And just like that, the retooled Wizards frontcourt depth chart was present and working together on Monday at Verizon Center.
One after the other, Nene, Kevin Seraphin and Brian Cook took turns backing down assistant coaches Gene Banks and Ryan Saunders and going through low post drills, making the most of an optional practice during a rare two-day break between games. The Wizards will begin a four-games-in-five-nights stretch on Wednesday in New Jersey.
After practice, Seraphin and Nene sat together at the side of the court and talked – Seraphin looking almost like a younger version of the big Brazilian, minus the tied back hair.
Certainly, Nene didn’t expect to be in a Washington uniform after signing a 5-year, $65 million contract with the Denver Nuggets in December. With a little more than four seasons left on that deal, he and Seraphin are likely to become pretty close. Like Seraphin, he has a big smile when wants to show it, and he did so as he tried to explain what happened to him last week.
“It was crazy, it was tough,” Nene said of getting traded to the Wizards. “I don’t like to mention much because I still have no clue what happened, but I trust in my Lord, trust in my God, and he put me here. I know when he change me to somewhere, it’s for better things, for better stuff.”
Despite taking his time to show in Washington for his physical, a protocol step required to complete the trade – neither departed Wizard, Nick Young or JaVale McGee, could play on Saturday while everyone waited – Nene promised that he’d put his displeasure with the trade behind him, that he was committed to the Wizards rebuilding process.
“What I want is to give my best, come in here, make a new life, brand new career, and do much better than I did in the past, that’s what I want to do,” he said.
While he didn’t reveal details of how he learned about the trade – “You don’t want to know” – or why, in his mind, it happened – “I still have no clue” – Nene was familiar with the idea of reported buyers’ remorse in Denver.
“I know that it’s a business,” Nene said. “I know that sometimes it’s a dirty business. But how I say, I trust my Lord, I trust my God, and I know I will be successful where I go. That’s all I can say.”
The smile still persisted, of course, and it grew when he was asked in depth about the comparison between Nuggets point guard and D.C. native Ty Lawson (5-foot-11) and John Wall (6-4).
“The only thing is Ty make a layup, and [Wall] can dunk,” Nene joked.
Meanwhile, as for Cook, who was traded for the fourth time in his nine-year NBA career, he’ll be around, at least for a little while, or longer if he doesn’t find a suitor to help him set up a buyout. He sounded a bit like Drew Gooden two years ago after Gooden participated in one Wizards shootaround session in between trades that first sent him from Dallas to Washington and then from Washington to the Los Angeles Clippers.
“Right now I’m just worried about being a professional, coming in here and working hard for this team,” Cook said. “I’m with the Washington Wizards right now, and I’m going to be a professional, be a veteran, and come in here, and hopefully we can win some ball games the last games coming out.”
Given that he’d been with Clippers while they weren’t competitive last year – a situation he said seemed familiar in Washington – Cook clearly isn’t enthusiastic about doing the same thing again with the Wizards.
“It sucks that I had to come down here,” he said. “But at the same time, I’m happy to be around this organization.”
Edwin Ubiles, on a 10-day contract after his call-up from the Dakota Wizards, probably feels the exact opposite.
For now both Cook, in jersey No. 43, Nene, wearing No. 42, and Ubiles in No. 1 should be in uniform for Washington against the Nets on Wednesday, where Cook and Nene expect to set an example for the Wizards, who’ve had few reasons to be upbeat this season.
“I think you just have to be positive and I know Nene, he’s a positive guy, and I’m positive guy,” Cook said. “We’ve both had ups and downs in this league. Just being positive and having the heart to fight another day. That’s what these guys need right now.”
