Gilbert Arenas and the Zeros — your Washington Wizards this fall.
It’s hard to believe the Wiz may rely on someone facing jail time as their foundation next season, but Washington is down to practically no one after trading away three starters and two reserves for a fistful of players with expiring contracts.
The blame flows everywhere. It starts with Arenas’ dumb gun prank that gutted any chance of the team’s revival. It continues with veterans who went stale and prospects that never ripened. Nobody earned their money in that locker room.
General manager Ernie Grunfeld isn’t the villain. It’s clear the Pollin family ordered a dispersal sale to avoid the luxury tax and balance the books before selling the team. Grunfeld was merely the auctioneer.
It’s also obvious late owner Abe Pollin wanted to re-sign Arenas in 2008 despite warning signs that Agent Zero’s knee was suspect. Certainly, that signing was a disaster and even more so given the Wiz apparently can’t void it despite a gun-related conviction. They’re stuck with someone whose immaturity wrecked the team.
Seriously, how do the Wiz sell tickets next season with Arenas as the face of the franchise? Who spends more money to watch an awful team after being duped two straight seasons? Only die-hard fanatics with too much money will renew their season tickets, and there aren’t enough to fill Verizon Center. Seriously, the Wiz make the Redskins look well run.
Grunfeld doesn’t get a complete pass, though. While he has done well with trades and free agent signings, his drafts have been abysmal. The last draftee to deliver a good career in Washington was Jeff Malone in 1983 — before most current players were born.
The draft is crucial to improving. The Wiz can talk about mega salary cap space for signing max free agents, but it’s the homegrown talent that makes the difference. It was nice Washington gained Cleveland’s first-round pick for Antawn Jamison, but it’s probably the 29th or 30th overall. The Wiz couldn’t find anyone with the fifth choice last year. What’s the end of the round going to yield — another developmental player that never contributes? Grunfeld leads the league in those.
Be happy for Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood and Jamison — they escaped this mess. Wiz fans must endure a three-year rebuilding process if they’re lucky.
And lucky was traded by Washington long ago.
Rick Snider has covered local sports since 1978. Read more at TheRickSniderReport.com and Twitter @Snide_Remarks or
e-mail [email protected].
