With just five days to go before the Washington Wizards trot out in front of the media and open training camp for the 2010-11 season, it’s hard not to be excited about the prospects for a fresh start as well as attractive and meaningful basketball after last year’s catastrophe of a season. The 2009-10 Wizards may not have been the worst team ever, but it would be hard to find a worse overall season.
I don’t mean to quash the fervor for this season by taking a different view on Midnight Madness and pointing out that Gilbert Arenas will still be the primary subject on the first day of camp despite offseason focus on John Wall, JaVale McGee, the rest of the team and the changes that Ted Leonsis has sparked since taking over as owner. But it’s easy to lose perspective and patience during the offseason, and both will be needed in abundance this year. That said, the Wizards have lots of potential and like most, I’m anxious to see how it unfolds on the court.
There will certainly be some incentives to make it to Patriot Center on Monday night, with three $500 cash prizes for someone who hangs around until the end of the evening.
The roster itself is essentially set for camp, with 12 players under contract: Arenas, Hilton Armstrong, Andray Blatche, Trevor Booker, Kirk Hinrich, Josh Howard, McGee, Kevin Seraphin, Al Thornton, Wall, Yi Jianlian, and Nick Young.
The latest injury updates that I have are that the Wizards aren’t surprised with where Howard is in his recovery from last February’s knee injury. Howard has been pretty optimistic with his timetable – the Wizards are less so.
Blatche is also back running and doing some drills but isn’t quite in full-time playing shape. Look for his full return to the court sometime during the preseason. It’s not exactly clear when, but with that kind of prognosis, it would be a surprise not to see him ready for the season opener on Oct. 28.
Meanwhile, at the other end of the Wizards roster, second-round draft pick Hamady N’Diaye is also coming to camp but remains non-guaranteed, and the list of camp invitees sits at six: Adam Morrison, Cartier Martin, Lester Hudson, Sean Marks, Kevin Palmer and Mardy Collins. Based on his consistent performances with the Wizards last season and during summer league, as well as Howard’s continued absence, Martin the best chance to make the final roster, but he may not be the only one.
(I blame me for not quite understanding the situation with Fabricio Oberto, who won’t be back in D.C. I get it now. No free agent rights after just one year…)
So there’s where we are for now. Let’s get this thing going. It will be an intriguing season from the moment it starts.
