The Official Washington Wizards Thread

[Destino]

The combination that wins championships tends to be an elite SG/SF and an elite PF/C. PG play needs to be good not great. It's easier for defenses to disrupt an offense when the best player runs the point, the simple act of having the ball all the time gives them more opportunities.

[stevemcqueen1]

Despite my objections to drafting him, and the fact that there is about a 50/50 chance his jumpshot will not even hit the rim, I like the guy. He shows promise in every area but scoring.

That said, unless he figures out a way to score besides dunking, he's going to end up being a rotational/energy guy off the bench.

Almost any NBA player can learn to spot up and shoot. Vesely isn't muscle bound (guys who tend to struggle shooting FTs and shooting from range tend to be very heavily muschled). He'll get good enough on offense and get his points and put out some Serge Ibaka like offense at PF in time--that's fine. Booker is a better player today, but I'd feel comfortable starting Vesely at PF next season if we didn't have Booker in front.

[No Excuses]

Vesely is already a good rotation player. He's certainly got the tools to become a good starting PF. I think people are being ridiculous in their expectations for him early on. He's blown away every expectation I had for him going into the year. He's our best defensive player already, and is a legitimately good defender and rebounder right now. Last year's class blew. Vesely was a fine pick at six. He's going to work out and be a good player.

Talk about overrating someone.

He's not a good rotation player. He's not our best defensive player. He's not a legitimately good defender and he's an average rebounder.

[RonArtest15]

Talk about overrating someone.

He's not a good rotation player. He's not our best defensive player. He's not a legitimately good defender and he's an average rebounder.

I know, right?

Vesely was one of the oldest players drafted in round 1 - 6th pick at that. He also has PRO experience. But yea...Wizards fans should have tempered their expectations for him.

I'll give him this...he's played well in April. Hopefully he can keep the momentum going into the off-season...work on his jumper, and be a guy who can fill the stat-sheet going forward.

[stevemcqueen1]

The combination that wins championships tends to be an elite SG/SF and an elite PF/C. PG play needs to be good not great. It's easier for defenses to disrupt an offense when the best player runs the point, the simple act of having the ball all the time gives them more opportunities.

I think SG play gets overrated in importance because Phil Jackson won a bajillion rings with Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan running the triangle offense, which takes the ball away from the PG and puts the ball in the SGs hands a disproportionately high amount of time compared to every other NBA system. Nobody runs that offense any more. There are what, three truly great pure SGs in the league today? And Manu is a sixth man. SG is not a point of emphasis for the vast majority of the league, the offensive focus has shifted to other positions today.

But a SF is different. They are your swiss army knife players. The great ones can propel teams into contention because they can score from everywhere and defend every position. They cover up for all kinds of holes on your roster singlehandedly, and give you scheme versatility.

Getting good PG play is hard if you don't draft high, and I think it's being deceptively devalued because there are so many really good PGs in the league right now compared to the historical depth of the position. Half the league managed to snag up a really talented PG and get good PG play. But if you're not one of the teams fortunate enough to have a good PG, you feel it hard and it puts a wrench in your offense that is very difficult to work around. It's simple. If the guy who brings the ball up court every play sucks and can't handle the ball, your offense will suck and never be consistent. Bad PG play will lose you a game faster than anything just about.

Transcendent play from your big has always been a ticket to title contention. Look at the top 50 players list and look at the true bigs on it. I'm pretty sure Ewing, Malone, and Nate Thurmond are the only players on the list without a ring.

[StillUnknown]

Almost any NBA player can learn to spot up and shoot. Vesely isn't muscle bound (guys who tend to struggle shooting FTs and shooting from range tend to be very heavily muschled). He'll get good enough on offense and get his points and put out some Serge Ibaka like offense at PF in time--that's fine. Booker is a better player today, but I'd feel comfortable starting Vesely at PF next season if we didn't have Booker in front.

I wish I had your optimism on Vesely.

The team brought in a guy specifically to work with him on his jumpshot and he still can't hit the rim. My expectations are very low for him on offense. He'd would have to improve to be considered bad at this point.

[stevemcqueen1]

Talk about overrating someone.

He's not a good rotation player. He's not our best defensive player. He's not a legitimately good defender and he's an average rebounder.

You're wrong. On all counts. He is our best all around defender (curious, who do you think is better?). He's a good rebounder. He's a good rotation player. He's a good defender, especially for a rookie.

---------- Post added April-15th-2012 at 01:44 PM ----------

I know, right?

Vesely was one of the oldest players drafted in round 1 - 6th pick at that. He also has PRO experience. But yea...Wizards fans should have tempered their expectations for him.

I'll give him this...he's played well in April. Hopefully he can keep the momentum going into the off-season...work on his jumper, and be a guy who can fill the stat-sheet going forward.

You don't know what you're talking about.

[No Excuses]

You're wrong. On all counts. He is our best all around defender (curious, who do you think is better?). He's a good rebounder. He's a good rotation player. He's a good defender, especially for a rookie.

Yeah prove it. His numbers are so incredibly mediocre and he's doing this on the 2nd worst team in the NBA.

Good rotation player? I can only laugh at that. He's a bad starter on a terrible team. He wouldn't crack the rotation of any legitimate NBA team.

[RonArtest15]

You're wrong. On all counts. He is our best all around defender (curious, who do you think is better?). He's a good rebounder. He's a good rotation player. He's a good defender, especially for a rookie.

---------- Post added April-15th-2012 at 01:44 PM ----------



You don't know what you're talking about.

Oh, all-knowing Steve McQueen...please enlighten me as to what exactly I'm missing here? Thanks.

[No Excuses]

Oh, all-knowing Steve McQueen...please enlighten me as to what exactly I'm missing here? Thanks.

You're not watching games with his super awesome homer glasses. The one which make terrible starters on terrible teams all of a sudden " good at things".

[Destino]

I am not a believer in players that can't shoot becoming good shooters. If that were easy we'd see it all the time but even bad free throw shooters tend to rarely improve to good. Bad to average? That is more likely. Vesely needs to get stronger and work on short range. His speed and length can make him effective near the basket. I didn't like him drafted for the SF spot and still don't.

Having said that he is a good rotation player and defender off the bench. You want more than a glue guy from the 6th overall pick but that's what we have so far.

---------- Post added April-15th-2012 at 01:54 PM ----------

Yeah prove it. His numbers are so incredibly mediocre and he's doing this on the 2nd worst team in the NBA.

Good rotation player? I can only laugh at that. He's a bad starter on a terrible team. He wouldn't crack the rotation of any legitimate NBA team.

Right because the nba is filled with bigs that are terrific scorers. No room for energy guys in this league....

Have you seen what passes for talent standing 6'10 or taller coming off the bench?

[StillUnknown]

I am not a believer in players that can't shoot becoming good shooters. If that were easy we'd see it all the time but even bad free throw shooters tend to rarely improve to good. Bad to average? That is more likely. Vesely needs to get stronger and work on short range. His speed and length can make him effective near the basket. I didn't like him drafted for the SF spot and still don't.

Having said that he is a good rotation player and defender off the bench. You want more than a glue guy from the 6th overall pick but that's what we have so far.

I try to look past Vesely's draft position and see him for what he is, then I remember how long Ernie & crew locked in on him and wonder how much research they did on the rest of the class.

[No Excuses]

Right because the nba is filled with bigs that are terrific scorers. No room for energy guys in this league....

Have you seen what passes for talent standing 6'10 or taller coming off the bench?

Energy guys like Vesely offer something much more than bad defense and mediocre rebounding.

Jan doesn't have a single skill that passes him as a good rotation guy yet. He'll likely turn out as a good bench player, maybe even passable starter in the next two years but right now he wouldn't crack the rotation of any good NBA team.

He's over matched most nights at just about every skill an NBA PF needs.

[stevemcqueen1]

Oh, all-knowing Steve McQueen...please enlighten me as to what exactly I'm missing here? Thanks.

Yeah prove it. His numbers are so incredibly mediocre and he's doing this on the 2nd worst team in the NBA.

Good rotation player? I can only laugh at that. He's a bad starter on a terrible team. He wouldn't crack the rotation of any legitimate NBA team.

You're not watching games with his super awesome homer glasses. The one which make terrible starters on terrible teams all of a sudden " good at things".

Better to watch the games the way I do then not watch them at all like you Vishal. Apparently you're not watching if you think that about Vesely. Or don't know what you're looking at. Artest, you know basketball fairly well although I think you get knee jerk from time to time. Vishal, you don't. And you are a complete prisoner of the moment.

Vesely is easily the best all around defender on the team. The only ones I could see a case for are Nene and Singleton, but Nene isn't as versatile as Vesely and Singleton isn't as consistent.

Vesely switches well, traps well, knows when to help out, stays in front of perimeter players better thany everyone else except Singleton, protects the rim well, and plays the passing lanes better than everyone else on the team. He's a good, consistent, cognizant defender that does his job well and sticks out like a sore thumb on our team because no one else does. He's got the ability to become a terrific defender in time.

He's also a good rebounder. He has good hands, does a fair job boxing out, understands positioning, hustles, can put it back with a strong finish, and gets a lot of tip outs on the offensive end. Plain and simple, he knows how to play. There is a reason we made him untouchable. His potential and his level of play is much higher than the haters like you and Skin Em Alive in here give him credit for.

[StillUnknown]

There is a reason we made him untouchable. His potential and his level of play is much higher than the haters like you and Skin Em Alive in here give him credit for.

I still refuse to believe that fluff about Vesely being untouchable. There is nothing about his game or potential that qualifies for him that label.