- 7,360
- 28,914
- Joined
- Dec 8, 1999
Washington Wizards 2013-2014
[h1]CURRENT RECORD: 44 - 38[/h1][table][tr][td]Date[/td][td]Opponent[/td][td]Time[/td][td]Result[/td][/tr][tr][td]10/30/13[/td][td]@Detroit[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]L 102 - 113[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/1/13[/td][td]Philadelphia[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 109 - 102[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/3/13[/td][td]@Miami[/td][td]6:00 PM[/td][td]L 93 - 103[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/6/13[/td][td]@Philadelphia[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 116 - 102[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/8/13[/td][td]Brooklyn[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 108 - 112[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/10/13[/td][td]@Oklahoma City[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 105 - 106[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/12/13[/td][td]@Dallas[/td][td]8:30 PM[/td][td]L 95 - 105[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/13/13[/td][td]@San Antonio[/td][td]8:30 PM[/td][td]L 79 - 92[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/16/13[/td][td]Cleveland[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 103 - 96[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/19/13[/td][td]Minnesota[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 100 - 104[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/20/13[/td][td]@Cleveland[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 98 - 91[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/22/13[/td][td]@Toronto[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 88 - 96[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/23/13[/td][td]New York[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 89 - 98[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/26/13[/td][td]L.A. Lakers[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 111 - 116[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/27/13[/td][td]@Milwaukee[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]W 100 - 92[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/29/13[/td][td]@Indiana[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]L 73 - 93[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/30/13[/td][td]Atlanta[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 101 - 108[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/2/13[/td][td]Orlando[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 80 - 98[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/6/13[/td][td]Milwaukee[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 109 - 105[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/9/13[/td][td]Denver[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 75 - 74[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/13/13[/td][td]@Atlanta[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]L 99 - 101[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/14/13[/td][td]L.A. Clippers[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 113 - 97[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/16/13[/td][td]@New York[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]W 102 - 101[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/18/13[/td][td]@Brooklyn[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]W 113 - 107[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/21/13[/td][td]@Boston[/td][td]1:00 PM[/td][td]W 106 - 99[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/27/13[/td][td]@Minnesota[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]L 98 - 120[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/28/13[/td][td]Detroit[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 82 - 106[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/30/13[/td][td]@Detroit[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]W 106 - 99[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/1/14[/td][td]Dallas[/td][td]6:00 PM[/td][td]L 87 - 78[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/3/14[/td][td]Toronto[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 101 - 88[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/5/14[/td][td]Golden State[/td][td]6:00 PM[/td][td]L 112 - 96[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/7/14[/td][td]@Charlotte[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 97 - 83[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/8/14[/td][td]@New Orleans[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]W 102 - 96[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/10/14[/td][td]@Indiana[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 66 - 93[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/11/14[/td][td]Houston[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 114 - 107[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/13/14[/td][td]@Chicago[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]W 102 - 88[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/15/14[/td][td]Miami[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 97 - 114[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/17/14[/td][td]Chicago[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 93 - 96[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/18/14[/td][td]Detroit[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 104 - 98[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/20/14[/td][td]Philadelphia[/td][td]2:00 PM[/td][td]W 99 - 107[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/22/14[/td][td]Boston[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 113 - 111[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/24/14[/td][td]@Phoenix[/td][td]9:00 PM[/td][td]W 101 - 95[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/25/14[/td][td]@Utah[/td][td]9:00 PM[/td][td]L 101 - 104[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/28/14[/td][td]@Golden State[/td][td]10:30 PM[/td][td]W 88 - 85[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/29/14[/td][td]@L.A. Clippers[/td][td]10:30 PM[/td][td]L 103 - 110[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/1/14[/td][td]Oklahoma City[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 81 - 96[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/3/14[/td][td]Portland[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 90 - 100[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/5/14[/td][td]San Antonio[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 125 - 118[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/7/14[/td][td]Cleveland[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 115 - 113[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/9/14[/td][td]Sacramento[/td][td]6:00 PM[/td][td]W 84 - 93[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/11/14[/td][td]@Memphis[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]L 89 - 92[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/12/14[/td][td]@Houston[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]L 112 - 113[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/18/14[/td][td]Toronto[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 103 - 93[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/19/14[/td][td]@Atlanta[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]W 114 - 97[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/22/14[/td][td]New Orleans[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 93 - 94[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/23/14[/td][td]@Cleveland[/td][td]6:00 PM[/td][td]W 96 - 83[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/25/14[/td][td]Orlando[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 106 - 115[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/27/14[/td][td]@Toronto[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 134 - 129[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/1/14[/td][td]@Philadelphia[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]W 122 - 103[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/3/14[/td][td]Memphis[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 110 - 104[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/5/14[/td][td]Utah[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 91 - 104[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/8/14[/td][td]@Milwaukee[/td][td]9:00 PM[/td][td]W 114 - 107[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/10/14[/td][td]@Miami[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]L 90 - 99[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/12/14[/td][td]Charlotte[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 98 - 85[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/14/14[/td][td]@Orlando[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 105 - 101[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/15/14[/td][td]Brooklyn[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 94 - 101[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/18/14[/td][td]@Sacramento[/td][td]10:00 PM[/td][td]L 111 - 117[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/20/14[/td][td]@Portland[/td][td]10:00 PM[/td][td]L 103 - 116[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/21/14[/td][td]@L.A. Lakers[/td][td]10:30 PM[/td][td]W 117 - 107[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/23/14[/td][td]@Denver[/td][td]5:00 PM[/td][td]L 102 - 105[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/26/14[/td][td]Phoenix[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 99 - 93[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/28/14[/td][td]Indiana[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 78 - 91[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/29/14[/td][td]Atlanta[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]W 97 - 101[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/31/14[/td][td]@Charlotte[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 94 - 100[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/2/14[/td][td]Boston[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 92 - 118[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/4/14[/td][td]@New York[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]W 90 - 89[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/5/14[/td][td]Chicago[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 96 - 78[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/9/14[/td][td]Charlotte[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 88 - 94[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/11/14[/td][td]@Orlando[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 96 - 86[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/12/14[/td][td]Milwaukee[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 91 - 104[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/14/14[/td][td]Miami[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 93 - 114[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/16/14[/td][td]@Boston[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]W 118 - 102[/td][/tr][/table]
Playoffs!
[table][tr][td]Date[/td][td]Opponent[/td][td]Time[/td][td]Result[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/20/14[/td][td]@Chicago[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 102 - 93[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/22/14[/td][td]@Chicago[/td][td] 9:30 PM[/td][td]W 101 - 99[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/25/14[/td][td]Chicago[/td][td] 8:00 PM[/td][td]L 100 - 97[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/27/14[/td][td]Chicago[/td][td]1:00 PM[/td][td]W 89 - 98[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/30/14[/td][td]@Chicago[/td][td]8:00 PM [/td][td]W 75 - 69[/td][/tr][tr][td]
Playoffs or bust.
Your 2013-2014 Washington Wizards have been assembled with one goal in mind: to finish as a top eight team in a fifteen team conference. It's an ambitious goal, for a team that finished last season in 12th place. It seems less ambitious as a perennial goal, as perhaps the team's only goal since roughly 1980.
When asked why he would be willing to play for a Wizards team with no legitimate shot at the NBA title, the greatest player of all time replied, and I'm paraphrasing, "sometimes just making the playoffs can feel like winning a championship."
Only in Washington.
Perhaps that's why, in 2005, then-owner Abe Pollin printed up celebratory t-shirts when the Wizards upset the 4th seed Chicago Bulls in the opening round of the playoffs. The team was promptly swept by the Miami Heat. It was still, to date, the most successful Wizards season in my lifetime.
Ted Leonsis is feeling the heat - and not just because, on any given night, the Verizon Center houses more LeBron James jerseys than Wizards apparel. This summer, Ted conceded that, "until we make the playoffs, I’ll say we’re getting an incomplete to failing grade." Is he setting the bar too high? Not if you consider a 'D' a passing grade. By our standards, by Washington Wizards standards of excellence, a top 50% finish is a pass. Achieving the desired outcome in 50% of your opportunities is a pass.
And that's what we are now, in the Leonsis era. We are the "Dangerous Minds" students of the NBA. We are the victims of tragic circumstance, low expectations, low support, and low funding. A disappointing finish, for a spoiled prep student, is cause for celebration for us. All we want to do is to make it into May, to graduate from the regular season.
Then what?
Playoffs or bust.
Can't we do both? For three consecutive seasons, the Washington Wizards lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the opening round of the NBA playoffs. We never secured home court advantage. We never won our division. We made the playoffs. And that's all we did.
Is that all we hope to achieve in the John Wall era? In the Ted Leonsis era?
Days before the regular season, the Wizards translated their biggest trade asset, the $14 million soon to be expiring contract of center Emeka Okafor, and a likely late lottery draft pick into a one year rental of Marcin Gortat. This after maxing out John Wall and lavishing Martell Webster with a four year, $23 million contract (to spare you, my fellow 'D' students, some mental math: that's $5 million a year or roughly $1 million per point that Martell will likely average now that he's playing behind Trevor Ariza and, perhaps, Otto Porter, Jr.) Were these shrewd financial decisions? Not particularly. At least, not according to any analytic or logical assessment. Each was considered essential, however, in achieving our ultimate goal: to be slightly better than most of the teams currently tanking for Andrew Wiggins and thus qualify for a first round berth against a team with actual championship aspirations.
After examining a roster with zero front court depth, the Wizards chose not to bring back Jason Collins, who, according to "anonymous" sources speaking on behalf of equally brave GMs, was feared to be a "distraction" due to his conspicuous courage. (We can't have equality getting in the way of a .500 record.)
It's not all bad news. In Al Harrington, the Wizards actually managed to attract a notable veteran free agent for the league minimum. The club boldly declined the fourth year options of both Chris "Powerball" Singleton and catastrophic bust Jan Vesely, leaving the team with a frightening amount of cap space to be capriciously squandered this coming off-season. We bade farewell to the streaky A.J. Price and the affordable (considering his name) Cartier Martin. Oh, and Bradley Beal grew an inch.
Earlier this summer, the Wizards parlayed lottery gold into Otto Porter, Jr., a player widely heralded as perhaps the most NBA-ready member of the 2013 draft class and who, after roughly 65 minutes of exhibition play, is already being condemned as a failure. (We gave Jarvis Hayes four years. We can't give Otto four games?) A draft day trade also snagged Glen Rice, Jr., who's seemingly impressed everyone but Coach Wittman and now looks to spend more time on the bench than Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
The injury bug is in full effect. A strained hip flexor has sidelined Porter. Something's always wrong with Nene. Eric Maynor is apparently still recovering from his 2012 ACL surgery. A neck injury has managed to transform Emeka Okafor into a lanky Polish man. We've got plenty of excuses, but none of them are acceptable now. On the eve of the 2013-2014 NBA season, the word has come down and the curtain has gone up. Mediocrity or bust. Anything less would be failure.
Let this be the last year of Ernie Grunfeld. Let this be the last year of Jackson Heights' own, Mr. Randy Wittman.
Let this be the last year of low expectations.
[h1]CURRENT RECORD: 44 - 38[/h1][table][tr][td]Date[/td][td]Opponent[/td][td]Time[/td][td]Result[/td][/tr][tr][td]10/30/13[/td][td]@Detroit[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]L 102 - 113[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/1/13[/td][td]Philadelphia[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 109 - 102[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/3/13[/td][td]@Miami[/td][td]6:00 PM[/td][td]L 93 - 103[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/6/13[/td][td]@Philadelphia[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 116 - 102[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/8/13[/td][td]Brooklyn[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 108 - 112[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/10/13[/td][td]@Oklahoma City[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 105 - 106[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/12/13[/td][td]@Dallas[/td][td]8:30 PM[/td][td]L 95 - 105[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/13/13[/td][td]@San Antonio[/td][td]8:30 PM[/td][td]L 79 - 92[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/16/13[/td][td]Cleveland[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 103 - 96[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/19/13[/td][td]Minnesota[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 100 - 104[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/20/13[/td][td]@Cleveland[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 98 - 91[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/22/13[/td][td]@Toronto[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 88 - 96[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/23/13[/td][td]New York[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 89 - 98[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/26/13[/td][td]L.A. Lakers[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 111 - 116[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/27/13[/td][td]@Milwaukee[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]W 100 - 92[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/29/13[/td][td]@Indiana[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]L 73 - 93[/td][/tr][tr][td]11/30/13[/td][td]Atlanta[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 101 - 108[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/2/13[/td][td]Orlando[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 80 - 98[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/6/13[/td][td]Milwaukee[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 109 - 105[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/9/13[/td][td]Denver[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 75 - 74[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/13/13[/td][td]@Atlanta[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]L 99 - 101[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/14/13[/td][td]L.A. Clippers[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 113 - 97[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/16/13[/td][td]@New York[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]W 102 - 101[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/18/13[/td][td]@Brooklyn[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]W 113 - 107[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/21/13[/td][td]@Boston[/td][td]1:00 PM[/td][td]W 106 - 99[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/27/13[/td][td]@Minnesota[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]L 98 - 120[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/28/13[/td][td]Detroit[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 82 - 106[/td][/tr][tr][td]12/30/13[/td][td]@Detroit[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]W 106 - 99[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/1/14[/td][td]Dallas[/td][td]6:00 PM[/td][td]L 87 - 78[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/3/14[/td][td]Toronto[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 101 - 88[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/5/14[/td][td]Golden State[/td][td]6:00 PM[/td][td]L 112 - 96[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/7/14[/td][td]@Charlotte[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 97 - 83[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/8/14[/td][td]@New Orleans[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]W 102 - 96[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/10/14[/td][td]@Indiana[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 66 - 93[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/11/14[/td][td]Houston[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 114 - 107[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/13/14[/td][td]@Chicago[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]W 102 - 88[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/15/14[/td][td]Miami[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 97 - 114[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/17/14[/td][td]Chicago[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 93 - 96[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/18/14[/td][td]Detroit[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 104 - 98[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/20/14[/td][td]Philadelphia[/td][td]2:00 PM[/td][td]W 99 - 107[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/22/14[/td][td]Boston[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 113 - 111[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/24/14[/td][td]@Phoenix[/td][td]9:00 PM[/td][td]W 101 - 95[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/25/14[/td][td]@Utah[/td][td]9:00 PM[/td][td]L 101 - 104[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/28/14[/td][td]@Golden State[/td][td]10:30 PM[/td][td]W 88 - 85[/td][/tr][tr][td]1/29/14[/td][td]@L.A. Clippers[/td][td]10:30 PM[/td][td]L 103 - 110[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/1/14[/td][td]Oklahoma City[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 81 - 96[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/3/14[/td][td]Portland[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 90 - 100[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/5/14[/td][td]San Antonio[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 125 - 118[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/7/14[/td][td]Cleveland[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 115 - 113[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/9/14[/td][td]Sacramento[/td][td]6:00 PM[/td][td]W 84 - 93[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/11/14[/td][td]@Memphis[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]L 89 - 92[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/12/14[/td][td]@Houston[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]L 112 - 113[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/18/14[/td][td]Toronto[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 103 - 93[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/19/14[/td][td]@Atlanta[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]W 114 - 97[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/22/14[/td][td]New Orleans[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 93 - 94[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/23/14[/td][td]@Cleveland[/td][td]6:00 PM[/td][td]W 96 - 83[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/25/14[/td][td]Orlando[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 106 - 115[/td][/tr][tr][td]2/27/14[/td][td]@Toronto[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 134 - 129[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/1/14[/td][td]@Philadelphia[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]W 122 - 103[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/3/14[/td][td]Memphis[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 110 - 104[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/5/14[/td][td]Utah[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 91 - 104[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/8/14[/td][td]@Milwaukee[/td][td]9:00 PM[/td][td]W 114 - 107[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/10/14[/td][td]@Miami[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]L 90 - 99[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/12/14[/td][td]Charlotte[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 98 - 85[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/14/14[/td][td]@Orlando[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 105 - 101[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/15/14[/td][td]Brooklyn[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 94 - 101[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/18/14[/td][td]@Sacramento[/td][td]10:00 PM[/td][td]L 111 - 117[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/20/14[/td][td]@Portland[/td][td]10:00 PM[/td][td]L 103 - 116[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/21/14[/td][td]@L.A. Lakers[/td][td]10:30 PM[/td][td]W 117 - 107[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/23/14[/td][td]@Denver[/td][td]5:00 PM[/td][td]L 102 - 105[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/26/14[/td][td]Phoenix[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 99 - 93[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/28/14[/td][td]Indiana[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 78 - 91[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/29/14[/td][td]Atlanta[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]W 97 - 101[/td][/tr][tr][td]3/31/14[/td][td]@Charlotte[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 94 - 100[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/2/14[/td][td]Boston[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 92 - 118[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/4/14[/td][td]@New York[/td][td]7:30 PM[/td][td]W 90 - 89[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/5/14[/td][td]Chicago[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 96 - 78[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/9/14[/td][td]Charlotte[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 88 - 94[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/11/14[/td][td]@Orlando[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 96 - 86[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/12/14[/td][td]Milwaukee[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 91 - 104[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/14/14[/td][td]Miami[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 93 - 114[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/16/14[/td][td]@Boston[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]W 118 - 102[/td][/tr][/table]
Playoffs!
[table][tr][td]Date[/td][td]Opponent[/td][td]Time[/td][td]Result[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/20/14[/td][td]@Chicago[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 102 - 93[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/22/14[/td][td]@Chicago[/td][td] 9:30 PM[/td][td]W 101 - 99[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/25/14[/td][td]Chicago[/td][td] 8:00 PM[/td][td]L 100 - 97[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/27/14[/td][td]Chicago[/td][td]1:00 PM[/td][td]W 89 - 98[/td][/tr][tr][td]4/30/14[/td][td]@Chicago[/td][td]8:00 PM [/td][td]W 75 - 69[/td][/tr][tr][td]
5/5/14
[/td][td]@Indiana[/td][td]7:00PM[/td][td]W 102 - 96[/td][/tr][tr][td]5/7/14[/td][td]@Indiana[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]L 82 - 86[/td][/tr][tr][td]5/9/14[/td][td]Indiana[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td] L 85 - 63[/td][/tr][tr][td]5/11/14[/td][td]Indiana[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td] L 95 - 92[/td][/tr][tr][td]5/13/14[/td][td]@Indiana[/td][td]7:00 PM[/td][td]W 102 - 79[/td][/tr][tr][td]5/15/14[/td][td]Indiana[/td][td]8:00 PM[/td][td]L 93 - 80[/td][/tr][/table]Playoffs or bust.
Your 2013-2014 Washington Wizards have been assembled with one goal in mind: to finish as a top eight team in a fifteen team conference. It's an ambitious goal, for a team that finished last season in 12th place. It seems less ambitious as a perennial goal, as perhaps the team's only goal since roughly 1980.
When asked why he would be willing to play for a Wizards team with no legitimate shot at the NBA title, the greatest player of all time replied, and I'm paraphrasing, "sometimes just making the playoffs can feel like winning a championship."
Only in Washington.
Perhaps that's why, in 2005, then-owner Abe Pollin printed up celebratory t-shirts when the Wizards upset the 4th seed Chicago Bulls in the opening round of the playoffs. The team was promptly swept by the Miami Heat. It was still, to date, the most successful Wizards season in my lifetime.
Ted Leonsis is feeling the heat - and not just because, on any given night, the Verizon Center houses more LeBron James jerseys than Wizards apparel. This summer, Ted conceded that, "until we make the playoffs, I’ll say we’re getting an incomplete to failing grade." Is he setting the bar too high? Not if you consider a 'D' a passing grade. By our standards, by Washington Wizards standards of excellence, a top 50% finish is a pass. Achieving the desired outcome in 50% of your opportunities is a pass.
And that's what we are now, in the Leonsis era. We are the "Dangerous Minds" students of the NBA. We are the victims of tragic circumstance, low expectations, low support, and low funding. A disappointing finish, for a spoiled prep student, is cause for celebration for us. All we want to do is to make it into May, to graduate from the regular season.
Then what?
Playoffs or bust.
Can't we do both? For three consecutive seasons, the Washington Wizards lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the opening round of the NBA playoffs. We never secured home court advantage. We never won our division. We made the playoffs. And that's all we did.
Is that all we hope to achieve in the John Wall era? In the Ted Leonsis era?
Days before the regular season, the Wizards translated their biggest trade asset, the $14 million soon to be expiring contract of center Emeka Okafor, and a likely late lottery draft pick into a one year rental of Marcin Gortat. This after maxing out John Wall and lavishing Martell Webster with a four year, $23 million contract (to spare you, my fellow 'D' students, some mental math: that's $5 million a year or roughly $1 million per point that Martell will likely average now that he's playing behind Trevor Ariza and, perhaps, Otto Porter, Jr.) Were these shrewd financial decisions? Not particularly. At least, not according to any analytic or logical assessment. Each was considered essential, however, in achieving our ultimate goal: to be slightly better than most of the teams currently tanking for Andrew Wiggins and thus qualify for a first round berth against a team with actual championship aspirations.
After examining a roster with zero front court depth, the Wizards chose not to bring back Jason Collins, who, according to "anonymous" sources speaking on behalf of equally brave GMs, was feared to be a "distraction" due to his conspicuous courage. (We can't have equality getting in the way of a .500 record.)
It's not all bad news. In Al Harrington, the Wizards actually managed to attract a notable veteran free agent for the league minimum. The club boldly declined the fourth year options of both Chris "Powerball" Singleton and catastrophic bust Jan Vesely, leaving the team with a frightening amount of cap space to be capriciously squandered this coming off-season. We bade farewell to the streaky A.J. Price and the affordable (considering his name) Cartier Martin. Oh, and Bradley Beal grew an inch.
Earlier this summer, the Wizards parlayed lottery gold into Otto Porter, Jr., a player widely heralded as perhaps the most NBA-ready member of the 2013 draft class and who, after roughly 65 minutes of exhibition play, is already being condemned as a failure. (We gave Jarvis Hayes four years. We can't give Otto four games?) A draft day trade also snagged Glen Rice, Jr., who's seemingly impressed everyone but Coach Wittman and now looks to spend more time on the bench than Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
The injury bug is in full effect. A strained hip flexor has sidelined Porter. Something's always wrong with Nene. Eric Maynor is apparently still recovering from his 2012 ACL surgery. A neck injury has managed to transform Emeka Okafor into a lanky Polish man. We've got plenty of excuses, but none of them are acceptable now. On the eve of the 2013-2014 NBA season, the word has come down and the curtain has gone up. Mediocrity or bust. Anything less would be failure.
Let this be the last year of Ernie Grunfeld. Let this be the last year of Jackson Heights' own, Mr. Randy Wittman.
Let this be the last year of low expectations.
Let this be the last year of "playoffs or bust."
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