The Washington Wizards’ offseason may have seemed like it was quiet, even if it wasn’t.
The addition of a new head coach (Flip Saunders), roster depth and experience (trading for Mike Miller and Randy Foye, signing Fabricio Oberto), and the anxiously awaited return to full health for the team’s biggest star (Gilbert Arenas) each made modest waves in its own way.
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The sum result, however, is a tsunami of buzz with only days to go before training camp opens.
“My New York teams always had a certain kind of attitude where we went into the season, expecting to win and expecting to win big,” said Wizards president of basketball operations Ernie Grunfeld on Thursday. “I think that’s what we’re doing right now.”
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“It’s a very vibrant city,” said Saunders. “I’ve spent some time here, not as much, but I just didn’t know the energy in this city. Hopefully, what you can do is add to the energy and carry your energy into this arena here, and that we can have a great home-court advantage.”
During the 1990s, Grunfeld built the Knicks into a consistent winner, amassing five 50-win seasons, multiple playoff runs and two trips to the NBA Finals. Entering his seventh year in Washington, the roster is now completely his — Brendan Haywood being the only holdover, who Grunfeld rightfully points out that he re-signed.
“We take ownership of what is here, and we feel good about what we have,” said Grunfeld. “I feel good about these guys, about the competitive nature, their unselfishness, the work they’ve put in this summer, and I feel really good about Flip and his staff.”
Grunfeld also favors the phrase, “to a man,” to describe how the Wizards were hurt by last year and want to prove it was a fluke.
That group includes him.
“There’s a different sense around here, a different sense around the team,” said Grunfeld. “The players feel it. There’s a new kind of enthusiasm, a new kind of professionalism, and just a new way of doing things, and I think that’s exciting for us and the players.”
