There are some people in this business who must get a rise out one-upping themselves when it comes to saying the most stupid and outlandish thing they can formulate at the moment.
Ladies and gentleman, I give you John Hollinger.
Hollinger, of ESPN.com, has ranked the Wizards the 13th best team in the Eastern Conference.
This genius writes: "I see Washington in decline for at least a year or two or until the youngsters are ready to step up."
That's a pretty interesting place to begin. What he's saying is that the established trio of Gilbert Arenas, Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler are OK. But things will get better when players such as Andray Blatche, Oleksiy Pecherov, Nick Young and Dominic McGuire reach their potential.
Funny, last time I checked all of the real question marks were swirling around the Wizards' young players, not the established all-stars, two of whom are just about to enter their primes.
Eddie Jordan got a good chuckle out of this earlier in the week, and then made the crack that many coaches make: That's why writers write and players play.
A lot of people in the area got worked up over this.
Not me. Especially when he penned in Houston as the top team in the Western Conference.
Heck, stay in the Eastern Conference, where he's written in the Chicago Bulls as the top team. Last time I checked the Bulls, who shocked us when they beat a limping Miami team in the playoffs before Detroit swatted them away, didn't do much to their roster other than draft Joakim Noah. The best complement anybody has given Noah is that he plays like Cleveland's Anderson Varejao. Excuse me, but is that what you want with the ninth overall pick in the draft?
I think the Wizards are capable of winning 50. I don't think anyone would have bet against that until the injuries became a problem.
I'd suggest to Wiz fans that you just don't forget this article. And when the Wizards are rolling -- and they do have the potential to be a very good veteran team -- ask Hollinger his opinion then.
-- John N. Mitchell
Comments (5)
I don't think that's what he's saying at all, and I'm struggling to see how you came to that conclusion.
What he's trying to say is that, based on his PER projections that are based on the historical performance of similar players, there's reason to believe that each of the Big 3 will be worse this year and in the future. And with them being worse (they were, after all, only 41-41 with each having spectacular seasons, and were probably heading for a 44-45 win finish even if Arenas and Butler got hurt), Hollinger doesn't think anyone else from that bench can pick up the slack for at least a couple of years (he points to Antonio Daniels as one guy who, based on the history of similar players, should experience a sharp decline).
Hence, the team is in decline, because those young players (Nick Young, Pecherov, Blatche, etc.) are probably a year or two away from making a significant impact.
Hey, I disagree with him too, and I wrote a lot about it, but he's by no means a lunatic. If you're going to call him crazy, perhaps you should work harder to understand what he's actually saying.
Posted by Pradamaster | October 7, 2007 1:04 AM
He has the Atlanta Hawks as number 7 in the conference that by definition means hes crazy
Posted by Anonymous | October 7, 2007 6:14 PM
Reading is a skill. Hollinger's ranking system was for the regular season record, not the playoffs or who will come out of the East. I don't see how any team's recent playoff experience is relevant.
Washington finished last season at 42-42. With the emergence of the Celtics and years more worth of seasoning in Chicago and Cleveland, the East has gotten stronger at the top. Wallace has had a year to become accustomed to his new teammates, and Lebron will be even more Lebronish (if that's a word?) regardless of what other turmoil the Cavs are going through this off season. Oh, and Dwayne Wade will be back.
This season, I'd bet against Washington winning 50, even with a non-injury plagued year. Their ceiling on wins is lower, and you would have to adjust their over/under likewise. And it's for exactly the reasons that Hollinger wrote: no depth; over-reliance on a couple of stars, who all have histories with injury. And the end of the day, the Wiz and just not that "good," and even if they have a miraculously injury free year, it's still going to be a bumpy road.
Posted by Such Sweet Thunder | October 7, 2007 7:18 PM
Such Sweet Thunder, Please name me another team on Hollinger's list who has 3 All Stars and are ranked as low as the Wizards? His rating makes no sense whatsoever. Boston has only 3 legitimate players(all stars) on the roster, no point guard w/exp, have not played together 1 minute, yet are ranked 3rd in the East. You call it the "emergence of Boston?" What have they done? Miami has an old, unmotivated Shaq and a banged-up Dwayne Wade and nothing else, yet they're 6th? Atlanta 7th? No way the Wizards finish 13th in the East and not make the playeoffs. And btw, Hollinger's rating is for determining who are in the playoffs. That is why he gave each team's projected final record for the upcoming season. Duh! You are correct, reading is a skill! Wizards get 45-50 wins!!
Posted by Garry | October 9, 2007 12:51 PM
His predictions are based on his statistical projections. He goes about it in a way that seems weird to me, but it's not biased or crazy. 33 wins seems way off to me, but I can easily see this being a .500 team or a little worse if they don't get significant contributions from people who didn't contribute much last year.
Also, how can you not see the Bulls and Rockets as legit contenders? I think the Bulls are overrated, but they're still scary, and the Rockets probably have more talent than any team in the league.
Garry - The Wizards don't have three all stars. They have one all star and two guys who have played in one all star game. As to you question regarding Boston, "What have they done?", what have the WIzards done this season? Nothing. It hasn't started yet. Also, you are still losing the reading comprehension game: SST was saying that past playoff performance and future playoff chances have nothing to do with these rankings. He didn't say anything about qualifying for the playoffs.
Posted by Gus | October 12, 2007 2:58 PM