Washington Wizards: NBA Draft

2010 NBA Draft Lottery: Wizards Beat the Odds

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 18 May 2010 21:11:36 -0400

The 2010 NBA Draft Lottery was held Tuesday night, May 18th, in Secaucus, NJ (as always). The Washington Wizards beat the odds and won the #1 pick in the Draft, which presumably will go to John Wall. This is the 6th time in a row the team with the worst record did not win the #1 pick. (Last year, the Clippers won the #1 pick, with Sacramento losing out, and used it on Blake Griffin. Read more about the history of the #1 pick in the Lottery).

The New Jersey Nets had the best chance at #1 with 25% odds, but slid down to 3rd place . Notice however, that they actually had less than a 50% chance combined (46.47) of getting the Top 2 picks. There was actually a better chance (53.53%) that they would get the 3rd or 4th pick. Philadelphia was the night's other big winner, moving up from a 6th place tie with Detroit.

Besides John Wall, a guard out of Kentucky, the other likely top picks include his teammate DeMarcus Cousins, Evan Turner of Ohio State, and Derrick Favors, a raw forward out of Georgia Tech.

Draft Order

1. Washington

2. Philadelphia

3. New Jersey

4. Minnesota

5. Sacramento

6. Golden State

7. Detroit

8. Los Angeles

9. Utah

10. Indiana

11. New Orleans

12. Memphis

13. Toronto

14. Houston

Draft Odds

TEAM	RECORD	CHANCES	1ST	2ND	3RD
New Jersey	12-70	250	25.00%	21.5%	17.7%
Minnesota	15-67	199	19.90%	18.8%	17.1%
Sacramento	25-57	156	15.60%	15.7%	15.5%
Golden State	26-56	104	10.40%	11.2%	12.1%
Washington	26-56	103	10.30%	11.1%	12.0%
Philadelphia	27-55	53	5.30%	6.0%	7.0%
Detroit	27-55	53	5.30%	6.0%	7.0%
LA Clippers	29-53	23	2.20%	2.7%	3.2%
Utah*	(29-53)	22	2.20%	2.6%	3.1%
Indiana	32-50	11	1.10%	1.3%	1.6%
New Orleans	37-45	8	0.80%	0.9%	1.2%
Memphis	40-42	7	0.70%	0.8%	1.0%
Toronto	40-42	6	0.60%	0.7%	0.9%
Houston	42-40	5	0.50%	0.6%	0.7%

*Originally the Knicks pick. Good work by Isiah..

Washington Wizards: 2009 NBA Draft

Jason Hirschhorn — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 11:41:15 -0400

2009 NBA DRAFT: NBA Team Needs/Capsules - NBA Mock Draft - Top 100 Prospects

- We’ll update our Team Capsules with more specific info once the lottery is complete.

Washington Wizards

2008-09 Record: 19-63; 5th Southeast

Draft Picks: 2, 33 (Pending Lottery)

Key Free Agents:

Juan Dixon

Mike James (Player Option)

Etan Thomas (Early Termination Option)

Projected Roster:

PG: Gilbert Arenas

SG: Dominic McGuire

SF: Caron Butler

PF: Antawn Jamison

C: Brendan Haywood

Key Bench: Jarvaris Crittenton, JaVale McGee, Darius Songaila, Nick Young

How they got here and what they need:

Things were looking up after the conclusion of the 2007 season. That quickly changed when Gilbert Arenas, fresh off signing a megadeal to keep him in Washington, endured a major knee injury similar to the one that kept him off the court for most of the previous season. Washington’s fortunes went the way of the economy, and plummeted towards an eventual 19-63 record. While Arenas did return near the end of the season, he was clearly still hindered by his troublesome knee. This will be a critical year for Arenas, as he can either become a remade player the franchise can build around or he’ll be Washington’s version of Allen Houston. He should be ready to go full speed by the start of next year, as will Brendan Haywood who missed all but six games of the 2008-09 season. 2009-10 will be the first in Washington for new coach Flip Saunders.

Despite nearly constant trade rumors centering on Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison, it appears the powers that be in Washington will keep them for at least one more year in an attempt to make a championship run. Washington, when healthy, is certainly capable of being competitive in the still diminutive Eastern Conference. With the addition of a top three pick, the Wizards should certainly be a playoff team, perhaps even one that can make it past the first round and maybe even more. Because of Arenas’ inability to stay healthy and the fact he’s not a true point guard, finding someone to play the point so Arenas can play on the wing would be a huge step in the right direction for the Wizards. Javaris Crittenton is almost certainly not the answer at point guard, and like Arenas be better off playing as a wing. The Wizards could stand to get a little bigger in the frontcourt, where Jamison is a bit undersized and after Haywood there aren’t many quality players who can play center taller than 6-9. Last year’s first rounder JaVale McGee could be that guy, but he hasn’t shown he can be consistent yet.

Who they take:

The Wizards will be drafting very high this year. Should they land the top pick, there would be serious pressure from the fans and pundits to take Oklahoma star Blake Griffin. While he is the best player available in what is generally considered a shallow draft class, he doesn’t fill a big need for the Wizards, who already have quality players at the 3 through 5 positions. This doesn’t mean they should pass on him, as Griffin is one of those players who you find a way to use if you can land him. Should Washington not end up with the top pick, the easy choice for the team is international sensation point guard Ricky Rubio. Rubio has drawn comparisons to Steve Nash and Pete Maravich for his incredible passing ability. His shooting needs considerable coaching before it is NBA level, however this is a team that should be able to score efficiently if everyone’s healthy. If Rubio can come in and run the offense the way Derrick Rose did this past year for Chicago, this is a team that can be 2009-10’s big surprise.

10 Year Draft History:

2008: JaVale McGee (18th); Bill Walker (47th)

2007: Nick Young (16th); Dominic McGuire (47th)

2006: Oleksiy Pecherov (18th); Vladimir Veremeenko (48th)

2005: Andray Blatche (49th)

2004: Devin Harris (5rd); Peter John Ramos (32nd)

2003: Jarvis Hayes (10th); Steve Blake (38th)

2002: Jared Jeffries (11th); Juan Dixon (17th); Rod Gizzard (38th); Juan Carlos Navarro (39th)

2001: Kwame Brown (1st)

2000: Mike Smith (35th)

1999: Richard Hamilton (7th); Calvin Booth (35th)

2009 NBA DRAFT: NBA Team Needs/Capsules - NBA Mock Draft - Top 100 Prospects

Top Prospects

Stephen Curry - PG/SG - Davidson

Tyreke Evans - PG/SG - Memphis

Blake Griffin - PF - Oklahoma

James Harden - SG - Arizona State

Jordan Hill - PF - Arizona

Ty Lawson - PG - UNC

BJ Mullens - C - Ohio State

Ricky Rubio - PG - DKV Joventut

Brandon Jennings - PG - Arizona

Hasheem Thabeet - C - UCONN

Cheerleader of the Day: Washington Wizards #2

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 15:39:32 -0400

Cheerleader of the Day

Thanks to our friends over at Icon Sports Media, we have access to thousands of great college & NBA basketball photos to use on the site. Each day, along with our Picture of the Day, we'll be featuring a Cheerleader of the Day. In honor of the upcoming NBA Draft, we'll be focusing on NBA dancers until the end of June!

Miami Heat

- Check out past Cheerleaders of the Day!

- Also check out the Picture of the Day!

Washington Wizards: NBA Draft Team Needs

Raphielle Johnson — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 02:59:37 -0400

2007-08 Record: 43-39; 2^nd Southeast

Draft Picks: 18, 47

Key Free Agents

G Gilbert Arenas (will opt out of contract)

F Antawn Jamison

How they got here and what they need

The Wizards once again made the playoffs; and once again the Wizards were sent home by the Cavaliers. But that was just the beginning of the bad news as Gilbert Arenas announced his intentions to opt out of the final year of his deal and become a free agent. Along with Antawn Jamison, two of Washington's big three could be on their way out of the Beltway this summer. Therefore, this is an extremely important draft in regards to the future of this franchise.

There's a good cast of players still under contract for Eddie Jordan if both stars were to leave, but they need another body inside and players willing to play some more defense. If they can kill two birds with one stone then that would be even better.

Who they take

You hate to lean on upside, especially when you're already a playoff team in desperate need of some help down low. But if GM Ernie Grunfeld doesn't move this pick then they may be in that exact situation. Nevada's JeVale McGee may be the pick, although to be honest with you he may have cost himself some money by not taking one more year in college to hone his skills.

Draft History Since 2000:

2007 - Nick Young (16), Dominic McGuire (47)

2006 - Oleksiy Pecherov (18), Vladimir Veremeenko (48)

2005 - Andray Blatche (49)

2004 - Devin Harris (5), Peter John Ramos (32)

2003 - Jarvis Hayes (10), Steve Blake (38)

2002 - Jared Jeffries (11), Juan Dixon (17), Rod Grizzard (38), Juan Carlos Navarro (39)

2001 - Kwame Brown (1)

2000 - Mike Smith (35)

Cheerleader of the Day: Wizards #3

Shawn Siegel — Fri, 30 May 2008 12:06:48 -0400

Cheerleader of the Day

Washington Wizards: #3

- Check out past Cheerleaders of the Day!

- Also check out the Picture of the Day!

Cheerleader of the Day: Washington Wizards

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 12 May 2008 09:42:38 -0400

Cheerleader of the Day

Washington Wizards

- Check out past Cheerleaders of the Day!

- Also check out the Picture of the Day!

All-Time Draft Studs & Duds: Part Two

Jeff Fox — Sat, 16 Jun 2007 09:19:02 -0400

Part One of All-Time NBA Draft Studs & Duds contains Atlanta through Miami.

Milwaukee Bucks

Stud:

1969-#1- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Dud:

1988-#13- Jeff Grayer

Could have had: Dan Majerle, Rod Strickland, Anthony Mason

Minnesota Timberwolves

Stud:

1995-#5- Kevin Garnett

Dud:

1999-#6- Wally Szczerbiak

Could have had: Richard Hamilton, Shawn Marion, Ron Artest

New Jersey Nets

Stud:

1977-#7- Bernard King

Dud:

1987-#3- Dennis Hopson

Could have had: Scottie Pippen, Reggie Miller

New Orleans Hornets

Stud:

1996-#13- Kobe Bryant

Dud:

1989-#5- J.R. Reid

Could have had: Tim Hardaway, Shawn Kemp

New York Knicks

Stud:

1964- 2^nd round - #10 overall - Willis Reed

Dud:

1962-#2- Duke Hogue

Could have had: Dave deBusschere, Jerry Lucas, John Havlicek

Orlando Magic

Stud:

1992-#1- Shaquille O’Neal

Dud:

2003-#13- Reece Gaines

Could have had: Josh Howard

Philadelphia 76ers

Stud:

1984-#5- Charles Barkley

Dud:

1997-#2- Keith Van Horn

Could have had: Tracy McGrady, Chauncey Billups

Phoenix Suns

Stud:

1996-#15- Steve Nash

Dud:

1987-#2- Armon Gilliam

Could have had: Scottie Pippen, Reggie Miller

Portland Trailblazers

Stud:

1983-#14- Clyde Drexler

Dud:

1984-#2- Sam Bowie

Could have had: Michael Jordan, John Stockton, Charles Barkley

Sacramento Kings

Stud:

1970-#19- Tiny Archibald

Dud:

1956-#1- Si Green

Could have had: Bill Russell

San Antonio

Stud:

1999- 2^nd round - #57 overall – Manu Ginobli

Dud:

1984-#7- Alvin Robertson

Could have had: John Stockton

Seattle Sonics

Stud:

1987-#5- Scottie Pippen

Dud:

2001-#2- Vlad Radmanovic

Could have had: Richard Hamilton, Shawn Marion, Ron Artest

Toronto Raptors

Stud:

1997-#9- Tracy McGrady

Dud:

1999-#5- Jonathan Bender

Could have had: Richard Hamilton, Shawn Marion, Ron Artest

Utah Jazz

Stud:

1985-#13- Karl Malone

Dud:

1980-#2- Darrell Griffith

Could have had: Kevin McHale

Washington Wizards

Stud:

1968-#2- Wes Unseld

Dud:

1984-#6- Melvin Turpin

Could have had: John Stockton

Return to Part One of All-Time NBA Draft Studs & Duds