Apr 30th, 2008 at 11:52 pm
Less Than Zero
All season long, I’d been resisting the temptation to proclaim the Wizards “better without Arenas” but the evidence from this playoff series against the Cavaliers is really tending to change my mind. The fact that Agent Zero has a solid backup in Antonio Daniels is what makes this work, but the whole rest of the team really does seem to play with both more defensive intensity and more tactical acumen in key offensive situations without Gilbert. Certainly I don’t think it’s a no-brainer at this point that Arenas should be paid more money if he chooses to opt out of his current contract.
42 Responses to “Less Than Zero”
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May 1st, 2008 at 1:33 am
The team flowed better this year without Gilbert on offense. On defense, there was no comparison.
I am a huge Gilbert defender re: the shoot first point guard debate, arguing that nearly everyone who had played with him achieved career-high #s (Butler, Hughes, Stevenson). In retrospect, some of that had to do with expanded roles and/or Eddie Jordan’s scheme.
The team just looks smoother on the floor this year with Daniels.
May 1st, 2008 at 1:34 am
The team flowed better this year without Gilbert on offense. On defense, there was no comparison.
I am a huge Gilbert defender re: the shoot first point guard debate, arguing that nearly everyone who had played with him achieved career-high #s (Butler, Hughes, Stevenson). In retrospect, some of that had to do with expanded roles and/or Eddie Jordan’s scheme.
The team just looks smoother on the floor this year with Daniels.
May 1st, 2008 at 1:41 am
The guy was playing on one leg this year. If you check out the stats from the last two years, the Wizards were substantially better when Gil was on the floor. If you don’t think Gil will recover from his knee problems, that is a valid concern. But the Wizards are definitely better with a HEALTHY Arenas.
May 1st, 2008 at 1:55 am
If Gilbert Arenas is the best player on your team you’re not going to win shit.
The guy isn’t just a hotdog, he’s an asshole. He’s Ricky Davis with more ability. He’s Iverson with less ability and less durability.
May 1st, 2008 at 2:45 am
Great, great game today, huh? Exciting throughout, with no real lulls in the action. And when Lampard put away the PK in OT only days after burying his mother…
Oh, wait, you were discussing the basketball game? Did this game start at, like, 4:30 in the afternoon? I got home from work – and not very late – and it was already down to the last 2 minutes of 4th quarter. WTF?
May 1st, 2008 at 3:35 am
A healthy Arenas playing with the team all year is different from a gimpy Arenas who plays in some spots. The Wizards may be a better team without this year’s Arenas, but they don’t scare anyone. With Arenas doing his thing at his best, they have a big weapon.
I wonder if the Cavs let down a bit because Arenas didn’t play and the Wizards played harder for the same reason. We’ll see Friday night.
Congrats to the Wizards for taking advantage of the late-game Cav meltdown.
May 1st, 2008 at 3:35 am
Al,
2 minutes of basketball > 3 periods of ice dancing.
May 1st, 2008 at 3:35 am
A healthy Arenas playing with the team all year is different from a gimpy Arenas who plays in some spots. The Wizards may be a better team without this year’s Arenas, but they don’t scare anyone. With Arenas doing his thing at his best, they have a big weapon.
I wonder if the Cavs let down a bit because Arenas didn’t play and the Wizards played harder for the same reason. We’ll see Friday night.
Congrats to the Wizards for taking advantage of the late-game Cav meltdown.
May 1st, 2008 at 3:56 am
Soccer is played on ice now?
May 1st, 2008 at 4:01 am
Soccer is played on ice now?
When talking about furriner sports, its only polite to clarify whether one’s mentioning ice-dancing or the funny kickball.
May 1st, 2008 at 6:58 am
When talking about furriner sports
The US Open Cup soccer tournament has been played on American soil for 94 years running and predates the founding of the NBA by 32 years but you make a good point. I know when I’m watching Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Fabricio Oberto, Ime Udoka, Samuel Dalembert, Pau Gasol, Ronny Turiaf, Sasha Vujacic, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Anderson Varejo, Sasha Pavlovic, Marcin Gortat, Adonal Foyle, Hedu Turkolu, Andrei Kirilenko, Mehmet Okur, Dikembe Mutumbo, Luis Scola, Peja Stojakovic and Darius Songaila hoop it up in the NBA playoffs I think “God Bless America!”
May 1st, 2008 at 7:02 am
Take it like a man, ben, you just got pwn3d.
Pity it was the fucking chavs that won. And anyone who doesn’t like playoff hockey is not a *sports* fan.
May 1st, 2008 at 9:19 am
Pretty cold considering his injury.
But it’s fairly irrelevant. With or without him, they will lose in the first round of the playoffs.
May 1st, 2008 at 9:26 am
It’s always a good idea to let a star opt out. Otherwise, he’ll eat up flexibility under the cap, and the team will be stuck in place for years. And I loved reading ‘Thuggets’ in the comments a few days back. Glad to see it’s not just a Colorado thing, that it’s gone national. There is no way to move any of the top six players off the Denver roster,so we’ll have the pleasure of the JR Smith, with his middle class upbringing, domineering father and millions of dollars, pretend to be one step off the streets. Like Wizards fans, the best we can hope for is good drama, and the Thuggets will not let us down.
May 1st, 2008 at 9:27 am
Yes, it’s very unfortunate that it’ll be mancs v chelski in the final. two despicable teams.
May 1st, 2008 at 9:30 am
“And anyone who doesn’t like playoff hockey is not a *sports* fan.”
I don’t know if I’d go that far, but I like it. Hockey is actually watchable in HD. I hadn’t watched much since I was a kid. Got a big screen and HD and now I can see the puck and the stickwork in front of the goal. It’s still the biggest drop-off from live to TV, but it’s watchable now.
Oh, there’s nothing more American than importing furrinners to do our work.
May 1st, 2008 at 10:26 am
Last year, after the all-star game and before his injury, Arenas had dropped somewhat.
May 1st, 2008 at 11:16 am
A1,
It was quite a touching moment. After Babel, I was thinking another Istanbul. Who you got for the finals?
May 1st, 2008 at 11:34 am
Arenas was out most of the year and is still gimpy. If you don’t think he will recover, then defintely let him walk. If not, you will probably regret letting a guy who can get his own shot at will and score in bunches escape your clutches. Players like him are damn useful in playoff games when your team game is stifled by the better defensive teams, and you need to score a basket.
The only other caveat is, will Arenas play more of a team game, particularly on the defensive end? You need that to win consistently. If he seems reluctant, then maybe letting him go will work. If Kobe Bryant cannot carry a team by himself, then Arenas cannot either. You just have to understand the risk of not being able to reel in a comparable talent.
May 1st, 2008 at 12:02 pm
Our heads are in different places.
I read the start of the piece and thought of Kansas City and was wondering how much damage Bruce Arena could cause by doing color commentary on their local broadcasts…
May 1st, 2008 at 1:56 pm
Take it like a man, ben, you just got pwn3d.
If a little sports chauvanism is wrong, then I don’t want to be right.
[A]nyone who doesn’t like playoff hockey is not a *sports* fan.
Remember when the NHL shut down for a year and nobody noticed? Then, last year, they preempted the eastern conference finals to show 2 hours of pre-preakness coverage? Yeah, real sports fans watch hockey . . . and golf and professional billiards and bass fishing and softball and cricket. I guess I’m not a real sports fan.
The US Open Cup soccer tournament has been played on American soil for 94 years running and predates the founding of the NBA by 32 years
So professional soccer has been in America for 94 years and hasn’t caught on yet? Since ‘94, I’ve heard people claiming that next year it’s really going to catch fire, but I guess I’ve come late to the party.
Oh, there’s nothing more American than importing furrinners to do our work.
Like this guy. He’s taken urrr jerbs!
May 1st, 2008 at 2:05 pm
A1,
Go Blues!! As I watch Zenit dismatle Bayern. We back the same teams, except mine goes Liverpool(grew up watching Owen), Barca, Chelsea. I didn’t get the ManU v Chelsea game. It was on that blasted Setanta channel instead of FSC. Read Ballack was on fire. Can’t wait for June 7 now. Any picks for Euro?
May 1st, 2008 at 5:00 pm
Guess we’ll both be on the edge hoping Forza Azurri bow out. Robben is quite the talent and with Babel,Nistelrooy, Kuyt and Van Persie the Dutch are as potent a striking force as ever. If van Basten relents, Kluivert would add to it. Eerily, our faves match again!
May 1st, 2008 at 5:04 pm
Guess we’ll both be on the edge hoping Forza Azurri bow out. Robben is quite the talent and with Babel,Nistelrooy, Kuyt and Van Persie the Dutch are as potent a striking force as ever. If van Basten relents, Kluivert would add to it.
Eerily, our faves match again! Now you just have to become a Cavs fan, and desist the frequent Yglesias King James disavowals. Make him see the light:)
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