By Evan Dunlap

– Newsdesk contributor

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Jan 4, 2012 – The Orlando Magic (4-2) host the Washington Wizards (0-5) on Wednesday night, playing against Rashard Lewis for the first time since they traded the veteran forward to the Wizards in December 2010. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. Eastern on Sun Sports.

Orlando’s four-game winning streak ended Monday against the Detroit Pistons. Fatigue plagued the Magic, who where playing on the back end of a back-to-back set, as they shot just 33.3 percent in the second half and allowed Detroit to take command. Pistons guard Ben Gordon scored 26 to lead all players, while center Dwight Howard put up 19 points, seven rebounds, and five steals in defeat.

The Wizards are the league’s only winless team, though they at least made progress in Monday’s 100-92 loss to the Boston Celtics. In that contest, the Wizards crossed the 90-point threshold for the first time in the 2011/12 season. Former No. 1 overall pick John Wall leads Washington with 13.8 points, 6.8 assists, and two steals per game, but has shot just 31.7 percent from the field. JaVale McGee also averages 13.8 points per game and adds 11 rebounds and 2.4 blocks.

Orlando swept the season series from Washington, 4-0, in the 2010/11 season, winning by an average of 18.3 points per game.

For more Magic coverage, please visit Orlando Pinstriped Post, SB Nation’s Magic blog. For the perspective from the other side, please visit SB Nation D.C. and Bullets Forever, SB Nation’s Wizards blog.

Read More: Rashard Lewis (F – WAS), Dwight Howard (C – ORL), JaVale McGee (C – WAS), John Wall (G – WAS), Orlando Magic, Washington Wizards

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The Washington Wizards are on the verge of the worst start in franchise
history. A visit to Orlando wouldn’t appear to be a good way to avoid that
dubious feat.

They’ve rarely won there and have been blown out in the last three visits,
plus the Magic are perfect at home this season heading into Wednesday night’s
meeting.

Washington, which has never opened a season with six straight losses,
dropped to 0-5 for the third time in franchise history with a 100-92 loss in
Boston on Monday. The Wizards led by one after three quarters but allowed the
Celtics to score 31 points in the fourth, the second time they’ve given up more
than 30 in a period this season.

“Right now, with a team like this, you’re trying to teach them not only how
to play but how to win,” said Wizards assistant Randy Wittman, who took over
after coach Flip Saunders was ejected less than two minutes into the game.

“You have to have steps like this. Did we get the win, no, but we played
them right down to the wire. I thought the effort for 48 minutes was as good as
we could ask for.”

The league’s lone winless club next has the difficult task of trying to end
a six-game skid to the Magic (4-2). The Wizards have given up at least 100
points in each of those losses, and another such performance might lead to
another defeat as they’re scoring 85.2 per game this season.

Washington has dropped 14 of 17 in this series, including three in a row on
the road by at least 25 points each. The Wizards, 6-33 in Orlando over the
previous 19 seasons, were 3-38 in road games in 2010-11 and have lost three this
season by an average of 15.7 points.

They’re facing a Magic team which is 3-0 at home but coming off its worst
scoring performance of the season, an 89-78 loss at Detroit on Monday. Orlando
was held to 32 second-half points during its sixth game in the first nine days
of the season.

The Magic are one of eight teams to play that many games over that span.

“Obviously we had a long stretch of games and not a lot of time to rest,”
said forward Ryan Anderson, held to 13 points Monday after averaging 23.0 in the
previous three games.

With a day off, the Magic hope to come out a little fresher and get more
contributions from their starting backcourt. Jason Richardson is averaging 8.8
points – 9.1 below his career mark – and Jameer Nelson is averaging 6.6 points,
nearly half his career average.

Richardson might have a chance to break out of his funk Wednesday as he’s
averaging 22.3 points on 57.3 percent shooting in his last six games against
Washington, hitting 20 of 39 3-point attempts. Nelson averaged 11.5 points in
last season’s four meetings.

Magic star Dwight Howard averaged 27.3 points and shot 75.9 percent against
Washington last season. Only his 29.0-point averages against New York and
Toronto were better versus Eastern Conference foes.

Wizards point guard John Wall averaged 18.3 points against Orlando in his
rookie season, but enters this game shooting a league-worst 31.7 percent from
the field.

Read More: Jan Vesely (F – WAS), Washington Wizards

Jan Vesely, the Washington Wizards’ high-flying rookie forward, is feeling “better” in his sore right hip and could return to the court soon, Michael Lee of the Washington Post reported Tuesday. Vesely played in the Wizards’ first preseason game, but has “been unable to fully practice” since then.

Vesely told Lee he got the flu last week, which prevented him from traveling with the team on its road trip. Oddly, the flu may have helped his hip recover. “I think maybe it helped a little bit. I rest like two days. I didn’t do anything. Everything slowed down and I feel better,” said the Czech Republic native.

Vesely could return to the floor later in the week, if his workouts continue to go well. “I’ll see,” he said of the possibility of returning.

The Wizards selected Vesely No. 6 overall in the 2011 NBA Draft. Despite his absence, Washington remains well stocked at small forward, with Rashard Lewis and Chris Singleton earning minutes there, and Nick Young sliding over for spot minutes as well.

For more on the Wizards, please visit Bullets Forever, SB Nation’s Wizards blog.

MILWAUKEE (AP) – Brandon Jennings wouldn’t let the Milwaukee Bucks blow another big lead.

Jennings scored 15 of his 22 points in the second half to lead the Bucks to a 102-81 victory over the winless Washington Wizards on Friday night.

“Right now we should really be 3-0,” Jennings said. “We were up at halftime against Charlotte, and we lost a lead. And tonight we were up (24) at half and let a team come back. That is something we really need to focus on, especially going on a West Coast road trip. On the road in hostile environments you have got to be able to contain the lead and take over.”

Jordan Crawford, benched in favor of Nick Young after scoring one point in a loss at Atlanta on Wednesday, led Washington (0-3) with 24 points. John Wall had six points on 1-of-9 shooting and four turnovers.

Ersan Ilyasova had 16 points, and Carlos Delfino, who missed the first two games of the season with a sprained right wrist, added 15 off the bench for Milwaukee (2-1). Andrew Bogut had 13 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks.

Jennings has scored 22, 24 and 22 points in three games this season.

“He has been very efficient,” Bucks coach Scott Skiles said. “He is doing a good job in the first half of the games of moving the ball around and seeing people and kind of taking his scoring opportunities as they come. And then as the game has gone on he’s gotten a little more aggressive, especially when we’ve struggled a little bit in those stretches.

“That’s what the good players do.”

The first half went about as badly as it could go for the Wizards – starting with a technical foul called when Roger Mason Jr., who was not on the active list, checked into the game.

Mason had come in for Crawford with 3:27 left in the first quarter and scored on a baseline jumper seven seconds later. However, during a timeout at the 2:53 mark, the Wizards were whistled for the technical. The basket was later taken away from Mason and credited to Rashard Lewis. Jennings made the technical free throw to make it 25-18 Milwaukee, and Ronny Turiaf’s dunk made it 25-20 before the Bucks poured it on.

Wizards coach Flip Saunders took responsibility for Mason being disqualified from the game. The Wizards public relations staff also took the blame.

The NBA provides a roster to teams to circle who will be inactive for each game. The list excluded Mason’s name, and neither Saunders nor the PR staff caught the mistake before sending the final active roster to the league office.

The Bucks statistical staff noticed the mistake when they tried to enter Mason’s basket.

“It’s my fault,” Saunders said. “I didn’t notice it. I take responsibility for that. I thought he would have given us some help.”

Said Mason: “It was just human error. Just a mistake. It happens.”

Milwaukee outscored the Wizards 40-21 the rest of the half to take a 65-41 lead. The Bucks, 22nd in the league in field goal percentage coming in, shot 61.5 percent in the half to Washington’s 34 percent. Young and Wall combined to go 1 for 11 in the first half.

Washington opened the second half on a 15-4 run, holding Milwaukee without a field goal for more than five minutes. The Wizards outscored the Bucks 26-13 in the period and trailed 78-67 after three quarters. Crawford had 12 points in the third.

“We are all young and we try to force it,” Crawford said. “We all try to do it on our own, which I try to do all the time. Sometimes I want to come back as quick as possible.”

Washington cut it to nine on a dunk by JaVale McGee to open the fourth, but the Wizards got no closer the rest of the way. They cut it to 88-77 with less than six minutes remaining, but the Bucks – who had blown double-digit, second-half leads in each of their first two games – used an 8-0 run to seal it.

Bogut said the late comebacks are not concerning, as the team looks ahead to games at Denver, Utah, Sacramento, the Los Angeles Clippers and Phoenix in the next nine days.

“We have no excuse for it, but at the same time we’re not really pushing the panic button,” Bogut said. “We’re 2-1, and we’ve got room to improve on that.”

Meanwhile, the Wizards, and Wall, are just looking for a win.

“Very disappointed,” Wall said. “I think we could have won these two ones against the Nets and definitely the Bucks. We just didn’t bring the energy. There is no way you could make the playoffs when you are not winning the close games and tough games against teams like this.”

Said Saunders: “Bottom line is we got to figure it out and figure it out quick. We can’t have it where we have some guys go out and compete, or if some guys are not playing well offensively it takes away our energy defensively.”

And he said Wall is one of the problems.

“Wasn’t good,” Saunders said. “John has a tendency to get down on himself when he is not making plays. We got down big, he got down.”

Notes: Wizards forward Andray Blatche again took to his Twitter page after a loss, this time apologizing to fans for his funk, saying he would focus on his

defense and rebounding, and asking them not to give up on the team. . Bucks forward Luc Mbah a Moute missed his third straight game with right knee tendinitis. Mbah a Moute took part in the shootaround. “No idea,” Skiles said, when asked how long he will be out. “We thought he was going tonight.” Bucks forward Tobias Harris, the team’s first-round pick in 2011, also has yet to play for Milwaukee with dehydration issues. . The Bucks assigned rookie guard Darington Hobson to the Fort Wayne (Ind.) Mad Ants of the NBA Development League. Hobson was the 37th overall pick in the 2010 draft out of New Mexico but missed the 2010-11 season after undergoing hip surgery.

MILWAUKEE (AP) – Brandon Jennings scored 15 of his 22 points in
the second half to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 102-81 victory
over the winless Washington Wizards on Friday night.

Ersan Ilyasova had 16 points, and Carlos Delfino, who missed the
first two games of the season with a sprained right wrist, added 15
off the bench for Milwaukee (2-1). Andrew Bogut had 13 points, 15
rebounds and three blocks.

Jordan Crawford, benched in favor of Nick Young after scoring one
point in a loss at Atlanta on Wednesday, led Washington (0-3) with
24 points. John Wall had six points on 1-of-9 shooting and four
turnovers.

Washington also was called for a technical foul when Roger Mason
Jr., who was not on the active list, checked into the game.

Jennings has scored 22, 24 and 22 points in three games this
season.

The first half went about as badly as it could go for the Wizards -
starting with the technical.

Mason had checked in for Jordan Crawford with 3:27 mark left in the
first quarter and he scored on a baseline jumper seven seconds
later. However, during a timeout at the 2:53 mark, the Wizards were
whistled for the technical. The basket was later taken away from
Mason and credited to Rashard Lewis.

Jennings made the technical free throw to make it 25-18 Milwaukee,
and Ronny Turiaf’s dunk made it 25-20 before the Bucks poured it
on.

Milwaukee outscored the Wizards 40-21 the rest of the half to take
a 65-41 lead. The Bucks, 22nd in the league in field goal
percentage coming in, shot 61.5 percent in the half to Washington’s
34 percent. Young and Wall combined to go 1 for 11 in the first
half.

Washington opened the second half on a 15-4 run, holding Milwaukee
without a field goal for more than five minutes. The Wizards
outscored the Bucks 26-13 in the period and trailed 78-67 after
three quarters.

Crawford had 12 points in the third.

Washington cut it to nine on a dunk by JaVale McGee to open the
fourth, but the Wizards got no closer the rest of the way.

Brandon Jennings scored 15 of his 22 points in the second half
to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 102-81 victory over the winless
Washington Wizards on Friday night.

Ersan Ilyasova had 16 points, and Carlos Delfino, who missed the
first two games of the season with a sprained right wrist, added 15
off the bench for Milwaukee (2-1). Andrew Bogut had 13 points, 15
rebounds and three blocks.

Jordan Crawford, benched in favor of Nick Young after scoring
one point in a loss at Atlanta on Wednesday, led Washington (0-3)
with 24 points. John Wall had six points on 1-of-9 shooting and
four turnovers.

Washington also was called for a technical foul when Roger Mason
Jr., who was not on the active list, checked into the game.

Jennings has scored 22, 24 and 22 points in three games this
season.

The first half went about as badly as it could go for the
Wizards – starting with the technical.

Mason had checked in for Jordan Crawford with 3:27 mark left in
the first quarter and he scored on a baseline jumper seven seconds
later. However, during a timeout at the 2:53 mark, the Wizards were
whistled for the technical. The basket was later taken away from
Mason and credited to Rashard Lewis.

Jennings made the technical free throw to make it 25-18
Milwaukee, and Ronny Turiaf’s dunk made it 25-20 before the Bucks
poured it on.

Milwaukee outscored the Wizards 40-21 the rest of the half to
take a 65-41 lead. The Bucks, 22nd in the league in field goal
percentage coming in, shot 61.5 percent in the half to Washington’s
34 percent. Young and Wall combined to go 1 for 11 in the first
half.

Washington opened the second half on a 15-4 run, holding
Milwaukee without a field goal for more than five minutes. The
Wizards outscored the Bucks 26-13 in the period and trailed 78-67
after three quarters.

Crawford had 12 points in the third.

Washington cut it to nine on a dunk by JaVale McGee to open the
fourth, but the Wizards got no closer the rest of the way. They cut
it to 88-77 with less than six minutes remaining, but the Bucks _
who had blown double-digit, second-half leads in each of their
first two games _ used an 8-0 run to seal it.

Notes: Bucks forward Luc Mbah a Moute missed his third straight
game with right knee tendinitis. Mbah a Moute took part in the
shootaround. “No idea,” Bucks coach Scott Skiles said, when asked
how long he will be out. “We thought he was going tonight.” . Bucks
forward Tobias Harris, the team’s first-round pick in 2011, also
has yet to play for Milwaukee with dehydration issues. . The Bucks
assigned rookie guard Darington Hobson to the Fort Wayne (Ind.) Mad
Ants of the NBA Development League. Hobson was the 37th overall
pick in the 2010 draft out of New Mexico but missed the 2010-11
season after undergoing hip surgery.

MILWAUKEE — Roger Mason Jr. angrily walked from the scorers’ table to the baseline in search of his warmups. He suddenly stopped, batted his head with both hands and shouted, “This is . . . nuts!”

The Washington Wizards have had plenty of reasons to repeat the same frustrated refrain over the past three seasons — which have been filled with losses, embarrassing and disturbing moments, and annual trips to the lottery in May.

This truncated, 66-game season is only three games old, and there have already been a couple of head-scratching incidents that have signaled that more bumbling bad times are ahead. In a 102-81 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday, Mason entered a game that he was ineligible to play in, made a jumper, received a technical foul and was sent to the showers for a situation that was beyond his control.

As he sat in the locker room incensed, Mason had to watch his teammates crumble the rest of the half, rally, then collapse again in fourth quarter — and wonder if he could’ve made a difference.

“It just stinks,” said Mason, saying that he had never witnessed a situation so bizarre in his seven-year career. “I was looking forward to making a contribution to our team. But it’s not just about me. You have to move on. I’m one player.”

The problem was the result of an error that started with the league office and worked its way down to Coach Flip Saunders, who didn’t see that Mason’s name was omitted from the 15-man roster the Bucks printed from a list the NBA provided. How Mason was left off the roster was unclear since he was active — and played — in the season’s first two games.

The Wizards’ public relations staff circled every name on the list except Jan Vesely and Maurice Evans without noticing the mistake and Saunders signed off on a sheet that had only 12 active players instead of the possible 13.

“It’s my fault,” Saunders said. “The league sends us the list and what we do is circle the guys that are active and for some reason on our list, Roger wasn’t on it and I didn’t notice it. So, I take responsibility for that. I guess the only fortunate thing is, it wasn’t a situation that cost us down the stretch.”

The situation was exacerbated when Mason went to the scorers’ table and was allowed to check in for Jordan Crawford, who had just picked up his second foul with 3 minutes 27 seconds left in the first period. Saunders said before the game that he had planned to give the veteran Mason more playing time after he received just eight minutes in the first two games. “I thought he would’ve given us some help,” Saunders said.

Mason quickly hit a turnaround jumper but Rashard Lewis (14 points) was credited with the basket, which brought the Wizards within 24-18. After a timeout, Mason was set to reenter the game when referee Danny Crawford informed him that he should not have been allowed to play.

“I was pinching myself to see if it was a joke. Obviously it wasn’t,” Mason said. “Accidents happen. Just human error. A mistake. I wish it didn’t happen to me.”

Read More: Andrew Bogut (C – MIL), Andray Blatche (F – WAS), Brandon Jennings (G – MIL), Jordan Crawford (G – WAS), John Wall (G – WAS), Milwaukee Bucks, Washington Wizards, Boston Celtics

The Washington Wizards suffered their third-straight loss to open the season on Friday night when they dropped a 102-81 decisions against the Milwaukee Bucks at the Bradley Center.

Milwaukee shot 53.4 percent from the field, including an 8-20 performance from behind the 3-point arc while Washington hit at just a 35.3 percent clip. The Bucks also worked the Wizards 50-35 on the glass, setting the stage for an easy victory.

Brandon Jennings led five Bucks into double figure scoring posting a 22-point, 5-assist line while Andrew Bogut earned a double-double of 13 points and 15 rebounds.

Jordan Crawford was a bright spot for Washington’s offense, putting up 24 points on 9-20 shooting to go with five assists while Andray Blatche just missed a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds. Point guard John Wall was held to six points on 1-9 shooting, but did have seven assists.

The Wizards will take their fourth shot at getting their first win of 2011-2012 when they host the Boston Celtics at 6:00 p.m. on New Year’s Day.

“Every body need to shut up I didn’t call out my coach or team mates I said I had a bad game need it n the post instead of jump shots,” Blatche tweeted.

Blatche wasn’t happy after the 90-84 defeat in which the Wizards blew a 21-point lead, saying afterward he wasn’t being used to the best of his abilities. He scored 11 points on 5-for-13 shooting and was called for a technical for exchanging words with Kris Humphries

“You can’t keep having me pick-and-pop and shooting jump shots,” he said in the locker room. “Give me the ball in the paint. That’s where I’m most effective at. I’ve been saying that since training camp: I need the ball in the paint. I don’t want to be the pick-and-pop guy that I used to be. It’s not working for me.”

Blatche has been known to be a bit of a wild card during his seven seasons in the Wizards locker room, but this outburst was exceptional because he had introduced himself as “your captain, Andray Blatche” to the crowd during a pregame speech — and because the team is only one game into the season, playing under the theme “New Traditions.” If this keeps up, the Wizards could somehow manage to make even a lockout-shortened season seem long.

“It’s disappointing,” coach Flip Saunders said Tuesday. “But, look, we were all disappointed.”

Saunders met with Blatche before practice to sort things out.

“We talked about what he said about as far as wanting to be in the post,” Saunders said. “And I told him, that’s something to my ears. I love hearing that. … But then he also has to understand that just because you get it at 17 feet, you don’t have to shoot it either. I’m not twisting his arm to do that.”

Saunders also clarified the captaincy situation. He said he plans to rotate captains for the time being because the team had such an abbreviated training camp. Blatche and John Wall served as captains for the first game.

“It was a situation last night, he’s been here longer than anybody else,” Saunders said. “And so we’ll rotate as far as who it’s going to be.”

Before the lockout, Saunders gave Blatche a book titled “The 17 Essential Qualities Of A Team Player.” Blatche has said he read about half of it. At media day following the lockout, owner Ted Leonsis said: “I talked to Andray, and he understands that the fan base, media are all looking to take cues on can his focus and dedication match his skills.”

Blatche did not speak to reporters Tuesday, opting to exit the court through an alternate door after practice. The closest thing to a captain-like comment came from rookie Chris Singleton, who already doesn’t care for the taste of NBA losing despite having experienced it only once.

“I don’t want it to be a recurring thing,” Singleton said. “I want to change this culture, and there’s too much losing the last couple of years. Some people might just like that. I’m not used to it, and I’m not trying to get used to it.”

___

Joseph White can be reached at http://twitter.com/JGWhiteAP

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

 

Sophomore guard John Wall brings an element of excitement and intrigue to the Wizards that they desperately needed. The belief is that he is going to carry them to prominence, regardless of what is put around him. Luckily for Wall, there are a lot of serviceable players on the roster right now including some young guys who have the potential to improve significantly just like him. If Jordan Crawford and Jan Vesely blow up, this Wizards team could make a run for one of the final playoff spots out East. However, it’s more likely that they take some lumps during 2011-2012 and help the Wizards out in a much bigger way come next year. Still, this team is on the rise with some good things going for them.

4th Place, Southeast Division

- Yannis Koutroupis

---

 

The Wizards definitely have some nice young pieces, and they’ll be looking for more from Rashard Lewis this season. Still, for them to be markedly better they’re going to need players like John Wall, Nick Young, Jordan Crawford and Andre Blatche to take the next step . . .and maybe even a couple after that. The future looks bright for the Wizards, but the future is still at least a season or two away.

4th Place – Southeast Division

- Bill Ingram

---

 

John Wall is very, very fun to watch, and this looks like the year when everybody really is forced to commit Nick Young’s name to memory, but they didn’t amnesty Rashard Lewis for some reason, and the heart of players like Andray Blatche and JaVale McGee, despite their talent, is still a concern. There are some really good rookies in place here—Jan Vesely, Chris Singleton, Shelvin Mack—but the success of this team will come at the same pace of Wall’s development. He’s perhaps the most promising of the up-and-coming point guards, and he’ll need to step up for his team to make any kind of mark this season. I see that being a struggle, no matter how good Wall is.

4th Place, Southeast Division

- Joel Brigham

---

 

The Washington Wizards won’t win a lot of games but the team’s flashy backcourt trio of John Wall, Nick Young and Jordan Crawford will create plenty of havoc for opposing teams all season long. The team will rely on veteran forward Rashard Lewis to serve as leader on and off the court as the young core learns on the fly. Wall entered training camp saying he now knows what it takes to win in the league after a strong rookie campaign. But there’s a difference between knowing what to do as opposed to getting your teammates to do what’s needed. The 2012 season will be one of growth for the Wizards and another year of gaining experience for Washington’s youth movement.

4th Place, Southeast Division

- Lang Greene

---

 

Few players were as active during the lockout as John Wall. The 21-year-old worked out every day and played pick-up games across the country. If he’s able to take his game to the next level this season, the Wizards could surprise some people. Wall gathered his teammates in Las Vegas and had them compete in Impact Basketball’s lockout league, which could give them an edge over other teams after the condensed offseason and preseason. Washington likely won’t compete for a playoff spot with so many talented teams in the East, but they will show improvement and take a step in the right direction.

4th Place, Southeast Division

- Alex Kennedy

Any good feelings were all gone after a disheartening and disconcerting 90-84 loss that set an ominous tone for this truncated, 66-game season.

Coach Flip Saunders complained of selfish play, Andray Blatche called out the coaching staff for the play-calling on offense and rookie Chris Singleton questioned the team’s desire to win.

“It’s a fine line. Is it trust? Or is it, ‘I think that I can make a play to get us going again’ and you try to do it individually,” Saunders said. “In our league, you can’t do it, unless you’re one of the elite players. We don’t have anyone that’s at that elite status right now like [Nets all-star guard] Deron Williams.”

Blatche — who welcomed the 17,102 fans before the game, declaring, “This is your captain” — took the criticism personally. In his seventh season, Blatche has pledged to take on a leadership role with the team. But as he sat in his locker room, dejected and still wearing his uniform as his teammates were showering, Blatche placed the blame on Saunders for not giving him the ball where he wanted after he finished with 11 points and eight rebounds and was outplayed by his counterpart, Kris Humphries (21 points, 16 rebounds).

“I said that I need the ball in the paint to be effective. You can’t keep having me pick and pop and shooting jump shots. Give me the ball in the paint,” Blatche said after going 5 for 13 from the field. “That’s what I’m most effective at. I’ve been saying that since training camp — I need the ball in the paint. I don’t want to be the pick and pop guy that I used to be. Because it’s not working for me. I’m not saying the offense has to flow through me, but I prefer to be in the paint.”

Young led the Wizards with 16 points in 18 minutes off the bench, giving Washington a 38-17 lead when he made three free throws with 7 minutes 21 seconds left in the second quarter, but it was downhill from there. The Nets outscored the Wizards 41-19 over the next 10 minutes, taking a 58-57 lead when Williams buried a three-pointer in the third period.

Young had a momentary scare in the third quarter, when Blatche collided with Humphries and fell on the heel of Young’s foot, causing him to collapse. Hamady Ndiaye and Jan Vesely helped carry Young to the locker room.

“I thought it was over for a minute,” said Young, who got his foot re-taped, worked out on the practice court and returned, though somewhat hobbling.

When asked about Blatche’s comments, Young said, “’Dray’s trying to be a leader this year, and sometimes he lets things get to him. You’ve got to let things bounce quick and get back in the game. I say he’s going to learn from this game.”

The Wizards will be able to take plenty from their first game, as they opened, as Saunders said, “doing it the right way.” They scored the first eight points of the game and forced turnovers on the Nets’ first three possessions. They built a sizeable lead by sharing the ball, making the extra pass and making easy baskets.

“After we was up 20, we relaxed,” said John Wall, who was severely outplayed by Williams (23 points, eight rebounds and eight assists).

Unlike last season, when he swayed and dipped his way into the home opener with a dance and victory, Wall took a more reserved approach during pregame introductions, quiety running to the court instead of grooving to the music, and struggled. He scored 13 points but couldn’t shoot from the field (3 for 13) or the foul line (7 for 13). He had six assists, finding Singleton and Roger Mason for back-to-back jumpers to give the Wizards a 74-66 lead early in the fourth quarter.

“After that, I feel like we shut down,” Singleton said. “I feel like all the energy was gone and we didn’t want it anymore. It’s something we’ve got to change around here.”

And, with the Wizards trailing, 87-84, with 17.9 seconds remaining, Wall took an outlet pass from Ronny Turiaf, dribbled up the floor and tried to find Jordan Crawford (15 points) in the corner. Humphries intercepted the pass and Blatche immediately lifted his hands to his head as the Nets went back up the floor. Wall finished with a team-high four turnovers.

“I should have passed it right away,” Wall said. “We had some great opportunities but did not do a good job closing out the game.”

The Washington Wizards’ season begins Monday, the day after Christmas. Like lots of kids, the Wizards have a long holiday wish list. Let’s look at what the Wizards want for the upcoming National Basketball Association (NBA) season.

A healthy John Wall: The Wizards’ super-fast point guard is the key to any team success. Wall had a good rookie season last year, averaging more than 16 points and eight assists a game. Wall might become a star, but he needs to improve his shooting and commit fewer turnovers. Wall seemed to wear down during the long 82-game NBA season. Because of the late start, the NBA will play 66 games during a shorter regular season. The Wizards will need Wall at full speed for all of them.

A good rookie: The Wizards drafted two players in the first round of the NBA draft. Jan Vesely is an athletic 6-foot-11-inch forward from the Czech Republic known for his rim-rattling dunks. But Vesely is young (21 years old) and never played college or professional ball in the United States. So it might be expecting a lot for him to be good right away. Chris Singleton played three years at Florida State before being drafted by the Wizards. The rugged 6-foot-8-inch forward might help on defense and with rebounding, but don’t look for him to contribute much on offense.

Improved big men: It seems that every Wizards season begins with the hope that the team’s big men, Andray Blatche and JaVale McGee, will become big-time players. Both have shown flashes of talent. Blatche averaged almost 17 points a game last season, and McGee blocked a ton of shots. Coach Flip Saunders really needs Blatche and McGee to improve at rebounding and defense. The Wizards were near the bottom of the league in both.

A winning record: The Wizards had 23 wins and 59 losses last year. They haven’t changed much from the team that was overmatched against good NBA teams. Like the pony that some kids put on their wish list, a winning record may be too much to ask for.

Fred Bowen writes sports opinion column for the KidsPost. He is the author of 17 sports books for kids that combine sports fiction and sports history, including six basketball books.

For those that watched the Washington Wizards get spanked in their preseason opener, take heart. The team again faced off against the Philadelphia 76ers, which roasted them 103-78 on December 16 in D.C. Instead of looking like a dysfunctional high school team, the Wizards came out tonight and went toe to toe with Philly. The result December 21 was still a 101-94 loss, but the effort was much more encouraging.

There were a number of notable performances that coach Flip Saunders can only hope will continue into the season. JaVale McGee had a very nice game, leading the team in scoring with 20 points and grabbing nine rebounds. I still have serious concerns about his maturity level though. He had one dunk tonight that he just had to stop and stare down his opponent just for good measure.

That kind of stunt can get you a technical during the season, so it is time for this kid to wise up and just play basketball. You could hear the disappointment in Dave Johnson’s voice as he called the game on WJFK 106.7 FM in Washington D.C. I also took great pride in the work of Trevor Booker, who fills a role that this Wizards team so desperately needs. He is a bruiser that does not mind getting in the middle and banging the boards. He ended the game with a team high eleven rebounds.

Washington fans also have to be excited about newcomer Shelvin Mack out of Butler. He just seems like one of those guys you need on the team. Mack does everything well and his numbers show this. He gave the team seven points and five assists, showing he will be a quality sub coming off the bench.

So how then did the Wizards lose on this night? Simply put, they did not have anyone that was ready when crunch time hit. The game was tied with as few as five minutes to go, but then the hoop on the Washington end seemed to grow a cover. Nothing was falling, while Jrue Holiday of Philadelphia had his way with the Washington defense. It should be noted though that many of the starters were on the bench down the stretch for the Wizards.

I am sure the team would have liked to win, but the better effort will be the thing that will stay with them. Some guys obviously still need work. Nick Young looks like he needs to work on getting that shooting touch back. John Wall and Jordan Crawford also need extra shooting because they can both shoot better than what they did tonight.

Finally, I think Flip Saunders and this organization have to decide on what to do with Rashard Lewis. He was once again horrible on the night. A few rebounds and three points do nothing for this club. I say let him go and sign a few guys for the same dough that will give a better effort.

John Atchison is a Washington based writer that enjoys the Washington Sports scene. He has followed the Bullets/Wizards since the early seventies and hopes for a return to glory soon. Follow him on Twitter @John_Atchison.

Source: stats.washingtonpost.com/nba

WJFK 106.7 FM

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PHILADELPHIA (AP) – December 9, 2011 (WPVI) —
Jrue Holiday scored 24 points, including 15 in the last 5:35 of the fourth quarter, to propel the Philadelphia 76ers to a 101-94 preseason victory over the Washington Wizards on Tuesday night.

JaVale McGee led Washington with 20 points, 12 in the fourth quarter. John Wall scored 17.

The Wizards took an 88-87 lead with 2:45 to play on a pair of free throws by McGee. Holiday then hit two 3-pointers, sandwiched around a hook shot by Nikola Vucevic, to give the Sixers a 95-88 edge with 1:09 left. The fourth quarter featured nine lead changes.

Washington took a 52-47 lead into halftime after Philadelphia’s Nikola Vucevic made a 3 at the buzzer.

The Wizards had a 10-point advantage late in the half, behind Wall’s 13 points.

 

(Copyright ©2011 WPVI-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

“They wanted to get rid of it, and I said, ‘No.’ That’s the goal,” Wall explained, his rat-a-tat patter off the court as swift as his play is on it. “I don’t touch it, though. I don’t want to touch one ‘til I win one.”

Even Wall would concede that isn’t happening this season for the Wizards, who are coming off a 23-59 record and last-place finish in the Southeast Division. They are in the early stages of rebuilding a roster that used to revolve around All-Stars Gilbert Arenas, Caron Butler and Jamison, but now is based on Wall.

“We can sneak up on some people this year, because we’re smarter, and I’m smarter, and learning how to close out games and doing whatever it takes to win down the stretch,” Wall said in an interview with The Associated Press. “And next year, for sure, we’re going to be a team that can surprise a lot of people.”

It’s clear to everyone that Wall is going to be the player that leads the Wizards, wherever they go.

President Ernie Grunfeld and coach Flip Saunders, meanwhile, are holding out hope that players such as power forward Andray Blatche and center JaVale McGee can fulfill the promise each has demonstrated occasionally.

Blatche, in particular, regularly finds himself defending his effort, which is why he announced at the team’s media day: “I told my teammates, ‘I’m going to give y’all 100 percent every game. I’m going to die for this.’ Whatever we do, we’ve got to change this whole atmosphere from losing, and people used to us losing, to winning.”

At 25, he’s older than nine other players expected to be on the roster when Washington opens its regular season next Monday.

Such youth prompted owner Ted Leonsis to use variations on the word “build” more than a dozen times during a recent half-hour news conference. As in: “I’ve been unabashed on what we’re doing. I hope I’ve been honest and transparent, that we were rebuilding the team.”

It all starts with Wall.

Despite dealing with injuries to his right knee and left foot, he averaged 16.4 points, 8.3 assists (tied for sixth in the NBA) and 4.6 rebounds last season, finishing second to Blake Griffin of the Los Angeles Clippers in voting for rookie of the year.

“He has such speed and quickness in the open court that you’ve got to get back and proverbially build a wall against Wall, so he’s seeing bodies,” Philadelphia 76ers coach Doug Collins said. “He’d be the equivalent to a guy who sees cracks as a running back who’s got great vision. If you don’t close those down, when he starts running downhill, he puts all sorts of pressure on your team.”

The first time these two met in the first preseason game, the Philadelphia 76ers made quick work of the Washington Wizards defeating them 103-78 Friday night in Washington D.C.

What we looked for, and learned about this team was that they’re cohesive, Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner are poised to take their next steps, and that the Sixers may have trouble defensively in the paint.

So what do we use this second game for?

Counter-adjusting

Well, being that we’ve played the Wizards only four days ago and embarrassed them, this will be a great test for the Sixers to go out and see how they’ll respond to a team who doesn’t want to go down twice the same way.

I know, it’s only preseason—but the Wizards were embarrassed, for sure.

“They were doing anything they want out there.” Wizards guard John Wall said to the press afterwards.

Despite popular belief, the Wizards do have some weapons on their team in JaVale Magee, Rashard Lewis, and John Wall, and certainly they will have made adjustments to try to make a statement in return. We’ll see what the Sixers have in a situation like this.

Defensively in the paint

The next thing we should look for are the big men’s downlow play. I have a sneaking suspicion Marreese Speights is going to get more playing time this game to see what kind of big man play we can get out of him.

Nikola Vucevic’s first game was a ‘put-your-foot-in-the-water’ game. I’m sure the coaches went over some things with him since. There were several rookie mistakes he made.

Andre Iguodala

The third thing I will be looking for is Andre Iguodala to utilize his less-shooting role better, and hit his shots. The theory is supposed to be that: if players like Louis Williams, Jodie Meeks, Evan Turner and Jrue Holiday are to be enough to score a lot of points for the Sixers, Iguodala shouldn’t have to take as many shots. That theory ideally should increase not only his offensive effectiveness, but his strength as a game manager and leader.

I want to see the ball in Evan Turner’s hand more.

That’s what I’m looking for, we’ll regroup back here within the hour after the game.

The Sixers vs the Wizards at 7:00 p.m. EST in Philadelphia, Pa.

Vincent Heck is a life-long resident of the Philadelphia area, and a featured ‘Fan View’ blogger on Yahoo! Sports. Follow him on Twitter: @HeckPhilly

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The Washington Wizards have officially re-signed Nick Young, according to a press release sent out by the team. Terms of the deal were not disclosed by the team, but according to sources, it is for the one-year qualifying offer for just under $4 million.

“Nick is a very good scorer who has continually developed and shown steady improvement over his four years with us,” said Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld. “His size, shooting ability and athleticism allow him to get his own shot and compliment our other backcourt players, making him a valuable part of our young core.”

Young led the Wizards in scoring last season with a career-high 17.4 points over 64 games. He scored a career-high 43 points on Jan. 11 vs. Sacramento and posted the second-highest scoring increase in the NBA from 2009-10 to 2010-11 (8.6 ppg – 17.4 ppg) behind Golden State’s Dorell Wright.

Young returns to pair with John Wall and form one of the more explosive backcourt pairings in the league. Having him back in the fold takes a lot of pressure of Wall and frees up enough space to operate freely. The contract is also short enough that Young will be given the chance to duplicate his performance from last year and earn the long-term contract he covets.