The Wizards Weren't Lying

[Xist2Inspire]

Last season I said that I could finally look at my roster and feel something, see potential. After a few long seasons of going through the motions, I finally had a plan for the future. Well, the future is now.

Last season completely exceeded my expectations. Not in terms of individual play - outside of Hodges proving that he can be serviceable as a PG, nobody really stood out or made a notable jump in stats - but in the collective effort of all. The team really came together and formed an identity on the floor that reflected the foundation that I saw on paper. Even though our 60 wins were likely due to an unusual down year for the league as a whole, you still don't reach that number unless you have something that works night in and night out. Teams with better talent than us struggled far more than we did, and that said something to me. It said "Alright, you have the template. Now, how do you improve on it?"

Obviously, the first idea was "Sign a big star!" While Bey was our first choice by far, we also entertained the idea of adding a superstar big man. But of course, putting all of our eggs in one basket was a recipe for failure, so we needed a backup plan. That plan was simply to look at what we were missing last season, and fix it. Despite holding down the fort well enough during the regular season, H20 completely fell apart during the playoffs. Even though Jerry Tucker (who is no longer with us) performed well enough, we felt that PG was a clear weak spot. Given that we were pretty sure Delmar wasn't coming back, veteran leadership was also a concern. Enter Mark Adkison, a player who we'd been quietly interested in acquiring for some time, but never felt like we had the assets to acquire. He also helped knock us out of the playoffs, so we got a firsthand view of what he could do for us.

Small forward was identified as another problem for us, as our depth there was pretty thin. Signing Mark indirectly solved that, as our glut of guards gives Bojo the opening to move back to SF. It's probably the best fit for him, as now he has both the size and the speed advantage over his opponents, whereas at SG he only had the size advantage. Elliot Thorpe was also brought back, thus locking down that position for us.

Finally, let's talk about Bam Adebayo. Another player who we had early interest in (then declined to take a chance on him while he was going through his personal issues early in his career), Bam fit our defensive scheme perfectly. The decision to shoot for a superstar big wasn't a slight on Big Cheese or Dunk. We've run the 3-big rotation for a long time, and though we like Fontaine, we knew better options for our third big were out there.

With our major targets signed, we were pretty much done with FA after Round 1, though we did remember to bring back Brian Humbert as further guard insurance. We had a Top-5 TC despite no major jumps from anyone, so that's great. It goes without saying that we're really excited for this season, even if we don't top last season's win total. We believe we're a stronger team than last year, and we will be even stronger in the years to come. Let's see what results will come from that.

Any questions?

[K-100]

Do you think the Wizards are the team to beat in the conference once the Pistons relocate to the Cayman Islands?

[Xist2Inspire]

Do you think the Wizards are the team to beat in the conference once the Pistons relocate to the Cayman Islands?

Nope. Syndicate's in my division and pulled off the perfect rebuild due to dumping Bey at the perfect time. As for the conference as a whole, Balls' recent run of dominance has reawakened a far greater threat in the Great Lakes. I welcome the challenge, but I'm not delusional enough to claim that I've got next.

[MexicanMamba]

You mentioned the complete team approach with your team last season, but do you see one player on your roster who you feel could really elevate (or derail) your season?

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[digiskunk]

Mr. Hands, Zoo (film): I never understood why the Wizards and Magic weren't more closely related given the fact that Wizards use Magic. Think about it: What do Wizards do? Magic. It's literally all they do. So why are the Magic a separate team and not an affiliate of the Wizards?

[Xist2Inspire]

You mentioned the complete team approach with your team last season, but do you see one player on your roster who you feel could really elevate (or derail) your season?

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Vaughn Millsap. I was talking with GMan and mentioned that he reminds me a lot of Renato Mosher. Spontaneous scoring is another weak point we identified (that I specifically didn't mention because we didn't directly address it). Millsap has the potential to be an extremely effective volume scorer, and having another source of points aside from Bojo would basically be the last piece of the puzzle.

I can't really think of any one player underperforming that could derail our season. Then again, I'm coming into this expecting improvement. "Underperforming" for me would mean putting in the same effort as last season, and we were pretty good with that level of effort.

[Xist2Inspire]

Mr. Hands, Zoo (film): I never understood why the Wizards and Magic weren't more closely related given the fact that Wizards use Magic. Think about it: What do Wizards do? Magic. It's literally all they do. So why are the Magic a separate team and not an affiliate of the Wizards?

wiz·ard
/ˈwizərd/

noun: wizard; plural noun: wizards

1. A man who has magical powers, especially in legends and fairy tales.

2. A person who is very skilled in a particular field or activity, ex. "a financial wizard"

[garbageman]

Sham Smith, Bulls.com: You managed a 60 win season with a roster last year that would leave many people considering that an overachievement. With what I would consider an even better roster in a more balanced division, how successful do you think this team can be?

[Xist2Inspire]

Sham Smith, Bulls.com: You managed a 60 win season with a roster last year that would leave many people considering that an overachievement. With what I would consider an even better roster in a more balanced division, how successful do you think this team can be?

Record-wise, I think the added level of competition will even out having a better roster than last season's. I'm anticipating 50-55 wins, but ultimately my season will come down to how well I match up against the Bulls, Nuggets, and Pistons. They are my projected top 3 threats in the conference, and I'm almost guaranteed to have to go through two of them if I want to make it to the Finals. If we match up well, then a title's the limit. If we don't, then we'll top out in the Conference Finals at best, 2nd Round at worst.

[AngryBanana]

Chet Youbetcha, Dimmadome News: how would you rank your team among the rest of the division?


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[greepleairport]

Once again, we find ourselves in the same conference. Just in time for you to be way too good. What gives man? At least use some lube on me, ok? yeesh

[Xist2Inspire]

Chet Youbetcha, Dimmadome News: how would you rank your team among the rest of the division?


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A tenuous 2nd. My gut says that the Nuggets are ready to make some noise now, but they're still young and super thin, so maybe not just yet.