By Michael Katz

– Wizards Editor

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Dec 13, 2011 – WASHINGTON, D.C. – Training camp narratives are nice, but the correlation to the season is flimsy. Understand that the Wizards 2011-12 season starts now, but it won’t be defined on a practice court in December.

Need a reminder? In 2009, head coach Flip Saunders created “Our Time” to motivate a veteran squad for a campaign that ended in disaster. In 2010, the youth movement necessitated “Back to Basics,” a simple reminder that the Wizards often did not or could not follow.

But after the abrupt end to the lockout, Saunders didn’t have time to conceive an official theme for the Wizards training camp for the first time since he arrived in Washington. The Wizards are just playing basketball, and it’s a nice change.

“I feel like we just came in this camp like forget all the hype, the motto and all that stuff and just get to work,” center JaVale McGee said. Then he couldn’t help himself, smiling, “and last year’s camp we didn’t have back to back two-a-days.”

And that’s the Wizards right now, this season. Ready to mature. Serious about growth and development. Still very much themselves.

Right now, Saunders appreciates the focus from the team. Past incarnations of the Wizards — even the most successful teams of the ’00s — had been light, fun. Gilbert Arenas won playoff games, but he also pooped in his teammate’s shoe.

That didn’t work last season, and everyone here knows it.

“Anyone who comes in there knows it’s a very, very, very, very serious, going about our business,” Saunders said. “We have our fun times and everything else but our approach is very serious.”

The emblem of this mindset is the Hard Hat.

If you haven’t been paying attention, the Wizards new hard hat is handed out at the end of each training camp session to the player who has worked the hardest. It’s a little corny — McGee said Sunday that he felt like it was staged when Blatche handed him the hat after practice — but it has meaning. When John Wall was handed the hard hat after the first day of training camp, he kept the damn thing for himself.

Chris Singleton and Ronny Turiaf have also claimed the hat. It’s funny, a bright white hard hat to to represent and reward the tenets of the Wizards chuck-the-cliches rebuild, maturity and effort.

“This camp, our main thing right now is defense, ” Blatche said.

“That’s going to be our main focus this year,” he reemphasized. “Defense and rebounding, that’s it.”

And so the Wizards ended the first day of camp with a defensive shuffling drill that was straight out a middle school gymnasium. Saunders had Blatche lead the group after Wall, which the forward called “probably just a lucky call.” Did he feel lucky? “To be honest with you, no — you think I wanted to do that?”

“The biggest thing with young players,” Saunders said. “When they start really making a development is when they learn to play with a purpose and not just to play.”

Saunders has seen that, so far.

“I feel ahead of where I thought we’d be at this point,” he said.

For more from training camp, visit our Wizards blog, Bullets Forever.

Read More: Gilbert Arenas (G – ORL), Ronny Turiaf (F – WAS), JaVale McGee (C – WAS), John Wall (G – WAS), Washington Wizards

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No longer a rookie so unfamiliar with the NBA game that he sometimes didn’t know what he was saying last season, the 21-year-old Wall is unfazed about still being the youngest player on team with seven players aged 23 or younger. He believes he can guide the Wizards through the rigors of a truncated 66-game season.

“I kind of know what it takes to win games. I know what it takes to control things,” Wall said. “I think it’s going to be a little easier, but it’s still going to be tough going against top point guards every night and trying to lead a young team.”

After being held back by injuries and his own lack of expertise last season, Wall is ready to truly be unleashed this season. “I feel this is my year to break out,” Wall said. “I’m 100 percent now. I’m way better than I was. I’m feeling the same way I felt when I first started playing here last year.

“I got goals set for myself, but I don’t like talking about it,” he said. “I’m focusing on team goals. All the elite point guards in the league right now, they all are winners. They care about your stats here or there, but if you’re winning games and take your teams and considered championship kind of teams, that’s what it’s all about.”

Saunders recognized Wall’s efforts in the first day of practice by giving him a construction helmet with the team’s new red, white and blue “dc” logo to symbolize the hardest worker. He gave Wall the option to keep it or give it to someone else, but Wall didn’t remove it for the duration of practice, believing he had earned it.

“If you think about it, everybody that play hard, you might get a little treat,” Wall said of the hard hat, which Saunders hopes will represent the attitude of a team that won just 23 games last season. “I think last year, we didn’t play as a team a lot. We didn’t play hard. That’s one thing, as a young team, you have to play hard every time out there. I think adding a couple of people that we got, a couple of draft picks, and some people that we’re thinking about signing or signed, I think they can help us.”

The Wizards brought back veteran guard Roger Mason Jr. and added veteran forward Ronny Turiaf from the New York Knicks in a three-team trade with Dallas that also yielded a 2013 second-round pick and $3 million from the Knicks, and a 2012 second-round pick from the Mavericks. Dallas received a protected second-round pick from the Wizards.

The team is also counting on a healthy Rashard Lewis and Andray Blatche, and the development of JaVale McGee and Jordan Crawford, who is slated to start at shooting guard if the team is unable to re-sign restricted free agent Nick Young.

But Saunders realizes the team will only improve by how much Wall progresses from his first season. Wall averaged 16.4 points, 8.3 assists and 4.6 rebounds as a rookie, despite dealing with injuries to his right knee and left foot. He regained his explosiveness and used his athleticism to burn up courts throughout the country during the summer, but the real work has finally begun.

“His biggest thing is staying healthy,” Saunders said. “There’s no question he’s a lot healthier right now than he was a year ago. I mean, it’s like night and day watching him out there on the floor, and the things he can do now that he wasn’t able to do last year. The thing is, when you’re the face of the franchise, there’s always high expectations. But I think that’s something he relishes the opportunity to take that challenge.”

Wall is more vocal in practice, offering instruction and words of encouragement to rookies Shelvin Mack, Chris Singleton and Jan Vesely, who has the adjacent locker room stall. Practicing with Wall for the first time, Mason noticed his willingness to lead by example and “get dirty” by diving for loose balls and blocking shots. Blatche also believes Wall is better prepared to handle the tests that come with being a former No. 1 overall pick.

“John, he had a year to mature under his belt,” Blatche said. “He knows what it takes. He knows what other teams are going to try to do to defend him, and Flip and Sam been in his ear about controlling the game, what’s your pace, less turnovers. I think John is going to be ready this season to help us out a lot.”

Read More: Tyson Chandler (C – DAL), Ronny Turiaf (C – NYK), Giorgos Printezis (F – TOR), Ahmad Nivins (PF – DAL), Andy Rautins (G – NYK), Washington Wizards, Dallas Mavericks, New York Knicks

Tyson Chandler is the newest member of the New York Knicks. By the time the sign-and-trade deal reported earlier Saturday involving the Dallas Mavericks became official, it was expanded to include the Washington Wizards, who received Ronny Turiaf, a 2013 second-round pick and cash considerations from New York along with a 2012 second-round pick from Dallas.

“This is an important day for the New York Knicks,” Knicks Interim GM Glen Grunwald said in a statement released by the team. “Signing a player of Tyson’s caliber, with championship experience, to this roster, is an opportunity we could not pass up. His stellar play last season earned him league-wide recognition and helped lead his team to an NBA Championship.”

Chandler’s deal is believed to be worth $58 million over four years. He’s averaged just 8.3 points per game over his 10-year career, but he’s being paid for what he brings on the other end of the court.   

“Tyson will be the anchor to our defense,” Knicks head coach Mike D’Antoni said. “The trio of Amar’e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony and Tyson makes one of the most formidable frontlines in the entire league.”

The deal to send Turiaf to Washington, which New York needed to do in order to clear the cap space necessary to acquire Chandler, was originally expected to be a separate transaction. By combining the trade, the Wizards were able to acquire even more assets.

“Ronny brings us a tough, inside presence and we’re looking forward to adding his defense and tenacity to our frontline,” said Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld in a statement released by the team. “This trade brings another solid veteran to our team along with additional assets in the form of draft picks and allows us to maintain our financial flexibility moving forward.” 

In addition to receiving Chandler, the Knicks received rights to Ahmad Nivins and Giorgos Printezis. Nivins and Printezis were second-round picks in 2009 and 2007, respectively, and have never played a single minute in the NBA. Their inclusion in this trade is simply a way to balance the books. The Mavericks received Andy Rautins from the Knicks and a 2012 protected second round pick from the Wizards.

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WASHINGTON — Free-agent guard Roger Mason has signed a one-year contract with the Washington Wizards, returning to a team he played for from 2006-08.

Before having their first practice of training camp Friday, the Wizards also signed their three draft picks: Jan Vesely, Chris Singleton and Shelvin Mack.

Mason has averaged 6.9 points and 1.8 rebounds in 372 games over seven NBA seasons with five clubs since being drafted in the second round in 2002.

He was with the New York Knicks last season.

Washington also signed three other players, bringing their training camp roster to 14: Mardy Collins, Mike Wilks and Aaron Pettway.

Players: Roy won’t be back with Trail Blazers

PORTLAND, Ore. — Trail Blazers center Marcus Camby and forward Gerald Wallace said they were told by the team Friday that All-Star guard Brandon Roy won’t be returning this season.

Camby and Wallace spoke as the team opened training camp amid reports that Roy plans to seek medical retirement because of his knees. Team officials declined to comment Friday.

Roy, a five-year veteran who helped the team shed its “Jail Blazers” reputation, has been dogged by knee injuries and surgeries. He has said he lacks cartilage between the bones in both knees.

ESPN.com first reported that Roy planned to retire.

Littell to lead Okla St after tragedy

STILLWATER, Okla. — Oklahoma State has picked Jim Littell to coach the women’s basketball team, calling him a “rock” for the Cowgirls following the deaths of their head coach and an assistant last month.

Littell had been the team’s associate head coach for six years and was named interim head coach following the Nov. 17 plane crash in Arkansas that killed coach Kurt Budke, assistant coach Miranda Serna and two other people, Paula and Olin Branstetter.

“Jim has been a great leader for our program,” athletic director Mike Holder said Friday. “The circumstances in which he has had to navigate are obviously very trying but he has been a rock over the past month for our women’s team and for the community.”

Rays agree with Matt Moore on long-term contract

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Two months after becoming the youngest starting pitcher to win a team’s opening playoff game, Tampa Bay left-hander Matt Moore has agreed to an eight-year contract that could be worth up to $39.75 million.

The 22-year-old made his major league debut for the Rays in September, going 1-0 with a 2.89 ERA in three appearances, including one start. Moore started Game 1 of the club’s AL Division Series against Texas and worked seven shutout innings to beat the Rangers. He began the 2010 season at Class AA Montgomery was a combined 12-3 with a 1.92 ERA in 27 starts with Montgomery and Class AAA Durham.

Browns’ McCoy has concussion

BEREA, Ohio — Browns coach Pat Shurmur defended his team’s handling of quarterback Colt McCoy’s head injury in a loss to Pittsburgh.

McCoy sustained a concussion from a vicious helmet-to-helmet hit from Steelers linebacker James Harrison in the fourth quarter Thursday. McCoy stayed out for two plays before coming back in and throwing an interception. Shurmur said McCoy didn’t show any symptoms of a concussion until after the game.

Shurmur is confident the Browns’ medical staff followed the NFL’s guidelines on head injuries when they assessed McCoy on the sideline. McCoy told Shurmur “he was ready to go” before going back in. Shurmur was adamant that if McCoy had been symptomatic “he would not have gone back in the game — absolutely not.”

Peterson, Ponder questionable against Lions

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — The Minnesota Vikings are bracing for the possibility that they will be missing both quarterback Christian Ponder and running back Adrian Peterson against the Detroit Lions on Sunday.

Both are listed as questionable for the game, with Ponder bothered by a hip pointer and Peterson still recuperating from a high ankle sprain. Ponder missed the first two practices of the week before returning to work on Friday and Peterson practiced on a limited basis with that injured left ankle.

“We just don’t have everybody in yet and everything else. Anticipating to see what’s going to happen with some of our guys we still have out there,” Saunders said. “Work in progress.”

The Wizards were still under construction — with a collection of young and inexperienced talent and an incomplete roster minus leading scorer Nick Young, who is still home in Los Angeles waiting for a contract — as they practiced for the first time on Friday night at Verizon Center.

Even after an exhausting 2¹/
₂ hour practice, the Wizards were busy making another roster adjustment as people with knowledge of the situation confirmed the team was close to acquiring veteran big man Ronny Turiaf from the New York Knicks, who are looking to create room under the salary to sign free agent Tyson Chandler. The deal isn’t expected to be finalized until Saturday, but the Wizards can absorb Turiaf’s $4.2 million salary because they are under the salary cap and aren’t expected to sacrifice any players in the deal, according to sources.

Although it wasn’t an official theme, Saunders sent the message that this season would be about hard work after practice, when he presented Wall with a white hard hat, which featured the team’s new “dc” logo, for being the hardest worker in practice. Saunders gave Wall the option of giving the hard hat to another teammate. Wall grinned, adjusted it and kept it on.

“I thought about it, but I think I played hard today, so I wanted to keep it,” Wall said afterward. “I think I worked hard. That’s the main thing, always giving ourselves on the floor, try to play hard, no matter if we’re winning or losing or in practice.”

The Wizards welcomed rookies Jan Vesely, Shelvin Mack and Chris Singleton and welcomed back veteran Roger Mason Jr., who returned for his second stint with the team after spending recent seasons with the Spurs and Knicks. They all signed shortly before the team hit the court, delaying the practice by an hour.

“It’s a little weird,” Mason said of being back on a young team after spending time with a veteran Wizards squad from 2006 to ’08. “But I’ve got [Andray Blatche] at my locker next to me so we can reminisce a little bit. It’s a new beginning. It’s a new team. We’ve got two young leaders in ’Dray and John Wall. If those guys really develop, we can have a good year.”

Restricted free agents Larry Owens and Hamady Ndiaye did not sign their qualifying offers and were unable to practice. Both are expected to sign on Saturday after the Turiaf deal is complete. To create roster space, the Wizards plan on rescinding the qualifying offer they gave to Othyus Jeffers, who tore his anterior cruciate ligament last July and isn’t expected to come back for at least another month.

The Wizards may have placed retaining Young as their priority in free agency, but he continues to wait for a better offer.

“I don’t worry about guys that I don’t have,” Saunders said. “When guys get hurt or whatever, I think what you do is you relish the guys that you have on the floor. Players know this is a business. They also know that if there’s opportunities — and either guys get hurt or guys aren’t here — they try to take advantage of those opportunities. So we’re going to continue to work with the guys that we have and hope that [the front office] can do what they have to do to try to solidify those other guys whenever that time comes.”

When asked how it felt to start training camp without Young on the floor with him, JaVale McGee said, “Definitely felt weird, but I’m sure he’ll be back.”

Blatche said he didn’t have a problem with Saunders holding back on a rallying cry for the first day. “It might be a good look for us, he’s probably trying to humble us,” he said. “Our main focus right now, man, is just winning. Just getting better, doing whatever it takes to not let what happened last year happen this year. We all on the same page. We all want to work hard and have each other’s back on the court.”

“We just don’t have everybody in yet and everything else. Anticipating to see what’s going to happen with some of our guys we still have out there,” Saunders said. “Work in progress.”

The Wizards were still under construction — with a collection of young and inexperienced talent and an incomplete roster minus leading scorer Nick Young, who is still home in Los Angeles waiting for a contract — as they practiced for the first time on Friday night at Verizon Center.

Even after an exhausting 2¹/
₂ hour practice, the Wizards were busy making another roster adjustment as people with knowledge of the situation confirmed the team was close to acquiring veteran big man Ronny Turiaf from the New York Knicks, who are looking to create room under the salary to sign free agent Tyson Chandler. The deal isn’t expected to be finalized until Saturday, but the Wizards can absorb Turiaf’s $4.2 million salary because they are under the salary cap and aren’t expected to sacrifice any players in the deal, according to sources.

Although it wasn’t an official theme, Saunders sent the message that this season would be about hard work after practice, when he presented Wall with a white hard hat, which featured the team’s new “dc” logo, for being the hardest worker in practice. Saunders gave Wall the option of giving the hard hat to another teammate. Wall grinned, adjusted it and kept it on.

“I thought about it, but I think I played hard today, so I wanted to keep it,” Wall said afterward. “I think I worked hard. That’s the main thing, always giving ourselves on the floor, try to play hard, no matter if we’re winning or losing or in practice.”

The Wizards welcomed rookies Jan Vesely, Shelvin Mack and Chris Singleton and welcomed back veteran Roger Mason Jr., who returned for his second stint with the team after spending recent seasons with the Spurs and Knicks. They all signed shortly before the team hit the court, delaying the practice by an hour.

“It’s a little weird,” Mason said of being back on a young team after spending time with a veteran Wizards squad from 2006 to ’08. “But I’ve got [Andray Blatche] at my locker next to me so we can reminisce a little bit. It’s a new beginning. It’s a new team. We’ve got two young leaders in ’Dray and John Wall. If those guys really develop, we can have a good year.”

Restricted free agents Larry Owens and Hamady Ndiaye did not sign their qualifying offers and were unable to practice. Both are expected to sign on Saturday after the Turiaf deal is complete. To create roster space, the Wizards plan on rescinding the qualifying offer they gave to Othyus Jeffers, who tore his anterior cruciate ligament last July and isn’t expected to come back for at least another month.

The Wizards may have placed retaining Young as their priority in free agency, but he continues to wait for a better offer.

“I don’t worry about guys that I don’t have,” Saunders said. “When guys get hurt or whatever, I think what you do is you relish the guys that you have on the floor. Players know this is a business. They also know that if there’s opportunities — and either guys get hurt or guys aren’t here — they try to take advantage of those opportunities. So we’re going to continue to work with the guys that we have and hope that [the front office] can do what they have to do to try to solidify those other guys whenever that time comes.”

When asked how it felt to start training camp without Young on the floor with him, JaVale McGee said, “Definitely felt weird, but I’m sure he’ll be back.”

Blatche said he didn’t have a problem with Saunders holding back on a rallying cry for the first day. “It might be a good look for us, he’s probably trying to humble us,” he said. “Our main focus right now, man, is just winning. Just getting better, doing whatever it takes to not let what happened last year happen this year. We all on the same page. We all want to work hard and have each other’s back on the court.”

Free-agent guard Roger Mason has signed a one-year contract with the Washington Wizards, returning to a team he played for from 2006-08.
Before having their first practice of training camp Friday, the Wizards also signed their three draft picks: Jan Vesely, Chris Singleton and Shelvin Mack.
Mason has averaged 6.9 points and 1.8 rebounds in 372 games over seven NBA seasons with five clubs since being drafted in the second round in 2002.
He was with the New York Knicks last season.
Washington also signed three other players, bringing their training camp roster to 14: Mardy Collins, Mike Wilks and Aaron Pettway.

Free-agent guard Roger Mason has signed a one-year contract with the Washington Wizards, returning to a team he played for from 2006-08.
Before having their first practice of training camp Friday, the Wizards also signed their three draft picks: Jan Vesely, Chris Singleton and Shelvin Mack.
Mason has averaged 6.9 points and 1.8 rebounds in 372 games over seven NBA seasons with five clubs since being drafted in the second round in 2002.
He was with the New York Knicks last season.
Washington also signed three other players, bringing their training camp roster to 14: Mardy Collins, Mike Wilks and Aaron Pettway.

WASHINGTON — Free-agent guard Roger Mason has signed a one-year contract with the Washington Wizards, returning to a team he played for from 2006-08.

Before having their first practice of training camp Friday, the Wizards also signed their three draft picks: Jan Vesely, Chris Singleton and Shelvin Mack.

Mason has averaged 6.9 points and 1.8 rebounds in 372 games over seven NBA seasons with five clubs since being drafted in the second round in 2002.

He was with the New York Knicks last season.

Washington also signed three other players, bringing their training camp roster to 14: Mardy Collins, Mike Wilks and Aaron Pettway.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

WASHINGTON — Free-agent guard Roger Mason has signed a one-year contract with the Washington Wizards, returning to a team he played for from 2006-08.

Before having their first practice of training camp Friday, the Wizards also signed their three draft picks: Jan Vesely, Chris Singleton and Shelvin Mack.

Mason has averaged 6.9 points and 1.8 rebounds in 372 games over seven NBA seasons with five clubs since being drafted in the second round in 2002.

He was with the New York Knicks last season.

Washington also signed three other players, bringing their training camp roster to 14: Mardy Collins, Mike Wilks and Aaron Pettway.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

As an Atlanta Hawks fan, it will be interesting to see if the Washington Wizards and John Wall in particular are able to take that next step as a young team and secure a playoff spot this season.

I do mention John Wall, but Hawk fans remember Jordan Crawford as well. Crawford has a lot of talent and it will be interesting to see how he will grow as a player.

The Hawks traded Crawford for the veteran point guard Kirk Hinrich last season, but in the long-run will the Wizards get the best of this deal?

Hinrich will start the 2011-12 season on the injury list and Crawford may have a breakout year and could be a super sidekick to John Wall along with posing problems for teams such as Atlanta.

The Washington Wizards haven’t been relevant as a playoff contender in nearly four years when Gilbert Arenas was in his prime.

One of the last playoff moments from a few years ago that Wizard fans may remember is Gilbert Arenas missing two critical free throws after LeBron James’ efforts to distract him were successful in Game 6 of a first round playoff series back in May of 2006. Cleveland won that playoff series four games to two.

The Wizards did finally part ways with the somewhat injury prone Arenas and have invested in the younger, athletic and energetic John Wall.

Can the Wizards make the playoffs and have this team narrowed the gap in regard to progress and talent in regard to the Atlanta Hawks?

The Hawks had won three of four games in the 2010-11 season. However, in the last meeting. the Wizards had blitzed the Hawks, 115-83.

The Hawks had beaten the Wizards 12 consecutive times, but was that loss a blip or a trend?

The Wizards have a collection of talent that includes Wall, third-year player Jordan Crawford, Javele McGhee, Andrae Blatche and 2011 NBA first round pick, Chris Singleton.

Can the Wizards play better overall defense and can Wall make his teammates better along with Wall himself being more clutch in contested games?

The Wizards frontline is very athletic and can cause problems for opposing teams, so it will be interesting moving forward if Atlanta will be able to continue their dominance over the younger, collectively more athletic Wizards within the Southeastern Division.

John Wall has the same potential of a Derrick Rose and was able to elevate his game along with coming up clutch late in games. Rose’s efforts have been able to make the Bulls a perennial playoff contender.

Rose has also been durable and this will be a key to the Washington Wizard’s progression.

Wall did deal with an injured knee and left foot for most of the season but still averaged 16.4 points, 8.3 assists and 4.6 rebounds and came in second place to the Los Angles Clippers’ Blake Griffin for NBA Rookie of the Year.

The Wizards are poised to make progress in 2011-12 and improve on their 23-win season, and the Hawks should be wary of a young, athletic Wizards squad who is trying to get where the Hawks had been the past few years.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

As an Atlanta Hawks fan, it will be interesting to see if the Washington Wizards and John Wall in particular are able to take that next step as a young team and secure a playoff spot this season.

I do mention John Wall, but Hawk fans remember Jordan Crawford as well. Crawford has a lot of talent and it will be interesting to see how he will grow as a player.

The Hawks traded Crawford for the veteran point guard Kirk Hinrich last season, but in the long-run will the Wizards get the best of this deal?

Hinrich will start the 2011-12 season on the injury list and Crawford may have a breakout year and could be a super sidekick to John Wall along with posing problems for teams such as Atlanta.

The Washington Wizards haven’t been relevant as a playoff contender in nearly four years when Gilbert Arenas was in his prime.

One of the last playoff moments from a few years ago that Wizard fans may remember is Gilbert Arenas missing two critical free throws after LeBron James’ efforts to distract him were successful in Game 6 of a first round playoff series back in May of 2006. Cleveland won that playoff series four games to two.

The Wizards did finally part ways with the somewhat injury prone Arenas and have invested in the younger, athletic and energetic John Wall.

Can the Wizards make the playoffs and have this team narrowed the gap in regard to progress and talent in regard to the Atlanta Hawks?

The Hawks had won three of four games in the 2010-11 season. However, in the last meeting. the Wizards had blitzed the Hawks, 115-83.

The Hawks had beaten the Wizards 12 consecutive times, but was that loss a blip or a trend?

The Wizards have a collection of talent that includes Wall, third-year player Jordan Crawford, Javele McGhee, Andrae Blatche and 2011 NBA first round pick, Chris Singleton.

Can the Wizards play better overall defense and can Wall make his teammates better along with Wall himself being more clutch in contested games?

The Wizards frontline is very athletic and can cause problems for opposing teams, so it will be interesting moving forward if Atlanta will be able to continue their dominance over the younger, collectively more athletic Wizards within the Southeastern Division.

John Wall has the same potential of a Derrick Rose and was able to elevate his game along with coming up clutch late in games. Rose’s efforts have been able to make the Bulls a perennial playoff contender.

Rose has also been durable and this will be a key to the Washington Wizard’s progression.

Wall did deal with an injured knee and left foot for most of the season but still averaged 16.4 points, 8.3 assists and 4.6 rebounds and came in second place to the Los Angles Clippers’ Blake Griffin for NBA Rookie of the Year.

The Wizards are poised to make progress in 2011-12 and improve on their 23-win season, and the Hawks should be wary of a young, athletic Wizards squad who is trying to get where the Hawks had been the past few years.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

Posted at 05:36 PM ET, 12/09/2011

By Washington Post editors

The Washington Wizards will host a free fan fest at 6 p.m. next Saturday, Dec. 17, at Verizon Center that will feature an intrasquad scrimmage and a performance by R&B/hip-hop artist Wale.

The evening will also include interactive games, prize giveaways, team mascot G-man, the Secret Service dunkers and the opportunity for fans to have photographs taken with members of the the Bullets & Wizards Alumni Association and the Wizard Girls.

Training camp started Friday evening at 5, continues Saturday through Wednesday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. and on Thursday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Verizon Center. None of these sessions are open to the public. The first preseason gaem in Dec. 16 at home against the Philadelphia 76ers.

The head of Washington’s basketball operations since 2003, Grunfeld needs to be correct about the group he assembled. This is just the second season of Washington’s latest rebuilding project, but Wizards players still must display progress in their roles for Grunfeld to deserve to remain in his. Grunfeld must provide owner Ted Leonsis with strong evidence the Wizards are pointed in the right direction — or Leonsis should find someone else to take the wheel.

Eight months ago, I wrote that Grunfeld deserved to continue in his position. Despite the Wizards’ last-place finish in the Southeast Division and the franchise’s overall lack of success during his first eight seasons (Washington missed the playoffs four times), Grunfeld made enough good moves last season, in my view, to remain in control. Obviously, Leonsis felt the same way.

Now, it gets tougher for Grunfeld, who should receive a contract extension only if the Wizards take the positive steps he’s convinced they can.

Washington begins training camp Friday at Verizon Center, and “we are gonna win more games than we did last year,” Grunfeld said during a phone interview Wednesday. “We’re all expecting to see progress.”

In a bottom-line business, a team’s win-loss record is its barometer of success.

But I don’t share Grunfeld’s optimism. And as for the Wizards’ talk about making the playoffs during the lockout-truncated 66-game season, that’s not happening.

Playing 82 games in 2010-11, the Wizards went 23-59. Looking at their projected starting lineup and rotation, I don’t see how they produce more victories during a brutal, jam-packed schedule.

And playoffs? Playoffs? The Wizards aren’t close to cracking the Eastern Conference’s top eight.

Instead of evaluating Grunfeld on whether the Wizards experience a big bump in victories or earn a highly unlikely playoff berth, Leonsis should judge him, in large part, on the on-and-off-court development of two key Grunfeld guys: power forward Andray Blatche and center JaVale McGee.

Has Blatche finally grown up? Is McGee ready to end the silliness?

There is no bigger test for Grunfeld than Blatche. Grunfeld has supported Blatche and rewarded him with two contract extensions despite a series of knuckleheaded moves and questionable actions that repeatedly have embarrassed the franchise.

When Grunfeld looks at Blatche, he sees a skilled, cost-effective post player with enormous scoring and rebounding potential. If Blatche could just mature a little, Grunfeld often tells himself, he could be a cornerstone piece of the turnaround Leonsis expects.

Despite Blatche’s cap-friendly contract and ability, Grunfeld should have removed him from the roster because teams can’t win with guys who simply don’t get it. Instead, Grunfeld has waited and hoped.

As players continue to trickle into Verizon Center before the start of Friday’s training camp, Rashard Lewis and Jordan Crawford took to the Washington Wizards‘ new practice court for the first time.

When the NBA lockout ended, it was Lewis who faced an uncertain future, and Crawford an uncertain role.

The supremely confident Crawford, who has compared himself to Michael Jordan, didn’t know if he’d be the starting two guard behind Nick Young, or if he’d be slated to come off the bench. He still doesn’t. But he knows what he’d like to do.

“I’m going to compete for the starting spot. Believe that,” Crawford said after Wednesday’s workout.

Not that Crawford doesn’t want Young back; just the opposite.

“I hope Nick comes back because we need him,” Crawford said. “But I’m going to approach training camp the same way I do in a game – attack. That’s how I am, that’s how it’s going to be.”

Crawford and John Wall have an undeniable chemistry in the Wizards‘ backcourt; it was evident after just a few games at the end of last season. But the two of them took different paths during the lockout, with Wall playing in as many summer league games as he could and Crawford avoiding the spotlight.

“I just laid low, worked on my defense and on getting stronger so I won’t have little injuries like I did last year,” Crawford said. “I’ve been really preparing myself this summer, stretching, preventing injuries. It’s going to be tough [the shortened season]. Were just going to have to grind it out.”

That 66-game grind may be a little easier on Crawford, 23, than Lewis, 32 and coming off a knee injury that bothered him last season.

“You can tell that he’s healthy, that he really wants to play,” Crawford said of Lewis. “He wants to come back and not just be here, but contribute. I’ve seen Rashard play since I was little. I know what he’s capable of.”

Lewis, whose salary is in the $20 million-per-season range, has been the talk of the league as an amnesty candidate. Under the terms of the new collective bargaining agreement, which is expected to be ratified within days, a team can use the amnesty clause to release a player and wipe his salary from the cap and the luxury tax.

Wizards general manager Ernie Grunfeld put those rumors to rest by stating at a news conference last week that the team has no plans to amnesty Lewis.

“My main focus was, if it did happen [being amnestied], hopefully I would get picked up,” Lewis said. “I have to be ready to play, regardless of where I was playing. But they told me I would be here as a Washington Wizard, and my main focus is to get this team in the playoffs, and I think we have the young talent to do it.”

Lewis was a rookie during the 1998-99 season, the last time a lockout led to a shortened season. Knowing what to expect is something he can share with his young teammates.

“One thing I remember about the last lockout is a lot of games in a short period of time, not very much practice time,” Lewis said. “So I think this year will be more mental, that the young guys as well as myself are going to have to listen more than anything because there’s not going to be a lot of practice time.

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by Mike Prada • Dec 7, 2011 11:06 AM EST

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