Terrible, just flat-out terrible. You know how the RZA pronounces the word “ridiculous” at the end of Kanye’s “So Appalled“? Yes, that. That applied to this Washington Wizards team. I’ve seen a lot of bad Wizards/Bullets, teams, but this year’s squad has the unique distinction of being one of the worst in franchise history, yet also filled with the most hope. Winning percentage-wise, the current Wiz Kids are tied as the sixth worst in franchise history, and tied for the fourth worst in my lifetime following the franchise. Let travel down memory lane, shall we?

Caron Butler, courtesy NBA.com Josh Howard, courtesy NBA.com The Washington Post’s MIchael Lee reports that the trade we mentioned in today’s Saturday Morning Post has now been agreed to by both sides. Washington has traded Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Josh Howard, Drew Gooden, James Singleton and Quinton Ross. Trading Butler and Haywood is a huge slam of the reset button for a team struggling…

Due to the unreasonable 6 p.m. start time, I missed most of Game Five last night, but I did get home in time to see Caron Butler play the hero, connecting on a tough drive with 3.9 seconds left to give the Wizards the win and bring their first round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers back to D.C. down 3-2. LeBron James attempted a contested lay-up at the buzzer that would have given the…

It’s every NBA coach’s nightmare: Under 20 seconds on the clock, LeBron James has the ball and he’s staring down your defender. What do you do, hotshot? Double him and leave a teammate open for a jumper, or take your chances one-on-one with the best player in the NBA? Well, the Wizards went with option number two twice last night and came away with a 101-99 victory that had a raucous Verizon Center crowd…

I doubt anyone is at the “Gilbert Who?” stage yet, but anyone who’s been watching the Washington Wizards play since Agent Zero went down would be hard pressed to deny that the team has been just plain fun to watch these last few weeks – perhaps because with the big gun out, they are playing like a team. Last night three players had double-doubles and a total of six players scored in double figures…

Ticket holders for Saturday’s Wizards v. Raptors match up probably made their purchases with visions of Gilbert Arenas and Chris Bosh dancing in their head. With both stars injured for the game, instead it turned into the Roger Mason Jr. v. Jason Kapono show. It turns out this wasn’t a bad thing at all. After not playing at all in Thursday’s loss in Philadelphia, Mason Jr. came off the bench to score 15 big…

The worst case scenario for the Washington Wizards came to pass today. Gilbert Arenas had surgery earlier today to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee and will miss the next three months. Arenas sat out the Wizards last two games with soreness in the knee. Antonio Daniels will likely move into the starting lineup at the PG spot and, as a result, rookie Nick Young should move up in the rotation. He’s…

Who says the Washington Wizards didn’t improve over the offseason? Last night DCist made our first trip down to the Verizon Center this season and noticed plenty of changes; fancy new press credentials (now with marketing slogans!), shiny, new flat screen monitors in press row in section 104, that snazzy $50 million scoreboard that puts a whole new spin on the Kiss-Cam and a new red carpet themed video set to Kanye West’s “Bigger,…

.354 from the field .203 from three point land 91.7 points per game No matter how you look at the numbers, it’s clear the Washington Wizards struggled in the opening week of the NBA season, a fact reflected in their 0-3 record. The team looks disjointed on offense, taking bad shots and turning the ball over with impunity. And by giving up 105+ points per game – good for 26th in the league -…

We’re a little short-staffed today, so if you’ve got any picks to add for this weekend, please leave them in the comments. FRIDAY >> This weekend the Uptown Theater is playing the final cut of everybody’s favorite movie about replicants running amock, and young Darryl Hannah being super sci-fi hot, Blade Runner. >> If an apocalyptic future isn’t exactly what you’re in the mood for, try on Seattle’s dream folk rockers, Band of Horses, for…