par effort in Canada, are the Washington Wizards still worth your time?

