Already knowing the outcome, but not the details...such as the score.....(wanted to keep it all a secret during, but between everything webby, it was kinda hard), I sat down at 11 pm on a Sunday night after a day of travel where my bag was "lost" (the computers tell me it made it to Reagan National -- a search in reality indicates otherwise) to see how exactly the Wizards pulled off a Sunday afternoon win against LeBaby James and the Cleveland Cavaliers (word on the street is that the refs called some sort of late game travel on the 'anointed one' -- David Stern is NOT happy).

Get it? Steps.
via flickr/harry harris

Q1

Caron starts out on LeBron -- I guess with Delonte West going off from three last game, I don't mind Dominic McGuire covering him instead of LBJ.....D-Mac can close out on shooters real nice like.

10:18: Caron trey.....Mike James layup....Jamison trey.....8-4 Wizards.

9:35: Varejao gets a surprise four quick points on Blatche, but Andray comes back with the right to left up and under that he's been honing. 10-6 Wiz.

8:30: McGuire hits a pumping athletic layup off a nice pass from Blatche.....Wiz are perfect from the field and up 14-6.

LeBron and Caron are trying to be dueling banjos from outside.

4:53: Mike James with a veteran move to draw (and sell) a charge against Mo Williams on the fast break.....James has drawn a handful of charges since coming to DC.

4:08: Jamison with an arms extended jumper right over Benny Wallace - he's 4-5 from the field, and off to a decent start for a change. 20-17 Wiz.

0:37: Crittenton baseline drive against the smaller Daniel Gibson...miss, but foul....nice to see him be assertive, except when he bricks both FTs.

0:00: At the buzzer, Caron rebounds a Nick Young miss and nails it off the backboard as he's falling down...almost all in one motion. 26-23 Wizards after one.

Better than expected start for the Wiz in the first 12 minutes. The stars, Caron Butler with 11 points and Antawn Jamison with 7, set the tone early without the supporting pieces forcing the issue just to keep up with Cleveland. Blatche's ankle looked okay and Dominic McGuire was assertive against Delonte West on both ends. Only two Wizards turnovers to Cleveland's four, and no offensive boards given up to LeBron & Co.

Q2

I didn't get to see very much of the Celtics game, but I like to hear Steve Buckhantz talk about the nice passes made by Crittenton during. Javaris just got a rebound, hopefully he keeps up the good work on both ends.

10:40: Blatche with a strong move against JJ Hickson......you can tell under Tapscott's reign that AB has made a conscious effort to mix offensive post play with the occasional ill-advised jumper.

9:43: Another great pass by Blatche...Sasha Pavlovic just lost McGuire who went to the open spot under the hoop -- wow, that's four assists for Andray. 32-27 Wizards.

9:04: Blatche board....McGuire miss....Jamison board....Jamison miss....Blatche tip board and in -- continued effort on the glass from the Wizards. Cleveland has yet to get an offensive board...and this is supposed to be one of the best rebounding teams in the league -- but not with Varejao (lacks energy today/tonight) and Hickson holding down the front court. 34-28 Wizards.

8:38: Well, there it goes....Pavs misses two FTs and he's able to get his own loose rebound against a relaxed Wizards team.

7:52: Crittenton's got length...and quick hops....in a contest of a quick Mo Williams pull up for three -- the result is an airball.

6:58: Not sure why the Wizards run so many clear-outs for Etan Thomas in the post ("so many" being any at all), but they do.....he misses. Sympathy shots in exchange for hard work?

4:45: Butler gets his first points of the 2nd quarter with a step back J from the baseline. 41-32 Wizards.

3:48: LeBron hits a jumper.....he's 5-8 with 13 points and 6 assists.....his team is not very crisp today so he's taking things into his own hands. 43-34 Wizards.

3:11: BS call (kinda)....LeBron is in the triple-threat with the ball low at the top of the arc. Caron has an arm extended. LeBron jumps and brings his arms, in the shooting motion, past and through Caron's extended arm (Caron tries to quickly retract -- but there is still minimal contact) -- shooting foul, make.....four point play. I just don't like the call when LeBron initiates the contact, but I guess that Butler did technically have his arm in LeBron's space. 43-38 Wizards.

2:51: Etan Thomas gets on offensive board with all five Cavs around him...and they continue to watch as he throws down one of his swinging-slap-ball-flying slams. 45-38 Wiz.

1:00: Ugh...Mike James throws up some garbage, but Nick Young forces Mo Williams into a travel on the break.

Butler just misses a long three at the half buzzer, but a great half by the Wiz. LeBron James had to carry his team with 17 points and 7 assists, but the Wizards still lead 47-43.

The Cavs shot 50% to 47.8% for the Wiz, but rebounds (23-16), 2nd chance points (10-3) and points in the paint (26-12) are how the Wizards earned their keep.

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The Elias Sport Bureau claims that there has never been a worse battle between two NBA teams with 25 games under their belt. Maybe that's a fact, but I could contest that this battle is much, much worse (first 1:12):

Oh....on to the game blog.

I don't think there's a reason for Joe Smith to be playing now unless he has coaching aspirations....well, he's in the last year of a contract that's paying him just under $5 milli...not too shabby. Will he continue to play for a contender next season? (And actually, Smith is only 33, the likes of Rasheed Wallace, Ben Wallace, Antonio McDyess and Marcus Camby are older -- it just seems like he's been around forever.)

Q1

Andray Blatche.....somehow building consistency. 1st: Offensive board and putback, 2nd: Right to left cross on Joe Smith.....tried to dunk it on his head, missed it, but got fouled. Good FTs. 5-4 OKC.

10:17: I'd still like to see Andray get an edge about himself.....he just got an o-board, but pussed up a miss.

Nick Young starts off on Russell Westbrook and Mike James on Desmond Mason (it's the opposite on the other end -- seems like bad matchups for the Wiz, but I guess James is stronger than Young, so more apt to guard the bigger Mason)....as Mason swats and steals the ball from Nick on a drive.

8:56: Young hits another mid-range J (the last one came in transition) -- Young is 2-3 on FGs so far. 11-8 OKC.

8:26: Nick misses a dunk...uh oh.....dunk contest validation?

Ugh....Phil Chenier and Steve Buckhantz are agonizing over the Cavs loss......guess they haven't had a chance to talk about it on-air, trying to get theirs in.....but still, it's painful to listen to. It was painful enough to finally post a game blog earlier today.

7:16: Jamison just tried a rightly flip hook from the left side with his back to the basket.....yea, I'm just as confused typing about the shot as I was watching it.

6:11: Mike James is not afraid to gun....but he's also not afraid to penetrate. He misses, Taser with the o-board, James with a drive, ball fake, pass to Andray for the hoop (they ran the high pick and roll combo). 12-11 OKC.

5:30: D-Mac with a huge slam...he caught the ball at the top of the arc....OKC slept on him, leaving the lane wide open.....great aggressive move by the Taser. 15-13 OKC.

4:25: Mike James makes Westbrook look silly on a lefty inside-out dribble drive for a layup. 17 tie.

Steve Buckhantz: "[Durant] has every shot in the book" -- he's 4-9 with 9 points.

Mike James is doing what Jim Jones (the bad rapper, not the one with the crazy temple) annoyingly calls out in songs.....Ballin'

1:15: A Juan Dixon sighting.....and he immediately hits (assisted by Mike James...his 5th of the quarter). 30-27 Wizards.

0:01: DeShawn Stevenson no likey blocking out.....Kid Delicious put-back dunk at the end of the 1st (not sure how he didn't get called for hanging on the rim). 33-31 Wizards.

Q2

10:20: The Thunder are almost as carelessly turnoverrific as the Wizards....the had 7 in the first quarter and back-to-back TOs just now.

McGee is hustling....I give him that....although having his positioning struggles......

9:00: Wiz timeout....Tapscott gets Etan off the bench....and comes in for McGee.

This is a lackluster 2nd quarter.

7:14: Etan is blocking a couple shots on Westbrook.....OKC shot clock vio.

Yea.....maybe Prada is right, Crittenton at least needs to get a look at run over Dixon.

5:27: Jamison tough lob to Etan who gathers, slams, hangs, swings and spikes. 44-43 Wizards.

5:07: Jeff Green throws Andray off with a pump fake from the corner and baseline drive for the dunk.

4:42: Andray comes back with a sweet drive spin move layup. 46-45 Wiz.

For some reason in the new Gilbert Arenas commercial, the line, "Although you try to stop it, the outcome was decided....long ago," does not sit well with me.....too close to some sort of "curse" language.

4:19: Stevenson fittingly misses a reverse layup that should have been a gimme.

3:48: Andray with another spin to the baseline....this time for a dunk. 10 points and 5 boards for Young 'Dray.

1:59: D-Mac gets his 2nd dunk of the game....barely....he was close to being an example of a 2-hand Sprite commercial. 52-51 Wizards.

Good lord....Joe Smith has played for a lot of teams. He has got to be the #1 draft pick who has played for the most.....9 different ones in fact - name them.

1:14: Great 3-2 break run by McGuire to Blatche to Jamison.....54-52 Wizards. Buckhantz conveys that Blatche doesn't receive enough credit for his passing skills at times....

I think that Jamison has been quiet, but he leads all Wizards with 15 points, and the Wiz are up two at the half, 56-54.....nice team effort from all.

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Why is this guy smiling?

via flickr/Keith Allison

Rodney Stuckey dropped 40 points on the Chicago Bulls last night.

Slam is calling him a stud.

Kelly Dwyer says that the Chicago D was sound.

We can safely (or perhaps precariously) speculate that Ernie Grunfeld would've taken Stuckey over Nick Young had he been available in the 2007 draft, but at the same time, Detroit has displayed flashes of buyer's remorse in not taking Young over Stuckey (ok...not really).

Young has led me to experience brief instances where I'd prefer him over Stuckey....but this year, Stuckey's ability to create for others and play defense (jn addition to his scoring, obviously), has put him slightly ahead, with perhaps last night's effort putting him over the top (in my opinion).

Sure, we know that part of Young's struggles involve the lack of minutes, but a large chunk of Nick's struggles also involve those aforementioned areas in which Stuckey excels......oh, lest I forget this observation about Young by the White President.

Sure this is a moot debate....Young is our guy and we are fully behind his development (I feel like I'm conveniently throwing Young under the bus on xmas eve). But, since polls are fun, what say you.....Stuckey or Young?

(It's also fun to rhyme at holiday time)

Ok, so I had to watch the end of the Redskins game with friends instead of the first half. I flipped some to check on the Wizards, but obviously could not get a good idea of what was happening. From what I can tell by khrabb's comments on the game thread (straight from Poland no less), the Wizards looked okay, showing some energy, and Dallas looked to be a lottery team. So, I now present the half game blog....

Q3

Butler takes the first two offensive chances....

• Dribbles around, drives, loses ball, gets bumped, no call.
  
• Next time, Caron misses a jumper with minimal offensive passing.

9:53: Dirk has bricked two shots so far....he's not looking on his A game.

Mike James has had a couple nice drives to the left on Kidd. Contact no foul the first time; contact, foul, FTs the 2nd time. 49-46 Wizards.

9:00: Blatche is having a tough time with the physique of Erick Dampier....lob dunk from Kidd on one possession, and on another Damp is somehow allowed to catch a short desperation airball and put it in just before the shot clock expires.

8:00: Stevenson steals a cross court pass, recovers before it goes out of bounds, but then he tries to fire it at a streaking Blatche from close range. Blatche, of course, bobbles the ball and the Mavs recover for an easy Dirk short jumper. 52-50 Wizards.

6:05: Caron Butler makes a jumper to put the Wizards at 3-7 FG for the quarter while the Mavs are 6-11. Butler is 2-10 from the field. 56 tie.

Dallas is more active in trying to get second chances/loose balls....the Wizards need to pick up their intensity. 60-58 Mavs.

3:45: Jamison hits a one handed floater and Dirk answers with a one foot fader. Mavs up 62-60.

3:00: Dom McGuire is getting physical with Dirk who is trying to get off-ball position. A foul is called, it was only a matter of time until the ref blew the whistle on D-Mac.....Dirk kept using the swim move and butt shove on McGuire, who wasn't going to back down.

1:45: Mike James...misses a jacked three, but picks off a Mavs transition pass, brings it up the court, and hits Jamison with a sweet no look for two. 66-64 Wizards.

Tapscott gets McGee and Crittenton in for Songaila and James with just under a minute left in the 3rd.

0:32: Jason Terry hits a three....18 points for him. I know they guy is small, but how do the Wizards keep losing track of him? 68-67 Mavericks.

0:00: Aaand another Terry trey as he was prowling around in the corner. That's the end of the 3rd, Mavericks up 70-68.

Q4

Pandemonium...ball flying everywhere...a Nick Young dunk miss, Buckhantz is rambling about something, Crittenton gets it, misses, McGuire boards, Jamison three miss, Buckhantz calls the Wizards coach "Tapsquat" again, Dallas scores. 72-68 Mavs.

10:15: Nick Young misses a baseline jumper....good look, gotta nail it.

Wiz timeout after Dirk scores four straight against porous defense....it amounts to a 10-0 run and it's 74-68 Dallas.

9:40: Butler is now 2-12 from the field....another cold night for the all-star.

9:18: And yet another sign of the times......Devean George snatches an offensive board right out of Butler's hands.....candy from a baby style....ends in 2nd chance points, 76-68 Mavs.

8:22: What is going on here? Blatche picks up back to back fouls (5 total) trying to guard Dirk.

7:26: Nothing easy for Caron....he drives, almost too much dribbling....spins, fades, shoots, gets fouled, scores. 3-point play. 79-73 Mavericks.

6:39: Singleton picks Butler's pocket as Caron tries to use a Songaila ball screen at the top of the arc....Singleton dunk.....all this as Chris Miller is reporting on the negative "here we go again" body language from the Wizards. 81-73 Dallas.

6:20: Caron does come back to hit a three....but you can clearly tell that he's putting a lot on his shoulders and trying to do a ton -- not exactly the way you win ball games.

5:37: McGuire has his shot blocked....gets it back....tries to make a bad pass.....turnover....taps chest to say "my bad" right before he realizes that he should be sprinting his ass off to get back on D......Jason Terry goes on to score points 24 and 25. 85-76 Mavs.

Sigh.

Mike James can get in the lane, but the tear drop just isn't too kind to him. I think you have to log a lot of time on the court to perfect the tear drop....according to Outliers, around 10,000 hours -- and I don't think James has spent this much time on the court.

5:09: D-Mac is having a terrible run...gets his shot blocked again and then lets Devin George slip right by him to receive the pass for the open dunk. 87-76 Dallas.

4:22: Butler gets the loose ball.....drive in transition, no numbers...2 Wiz on maybe 3, 4 Mavs....Terry comes from behind, steals it from Caron.

Down 10 with 4 minutes left......I don't think the Wiz have a push in them.

3:43: AJ misses a tough, heavily contested mini baseline hook....and then allows Devean George to slip and receive the Kidd lob for the dunk. 91-79 Mavs.

2:56: AGAIN!! AJ lets his man, Devean George, cut to the hoop for a layup (Kidd assist). What on earth is Antawn doing? 93-81 Dallas.

2:42: Butler stops the bleeding with a three. 93-84 Dallas.

But nope, Jason Kidd is picking apart the Wizards' D...The small Dallas lineup of Barrea, Terry and Kidd is killing. Looks like James is trying to guard Barea and Stevenson with Terry.....but Caron Butler against Jason Kidd is a complete joke.

Tapsquat is getting out coached....bad.

0:50: The Mavs also keep getting mis-matches with Blatche trying to guard Terry or Barea, the latter hits a rainbow jumper on 'Dray. 97-86 Mavs.

0:08: Timeout...and that will about do it. Wow, that was a really, really fast 3:52.....I don't think play stopped once. The Mavs won the 4th quarter 27-18.

Basically it was Jason Kidd's passing (6 4th quarter assists) plus the continuance of ragged Washington team cohesiveness, and the Wizards are now 4 and 21, the day after.

Final: Mavericks 97, Wizards 86. ESPN.com Box

Steve Buckhantz says "back to the drawing board" -- methinks the Wizards need a new drawing board by now.

No ifs, ands, or buts about it......the Washington Wizards are persistent at Rising Down.

Pregame.....

Random: Guy who is not Shaq O'Neil tweets:
In the Kazaam 2 script, the Washington Wizards are a NBDL team that still looses games.

Free Darko prediction: "With the bar set substantially lower, greatly exceeds expectations this time around."

Mike James calls himself the last of a dying breed of point guards who just "plays"......as reported by Chris Miller. I have no idea what this means, even as Miller went on to bumble through an explanation.

Q1

11:30: Good god, the first offensive possession was horrible....dribbling around, unsuccessful penetration attempts, Jamison bobbled a pass off his bad thumb, and there is some sort of call, but I don't know what since Phil Chenier is babbling on about something. That stat books says "discontinue dribble violation" on Stevenson.

10:53: Butler penetration and open DeShawn three.....one of the rare glimpses of the old DeShawn. 3-2 Wizards.

10:18: Next time, Jamison hands off and D-Steve feels he needs to shoot with the defense close....nope.

9:55: Coming up the court, Stevenson gets the ball jacked from him in a heist planned by Andre Miller.....there is no hope for that guy.

9:35: Blatche 2.0? Nice drive to the basket and gets a call. 2 FTs. 6-5 Sixers.

Fire Eddie Jordan, Blatche Better, Team Still Sucks.

9:01: Blatche again...draws a 2nd quick foul on Dalembert, he must sit...1-2 FTs. 8-6 Sixers.

8:02: Blatche with a nice pass to Mike James on the break...AB helped on the steal, actually ran the break nice....down the middle with awareness. 10-8 Philly.

Mike James is balling....more points, drawing charges. The two charges of his that I remember might lead the team on the season.

6:45: OH sh*t...what the hell is going on?....James cross over penetration...misses the tear drop, but DUNK by Blatche on the follow. 12-10 Wizards.

5:10: Blatche big block on Miller layup attempt....AB goes down pretty hard, could be an ankle...but no, the guy shows new found toughness and sprints his butt down the court to help on D. I really can't believe my eyes.

4:25: D-Song Dirty: He keeps a missed Wiz FT rebound alive with one arm locked up with the defender and one going for the rock....Jamison is able to get it. This makes Songaila bleed blood.

D-Song checked in for Blatche at the 4:42 mark -- I think I would've liked to see Tapscott play Blatche more in the first (since he was hot)......but then I consider all the reports on Andray's conditioning......and the fact that Songaila has been playing well lately.......ok, good decision.

You can hear casual conversation on television the Verizon is so quiet. Jon L says: By the looks of it, I'd use the word "group" before "crowd."

The alarm clock goes off and people start to rub their eyes as Butler hits a three with a second left.

The first quarter just kinds ends, Wizards up 28-27. I suppose it's good that the Wizards are up, but there's just a mundane feel to the flow of the game.

As Andre Miller misses a long attempt at the buzzer, Phil Chenier says, "Juuuuuuust a bit outside." Well, during a previous game, I'd hoped that Steve Buckhantz would start getting tanked during games like Bob Uecker in Major League......but maybe it's Phil Chenier who will step up and fill this role.

Q2

Nick Young, McGee, Songaila, Dixon, and Butler in the start the 2nd....I like this lineup...potentially.

10:24: Dixon 2.2 has been released, you know, more like his 2.0 after the brief downgrade to 2.1. Nails a trey..points. 35-29 Wizards.

Buck and Phil can't stop talking about the Elton Brand injury.....Buck then makes some sounds at the sight of the fall that might be fitting for this Adam Sandler skit.

8:46: Sweet Lou Williams is being......well, sweet. 16 points in 6 minutes. - He's scored 10 straight for Philly to start the 2nd quarter. 38-37 Wizards.

8:26: Poor Juan Dixon....."That didn't turn out very well for Washington." says Steve Buck......Dixon got dunked on hard by Speights.....and I mean ON....I think he's picking pubes out of his teeth going into the timeout....and there was a foul.

I can't wait until McGee gets stronger....in order for him to be more ready for the passes Caron Butler is trying to throw at him, he needs to take up more space......he's just getting pushed around too much.

And isn't McGee supposed to be a shooter taught by mom, Pamela? How about making those FTs buddy?

It could be me, but the tediousness of this game seems to be affected by the blown whistles.

6:07: Something has happened to the Wiz defense as Philly gets a couple quick and easies to take a 44-41 lead. Timeout Tapscott.

5:48: Nick Young goes hard to the rim and dunks something nasty on the Sixers.....please keep that aggressiveness up.....you MUST fulfill the prophecy.

4:54: Young in the paint again....7 points in 7 minutes. 47-45 Sixers.

Evidently, Tapscott has discussed some sort of two dribble limit with Nick.....sounds like a good coaching move to me.

This game reminds me of this Family Guy clip. "I'd me more apathetic if I weren't so lethargic."

2:13: Nick Young is on some sort of a roll...I believe some might refer to him as butter. 12 points, 5-6 in 10 minutes. Wizards up 53-51 after a Mike James three.

Tap gets Crittenton in with 30 seconds left in the half....uhh, okay?

The half ends in a positive manner for the Wiz...sure Nick Young missed a shot at the buzzer, but most everyone on the team played well, the ball moved nicely, overall.....but it's only one half. Wizards up 57-56.

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Just came across note of it from about half the season ago....could he still be dealing with this, or something?....might it be explanation for his shoddy play?

I'm just reaching for something in this season of confusion, disappointment and uncertainness.

photo source: flickr/vicious bits

Last night was a 'butter face' game. It started out ugly from the top......and stayed ugly despite a glimpse of something nice about a third of the way through.

In the end, you're left embarrassed and don't really want to talk about it.

Q1

Jamison started out gunning...but the Wiz were able to build a quick 4-0 lead with Epic Vale activeness and a lob to......Caron Butler? (don't worry...layup, not dunk variety)

Of course.....McGee had a big target on his back as the Celtics were running designed plays for Kendrick Perkins...'Vale drew a foul on the first Boston possession.

Marv Albert talks about Dee Brown....it's odd to hear that the Wizards have just cut a guy who started 11 out of the first 19 games...hey, it's that type of season.

7:15: Ray Allen is running loose in the early going.....DeShawn Stevenson? His third trey, each one assisted, the middle one being second chance points, puts the Cs on top 14-12.

TNT shows some Pam McGee....looking good tonight...I'll still maintain that she's a MILF. Reggie Miller recounts how he asked her to the prom back in the day and got rejected.

An unnamed source says that with the glasses and pink jacket, Pam McGee looks like a black Sarah Palin.

4:58: DeShawn Stevenson can do no right....he passes up an ill-advised three to attempt a wild ill-advised drive.....charging was the call that they gave him.

4:09: McGee tires to get off a 10-foot jumper, and even though he is a long dude, he can't get those same jumpers he had in the WAC in the NBA. This one gets blocked by Perkins and Rajon Rondo, unimpeded by no one, gets fast break points. 25-17 Celtics.

3:25: Nick Young has checked in....and more of the same from Ray Allen. Dude already has 10 points in the quarter, how can you leave him open for a fourth three for 13? 28-17 Boston.

2:49: Perkins makes a strong cut and there is no way McGee can get out from behind him......epic dunk in 'Vale's grill (see below)....ouch. 30-17.

This is not good....but the Celtics are who we thought they were.

Andray Blatche comes in for Tits McGee....and he can't handle Perkins either.

1:40: Andray and AJ vs. Kendrick and Big Baby....Wiz giving up about a hundred pounds there.....it doesn't help that Jamison ignores Big Baby and makes Blatche try to handle both on the boards....Davis gets TWO offensive boards....more 2nd chance points.

The quarter ends with Boston up 36-21....another "great" start for the Wiz.

Q2

Songaila is in and is having trouble staying with Leon Powe.....Boston is living in the paint.

Mike James makes his Wizards debut....maybe the Wiz intend to actually play him? Surprised.

8:42: The Wizards just aren't hustling. Blatche and Butler try a half-hearted double on Powe in the backcourt.....he easily split them, but almost turns the ball over by making a bad pass. Songaila and Mike James can't keep Powe off the boards after an Eddie House miss...and Powe gets a dunk.

Andray Blatche kinda showed up in the picture, but not Caron Butler and DeShawn Stevenson. Look, if the Wiz expect to win against just about any team, everyone needs to help on the boards.....the absurdity of second chance Boston points continues. 44-24 Celtics.

Stevenson tries to force a hand-off to Butler with the Celtics RIGHT THERE....prowling like wolves. Wizards turnover.

Mike James is sporadically active so far.....not sure what that means...he's missed three questionable shots, gone 1-2 from the FT line, drawn a charge, and snagged a board.

Boston is too good....too big...and the Wizards offense is too bad. Tom Thibodeau as Wizards head coach? He wouldn't touch this mess of a team with a 10-foot pole.

5:16: Caron Butler enters the game an immediately gives up a lay-up to Tony Allen. Caron? Playing bad defense? Really? It's so bad that Reggie Miller, a bad defender in his on right, calls Caron out. 48-26 Celtics.

4:33: Caron tries to drive against two Celtics....travel....unravel.

3:05 Marvelous Marv Albert calls the game "non-competitive"

1:30: Marvelous calls it a "non-competitive" game again.

TNT shows Grunfeld in a luxury box.....he looks like he is just cussing to himself. Absolutely no one is around him and he's uttering several phrases...surely full of "choice" words.

POINT BLATCHE!!!! Perkins misses a dunk, Blatche tries to lead the break himself....because he's sooooo good at it.....Garnett easily picks him off and Perkins makes up for his gaffe with a dunk. 63-39 Boston.

Pierce blocks Butler's shot at buzzer......fitting.

Half Time

• Ernie Johnson says the score of 63-39 is "not unexpected" with a completely straight face.
• Kenny Smith: "How's that coaching change working for you?"
• Chuck Barkley: "Rejuvenated."

photo source: flickr/Keith Allison

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via flickr/Keith Allison

Q1

11:31: There goes my theory about JaVale McGee being able to cover 'Sheed with length.....Wallace's high release is still unreachable by a 7'6" wingspan. 2-0 Pistons.

McGee takes a FT line jumper and looks uncomfortable doing so.

11:52: Damn, another 'Sheed bucket....What, did he read my mind and decide to kill JaVale for spite? Rookie hazing.....

More abuse, Wallace spin baseline and drawing a blocking foul on McGee.

10:10: And a Wizards turnover.....that may be the tipping point for a downfall, the easy passes just aren't crisp....the Wiz seem unintentionally lazy.

10:01: DeShawn is going with the Mohawk tonight...and gets burned to the basket. Stuckey made a quick move to the right while DeShawn kept looking over to his left for a screen that wasn't really there. Luckily, Stuckey missed.

9:42: A couple Wiz under the basket and McGee completely misses the blocking assignment on Tayshaun Prince...offensive board 6-0 Pistons.....JaVale stared right at him.

9:13: Guess who's giving waaaay too much room to a sneaking trailer.....JaVale McGee, Rasheed for three. 9-0 Pistons.

8:15: Sheed uses strength to get position on the block, gets the ball, baby step to the middle, and turnaround J heading baseline. He's 4-5, Pistons as a team, 5-8.

He is who we think he is. Every time Stevenson gets the ball with 8 or less seconds on the shot clock, he feels there's only time for one person, him, to do anything. 8 seconds is a ton of time left, plenty for a cut, a dribble drive...whatever, but it does NOT need to be one dribble and a step-back jumper....and miss.

Prince is determined to get his hands on every ball he can and the Wizards are going to do nothing about it.  6 Tayshaun boards.

Thank god...'Sheed misses. I think they'll go to him until McGee is taken out.

Butler turns it over....at this rate, I bet some MSM type is going to use the phrase "comedy of errors" in the papers tomorrow. 11-3 Pistons.

7:00: Blatche checks in and immediately toys with an Iverson steal attempt by going behind his back and dishing to a cutting Dee Brown for the layup....this guy. 11-5 Pistons.

Rip and Butler tit for tat, outside, inside. 14-7 Detroit.

Neither in the half court, nor in transition, Butler cannot keep up with Rip. 18-17 Pistons.

The Wiz go bigger by getting Young in for Brown.

4:20: As I sigh, having watched the replay again, Andray Blatche is fooled into thinking he has a good shot. With Wallace not out of range to contest, AB takes a deep FT line extended jumper in transition. No one, especially Andray, needs to be jacking up bad shots with 19 seconds left on the shot clock. Miss.

4:14: Classic Veteran Move: Nick Young is beaten in a foot race up the court by Hamilton with the ball and DeShawn must step up to help. But DeShawn's closest teammate, ANDRAY BLATCHE, doesn't communicate that his man, Wallace, has stopped dead in his tracks, setting a pick with his back facing DeShawn.....Rip drive, AI short jumper. It's an easy game for Detroit. 20-10.

Well....Nick Young can't keep up with Rip Hamilton either, 24-10 Detroit.

If the Pistons haven't scored, it's because they have missed a clean look, and not the fault of the Wizards.

And alibi-less 29-14 count after one.

Q2

Tap going with Young, Daniels, Songaila, Butler and Blatche to start the 2nd...predictable lineup.

Butler wins a battle against Rip Hamilton with an offensive board and hoop...tit for tat.Going to be tough to win when it's only Caron negating one of Detroit's top players and nothing else....he needs help.

Dribble penetration, Dribble penetration, Dribble penetration, Dribble penetration, Dribble penetration, Dribble penetration......

Guess what, the Wizards have gone small to match Detroit...Dixon, Daniels, McGuire, Butler, Songaila...(against Bynum, Stuckey, Afflalo, Herrmann, McDyess).Well, matching the other team has gotta work some time if you think it will give you a better chance. This squad is definitely more active on defense. Jamison checks in for Butler after a couple minutes.

5:45: Jamison dets his patented fading baseline float-hook on Herrman, 38-26 Pistons.

4:50: Uh oh, don't sleep on him Jamison, Herrmann is right there in the corner. Trey ball and it's 43-28 Pistons.

58-35% guess.

4:00: Yep, Ball Don't Lie.

3:22: Now that was funny to see--Caron back Iverson down who got caught on him...Hey, Wiz only down 11. Timeout.

When D-Song > JaVale McGee = when 'Sheed can't back down a Lithuanian....which also leads to a tech on Wallace. Wiz down 10. Better D.

Songaila is a vet, he doesn't care who you are...jumper on Sheed. Wiz Down 8.

Crap...Stevenson's in there.....watching him do something like......make an open three off Butler penetration. Wiz down 5.

Sheed vs. D-Song, two banging bigs. Songaila earns 2 FTs after securing the board and getting fouled by a testy Rasheed. Detroit may have Iverson, but Darius Songaila is our Answer.

Hamilton hits a trey, but Caron shows the determination from him we love with a coast to coast drive at the buzzer. Wiz end the 2nd on a `15-3 run. 46-43 Pistons.

Well, getting to the FT line 12 times to Detroit's 4 tells me something, but not much if they're only making 8 of them.

Rip Hamilton let loose with 17.....Butler -3 with 14.

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