Some of you are probably looking at that title and wondering what lip syncing has to do with has to do with the Wizards.  Others are probably looking at that picture and thinking to themselves "Boy, Etan Thomas has really let himself go.  And when did he win a Grammy???" 

I can assure that the answers to all of your questions will be answered, but in order to do that, we need to first have an understanding of how the art of singing without actually singing has developed and changed over the years.

Continue reading this post »

I'll be honest, I really don't how to preface this post, so let's jump past the thin candy shell and right into the ooey-gooey chocolate center of the post shall we?

WHAT THE WIZARDS WOULD BE IF THEY WERE CANDY

Gilbert Arenas = Pixy Stix: The complaints about both are the same: Very sweet, good for a quick thrill, not a whole lot of filling substance.  Yet you rarely see fans of either complain about feeling empty.

Andray Blatche = Twizzlers: Both could benefit from being a little thicker.

Dee Brown = Skittles: In the interest of full disclosure, nothing about Dee Brown's game reminds me of Skittles, but whenever I watch him, he reminds me of a hyper kid running around after eating a whole bag Skittles.

Caron Butler = Snickers: With a Snickers bar, you're getting a nice, diverse package of chocolate, nougat, peanuts, and caramel.  Caron also gives you a little bit of everything and puts it into a sweet package that everyone can enjoy.  (Not to mention, that every so often you see both wrapped in gold.  But let's not talk about the alternate jerseys right now.)

Antonio Daniels = Hershey's: Sure, there's stuff out there that might taste a little better, or have some fancier packaging, but these two give you what you're looking for every single time.

Brendan Haywood = Peanut Brittle: At first look, they both look kind of clumsy.  Brendan isn't exactly Pete Maravich and peanut brittle looks like a rejected batch of semi-processed peanut butter.  But when you get down to it, you realize that both are pretty doggone good.

Antawn Jamison = M&M's: A timeless classic.  And like Jamison's shot, you can find M&M's in just about every variety imaginable.

JaVale McGee = Bacon Bar: At first, they both sound kind of gross (Chocolate flavored bacon?  An athletic 7-footer that has 3 pt. range but struggles with rebounding?) but they're both intriguing enough to make you want to try it out at least once.

Dominic McGuire = Shock Tarts: Need I say more?

Oleksiy Pecherov = Laffy Taffy: They give you some flavor, and they're good for a chuckle.  What more could you ask for?

Darius Songaila = Twix: What? He likes things dipped in chocolate.

DeShawn Stevenson = Everlasting Gobstopper: You can try to wear them down, but you know at the end of the day that they're too durable to let something like saliva or a knee injury keep them from playing.

Etan Thomas = Gourmet Chocolate: It's a decent product, just a little more pricey than it should be.

Nick Young = Airheads: Being the youthful player that he is, Nick Young makes some decisions on the court that make you wonder what's going on in his mind.  But then you remember that one day the maturity will come and then we can stop wondering about his head and we can devote all of our focus to his air.

Flash back for a second to the summer of 2006.  The Wizards, fresh off their tight playoff loss to Cleveland, were about to enter training camp with a gaping hole at shooting guard.  Starter Jared Jeffries signed a contract with New York that paid him way more than he was worth, but the Wizards had yet to replace him.  It was either start Jarvis Hayes and shudder at the thought or play Antonio Daniels at the point and move Gilbert Arenas off the ball.

But instead of making a panic signing, Ernie Grunfeld waited until the very last possible moment.  While other teams were blowing their mid-level exception on guys like Speedy Claxton, Mike James, Willie Greene, Matt Harpring and the aformentioned Jeffries, Grunfeld let the market dry up, knowing that competent wing players are a dime-a-dozen.  Eventually, he signed a guy for the minimum contract who was pissed off that nobody offered anything remotely close to what he was seeking. 

Of course, that player was DeShawn Stevenson, and the end result was that the Wizards got a solid starter for very little money.  Even his new contract, signed after the 2007 season, is pretty good value. 

By waiting out the market, Grunfeld was able to secure a player who provided a bit of a boost for very little money.

We're seeing the same situation this year.  Although a backup small forward is less of a need than a starting shooting guard, it still is a need for next season that hasn't been filled.  Some players who could have filled the role (James Posey, Mickael Pietrus) are off the market, signed for contracts larger than the Wizards needed,  yet tons of names are still available.  Hell, most of the names we brainstormed a couple weeks ago are still out there. 

Now, the obvious difference is that the Wizards weren't as close to the luxury tax in 2006 as they are right now.  If the Wizards really only have 1.5 million left under the tax, that's not a lot of breathing room.  The situation also gets worse in the coming years because of the nature of everyone's contract. 

But considering how many wings are out there, it shouldn't be hard for Ernie to find somebody willing to play on a one-year deal for very little money with the hopes of cashing in next offseason.  Maybe Matt Barnes is willing to take that chance.  Maybe it'll be someone else.

Either way, though, Ernie's approaching this the right way.  A backup small forward doesn't have to be a huge impact player.  He doesn't even need to be a long-term solution because of the presence of Dominic McGuire.  He just has to be able to plug a hole for one season.

No matter when he signs.

I have here in my hand a list of two hundred and five people that were known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist Party er...the latest issue of SLAM, that has the feature on DeShawn Stevenson.  As was mentioned in their preview, DeShawn did let his mouth rip.  It didn't reach overrated levels, but it's worth quoting on a blog that's specific to the team he plays for.

On the LeBron-DeShawn feud:

With the thing I said about LeBron, that's the way we do it.  If I feel like he attacked me, I'ma attack him back.  I don't care how big you are.  I feel like he's an awesome player, but I feel like if you attack me, do it like I do it.  Say it out loud.  Don't be one of those scary girls and say it behind closed doors where nobody's going to hear you.  If you don't like something I do, say it out loud so we can deal with it as two men.

On Gilbert's comeback late in the season:

When Gilbert [Arenas] came back for the Playoffs--this is no knock on him--it kind of messed up that rhythm we had going in the regular season.  Gilbert's minutes were limited.  We tried to bring him off of the bench, so we could save him for the fourth, but it was hard to play a type of player like that for 20 minutes.

On Gilbert's decision to opt out (keep in mind that he said this before Gilbert re-signed):

Gil runs that city.  It would be stupid on his part to leave.  You've got a town that's got your back.  To go somewhere else and start over is going to be pretty hard.  You're starting from scratch.  Nobody [else] cares about the game-winners or none of that.

DeMarco Williams did a tremendous job on the article and I encourage everyone to go check it out.  The pics of DeShawn's epic back tattoo are worth the cost of the magazine in and of itself.  Also, the piece provides an important and much needed update on the beard-growing bet between DeShawn and Drew Gooden.

Like they do for every issue, SLAM has a preview up for what you can expect in the latest edition of the mag.  I mention this because they drop an interesting little tidbit about what you can expect in this issue specifically:

We've got the annual Dome Shots (photos of the year). The imitable Rus Bradburd caught up with Tim Hardaway (who Rus actually coached in college at UTEP). DeMarco Williams hung out with DeShawn Stevenson, and DeShawn showed us his tattoos and let his mouth rip. The Backboard (last page) is by some guy named Kobe Bryant. There's tons of cool kicks and gear, the debut of our newest high school diary keeper, a goodbye letter from Mike James, the usual nonsense from the ABA, a pretty ridiculous poster, and a ton of other dope stuff.

Maybe I'm completely wrong on this, but I've got a feeling that I know where this is going:

At least this time it probably won't involve Soulja Boy and Jay-Z.  They've got their own beefs to deal with.

(language is not safe for work, aka NSFW)

Previously:

• Etan Thomas
• Oleksiy Pecherov
• Dominic McGuire
• Nick Young
• Andray Blatche
• Roger Mason
• Darius Songaila
• Antonio Daniels

Stats: Per-game: 31.3 minutes, 11.2 points, 3.1 assists, 2.9 rebounds,

Per-36: 12.9 points, 3.5 assists, 3.3 rebounds

Percentages: 38.6 FG%, 38.3 3PT%, 79.7 FT%, 48.7 eFG%, 52.9 TS%

Advanced (explanations): 12.6 PER, 15.5 AST%, 10.5 TO%, 17.4 UsgR, 111 ORtg, 113 DRtg, -2 WSAA (win shares above average)

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pradamaster: Other than a slight drop in shooting efficiency, DeShawn Stevenson was practically the same player he was in 2006/2007.  That's mostly a good thing.  His "Mister 50" shooting wasn't going to keep up, and there was genuine concern that his game would go completely in the tank following his putrid 2007 playoffs.  The playoff performance was enough for many to question the wisdom of signing him to a relatively small contract last offseason, but it now seems like pretty good value considering how he played this season.  He nearly duplicated his breakout 2006/07 year, all with his running mate, Gilbert Arenas, sidelined.  All in all, I think we can mostly be happy with his 2007/2008 campaign, even know his behavior prior to the playoff series against Cleveland made us look bad in the public eye.

The biggest question that everyone should be asking is how Stevenson's shooting percentage can fall below 39 percent just one year after it was hovering around 50 percent?  That seems like a major drop, but I don't think it's a huge concern.  Mostly, it fell because Stevenson shot two and a half times as many threes this season (413) as he did in 06/07 (183).  His three-point percentage dropped only slightly (from 40.4% to 38.3%), but all those shots hurt his shooting percentage.  Stevenson basically became a drive-or-three player, which is why it's so curious that his effective field goal percentage on close shots dropped from 56.3 in 06/07 to 47 in 07/08.  A minor concern, but not a major one.  He's effectively morphed into the three-point threat we've always needed in the Princeton, and if that means his shooting percentage drops a bit, it's a consequence we'll have to accept.

Otherwise, Stevenson became a far more complete offensive player.  He made up for the drop in his shooting percentage by becoming a better passer (increasing his assist rate to the second-highest total in his career) and a better ball-handler (his turnover percentage was the lowest of his career).  Interestingly, it was the Wizards' offense, and not their defense, that took a major nosedive when Stevenson exited the game. 

Of course, with every blessing, there is a downside, and for Stevenson, it's clear that he's not the elite defender he's made out to be.  Defensive stats are undoubtedly difficult to measure, but the above link shows that the Wizards' didn't suffer defensively with him out of the game.  Opposing shooting guards posted a 16.3 PER against the Wizards this season, which is basically the equivalent of playing Mike Miller every night.  Now, I'm not suggesting Stevenson isn't a competent defender.  He's at least competent, having been the only person able to muscle LeBron James in the playoffs.  He's just not elite. It's not good that he is your best perimeter defender. 

Worse yet, Stevenson's inconsistency is pretty frustrating.  He'd have games like the first New Orleans contest where his shooting would carry us to wins, but there would be several others where he would launch tons of three pointers and miss them all.  His shot selection, a huge key to his breakout 2006/07 season, suffered without Arenas in the lineup.

Put it all together, and you get a player that is certainly capable of being a solid role player on a very good team, but not much more.  We knew this last year too.  

But even those career highs tell the same story: that Stevenson is a backup-quality player starting in a key spot in the lineup.  He's exactly the type of player the Wizards need alongside Arenas, but he's not a good enough defender to start on a contending team.  Nothing he does is particularly extraordinary, which is fine if he was the 7th or 8th man, but not if he's a key starter.  At least offensive black holes like Jason Collins and Bruce Bowen are phenomenal defenders.  Stevenson isn't yet.   

Ideally, the Wizards would start Nick Young, move Caron Butler to the 2 and find a bona fide small forward or perhaps even move Gilbert Arenas to the 2, relegating Stevenson to the bench, where he can be a 20-minute situational guy that knocks down threes and plays a little defense, but we're not quite in that position yet.  In the meantime, there are worse fates than starting Stevenson.  He is certainly a capable starter who's production should remain fairly consistent over the next few years.  He's had two years in the Princeton, and his numbers could rise up again with Arenas' potential return, so it could be a lot worse. I just hope his minutes are cut to around 24-28 a game instead of being over 30.

JakeTheSnake: You know, it's weird with DeShawn.  Just looking at his numbers from last season compared to this season you'd say he had a down year, but all in all I'd argue that he played better this season.  Keep in mind how quickly and how sharply his numbers dropped once Gilbert and Caron went out.  This year he was able to keep those numbers respectable even when one or both of those two were out, so if nothing else, we know that he worked at improving his game when he's a bigger part of the offense.  That should hopefully translate to even better productivity once he returns to the 4th or 5th option that he's better suited for, but we'll have to wait and see.  If he cuts back on the heat check three's, he should be good to go.

It's a shame that the LeBron feud is going to overshadow his accomplishments this season (and probably the rest of his career) but he made his bed.  As long as it doesn't get to his head, I can live with all the overrated jokes.

Truthaboutit: If you were guessing which Wizard would have the best chance of surviving a season of Deadliest Catch, who would it be? Caron Butler, obviously.....especially since he grew up in the climate of Racine. But right behind Tuff Juice would be DeShawn Stevenson, this year's recipient of the Warrior Award. He made it through watermelon knee, grandpa's ankle, and pregnant woman's back without missing a game.....and while turning in the best season of his career.

Stevenson also provided a king's share of off-court fodder, while significantly boosting business for The Pride of Fredonia's Sports Bog. DeShawn dubbed himself the Lock Smith, had trouble keeping it real, lost feeling in his face, danced at his 80s birthday party the same night he sprained his ankle and lost to the Bucks in devastating fashion, led me to realize that he had something in common with Ricky Davis, and made trash talking history. And I'm not even mentioning last summer's gun play (which has seemingly been swept under a rug - DeShawn and Andray Blatche are the poster children for the perils of bringing hoes, and their male baggage, home), Black Card escapades, jersey tattoos and Lindsey Lohan solicitations.

I certainly appreciate some of DeShawn Stevenson's off-court antics. He makes the team more bloggable, which garners more attention....and the end result is better for the franchise in an 'any pub is good pub' manner. However, many times, I found DeShawn's on-court antics disgraceful and sophomoric. I know, I know....go easy on the guy, he's a warrior. But being a numb-faced hype man is one thing, acting as an incendiary device for opponents is another. If only DeShawn could find the balance between maturity and motivation.

But alas, Stevenson brings too many good qualities to not want him around. He was more than adept at filling in where needed in this latest tumultuous season. Who was going to replace Gilbert Arenas's 205 made 3-pointers from 06-07? Why, DeShawn Stevenson...in 07-08, he drained 158 trey balls, just over 24% more than his previous seven year career total. It's really astounding how DeShawn went from hitting a trey every 157.9 minutes (an attempt every 41.4 minutes) in his first 6 seasons, to a made trey every 32.7 minutes (an attempt every 13.2 minutes) in 06-07, to a made trey every 16.2 minutes (an attempt every 6.2 minutes) in 07-08. I realize this is also indicative of offensive system, but the guy has obviously been working to improve his shot, aside from practice competitions with Gilbert Arenas.

Was the past season the ceiling for DeShawn Stevenson? Well, the guy is only 27. If he really has commitment to the game, there is no reason why he can't continue to improve. That being said, I don't see him ever being more than the 5th option when in the starting lineup....and in Eddie Jordan's offense, that's okay.

The top priority for DeShawn Stevenson this summer should be to continue working on his shot. His form would indicate a streaky shooter. I wrote this about him in a post during the playoffs:

DeShawn had 17 outings this year where he attempted four or more 3s and ended the game shooting less than 25% from deep. The total 3p% for those 17 games was .187 (17-91). On the other hand, there have been 26 games this year where Stevenson attempted four or more 3s and shot better than 40%. The total 3p% for those 26 games is .533 (98-184). DeShawn Stevenson shot 38.3% from beyond the arc on the season.

Being able to consistently depend on DeShawn to knock down shots would be an invaluable asset to this team and might land him a fat contract when he opts out (probably) of his current 4-year $15 million deal in the summer of 2010 when he's 29. Stevenson seems to mesh well with the current squad. Here's to continuance, health, and hopes that from the Lock Smith, the Wizards youth learn what it takes to be a warrior.

With 54% of the vote, you chose DeShawn's dagger to beat New Orleans as the best non-playoff shot of the year.  In honor of the selection, here's is DeShawn's much less heralded Dagger: Part II.

In a lot of ways, this dagger was just like the first one except it was much less dramatic, less people were on their feet, the game was already decided, and Buck forgot was constituted a safe lead.  But other than that, very similar.

For this week's poll, we focus on a question that has haunted GMs of all sports.  In the draft, should you focus on getting the best talent available or filling a specific need?  The inspiration for this week's post comes from the Salt Lake Tribune, who asked Jerry Sloan about the how he feels about the issue

[...] Jerry Sloan, meanwhile, told a story from his days coaching the Chicago Bulls and a mistake they made in the 1979 draft.

The Bulls missed out on the chance to draft Sidney Moncrief because they already had Reggie Theus on the roster and felt they needed a forward. They used the No. 2 pick on UCLA's David Greenwood; Moncrief went on to become an All-Star.

"We felt like we had to have a forward so we took a forward and passed on a guy who's an All-Star player," Sloan said. "That doesn't help the value of your franchise, in my opinion, when you make decisions that way."

In that case, I'd agree with Jerry that it's better to take the player with more talent.  When you have a top-5 pick, you're looking at someone that you can build a franchise around, so I say the more talent you have to build around, the better.  However, since the Wizards don't have the luxury of a top-5 pick, I don't think the decision to go with the best talent is as clear cut.  With the 18th pick, you're most likely going to find a role-player level talent, so I say take the player that's best going to fit a role that can benefit the team rather than a player that might have more talent, but doesn't fill any area of need.  Of course, if a lottery-level talent falls to #18, or if you have to make a big reach to find someone that can your needs, the circumstances change, but I'd say those two scenarios are the exceptions rather than the rule.

That's just my two cents on the issue.  You can either go with that, or agree with the coach that's had a winning record 19 of the last 20 seasons.  The choice is yours.

By now, you've probably heard about the bizarre debate that took place on First Take regarding whether or not Antwaan Randle-El could score a touchdown against a bear.  Thankfully, no one decided to take the Mythbusters route and determine what would actually happen, unlike the Chad Johnson vs. horse saga.

What you probably didn't hear is that ESPN was planning another athlete vs. bear discussion with renowned bear specialist Lynn Rogers and All-Star forward Caron Butler to determine if a bear at sitting at mid-court could keep Caron Butler from going baseline to baseline for a jam.

Unfortunately, the segment was nixed from going on the air but Bullets Forever was able to obtain (by which we mean, make up) a transcript from the argument (which may or may not have actually happened):

Jay Crawford: Alright gentlemen, welcome to the debate.  Caron, let's start with you.  Do you think that you could dunk on a bear?

Caron Butler: Most definitely:  I've dunked on a Grizzly before, so any other kind of bear should be cake after that.

JC: Lynn, do you have a response?

Lynn Rogers: Yes.  First of all, you have to keep in mind that Grizzlies are among the weakest bears in the world, especially the ones found in Tennessee, so you can't use that to justify dunking on a legitimate bear.  Another thing to keep in mind is that bears can grow to be 7 feet tall and 900 pounds yet still manage to reach 35 mph.  Imagine a player with Dwight Howard's height, Tony Parker's speed, and Vin Baker's weight, and you've got the right idea. The other thing that you have to consider is that bears are exceptionally skilled climbers, so the bear could conceivably climb the supporting framework and guard the rim from above.

JC: Wouldn't that be goaltending?

LR:  Well yes, but I dare you to find a ref that would tell the bear to stop.

JC: Good point.  Caron, if the bear is employing that kind of approach, will you still use the same approach that generally take?

CB: I will. I will flush it. I will go up and attack.  If that means I have to wrestle the bear off the rim, I'll do it.  If that means that I have to climb in his mouth, go through his stomach, and slither through his intestines so I can get past him, then start calling me Exlax Juice, 'cause I'm going straight through.

JC: Now Lynn, all of this talk of goaltending and internal disembowelment is certainly exciting, but would this be out of character for a bear?  They're generally passive creatures are they not?

LR: That's correct.  Most of the time they're going to stand back and watch rather than try to initiate anything.  The imposing figure might lead you to believe otherwise, but all they really want to do is sit and eat.  Don't forget, they'll always be more scared of you than you are of them.  In fac--

CB: I'm sorry to interrupt, but I thought we were talking about brown bears, not Kwame Brown.

JC: Interesting.  Now, for another opinion, we've brought in Caron's teammate, DeShawn Stevenson.  DeShawn, how do you think your teammate would fare against a bear.

DeShawn: Bears are overrated, and you can say I said that.

JC: Wow!  Some strong words from Stevenson!  Lynn, what do you have to say about Stevenson's statement?

LR: That's absurd.  Sure, the bear might settle for berries when it could have meat from time to time and it might overdramaticize time to time, but you can't deny the role of the bear in the ecosystem.  Without the bear, the forest is just a bunch of clumsy squirrels.

JC: Well there you have it.  Now, for one last opinion, we're going to talk with an athlete that had a close encounter with a bear, Gilbert Arenas.  Gilbert, tell us about your run-in.

Gilbert Arenas: Well, I was texting back and forth with my old teammate Jared Jeffries and he was trying to get me to go fishing with him.  Now, I'm not a big fisherman, because they're never successful.  If I want to get some fish, I can go to the grocery store and I can get some fish every time.

Anyways, I was all trying to get him to go fishing on the Wii so we wouldn't have to travel as much and I wouldn't have to take any bug spray, but he wasn't having any of it.  So we drive out to the lake and he's got all this high-tech fish stuff and I'm like "When you've got all that stuff, that's not fishing, that's just catching."  So when he went back to his car to get some extra stuff, I threw all his gizmos in the boat and then I untied the knot and let his boat float out into the lake.

So he gets back and he's all mad because his stuff is out in the middle of the lake.  He gives me this look and I tell him "Hey, if we're going to come out here, we're either going to do some fishing, or we're going to do some swimming."  But what I didn't know is that Jared couldn't swim, so he just drove off without me because he was all mad that I wouldn't let him cheat.

I had to figure out a way to get back because my phone wouldn't get no reception out in forest, so I'm trying to remember the path to get back to the city and then I see this bear about 500 feet away.  Now, I'd only seen bears on National Geographic, so I'm trying to remember what I saw there, and I thought they said you were supposed to try and distract 'em.  So I pull out a picture of Nick Young I had, because he's pretty distracting, and I throw it at the bear.  Well, I guess bears don't like Nick either because he started charging at me.

My knee wasn't doing all that great, but when there's a bear the hunt, I turn into Carl Lewis.  Finally, I get behind this tree where he can't see me, so I start reaching in my pockets to see if I got anything else on me.  I found this little bottle that said DOE URINE on it.  I guess I accidentally pocketed it when I was throwing Jared's stuff in the lake.  I start looking at the directions and it says you're supposed to apply it to your body.  Now there ain't no way I'm doing that, so I figure if it starts on the inside it'll work its way out to the skin.

So I drank it.

CB: Now that's some Tough Juice!

GA: Let me tell you, it was not good.  I mean, it's better than getting eaten by a bear, but not by much.  I bet I would've tasted better to that bear than doe urine.  Anyways, it worked and the bear left, but I sure wouldn't want to go up against a bear in a game of basketball.

LR: Now Gilbert, you do know that bears aren't attracted or repelled by the urine of other species, right?

GA: What?!?

JC: Well, I'm not sure if that helped us answer the question or not.

CB: Well, it sure did for me.  Where's the bear?  Let's do this!

Here's some stuff to read up on while you try and figure out if anything can top this "There Can Only Be One" parody.

• Let's kick things off with a little Top Ten list action.  The Wizards' website broke in down into moments 10-6 and the top 5, with the retirement of Earl Monroe's jersey number taking the top spot.  To be honest, the choice surprised me, but I can understand where some would see that as the top moment, since number retiring doesn't happen all too often in D.C.
• For another perspective, here are Ivan's top ten moments from the season:

Butler's dunk on Kevin Martin was No. 1. Nick Young's dunk on LeBron was No. 2. Caron's game-winner in the playoffs is 3 following by Stevenson's game winner in New Orleans. At five, give me the win at Boston. At six, I'll take Haywood's classic response to LeBron James being a crybaby. At 7, I'll take the dunk Andres Nocioni threw down over Oleksiy Pecherov. When Chicago's game operations folks put a picture of Stewey from Family Guy over Pecherov's face on the replay, I lost it.

At 8, I'll go with the game itself and Butler's 40-point performace in Milwaukee on Jan. 27 (just an incredible game to see live). At 9, I'll go with two games in Miami when I got to watch the Heat dancers perform from only a few feet away. (The Miami Heat dancers: where amazing happens). And at 10, give me the Nov. 2 game in Boston when Kevin Garnett and the new-look Celtics made their first regular season appearance. Just a great atmosphere.

• Vanilla Gorilla turned up this in-depth scouting report on the Wizards from Draft Express.  Like he mentions, it's a little over the top on Mason, but other than that it's a solid breakdown of the roster.
• In the last week, two new sites have been added to the SB Nation fold.  Make sure you check out At The Hive (focusing on the Hornets) and Ridiculous Upside (focusing on the draft, D-League, prospects, etc.).
  
• The best part of the off-season is that it's so open-ended that all sorts of different ideas.  Truth About It looked into whether or not Elton Brand would be a feasible option in the district, and KDP proposes a trade with the Sonics.
• As always, Kevin Broom delivers spectacular analysis as he looks into the Wizards "improvement" on defense this season.
• Wizards uncovered this video from back in '02 of Roger Mason from back when he was at UVA, going up against the Terrapins.  Most of Roger's damage was done before the video starts (the video focuses on the Terps' late-game comeback), but the high praise from the announcers gives you a feel for how well he played that night.
• Hey, what happened to all the players that got drafted ahead of Gilbert Arenas?

• What's good party people?  While you're checking out the new and improved search feature here, make sure you check out the latest FanPosts and FanShots from this week:
• Mike Jones (who!) confirmed that Gilbert Arenas is still planning on opting out of his contract, despite his injury setbacks.  Later on in the week, he confirmed that he's not a fan of LeBron James.  At least he didn't write a diss track about it.
  
• After making sure everyone knew that he was still opting out, he made sure everyone knew who he wanted to see stay in Washington, by telling everyone on his blog:

The future is the future. I want to be back in Washington, but weird things happen in free agency. If Antawn is not back, then there’s no point in me coming back because he’s part of my success, too. When you’re doing pick and roll with a player like him, they can’t double you, they can’t trap you because you have a pick and pop guy who can shoot the three at your four position. My success is because of him too. If he doesn’t come back, I’m not coming back.

I know everybody is focusing on whether I’m coming back, but I’m focusing on what he’s doing. If he doesn’t come back, then I’m not coming back.

• You'll notice that Gilbert doesn't make the same request for Jarvis Hayes.  From the looks of it, it doesn't seem like Detroit will be either.  At least Jarvis can pass the time with the NBA nickname generator.
• If yesterday's OT thriller turned you into a Jazz bandwagoner, make sure you check out the new SB Nation site for the team, SLC Dunk.
• The Wizards' website is counting down the top 10 moments of the season.  Here's moments ten through six.
• If Bullets nostalgia is your thing, this video of a double OT thriller versus the Celtics should hit the spot.
• If watching a DJ mispronounce DeShawn Stevenson's name is more up your alley, this video should do the trick.
• Finally, NY1 poses the question of "What do we trade the 18th pick for?"  This will be a point of discussion all the way up to the draft, since it seems extremely likely that Grunfeld will look to move that picks, so check it out.