bulldog
December-4th-2004, 03:29 AM
Teams with a good GM tend to win :)
It's been a long hard lesson in Washington with the Skins, Caps and Wizards populating the front office with deadwood over the past several years (if not longer), however, the Wizards and the most unlikely of the three owners in DC to make a positive radical change has in fact done just that................
Abe Pollin as it turned out made the right decision in showing Michael Jordan the door because Jordan was not willing to make the Wizards a full-time occupation as the personnel chief.
Ernie Grunfeld is willing to put in the time and more importantly has a track record of rebuilding losing teams. For once a team in town actually went with the qualified candidate rather than the obscure, untested or marginal one (see George McPhee and Vinny Cerrato here).
Other than giving Etan Thomas starting money despite his injury history and lack of minutes, there really hasn't been a move in the past year plus that can be questioned.
Grunfeld went out and acquired a guard in Gilbert Arenas that has #1 overall pick talent, but at 23 was being farmed nicely for the Wizards by the Clippers the previous 2 years.
Jerry Stackhouse is putting up some good numbers in Dallas but his attitude and chronic knee problems were a nice export for Antawn Jamison. The fact the team could also evacuate Christian Laettner at the same time was just killing two birds :)
The Jamison trade when viewed in the light of what talent the Wizards had and what they needed to take the next step, is the model for why a qualified GM makes all the difference.
The Wizards could have kept the #1 pick and Stackhouse (as they would have in previous years) and ended up with a VERY crowded backcourt and 32 year old SF whose minutes have to be limited for him to play out the 82 game schedule.
Instead the team addressed a glaring need for a front court scorer that could also rebound the ball and be a floor leader to guys like Brendan Haywood and Kwame Brown.
In the weak East that move and the growing maturity of Arenas, Hughes and Haywood are enough to move this team way up in the standings.
The Heat have been an early success story, but the health concerns regarding the 32 year old O'Neal are legitimate enough to believe that Miami may not be around at the end of the season to be a real challenger in that division.
Other good moves for the organization that made sense given the relative talents on the roster and the positions of need for the 2005 offseason:
1. Passing up the option on Juan Dixon. At 6'3 Dixon is a tweener who can be effective as a 10-12 minute change of pace guy off the bench to a team without scoring depth at SG and SF. The Wizards have good depth there, however, and Dixon is a spare part on this squad.
2. Wait and see with Kwame Brown. The Wizards have a lot invested in Brown's development but giving Brown a new deal that will set the pace for the club for the next 3-5 years before he proves himself as a starter in the NBA would have been too large of a gamble. The Wizards can still offer him more than any other club in the offseason and if the team wins games will be in good shape to get a deal done if Pollin gives the green light.
3. Anthony Peeler. His shooting may not be as much of a factor on a team averaging 102 ppg, but his veteran focus on defense will over the course of the season. I am sure it has already made a difference in practice. Defense is ALL 'want to' in the NBA. You have to convince otherwise talented players that defending has as much value as filling it up. That is a significant challenge for 22 year old players!
It's been a long hard lesson in Washington with the Skins, Caps and Wizards populating the front office with deadwood over the past several years (if not longer), however, the Wizards and the most unlikely of the three owners in DC to make a positive radical change has in fact done just that................
Abe Pollin as it turned out made the right decision in showing Michael Jordan the door because Jordan was not willing to make the Wizards a full-time occupation as the personnel chief.
Ernie Grunfeld is willing to put in the time and more importantly has a track record of rebuilding losing teams. For once a team in town actually went with the qualified candidate rather than the obscure, untested or marginal one (see George McPhee and Vinny Cerrato here).
Other than giving Etan Thomas starting money despite his injury history and lack of minutes, there really hasn't been a move in the past year plus that can be questioned.
Grunfeld went out and acquired a guard in Gilbert Arenas that has #1 overall pick talent, but at 23 was being farmed nicely for the Wizards by the Clippers the previous 2 years.
Jerry Stackhouse is putting up some good numbers in Dallas but his attitude and chronic knee problems were a nice export for Antawn Jamison. The fact the team could also evacuate Christian Laettner at the same time was just killing two birds :)
The Jamison trade when viewed in the light of what talent the Wizards had and what they needed to take the next step, is the model for why a qualified GM makes all the difference.
The Wizards could have kept the #1 pick and Stackhouse (as they would have in previous years) and ended up with a VERY crowded backcourt and 32 year old SF whose minutes have to be limited for him to play out the 82 game schedule.
Instead the team addressed a glaring need for a front court scorer that could also rebound the ball and be a floor leader to guys like Brendan Haywood and Kwame Brown.
In the weak East that move and the growing maturity of Arenas, Hughes and Haywood are enough to move this team way up in the standings.
The Heat have been an early success story, but the health concerns regarding the 32 year old O'Neal are legitimate enough to believe that Miami may not be around at the end of the season to be a real challenger in that division.
Other good moves for the organization that made sense given the relative talents on the roster and the positions of need for the 2005 offseason:
1. Passing up the option on Juan Dixon. At 6'3 Dixon is a tweener who can be effective as a 10-12 minute change of pace guy off the bench to a team without scoring depth at SG and SF. The Wizards have good depth there, however, and Dixon is a spare part on this squad.
2. Wait and see with Kwame Brown. The Wizards have a lot invested in Brown's development but giving Brown a new deal that will set the pace for the club for the next 3-5 years before he proves himself as a starter in the NBA would have been too large of a gamble. The Wizards can still offer him more than any other club in the offseason and if the team wins games will be in good shape to get a deal done if Pollin gives the green light.
3. Anthony Peeler. His shooting may not be as much of a factor on a team averaging 102 ppg, but his veteran focus on defense will over the course of the season. I am sure it has already made a difference in practice. Defense is ALL 'want to' in the NBA. You have to convince otherwise talented players that defending has as much value as filling it up. That is a significant challenge for 22 year old players!