The Lone Bobblehead

Me and G Wiz: Both with the organization 15 years. Coincidence? Totally.

I've done plenty of complaining in this blog recently (see here and here) about the lack of Wizards bobbleheads being made available from the team this season for hardcore Wizards fans and bobblehead collectors. I'm still not quite cool with the complete absence of in game bobble giveaways but I figure it's time to stop complaining and start celebrating. Why celebrating? Because I finally got my hands on a team issued bobblehead this year. It wasn't exactly free and it isn't one of our players, but it's on my bobblehead shelf just the same and I know it's all I'm getting this year so I'm coping.

Last year for the first time ever, the Wizards decided to make an exclusive Martell Webster  (my favorite player) bobblehead available through membership in the G Wiz Kids' Club. Now in past years, I would have been upset about this since the G Wiz Kids' Club is technically only for kids 14 years and younger and I would likely have resorted to making up a child so I could get my hands one of the only two bobbleheads the team decided to issue last year. But last year was different than past years and so instead of inventing a son or daughter for myself, I did the only thing any doting uncle and godfather should do for his niece. I signed her up for the G Wiz Kids' Club so WE could add Martell to OUR growing collection of Wizards bobbleheads. Makes sense, right?

This year, the Wizards did it to us again and made an exclusive G Wiz bobblehead available to Kids' Club members. This year, however, instead of showering fans with free bobbleheads, this is the only one the team is issuing. Since I can't very well deny my niece a critical piece in her future bobblehead collection and we are not getting any others this year, she is once again back as a member of the Kids' Club, courtesy of my hard earned $20. How excited can I get about a G Wiz bobble vs. a player bobble? Well, let's just table that discussion.

This year's G Wiz bobblehead is not the first G Wiz bobble the team has ever released. A few years ago, the team gave away a G Wiz bobble belly, so named because his entire upper torso is on the bobble spring, imitating the signature G Wiz jiggling the stomach motion that whoever is inside the costume performs for the entertainment of kids and adults alike. But this is the first G Wiz bobble issued since the 2011 team's red, white and blue rebrand, so it's good to get an updated mascot bobblehead to "support" the bobble team of John Wall, Bradley Beal, Martell Webster and Nenê I have on my shelf while bobblehead Phil Chenier and Steve Buckhantz call the game. Yes, I know I only have four current players, which is precisely why the Wizards should have scheduled Marcin Gortat bobblehead day sometime this year. I believe I have made this point before.

This G Wiz bobblehead is significantly more athletic looking than the G Wiz bobble belly I have. He's dribbling a basketball in the same sort of pose that John Wall was depicted in free bobble form when he was a rookie. His fur is about as realistic looking as you can make fur look in hard plastic form and he's wearing the absolutely completely up to date jersey, complete with the NBA logo moved to the back of the jersey just below the neckline and the gold championship patch the NBA introduced this year right above that. The shorts are missing the monument ball logo on the waistband but other than that, it looks like they made a decent attempt to make the uniform as accurate as possible.

I predicted last month that the quality of this bobblehead would be pretty much the same kind of quality as the free in game giveaways we have received in past years and I'm almost right here. The paintwork looks pretty good, maybe even a bit more than a touch above average, but there are some telltale signs of imperfection which makes these free bobbleheads so endearing. I'm missing some paint on the G on the base of the item and the gold championship patch (below) is more of a darkish gray rather than a gold. Not sure how they got that wrong. Maybe it was the end of the shift or something.

I'm taking this bobblehead for what it is. I'd rather have a Marcin Gortat, Paul Pierce, Drew Gooden or even Randy Wittman bobblehead (please, please, Wizards!) but I clearly am not going to have one of those this year. I'll have to make do with this one until next season. You can bet I'll start campaigning early next year, rather than waiting to see what the team decides. Overall, I'm as happy as I really could be to add Wizards bobblehead number 31 to my growing collection. Considering the beatdown we put on the Clippers last night, nothing can really upset me today.