Election Day Interferes With Sports
Your Friendly Neighborhood Blogger (FNB, trades on the NASDAQ) gets a bit behind in his reading every now and again.
So your FNB got to Sports Illustrated’s NBA preview issue about 24 hours ago, some weeks after its publication and, of course, also after the beginning of a season that stretches to infinity and beyond. Some folks say “see you in June.” FNB’s reply generally is: I certainly hope so. Otherwise I will miss you.
SI’s breakdown covered many aspects and nuances of each NBA team, but the truest line was spoken of the Washington Wizards. It appeared in the Enemy Lines section, where a rival scout sizes up the opposition.
Rival Scout said this about the Wizards. First sentence. No lie.
“How is their team chemistry going to be?”
Chemistry? FNB would like a lithium and water, please. Hold the fire extinguisher.
The Wizards, 2-7 going into Tuesday night’s game against the Dallas Mavericks, appear not to know each other very well. Name tags might help. Year after year the Wizards are entrusted to general manager Ernie Grunfeld, whose grip on this job should be in ad for Gorilla Glue.
If you Google Washington Wizards, one of the possible areas to explore that comes up is: When did the Washington Wizards become a team? Geez, even FNB couldn’t miss this layup. We will let the snickering die down before we go on.
Better.
Nine games mean the Wizards have only 72 more to get this. But you wonder. Chemistry in the NBA is an advanced subject.
Be good or be gone, says FNB. The days of lurking among those fifth and sixth seeds are over. The middle of the pack mentality needs to end. Want to win a championship? Get serious. Want to be, well, OK and a contender? Win 50 games.
If you are a Wizards fan born after 1979, you’ve never seen that. The last time the Wizards (then the Bullets) won 50 games was 1978-79, the year after their only NBA title. They were 54-28. They’ve never cracked 50 since.
Aren’t you getting a little too old for this?
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman
-
Robert Kraft wants to re-sign Brady just long enough that he can retire as a Patriot. Earlier this week,...
-
The skilled third-baseman will be enshrined in Cooperstown. Scott Rolen is one of the most skilled and recognized third-basemen...
-
Brady’s 23rd football season has ended. On Monday, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Dallas Cowboys went head-to-head for...
-
Smith has been fired after one season with the team. Over the weekend, the owners of the Houston Texans...
-
Pelé passed due to complications related to colon cancer. On Thursday night, the sporting world received unfortunate news: Pelé,...
-
His return heralded a victory over the Phoenix Suns. On Sunday, Houston Rockets coach Stephen Silas needed to take...
-
Mayfield will be available on waiver to other NFL teams. After an underwhelming performance in his current role as...
-
Mike White led the team to a decisive victory over the Bears over the weekend. On Saturday, the New...
-
The game has been moved out of New York due to an encroaching snowstorm. This weekend, the Buffalo Bills...
-
Negative pushback prompted the team to give the role to someone else. Recently, the Brooklyn Nets have been in...
-
The Bears got Claypool in exchange for a 2023 second-round pick. This week, the Pittsburgh Steelers cut a deal...
-
Belichick has cycled through several players in search of the right one. Recently, the New England Patriots have been...