The month of July is really tough for me. I start sweating, blurred vision, headaches, vivid hallucinations usually involving Lebron James or Marcus Trufant (the Seahawks cornerback who took an errant Todd Collins pass to the house essentially ending last years dream season). So whats wrong with me you ask? DC Sports withdrawal, that’s what. So you can imagine how excited I was to watch last nights summer league game between the Wizards and Blazers. There were a couple things that I was looking for last night. The most obvious was how JaVale McGee would match up against NBA talent, even if it was mainly backups. I also wanted to see our talented young core play together. Yes the big three is what gets you to the playoffs but it is strong role players that get you to the big dance. So what did I think of the game. A couple things:
1. McGee is Blatche: This can really be perceived one of two ways. Either you think Blatche is a talented big man who can run the floor, block shots, handle the ball, and is a big part of the Wizards future or you think Blatche is a player with all the physical tools but will never reach his potential. McGee showed the ability to block shots and snatch rebounds. He is extremely athletic for his size. He displayed a couple of nice post up moves, banking one fadeaway shot off the glass from the baseline.
and…
2. Nick Young Cannot Play Defense: O.k. So I realize this is a pick up game, and a sloppy one at that, but if Young wants to take the next step he has to be at least average defensively. The last thing the Wizards need is a defensive liability. That being said Young has a knack for scoring and it shows. His shot looks effortless and he does a nice job of penetrating and drawing fouls. Actually, One of the NBA TV broadcasters appeared to develop a little infatuation for Nick, a mancrush if you will, which was great but also kind of creepy. If you watched the game you know what I’m talking about.
Overall the Wizards looked very sloppy which was to be expected from a pickup game. I would like to see more from Dee Brown and Dominic McGuire. Also, wasn’t Pecherov supposed to be on this team? Is he hurt or something? I miss seeing his oddly shaped (thick legs, skinny upper body, misshapen head) Ukrainian frame out there. Maybe our readers can clarify this for me.
Oh yeah the Wizards lost the game 78-73. Rookie point guard Jerryd Bayless for the Blazers was very impressive scoring a game high 28 points. He will be one to watch this season.
If you want to read about how the rest of the team looked The DC Pro Sports Report has a nice post.
In other Wizards news Arenas has come out of blogtirement and back into the blogosphere. The majority of the post is spent discussing his adidas tour which featured trips to Shanghai, Beijing, Manila, Berlin, and Barcelona. He talks about smog in Shanghai and Beijing, hospitality in Manila, beamers for cabs in Berlin, and alluring interview questions in Barcelona. But more importantly Arenas says he is “happy to remain a Washington Wizard.” Amazing what 111 milli will do for someones morale. Agent Zero also comments on JaVale McGee saying, “from what I’ve seen on YouTube, [he]is very long, very agile … a little on the thin side, but blocks shots. Hopefully he’ll be a little like a Tyson Chandler, maybe he can score a little bit better, we’ll have to see how his development goes.” I seem to remember a certain blogger also saying that JaVale McGee reminded them of Tyson Chandler. Great bloggers think a like I guess. Keep up the good work Gil.
You can read the entire Gilbert Arenas blog here…at The Gilbert Arenas Blog.
