Dear Washington Wizards
The end of an era...
via The New York Times:
The machine that swirls the Ping-Pong balls does not have a conscience or sympathy, just a rush of air and a low hum. Occasionally, however, a little karma seeps out when the motor starts for the N.B.A. draft lottery.
The Washington Wizards, who endured the most chaotic and controversy-filled season in their history, were rewarded for their suffering Tuesday night, when the balls delivered them the No. 1 pick in the draft — and the chance to draft the Kentucky point guard John Wall.
“Obviously, we needed something like this,” Ernie Grunfeld, the Wizards’ team president, said. “It gives the franchise hope.”
Perhaps no team needed it more. Gilbert Arenas, the Wizards’ franchise player, served a 50-game suspension for felony gun possession after a locker-room confrontation with a teammate. They traded their two remaining stars, Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison, in mid-February, plunging them into a rebuilding effort after starting the season as a presumed playoff team.
It's been a long, long, looooooooooooong season for you guys. From thinking you were going to be a playoff team in the beginning of the year, to damn near having a 'shootout' (most people know the news blew it out of proportion), to unloading the three best (we later found out Andray Blatche was a player himself) players, to basically tanking for the rest of the season, you guys had one of the worst seasons in terms of publicity. Now, you guys lucked the hell out by nabbing the first pick in this year's draft, and by that virtue, the righ to the consensus #1 player, John Wall. I'm not going to lie, John Wall is impressive. He has superb athleticism, a natural feel for the game and an unmatched charisma on the court. Plus he has a really funny dance, which only comes around once in a blue moon. (where's Jamal Anderson with the Dirty Bird when you need him?. Even so, he might not be the right pick for you guys.
Check the dance and some highlights..
Everyone and their mom is saying that Wall is automatically the #1 pick. Somehow, I'm not convinced. Watching Evan Turner play the game is like watching Prince on a stage with a bunch of instruments: no matter how crazy he looks, he's always in control. Whereas John Wall tended to take plays off because he had a college all-star team with him, Turner really was the only player worth talking about on his Ohio State Buckeye team. Whereas John Wall is streaky and turnover prone (every good prospect is in college, really), Evan Turner was damn near perfect towards the end of games. Whereas we've seen just a year of John Wall at a higher level, we've seen Evan Turner grow every year into a DOMINANT player. The man was a triple-double machine, with amazing intangibles, a quiet lead-by-example style and the resolve of a brick wall (haha, nice little pun).
I guess the point I'm trying to make, Wizards, is that you shouldn't always believe the hype. Believe what you see. Believe the statistics, believe the intangibles, and your gut feelings. Who knows? In 10 years, we could be talking about just Wall, just Turner, or maybe even both. Drafting is such an inexact science, that I don't think I've seen anyone master. That said, it's just as easy to pick one over the other. But just think about your team. Do you really want another livewire, somewhat loose, inexperienced point guard, or a floor general. If there's one thing that you guys were missing, it was leadership. Evan Turner has a presence that belies his maturity. John Wall has a dance. I guess it's up to you guys. We sure as hell will be hearing about it a lot until June 24th...