Most of the time when you read stuff about the Wizards, there are certain words that you know are going to be assosciated with specific players on the team.  It's almost impossible to find a sentence with Antawn Jamison's name in it that doesn't also include the word veteran.  With Gilbert Arenas, you know you're going to see the word explosive somewhere in his description.  Caron always gets the tough label.  And of course, with Andray Blatche, you know you're going to hear the word potential used.

(AP - Manuel Balce Ceneta)

We've all seen flashes of Blatche is capable of.  You don't see a lot of guys at 6-11 that can shoot and handle the ball like Blatche does.  But his unique skill set isn't his only asset.  He had nine double-doubles last season and only 4 players averaged more blocks per 36 than he did last year.  Given that he just turned 22 last week, it looks like many more productive seasons are on the way as he starts realizing the potential everyone talks about.

While there's no debate among Wizard fans about whether or not Andray has potential or not, there has been a lot discussion regarding whether or not he'll ever realize it.  We can talk all day long about whether or not he has what it takes to make the most of his considerable gifts, but we don't get into a lot of discussion about how good he could be if he put it all together.  So for this week's edition of Pollin', we're strictly focusing on what we think Andray's ceiling is, not whether or not he can actually reach it.  Here are ceiling levels:

• MVP Candidate: To reach this level you're looking for someone that's the unquestioned top player on a strong team over a good stretch of time with at least 7 All-Star appearances and at least one or two serious bids for MVP.  Think Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Chris Webber, Dirk Nowitzki.
  
• Perennial All-Star: For this level we're talking about someone with 3 or more All-Star appearances, that's the top player on a decent team or a very good second option on a very good team.  Think Jermaine O'Neal, Rasheed Wallace, Shawn Marion.
• Borderline All-Star: Here we're looking at someone that makes it to the All-Star game once or twice at most.  Unless they're mired on a team in complete rebuild mode, they're operating as a second or third banana.  Think Shareef Abdur-Raheem, Theo Ratliff, Jamal Mashburn, 
• Good, but not quite an All-Star: Barring a luck selection in a down year, these guys won't ever make an All-Star team, but they're certainly above average players at their position.  Think Lamar Odom, Marcus Camby, Vlade Divac.
• Solid, but not spectacular: These are guys that are going to be either average starters or above-average backups.  Unless they find themselves on a perennial contender, they'll end up fading into obscurity, even if they have a longer than normal career.
  

Personally, I'd slot him in the Borderline All-Star range, but on the right day I could be talked into slotting him as a Perennial All-Star type talent especially if he gets traded.  But what do you think?  Is Andray the next big thing, or are we just drooling too much over a tall guy with strong putback skills?

Ah yes, our seven-man smorgasbord of veterans with faults and unproven youngsters.  Depending on who you ask, this unit may or may not need to be consolidated or upgraded, but for the time being, it's what we've got.

And what, exactly, do we have?  We have two solid starters, one that's an absolute ace offensively and normally a sieve defensively and one that's awkward offensively and an underrated presence defensively.  We have two veterans who are limited, but are trusted by the coach even when they are blocking players who deserve some of their minutes.  Then, we have three young guys, all with the potential of being a difference maker, but all projects that need playing time despite being in different stages of their development.  

You don't have to be Eddie Jordan to have trouble allocating 96 minutes a game to this group.  (Though he's particularly "good" at it).  

There are so many trade-offs to consider.  Play Etan Thomas for his rebounding...but do so at the expense of Brendan Haywood's defense and (maybe) attitude.  Play Darius Songaila for his offensive smarts...but do so at the expense of Andray Blatche's much-needed development.  Play Antawn Jamison 40 minutes a night for his essential all-around contributions...but do so at the expense of providing developmental minutes to Blatche, JaVale McGee and Oleksiy Pecherov, projects drafted to eventually replace him.

96 minutes, seven guys, all power forwards or centers. How would you specifically allocate the minutes? 

Some considerations:

• Last year, only Jamison played more than 20 percent of the team's minutes at a position other than power forward or center.  Otherwise, these guys were exclusively playing the 4 or the 5. 
• In 2006/07, when Haywood played more than 25 minutes in a game, the Wizards were 18-8.
• According to Basketballvalue.com, Darius Songaila had the second-highest adjusted plus/minus on the team last year, behind only Jamison.  
• The highest PER of any reserve on the team last year belonged to Andray Blatche at 15.5.  In 2006/07, that honor belonged to Etan Thomas.
• To review: Though Haywood has never posted a higher defensive rebound percentage than Thomas in a year both played, the team's defensive efficiency has always been better with Haywood on the floor instead of Thomas.  

Good luck!

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.

Because brevity is the key to good writing...

Andray Blatche: Looks stronger.  Played inside more.  Still struggles finishing.

Dominic McGuire: Displayed mid-range game.  Still a tiger on the glass.

Nick Young: Very concerning performance.  Lacked explosion to change speeds and finish.

Dee Brown: Pushes the ball well.  Was a bit erratic.

JaVale McGee: Very raw, but when he looks good, he looks good.

Gary Forbes: Shot poorly.  Strong defender.  Good finisher.  Bad handles.

Vladimir Veremeeko: Knows how to play.  Too small and slow for NBA.

Jonathan Wallace: Good shooter.  Deceptively quick.  More of a combo guard.

Dontaye Draper: Erratic, poor shot selection, not a Princeton PG.

Frank Elegar: Athletic, plays extremely hard.  Should have received more minutes.

Taj McCullough: Barely noticed him.

Oleksiy Pecherov: Injury meant no buckets.

39-43 - The team's expected win-loss record based on point differential if the summer league had been 82 games long.

3 - Number of Wizards that shot 50% or higher from the field (Dee Brown, Frank Elegar, Dominic McGuire).

2.4 - The average number of assists per game by Dee Brown, tying him for the highest average on the team.  Who does he share that honor with?  Andray Blatche.

44.2% - Field goal percentage for the Wizards as a team.

40.5% - Field goal percentage of the Wizards' opponents.  Even though the Wizards shot nearly 4% better than their opponents, they ended up averaging six less points than their opponents.

35.2% - Nick Young's field goal percentage. it was the second the second lowest on the team.

28.0% - Gary Forbes' field goal percentage.

70.0% - Frank Elegar's field goal percentage.  Despite the large shooting percentage discrepancy, Elegar averaged 7.8 minutes less per game than Forbes.

0 - Number of shots made by Elegar in the second, third, and fourth game of the Summer League.  During that three game stretch, Elegar attempted only 2 shots in 21 minutes.

8 - Blocks recorded by JaVale McGee, tying him with Dominic McGuire for the most on the team.  McGee matched McGuire's mark despite playing 32 less minutes.

6 - Number of fouls picked up by Andray Blatche per game during the Summer League.

7:5 - Dontaye Draper's assist to turnover ratio.  Draper had the highest ratio on the team and was the only player to have more assists than turnovers.

1:9 - JaVale McGee's assist to turnover ratio.

42.9% - Nick Young's 3 point percentage, tying him with Dee Brown for the highest shooting percentage from beyond the arc.

1 - Double-double recorded by a Wizards player during the Summer League (Dominic McGuire vs. the Rockets).

For the players that had a good showing last week, I'd tell to keep building on what they've done so they can make an impact when the real season comes around.  For those that haven't had the best week of their life, just remember, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.

Tonight, the Wizards' Summer League season comes to an end with a game against the Suns.  Other than seeing Darius Songaila playing for Lithuania in the Olympics next month, this will be the last chance that you'll get to see any Wizards in action until October.

I'm doubting that we'll see any dramatic revelations from Nick or JaVale tonight, but I'm still hopeful that I'm wrong.  If nothing else, we get to see more of Andray and Dominic doing their thing and we'll get a look at some of the players that have come through the college ranks in the local area with Jonathan Wallace, DJ Strawberry and Ekene Ibekwe all playing tonight.

This is an open thread, so discuss if a golden opportunity was missed by not using the headline "Tree gets the axe" for this article here.

Go (Summer)WIZARDS!

Over the last few years, lots of new ways have been developed to analyze and express statistics in a lot of different ways.  What's can be lost in all of this is how all of this newfound information translates to the game being played on the court.  Sadly, I haven't been able to find a way to bridge that information gap, but I have managed to find a new, highly scientifical way to chart the mentality of players when they have the ball in the half court.  As you'll see, the courts are color-coded for each mentality shift, so I'll provide a little legend to explain each mentality after the jump.

Of course, this is still a work in progress so I've only been able to test this with our Summer League players.  You may be shocked at what you discover...

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Philly outrebounded the Wiz 41-29.  They grabbed 17 offensive rebounds and scored a ton of second-chance points.  That pretty much sums it all up.

On the bright side, Andray Blatche and Dominic McGuire looked pretty good out there, and Gary Forbes played pretty good defense on Thaddeus Young.  JaVale McGee looked a lot more active, even if he still looks very raw. 

On the down side, Nick Young looked absolutely awful and Dee Brown continues to commit too many turnovers offensively and surrender too many blow-bys defensively.  I like how he pushes the ball offensively and at least tries to pick up full-court defensively, but there really doesn't seem to be much there in terms of production.  He needs to learn how to be more under control.

Also, Frank Elegar needs more than 8 minutes in the next game.

Marreese Speights sure looks nice, doesn't he?

Box Score

Live-blog (scroll down)

Blazers Edge

Truthaboutit was much more optimistic than I and a number of you were last night, but we need to keep this in perspective.  It's certainly frustrating that our Summer League team featuring four guys with NBA experience and two recent draft picks couldn't beat a Portland team that really only had three headliners, but keep in mind that Summer League isn't about results as much as it is about the process.  So, what did we see tonight?

Some good, some bad, and maddening inconsistency.  Some quick thoughts:

Andray Blatche

On the bright side, he was aggressive and showed a renewed ability to finish around the rim.  He did have one shot blocked, but otherwise, he displayed a nice drop step and was able to put home two dunks.  He did shoot a couple long jumpers, but when he had the ball, he tried to drive to the basket instead of settling for crazy floaters.  On occasion, he was out of control, and there were a couple dribble-up-the-court moments, but overall, I thought he was the team's best offensive player. 

Defensively, though, he committed a ton of fouls as Jerryd Bayless kept jumping into him.  He lost concentration a lot on the glass and allowed his man lots of offensive rebounds.  Then, there's the last possession, where he had the ball knocked out of his hands, allowing the Blazers to rebound Bayless' missed free throw.  It encapsulated everything maddening about Blatche.  He can look so physically imposing and yet be so mentally weak.

Still, he picked it up after a bad start, so I'm mostly happy with how he played.  Summer League is a guard's game, so I think some of the criticisms of his play are unfair.  That said, he really needs to pick it up defensively.  I'm cool with him trying to make moves off the dribble, because the team isn't going to run the offense effectively with so few practices, but he needs to show better on the pick and roll and box out his man.

JaVale McGee

There actually was a bright side to McGee's game, believe it or not.  He has the potential to be a great one-on-one defender simply because of his length.  He blocked three shots and altered several more, both on penetration and while playing one-on-one defense.  Offensively, at least we can say he has a nice touch from the outside.  His game has that Brendan Haywood-like awkwardness, but he definitely bothers people defensively and can shoot the ball offensively.  I can see what Ernie and company saw in the kid.

Alas, that was about it.  The craziest stat of the night was that McGee had zero defensive rebounds in the entire game.  Zero!  He should have had one on the final possession, but he allowed the fall to fall out of his fingers.  Project or not, no seven-footers should have zero defensive rebounds in a Summer League game.

Nick Young

Of all the guys, Young probably let me down the most.  I was expecting to see him attacking the basket and showing renewed commitment defensively, but instead, he was breaking plays, shooting fadeaways all over the court and allowing Bayless to blow right by him.  His final stat line looked good, but believe me, he stunk tonight. 

The thing is, if he sticks to running off screens for mid-range jumpers, he won't have to break the offense to get scores.  He hit some contested shots off screens, but I'd rather see him do that than holding the ball and trying to make a one-on-one move.  Hopefully, we'll see more action on screens in the next game.

Lots of people are down on Blatche, but I really expected more from Young last night.

Dominic McGuire

Where was he?  As Blatche and Young took turns forcing shots, McGuire wasn't doing anything to free himself offensively.  He had one drive to the basket, but the ball was poked away.  Defensively, we only saw one Taser moment. 

He looked tired more than anything.  Hopefully, it was just the problems with the plane ride.

Dee Brown

Played well in the first half, but really struggled defensively and with turnovers down the stretch.  His inability to stop Petteri Koponen set the stage for the Blazers' comeback.  To be fair, none of the Wizards' big men were hedging much on the screen.  McGee was too slow to come out too far, and I'd rather see him in the paint anyway.  Blatche tried, but failed most of the time.  That forced Brown to go under the screens, and Koponen was hitting his shot down the stretch.

Other than a random stretch in the third quarter when he dribbled out of bounds and threw a pass away, he ran the offense fairly well.  He kind of looked like Aaron Miles, except a little taller and with a guaranteed contract. 

I'm hoping we see a little more offense from him, but otherwise, he was alright.  The turnovers will probably go away next game.

Vladimir Veremeeko

He missed a layup, then barely made a wide-open left-handed layup when everyone else stopped playing.  I don't think I need to say any more. 

On the plus side, he did show a willingness to mix it up inside and he didn't try to break the offense.  That said, I don't see how he fits into our future.  He's too slow to be a small forward, but too small to be a power forward.

Everyone else

Frank Elegar was really aggressive in his first stint, driving whenever he got the chance and somehow getting to the line eight times.  If everyone else was half as aggressive and smart as Elegar was in his first stint, we'd have won by 30.  Unfortunately, he kind of disappeared in the second half, but I'll be watching him more closely.

Gary Forbes played pretty well, though he was invisible a lot of the time.  Same for Jonathan Wallace. 

Otherwise, while this performance stunk, keep in mind that they literally arrived to the game two hours before it started.  Hopefully, they've gotten that out of their system and can show us a little more next game.

Rick Kamla and Steve Snapper Jones guiding us on Comcast via NBA TV tonight....Chenier and Buckhantz are probably getting sloshed at the Green Turtle. Kamla promises that Nick Young will dazzle. I've never been as pumped about watching a Wizards summer league game before, even when I made it to one live in Vegas in '06.

This is a very mature summer league squad, it's worth paying attention to the quality of shots (I know, obscene to expect they will be anywhere near decent) and turnovers. Let's start the show.

Q1

Nick Young starts out with a smooth fading baseline turnaround over Jerryd Bayless for the first points of the game. He looked very comfortable in doing so.

Travel Troubles: Last night, the Wiz were scheduled for a Sunday 8:30 pm commercial flight out of DC to Vegas. The rain hit hard beginning around 6:30, I know, I had to honor of leaving the apartment just as it began. The Wizards flight was at delayed until 9 pm and then canceled. Early on Monday they bused to Philly (the commercial flights out of BWI only had middle seats) and took an 11 am flight, which was also delayed. The team landed in Vegas at 3 pm local time, boarded a bus and got to the gym at 4 pm to start a game at 5 pm. It retrospect, it could've been worse.

JaVale McGee hits a turnaround baseline jumper....off the glass...with Duncan-esque technical form. 5-4 Blazers.

This Petteri Koponen guy is getting places a little to easily.

PK then picks McGuire who is attempting to bring the ball end to end. Koponen takes it down the court for a layup under heavy defensive pressure.

Portland gets a rebound, but Andray Blatche sticks around with veteran craftiness, gets a steal and a dunk....more vet moves as Andray jumps out in the passing lane off a side-out and takes it for an uncontested layup. 8-7 Wiz.

With 5:16 and the first commercial break, Wiz up 8-7. JaVale McGee has done well to contest shots without fouling.....so far, he's almost too quick to jump.

4:10 - Bayless took it to the hoop so fast and hard that McGee had no time to react and didn't even jump. I suppose he could have displayed more awareness.....plus c'mon dude, you get 10 fouls. 9-8 Blazers.

I like Dee Brown because he plays with a purpose and doesn't seem to hesitate with his decision making.

Vladimir Veremeenko checks in...for D Mac, who wasn't playing very well. The Cleaner tried to force the issue on both ends a couple times. Dontaye Draper checks in for Brown too.

Nick Young thinks he's Kobe....put his hand out to the defender to assist his positioning, Bayless fell and ref called a charge. Some players get away with it, as they should, but this is summer league and The Bean Burrito is not The Black Mamba.

Some guy named Frank Elegar got a bucket, and one......he kinda panicked when he got the ball in the paint with Bayless under him. Jerryd tried to draw a charge, but he was too far under the basket and Elegar hit a lucky shot. 14-12 Blazers.

Vladimir doesn't impress in missing two FTs, at least those were created by an offensive board.

Dontaye Draper with a great outlet to Gary Forbes for a breakaway hoop....the first assist in the game with 15 seconds left in the first. Quarter ends with Portland up 16-14.

Q2

Taj McCullough with a nose for the ball to snatch a rebound from a crowd on one end, an athletic Frank Elegar displaying flying put-back dunks and post moves on the other end. 21-19 Blazers after the dunk and two Elegar FTs on the subsequent possessions.

Elegar then catches a tough pass as he was running the floor on the break and coverts the basket, and 1. That's right, seven straight Wizards point from some guy named Frank Elegar

G-Town's Jonathan Wallace comes in at the seven minute mark, along with the nouveau Bill Walton, Arkansas' Steven Hill, for the Blazers.

Wallace's first move is to hit an arching, quick trigger deuce. 24-21 Wiz. Wallace has some nice handles too, bringing it up against Bayless on the break.

5:30 - All the starters have checked back in...Andray Blatche has lost the headband, sporting the bald head and hanging goatee. Kamla is disappointed with Nick Young so far. He's made some nice moves, but those mostly get him fadeaways and off balanced shots...he's missed 3 of 4, all jumpers.

Speak of the devil, and that's why Steve Snapper Jones warned Rick not to speak too soon, Nick Young gets another jumper, but this time he got a spot in the paint and made it easy on himself. 27 tie game.

I'm not sure Andray Blatche's arms look much bigger, but his "core" looks sturdier. He's also showing some nice footwork and quickness when working the baseline.

2:48 - Blatche continues to impress with a composed up and under after receiving the ball in the paint from D-Mac (behind the back) on the break. 29-30 Portland.

Good break by Dee Brown gets it to Blatche, who has nothing, but stops, doesn't force the issue, gives the ball back to Brown, who finds Nick Young in the corner for three. 35-31 Wizards.

Blatche continues to be all over the place.....and fouls continue to plague him as he picks up his 5th before halftime.

JaVale McGee is having his share of tough times, 1-8 from the field so far, Snapper Smith points out his "finesse" game.

At the half: Andray had 11 points and 5 boards, to go along with his 5 fouls. Jerryd Bayless played bigger than he looks (6'3") with a scrappy 17 points.

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