The Washington Wizards just advanced to the second round of the NBA Playoffs, thus ending another failed season for the Chicago Bulls. Considering where these two teams were three years ago, this is a major step in the right direction for a Wizards team that will be getting scary good. Like right now.
At first glance, the Wizards’ roster isn’t full of many exciting names that you find on other elite teams in the NBA Playoffs, but a closer look shows that we’ve got a potential young team that’s ready to burst in to something special. Bradley Beal is one of the best players casual sports fans haven’t heard of. John Wall is the face of the franchise that has figured it out. Nene Hilario has become a monster in the middle. Trevor Ariza, whose uncle once said he was better than LeBron James, is playing great in his ninth year in the league (via Cleveland.com).
Oh, and he’s only 28 years old.
The rest of the roster is filled with mainly veterans who were cast offs from other teams. Martell Webster, Marcin Gortat, Andre Miller, Al Harrington and even Drew Gooden. Before you say that Gortat was a cast off, remember that he was traded from the Phoenix Suns for Emeka Okafor.
Who does that? (Ok, maybe that made a little sense for both teams.) Regardless, not many people were sold on Gortat at the time of the trade. It was a great move for the Wizards. One of many over the past few years.
If the Wizards are able to keep their core of Beal, Wall, Nene, Ariza and Gortat together for a few more years, they should only get better. The opposite can be said about the Bulls. Losing Derrick Rose, again, to a knee injury certainly doesn’t increase your chances of success.
But the Bulls roster, without Rose, was still expected to get past the younger, less experienced Wizards. Their defense, which was supposed to be their strongest asset, gave up 97 or more points in four of the five games. Although their offense kept them in games, largely in part due to Jimmy Butler, they came up short. Way short. Like bounced in five games short.
Credit has to be given to Randy Wittman and his coaching staff. After an extremely poor job as the head coach of the Cleveland Caveliers, his first head coaching job, Wittman landed three “clean-up duty” jobs, taking over for coaches who were relieved of their jobs. Many thought Wittman was a sitting duck after he followed his good friend Flip Saunders to the Wizards, only to see Saunders get fired.
As he had done twice before, Wittman took the head coaching job and had little success in the one and a half seasons heading in to this season. Many thought he’d be let go, but the Wizards’ front office stuck with him and the team responded.
If you think this is where the story ends for the Wizards, you may be wrong. The Atlanta Hawks are one game away from eliminating the top seeded Indiana Pacers. Now, imagine that scenario three years ago. The Wizards hosting the Hawks in the second round of the NBA Playoffs. Who wants to go back in time to place a bet on those odds? Seems like a great plot for Back To The Future IV…
Photo: chasingadream.sportsblog.com