The Official Washington Wizards Thread

[StillUnknown]

Gene Wang
‏@gene_wang
Coach Randy Wittman after #Wizards drop to 0-9: "If I had a cell phone, I'd be calling the waiver wire."


Translation: "Ernie's roster is ****."

[Destino]

Gene Wang
‏@gene_wang
Coach Randy Wittman after #Wizards drop to 0-9: "If I had a cell phone, I'd be calling the waiver wire."

Translation: "Ernie's roster is ****."

that should fix that confidence problem. lol

He's in a lose lose situation, and I realize that, but he's not a good coach. They should force Ernie to do a press conference after every loss. That way he gets to sweat instead of sit back and point to the latest scape goat.

[StillUnknown]

that should fix that confidence problem. lol

He's in a lose lose situation, and I realize that, but he's not a good coach. They should force Ernie to do a press conference after every loss. That way he gets to sweat instead of sit back and point to the latest scape goat.

bad coach + bad roster = franchise worst start

[MonkFan8]

I feel bad Randy is going to be the first fall guy for this mess. I don't agree with him all game every game, but he does what he can.

[stevemcqueen1]

I don't feel bad for Randy. He's making a ton of money doing a job he's obviously unqualified for. But firing him clearly doesn't fix the problem.

[Fight4RGIII]

Keep bad coach and don't try to upgrade
Keep even worse GM and don't try to upgrade
Trade for useless vets so far in the season

It's all part of the plan...


Or was I suppose to do the exact opposite?....


Oh, Dear God, What have I done?


This tear is for the fans, I weep for you...

[StillUnknown]

If the Wizards didn't have some of the funniest fans, this losing streak would suck even more than it does.

Laughter eases the pain somewhat.

[Destino]

http://www.bulletsforever.com/2012/1...-randy-wittman

The scene in the postgame press conference was the most dour we've ever seen. To say Randy Wittman was sad would be and understatement. Read some of his soul-searching below.

WASHINGTON -- Within each game and from game-to-game, it's an emotional roller-coaster. Lows so low you think you'll never return from the depths. Highs so high you think there's nothing that could ever bring you down.

Then David West nails a handful of baseline jumpers to nail the coffin shut on another potential comeback.

These quotes don't do justice to just how despondent the post-game atmosphere was after the Washington Wizards' sank to a franchise record 0-9 with a 96-89 loss to the Indiana Pacers. Randy Wittman walked into the press conference with an eerie calmness as if he were a long lost Albert Camus character. He wasn't quite sad; he wasn't quite confused. He knew what had happened, as if he had been watching the whole game in slow-motion himself and replaying it. Is Randy Wittman the Sisyphus of the NBA? Or does that moniker get extended to the whole team? For tonight, it seemed Wittman was holding in the emotions of many, trying not to release them. He wanted to let everyone know that he was ready to put this game away and move onto the next one.

Here are some of the things he said.

On slow starts:

"We've got to figure out how to play a game, a whole game. You know, you guys just ought to put this in reverse and replay what I say. I don't know how to start. Who to play. Who not to play. It's the confusion of different guys every game, whether it's starters or bench, bench or starters. We have no consistency in our group of play. I mean, to get off to a start like we did tonight. There's no excuse for it. What was it, 26-7? We were almost taking down shots to take worse shots. Well i know someone in here is going to ask me, "Well why do they do that?" I don't know. I don't know. It's the same thing. Did we give up? No. We had that second group that finished the game that just played their tails off. Did a lot of good things. Alright, but that's why you lose.

On confusion in roles, plays, and lineups:

Confusion comes when I'm a shooter and I've got an open shot, you shoot the ball. If I'm a non-shooter, I pass the ball. Idon't know. I'm trying to figure that out. I dont know who's going to start, who's going to play. It's just so inconsistent in play. Top to bottom. I told you, I'd love to have an 8-9 man rotation. That's my dream. And I'm playing 12-13 every night. You can't do that in an NBA game. If you want to develop a group and then a group that comes in, I'm having a hard time doing that with the play right now.

"This is the 2nd game this group started together. We'll look at it, sleep on it. I'll come up with something."

On aggressiveness and hesitation:

We just become hesitant. A little bit of that is 0-9. If you're hesitant in your thinking and action, you're not confidant, and you're not making right decisions. You gotta just keep working at that. We'll eventually eventually find a group that'll bring us that. I don't know what else to tell you guys. It's just kind of a broken record.

On faith:

These guys can win. It's not that I don't believe in them. I come in here every day thinking "This is the night. I feel good." I might be dumb, but I do believe in them. I really do. I told them that tonight before the game. I mean, to keep fighting like we fight, some point it's gotta to come together. For a whole game. We'll have those 8-9 that are on the same page for 48 minutes. They're on there. And now I gotta make a decision of who to play down the stretch from those 8 or 9. I'm looking down the whole roster, and if I had a cell phone, I'd be calling the waiver wire, trying to find another body. I'm just searching. Searching for people to give me consistency. As a group, we need that. That's what we need. Both as a starting group and as a group that comes off the bench. I'll toss another group out there, and we'll see if we can't find a group that starts off well. And maybe those guys will settle in. I'm going to keep trying.

On premonition:

I have no idea [if Livingston is part of the group that will start next]. If I had that answer right now, I'd be a genius.

Doesn't that just make you want to rush out and buy Wizards merchandise? No? Well to hell with you fair weather bastards!

[StillUnknown]

http://www.bulletsforever.com/2012/1...-randy-wittman

[Skin'emAlive]

Haha.. Wittman is a funny dude.

[BRAVEONTHEWARPATH93]

http://i5.minus.com/ig7fu40lNd1au.jpg

Envisioning himself not being cursed with playing here

[Warhead36]

Wittman is a proven loser coach, but really NOBODY would win with this roster. Coaching matters little in the NBA. It's about talent. And we have less of it then anyone else in the league.

[AsiaticSkinsFan]

Its tough to go 0-8 and 0-9 to start the season two years in a row. I see no upside to Ariza playing at all. Okafor could possibly be serviceable. I read this on another board, but i think it hits close to the mark:

At one point in the offseason, New Orleans needed to amnesty either Okafor, or Ariza in order to rebuild. It was guaranteed that one of those guys would have been off the books and cheap at some point later on. Yet, not only do we trade a guy whose contract was 1 year less, and worth both of them combined ( whom NO gladly amnestied), we also gave them a draft pick. And even worse... neither of them even serve a purpose on this team that (obviously) needed offensive help. Im sorry, no one can screw up this badly on accident. This is on both EG and Ted. Ted has proven to be cheap and willing to throw garbage out there, and EG has proven for years that he has no idea what he is doing. The franchise is doomed.

what can be said after this, so sad

[abdcskins]

I'm starting to think my 18 win prediction was being generous. 15 wins?

What trash. Why exactly did people think we would be good this year again?

[Destino]

One thing to note about Lewis' deal versus Okariza. Lewis' final year was only partially guaranteed so in addition to clearing 20+ million in space the following year it also granted immediate savings. Neither Okafor or Ariza have that, instead they have early termination and player options for next year both fully guaranteed. That makes the contracts we took on significantly less valuable than what we gave up. That is why Lewis is playing in Miami under a brand new deal and the Hornets started on their team without him already. We will have no such option.

The trade will define the wizards until at least next years trade dealing IMO unless one of them, likely Ariza, can produce enough to make some team think he could help them in, or in getting to, the postseason. No one is going to take Okafor's 14 million a year contract, its pure poison, considering how far his play has fallen.

The reason this matters is that it makes coming here less appealing to a GM and there is no prone coach that would consider this job after what Wittmen is saying about the roster.