7-Day Dray.....

[doublejs07]

Wizards suck....but the one bright spot since the trades has been Andray Blatche.  He's been the go-to guy in the offense, and he's FINALLY showing what everyone knew what he could do.  It goes to show how much Jamison/Haywood stifled some of his development.  It wasn't their fault, but management felt the need to play these guys 35+ minutes a night just because....the potential for Dray has always been there....he's had bouts of immaturity, being broke, being shot, soliciting prostitutes, etc....he's a versatile 6'11" 4/5 who can create his own shot, facilitate the offense in the 1/2 court, and score in a variety of ways.  He's going to be a guy to watch from here on out...


Since the trades (and going into the 4th tonight, he's got 30/12):

Regular Season		FG		3PT		FT		Rebounds		Misc
Date	Opponent	Score	GS	Min		M	A	Pct		M	A	Pct		M	A	Pct		Off	Def	Tot		Ast	TO	Stl	Blk	PF	Pts
Feb 26	NYK	L 116-118	1	51:03		11	21	52.4		1	2	50.0		3	5	60.0		3	15	18		6	8	1	3	3	26
Feb 24	MEM	L 94-99	1	40:52		10	19	52.6		0	1	0.0		4	5	80.0		1	7	8		5	4	1	0	3	24
Feb 22	CHI	W 101-95	1	41:09		8	13	61.5		0	1	0.0		9	9	100.0		4	7	11		2	3	2	2	2	25
Feb 20	@ TOR	L 104-109	1	33:16		11	21	52.4		0	1	0.0		2	3	66.7		3	3	6		3	1	1	2	3	24
Feb 19	DEN	W 107-97	1	27:58		8	13	61.5		0	0	N/A		2	2	100.0		3	8	11		3	3	1	0	4	18
Feb 17	MIN	W 108-99	1	36:18		14	22	63.6		0	0	N/A		5	7	71.4		3	10	13		1	3	2	1	4	33

 

[airmaxpenny1]

Jermaine O'neal 2.0?  High school kid who always showed flashes but was stcuk behind older guys, couldn't get off the bench, than a bunch of trades happened and due starts balling.

Games are different though.

 

[erascism]

That was a good ### deal they signed him to a few years ago (5yrs/15). Looks like it's gonna be a bargain.

 

[doublejs07]

36/15/4

Dude has been an animal....but the Wizards need a legit #2, cause Blatche is clearly becoming "the man."

 

[ValarMorghulis]

if dude can get it together between the ears

 

[bangdak]

He's def. playing well....




Knew he had the talent, but never did i expect this from him.

 

[bostonthreeparty]

Randy Foye is gettin some minutes, not doing half bad

 

[kiddin like jason]

but the Wizards need a legit #2, cause Blatche is clearly becoming "the man."
I mean, that's a good plan if you want to win 20 games next season.

 

[airmaxpenny1]

Originally Posted by Kiddin Like Jason

but the Wizards need a legit #2, cause Blatche is clearly becoming "the man."

I mean, that's a good plan if you want to win 20 games next season.

It is clear this team's future though is not next season but beyond that.  Blatche is 23 years old, the future for him and McGee on a front line together is extremely bright.

 

[doublejs07]

Originally Posted by airmaxpenny1

Originally Posted by Kiddin Like Jason

but the Wizards need a legit #2, cause Blatche is clearly becoming "the man."

I mean, that's a good plan if you want to win 20 games next season.

It is clear this team's future though is not next season but beyond that.  Blatche is 23 years old, the future for him and McGee on a front line together is extremely bright.


yup....

and I do see the O'Neal comparison in Blatche (somewhat similar situations....).

I just hope the front office makes some smart moves through drafting and other moves in FA....

 

[al3xis]

Originally Posted by Kiddin Like Jason

but the Wizards need a legit #2, cause Blatche is clearly becoming "the man."

I mean, that's a good plan if you want to win 20 games next season.

 

[downtown43]

Originally Posted by DoubleJs07

36/15/4

Dude has been an animal....but the Wizards need a legit #2, cause Blatche is clearly becoming "the man."

idk about that DJs... Gilbert isnt going anywhere.

right now, Blatche is just that classic "talented player on a bad team who just goes off because no one else is any good".. whether or not this will continue next season on a non-dysfunctional squad remains to be seen.

he can go ahead and average 25 and 12 for the rest of the season, but i still want to see how he'll perform next year. he is a sick talent though.. IMO he could be a Bosh-caliber player or better.



 

 

[doublejs07]

Originally Posted by DOWNTOWN43

Originally Posted by DoubleJs07

36/15/4

Dude has been an animal....but the Wizards need a legit #2, cause Blatche is clearly becoming "the man."

idk about that DJs... Gilbert isnt going anywhere.

right now, Blatche is just that classic "talented player on a bad team who just goes off because no one else is any good".. whether or not this will continue next season on a non-dysfunctional squad remains to be seen.

he can go ahead and average 25 and 12 for the rest of the season, but i still want to see how he'll perform next year. he is a sick talent though.. IMO he could be a Bosh-caliber player or better.



 

That's what I fear.....

but on the flip, it's not like he just came out of nowhere and exploded.  We've seen flashes from him from time to time over the years.  It was obvious that with Jamison/Haywood in front of him and having Sinbad as his coach for the first 4 years of his career, he wasn't going to amount to much.  The talent has always been there w. Dray.  Now he's taking full advantage of an opportunity to shine.  And FWIW, I'm not too sure that Gil plays another game for the Wizards regardless if his contract isn't voided.  He may get the Marbury/T-Mac treatment from the organization. 

 

[i nasmatic i]

@ sitting Gilbert for 4 more years.

 

[doublejs07]

Originally Posted by I NaSmatic I

@ sitting Gilbert for 4 more years.

They're not going to sit him for 4 years

In general, people who are owed $80 million tend to do just about everything they can do keep that money. But Gilbert Arenas is a free thinker. And he's reportedly miffed at Ernie Grunfeld. Does that mean he's eager to move on? Eager enough to say goodbye to his money? The answer appears to me that Arenas might be a little nuts, but he's not crazy. The Washington Post's Michael Lee writes:
The same source said that during the meeting [Wednesday with David Stern], Arenas expressed concern about the possibility of having the remainder of his four-year, $80-million contract voided, to which Stern replied, "That would be left up to the team." He also informed Arenas that member of the Wizards organization had yet made an inquiry about voiding his contract to the NBA's legal department.


Arenas has been living his life, building expensive swimming pools and the like, planning on making $111 million over six years. Then this suspension comes along, costing him more than $7 million in lost income. If he is to accept a buyout, he would have to endure the financial pain of a second surprise income hit.

Why would he do a thing like that?

Meanwhile, consider the realities that will drive the Wizards' decision. They can:

• Pay Arenas a ton of money to play basketball, which he's still does pretty well.
• Do something like the Pacers did with Jamaal Tinsley last season, where they pay him that same ton, not to play basketball at all.
• Pay Gilbert Arenas a slightly smaller ton of money to play for somebody else, even while he continues to tie up Washington's salary cap (per NBA rules).

That last one is the buyout, and it is far from perfect.

It seems to me that the only way Arenas would go for a buyout is if it's close to the full amount he's owed, which is in the neigborhood of $80 million even after the hit he's taking this year. Meanwhile, if I were the Wizards I would only agree to a buyout that came at a huge discount -- as Arenas' contract be tying up cap space until 2014 either way.


http://espn.go.com/blog/t...t-arenas-and-the-wizards

 

[downtown43]

true. i feel like Jamison, in particular, was holding him back a LOT.
i love the fact that he's going out and beasting, because it will give him a ton of confidence in his abilities as a starter next season. but its easier to play well when there's no pressure on you or your teammates because you're expected to tank games. he's had the talent, and now he has the confidence.. next season he'll be given a major role on a team trying to make a playoff run... we'll see if he sinks or swims.

and EG said Gilbert was coming back
http://www.washingtonpost.../18/AR2010021805372.html

although the whole thing seemed very diplomatic and scheming, so i dont know..

 

[bigmike23]

Originally Posted by Kiddin Like Jason

but the Wizards need a legit #2, cause Blatche is clearly becoming "the man."

I mean, that's a good plan if you want to win 20 games next season.



  

 

[scott frost]

Bouts of immaturity made me laugh.

 

[moe200069]

i don't mean to jack the thread, but i picked him up off the waiver wires immediately upon hearing of the jamison trade and have been following him since. watched a few of the wizards game and this guy is a beast. i wonder if his production and role on the team changes once arenas is back, though..

 

[carlos tevez]

The guy is good but we've seen this happen way too many times in the NBA. Another case of a good player beasting on a really bad team because there's no one else around him. I think that there are many NBAers who're capable of doing what he's doing right now but they dont get the chance since they're on competitive teams. The Wiz just so happened to be in all-out tank mode in February...just wait a few more weeks for other teams who realize they're out of the playoff picture to start giving some bench players more playing time.

 

[pharelfor3]

tell him stay away from the hookers.

 

[erascism]

The Wiz are 4-3 since the trades and competitive in the 3 losses. You can't discredit any NBA player shooting that high of a clip and making his team competitive. The fact is, given the minutes and liberation, he will get off on just about any team because of the mismatch problems he poses. 

 

[henz0]

.. needs to cut down his TO's though.. Had 8 against the knicks

 

[im not you]

Still forever a cornball for wearing his own jersey and jean shorts in Tysons Corner.

 

[hottdogg2k3]

The Wiz are 4-3 since the trades and competitive in the 3 losses. You can't discredit any NBA player shooting that high of a clip and making his team competitive. The fact is, given the minutes and liberation, he will get off on just about any team because of the mismatch problems he poses
 People act like we have been getting blown out since the trade this team plays defense something they have never done when you add guys like Singleton, Ross,and thorton who play hard and hustle and are pretty decent defenders it's contagious so everybody plays hard if josh Howard can come back healthy and we resign him at a low number, get us  another big body and get a point guard thru the draft or by trade then we should be alright.