The Official Washington Wizards Thread

[pjfootballer]

Broussard reporting that the Nets and Magic are negotiating a deal for Dwight.

And I agree with Stevemcqueen about Joe Johnson. He has something like 4 yrs 90 million left. Insane.

[No Excuses]

The Nets are stuck in mediocrity if they don't get Dwight. With Dwight that's a pretty nasty team.

Being the 6th-8th seed in the NBA while capped out financially is the worst thing that can happen to your team. I fear we are headed in that same direction unless the front office is changed.

[Skin'emAlive]

If this deal goes through.. we are doomed. Nets/Bulls/Heat/Celtics are all going to be stacked. We need John Wall to go into allstar mode this season.

[Hersh]

If this deal goes through.. we are doomed. Nets/Bulls/Heat/Celtics are all going to be stacked. We need John Wall to go into allstar mode this season.

The Wiz should still be a team competing for a playoff spot. Assuming Indiana is still a playoff team, that leaves 3 spots between NY, Philly, Wizards, and maybe Milwaukee or Toronto??
Orlando and Atlanta will fall off significantly.

[stevemcqueen1]

EVERYTHING I've heard/read/seen indeed says that the deal is contingent on Williams resigning. And Atlanta doesn't really have a choice. That's the deal. Also heard that DWill suggested Johnson and "approved the trade" so I'm assuming it's a done deal.

Atlanta has also traded Marvin Williams to Utah. Didn't see the terms on that.

Lastly, anyone putting the Okafor/Ariza trade in the same boat as this Johnson trade for Brooklyn, either a) has no clue what Johnsons contract looks like, b) Hasn't watched Johnson much over the past couple of years c) doesn't realize that Brooklyn also threw in a #1 pick, d) has a full-blown case of EDS or e) some combination of those. Not even in the same ballpark. This Johnson deal is an absolute franchise killer for Brooklyn. Total panic move.

ESPN.com reported Sunday that finalizing any deal with the Hawks was contingent upon Williams telling the Nets that he plans to re-sign with them July 11, which is the first day new NBA contracts can be signed. But sources close to the process said Monday that the Nets have changed their stance and are preparing to go through with the trade whether or not Williams commits to Brooklyn.

http://espn.go.com/new-york/nba/stor...ks-sources-say

Looks like this is a done deal.

You're underestimating Joe Johnson's quality. Last year he was hurt for long stretches and didn't perform at his usual level. Ball stopped too much with him when before he's been a quality source of ball movement.

When healthy, Johnson is the third best SG in the league and the second best in the East. He is a legit star player, Okafor and Ariza aren't neatly as good as him. Johnson is a creative ISO scorer that can provide crunch time offense. He has always been a high assists guy for a SG. He rebounds well. And he defends multiple positions at a high level.

But I feel like he's a bit ball dominant to be pairing with Deron. To me this move signifies Deron wants to be a more active scorer and have Johnson pick up the slack in his assist numbers. DWill could probably score 25+ PPG if he got to work off the ball more, he's a gifted sorer.

If the Nets got Dwight Howard though... he'd be the second or third offensive option and would just get easy bucket after easy bucket all damn day. Nobody could double him. If they got him and kept Kris Humphries, then by God, they'd be the best defensive and rebounding team by a mile. They'd be huge and powerful at every position. They'd just bully teams around and force you to be absolutely perfect with every possession. I think they'd unseat the Bulls and Heat at the top of the conference in time.

[pjfootballer]

Lopez, Humphries and Jordan Williams are parts of the deal to acquire Dwight. Plus another guy and 13, 15 and 17 first round picks to Orlando.

[stevemcqueen1]

The Wiz should still be a team competing for a playoff spot. Assuming Indiana is still a playoff team, that leaves 3 spots between NY, Philly, Wizards, and maybe Milwaukee or Toronto??
Orlando and Atlanta will fall off significantly.

Orlando would be cooked but Atlanta will still have a high quality front court and be right there in it for the final spots.

NY will make it.

Philly has shown they can make it. Toronto is promising but might still be a little ways off. Is their defensive turnaround for real? Milwaukee will be good defensively but does Monta Ellis get them over the hump with his offense? I have my doubts.

I think we'll have as good a shot as anyone because we'll be strong defensively and John is ready to make his leap. Once he does, he'll be a far better player than anyone on Toronto/Milwaukee/Atlanta/Philly and give us a leg up on everyone else.

I also think Boston could tumble a bit the next few years if Jared Sullinger doesn't work out. Avery Bradley is a high quality defender but not an outlet for Rondo to pile up dimes. Ray Allen is probably gone. KG turned it on for the playoffs, but he's getting older and declining a little more every year. Pierce looks like he's about cooked. Bass is probably getting traded (and a fairly mediocre player anyway IMO). The Celtics are a slow team with a PG who wants to and is extremely capable of playing very fast. I don't think they stay at the top of the conference for long unless Sully becomes the next Kevin Love.

[TaylorPickSix]

How in the hell can the Nets get Howard now? Didn't they just trade away most of their alluring assets? Not to mention, they now have big $$$ tied into Johnson, Wallace, and presumably Williams.

EDIT: Just saw pj's post. That's nuts.

[stevemcqueen1]

Lopez, Humphries and Jordan Williams are parts of the deal to acquire Dwight. Plus another guy and 13, 15 and 17 first round picks to Orlando.

That deal looks way crappier than one they probably could have gotten before from somebody else. Remember when it was possibly Dwight for Andrew Bynum and change? Ouch.

Humphries in a sign and trade? I would insist on him if I'm Orlando. He's a gritty player and they'd need his toughness on the boards in the absence of Dwight. Lopez will at least give them some low post scoring I guess. Those draft picks would be worthless if Dwight and Deron are both still in Brooklyn.

---------- Post added July-3rd-2012 at 09:13 AM ----------

How in the hell can the Nets get Howard now? Didn't they just trade away most of their alluring assets? Not to mention, they now have big $$$ tied into Johnson, Wallace, and presumably Williams.

Prokhorov is one of the richest owners in the NBA and wouldn't blink at spending well into the luxury tax.

I don't know how they get him in trade. But Dwigh said it's the only team he wants to go to so that might be tying Orlando's hands. Nobody wants to give up something good for a one year rental. The Nets might be the only team that comes to the table to deal, and Orlando isn't going to want to lose him for nothing next summer.

There isn't a doubt in my mind that Howard will leave Orlando now.

---------- Post added July-3rd-2012 at 09:20 AM ----------

https://twitter.com/#!/Andrew_Perna

Remember this from the end of the season? http://www.washingtontimes.com/blog/...sdom-part-2-4/

“[We need] a veteran or two or three. Somebody that can be knock down shooter and play defense, and maybe even a veteran point guard. Somebody to help me and talk to me the way Kirk Hinrich did at certain times.”

Sounds like we'd be targeting a PG with some credibility more than a SG. I'd be surprised if we went for Randy Foye since he's not a very good PG. It looks like John wants someone capable of tutoring him a bit at his own position. Smart.

I think John Lucas sounded interesting. DC native who is used to playing behind Derrick Rose now. I wish Jason Kidd wasn't so hell bent on joining Deron Williams. He'd be an amazing mentor for John.

---------- Post added July-3rd-2012 at 09:23 AM ----------

Bulls will also take a brief tumble in the conference standings next season. Derrick Rose tore his ACL in May. It takes a year to really come back from those types on injuries. They'll be a mid to late seed without him playing at an All Star level for an entire season. Without Rose, they don't have enough offense to overcome from the fact they won't be perfect defensively for 82 games.

---------- Post added July-3rd-2012 at 09:31 AM ----------

Lopez, Humphries and Jordan Williams are parts of the deal to acquire Dwight. Plus another guy and 13, 15 and 17 first round picks to Orlando.

I'm reading it's Marshon Brooks and not Jordan Williams.

Williams looks like he was a part of the Joe Johnson deal.

[Skin'emAlive]

The Wiz should still be a team competing for a playoff spot. Assuming Indiana is still a playoff team, that leaves 3 spots between NY, Philly, Wizards, and maybe Milwaukee or Toronto??
Orlando and Atlanta will fall off significantly.

So... we have a ceiling of becoming the 5th best in the East. Terrific.

[TaylorPickSix]

Broussard tweeted Deron Williams is working out at the Nets practice facility. I know this isn't any different from what he's done all off-season, but you'd have to think the Nets wouldn't want him there if they thought he was gonna sign with Dallas...

[RonArtest15]

So... we have a ceiling of becoming the 5th best in the East. Terrific.

Um....you wouldn't take that?

Think about how bad this team has been in the Wall-era. IF they can make a jump from a 20-25 win team to being possibly as good as being the 5th seed in the East, you'd be ecstatic.

---------- Post added July-3rd-2012 at 11:46 AM ----------

Broussard tweeted Deron Williams is working out at the Nets practice facility. I know this isn't any different from what he's done all off-season, but you'd have to think the Nets wouldn't want him there if they thought he was gonna sign with Dallas...

Broussard is a clown. His "sources" are about as trustworthy as listing Yahoo Answers in a bibliography.

I don't doubt that Williams was working out in Brooklyn (he does live in NY, afterall)....but dude is a herb tweeting that to rile people up to think Williams is any closer to re-signing w. the Nets.

[Skin'emAlive]

Um....you wouldn't take that?

Think about how bad this team has been in the Wall-era. IF they can make a jump from a 20-25 win team to being possibly as good as being the 5th seed in the East, you'd be ecstatic.

What good is demolishing, and rebuilding a team if the best case scenario is that you are 5th best in your own conference. That sucks, and is depressing. We need to hope that Wall makes the leap this year.

[pjfootballer]

So... we have a ceiling of becoming the 5th best in the East. Terrific.

There is no way in hell we can go from 14th in the conference to 5th next year. There is no way in hell we are a playoff team next year. There is still a ton of work to do.

[Skin'emAlive]

Well.. i never said we would be 5th next year. I said we would have a ceiling of 5th. I think we can be a playoff team next year. But i dont think we are anywhere close to contending.