Aside from a desire to form super-teams and chase rings, a constant theme in each case was that the Wizards were not only spectators, but Washington wasn’t even on the superstars’ GPS systems as a possible landing spot.

In a half-hour news conference on Thursday, Leonsis again stressed his plan to build a championship-caliber team by drafting and developing young talent but also added that he expects the Wizards to eventually attract all-star talent to pair with John Wall.

“I hope to have our team get to being considered a destination where players want to play,” Leonsis said. “Everyone knows that this is a fantastic city. If we can get the place rocking with lots of energy and we have an environment where they’re not just talented players, they’re welcoming, they’re embracing of people that join the team, word gets out and people will want to play here.”

In the meantime, Leonsis is focused on watching one of the league’s youngest teams — and Wall, still the Wizards’ youngest player at 21 — continue to show some growth from a season that resulted in just 23 wins and a third consecutive trip to the lottery.

Washington almost didn’t have the opportunity, because of a five-month-long lockout that threatened to eliminate the entire season, before owners and players reached an agreement that led to a 66-game schedule. Leonsis laughed off reports that depicted him as a hard-line owner, mentioning one account that labeled him a “hawk” following a meeting that he didn’t even attend because he was at a funeral.

“I voted yes for the deal,” Leonsis said. “It’s a partnership with the players, we’re in it together. As I said to the players at lunch, I only know of two relationships that I have 50-50 implications, one is with my wife, the second is with the basketball team and so I’m going to love them like they’re family, but I expect that same amount of love back. We all laughed and know we’re in it together, so I’m happy. I want to move on.”

“My biggest issue in all of the discussions and negotiations was about competitiveness. I want to be able to build a team and keep it together, and I think that’s what the fans, before the fans can fall in love with your team, they need to know that ownership’s committed,” Leonsis said. “I anticipated a new system when I bought the team, that we could keep that team together, and I think we made some progress on that front. . . . I want to be more loyal to the players I know.”

Leonsis said he feels “a real sense of optimism” with his team, which has added veterans Roger Mason Jr. and Ronny Turiaf and will bring back a healthier Rashard Lewis, who was acquired in the Gilbert Arenas deal nearly a year ago. He added that he expects “good things” from Andray Blatche, described JaVale McGee as “erudite” and saved his highest praise for Wall, the foundation of the rebuilding efforts.

2011 was a disappointing year across the board for Washington D.C. sports. The Capitals flamed out early in the playoffs, the Nationals finished another sub .500 NL East basement year, and the Redskins appeared to be years away from contending. Even DC United finished an abysmal season, failing to advance to the MLS playoffs. For the Washington Wizards, the outcome on paper was no different. But the hope for the future is perhaps the brightest for the Wizards than it is for any other professional athletic organization in the DC area. These 2010-2011 events hold the key to that bright future.

New Ownership

Abe Pollin was a giant. His legacy will never be replaced. But the transfer of ownership to Ted Leonsis and Monumental Sports & Entertainment in June 2010 represented a new era for the Wizards, and Leonsis has had no qualms about ushering that new era in. It all started with …

The Lucky Lottery Pick

Perhaps it was the basketball gods smiling down on the Wizards franchise after a number of years. Perhaps it was the universe equalizing bad b-ball karma. Or perhaps it was just pure luck. Either way, the winning of the first overall draft pick was the most surprising thing to happen from last season. Personally, I found out in retrospect, assuming that we would have won the 5th pick or later. It never occurred to me that we would win the 1st pick, allowing us to select …

John Wall

There was speculation even before Wall was selected (there was never any doubt that Wall would be the guy) that it meant a change of guard. The old guard was out and the winds of change were a blowing. Could Wall and Gilbert Arenas play on the same team? Even if they could, that was not a direction Leonsis wanted to go, which meant …

Trading Gilbert

Gilbert was the last member of that old guard to go. Antawn Jamison was out. So were Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood and Deshawn Stevenson. It was only a matter of time until Gilbert was dealt as well. As a younger fan who really got into the Wizards when Gilbert and the team were at their peak, I was disappointed to see all these players go. The Big Three hadn’t been the big three for years, there were new names all over the roster and it seemed sad that this era, with all its flaws and disappointments was ending. But it was time for a new team. Which meant it was also time for …

New Uniforms

One of the most effective ways to start rebuilding is to begin with rebranding. The new red, white and blue uniforms won’t improve our players’ game. It won’t make the shots fall or calls go our way. But as a fan the most vivid memories are the ones we see, and what we see when they happen. As this team turns a page and starts a new decade it will do it in the red, white and blue of our nation’s flag. Hopefully that new decade is the one we’ve all been waiting for.

Thomas is a 21 year old college student living smack in the middle of Cavalier country, representing the Wizards as best he can.

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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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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.

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Wizards forward Andray Blatche was relieved — and a little surprised — to be back.

On the first day players were allowed to use NBA facilities, Blatche was joined by a handful other NBA players and a group of hopefuls for a workout on Thursday.

“I was starting to lose hope — and I didn’t think there would be a season this year,” Blatche said. “Every time there was a negotiation, everything kept going wrong.”

After he learned that players and owners agreed on a contract early last Saturday morning, Blatche was overjoyed.

“Now, there’s a season, and I can’t wait to get back.”

Only one of Blatche’s current Washington teammates, Hamady N’Diaye, a restricted free agent, joined him. Also there were a pair of former Wizards, Dallas Mavericks center Brendan Haywood, who gloated about winning the NBA championship to Blatche, and free agent Roger Mason Jr. So was Roy Hibbert, the former Georgetown star, who lives in the area and plays with the Indiana Pacers.

The rest of the players on the court are hoping to get a shot at the big time.

Mason, who helped negotiate the deal, defended Billy Hunter, the executive director of the players union.

“I’ve seen what Mr. Hunter has done throughout this whole process. I really don’t think we’d have a deal if he wasn’t involved,” Mason said. “We saved a lot of people’s jobs — not just the guys who play ball — but people who were affected by this lockout.”

During the lockout, Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld kept busy by watching European League games and attending college practices and games.

Washington hasn’t made the playoffs the last three seasons when its combined record is 68-178.

“I expect us to improve as the season goes along,” Grunfeld said. “We started rebuilding last year.”

Grunfeld is looking to add a free agent or two to his young club, which includes John Wall, last year’s No. 1 overall draft choice.

Besides Blatche, who’s in his seventh season with the team, the Wizards currently have just one player over 25 — 32-year-old forward Rashard Lewis — who the team was forced to take from Orlando in exchange of getting rid of troubled guard Gilbert Arenas last December.

Once Grunfeld signs draft choices Jan Vesely, Chris Singleton and Shelvin Mack, Washington will have 10 players under contract. He’d like to re-sign swingman Nick Young. He could also bring back N’Diaye and guard Maurice Evans, who was also active in labor negotiations.

“We have a qualifying offer out there for Nick,” Grunfeld said.

Grunfeld also said he would consider re-signing Josh Howard, who’s had knee injuries since he joined the team in Feb. 2010.

He hopes that his team will be together for the start of training camp on Dec. 9.

“Everything is going to be condensed,” Grunfeld said. “When you have a young group like we have, you’d like to have as much time as you can.”

The new Collective Bargaining Agreement doesn’t faze Grunfeld.

“I don’t think it’s going to change too much — not just for us — but for anybody,” Grunfeld said.

Blatche said he attended some of the NBA Finals games last June, and he thinks Washington can break its postseason drought.

“We have high expectations of making the playoffs,” Blatche said. “It should be an easy season for us for the fact that we have a lot of young guys.”

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