Broken Promises

I used to love the arrival of the Washington Auto Show. Back in the day (meaning the mid-aughts) it seemed like there was always one day where they would have a Wizards player or two (or three) signing autographs and available for a quick discussion about whatever you could squeeze in while you got your swag signed in line. Brendan Haywood, Caron Butler, Antawn Jamison, Jared Jeffries, Jarvis Hayes, Nick Young and JaVale McGee all took their turns from 2004 to 2010.

Then it stopped. Cold. Nothing from 2011 to 2017. No more laughing with AJ about a possible trade to Cleveland (he was later that week) or watching Swaggy P and JaVale clown around while waiting to see if Dominic McGuire would show up (he didn't) or talking with Jarvis Hayes about pending knee surgery that the team and press said he wouldn't be having. Then last year Otto Porter made an appearance. I didn't go for some reason. Probably too busy.

So imagine my surprise when I saw the announcement above on the Washington Auto Show's website. Allllll-RIGHT! It's back on. The annual pilgrimage to the Convention Center to show my appreciation for my favorite basketball team. Washington Wizards Day. April 12. Wonder who it would be this year. Other than G Wiz that is.

Well apparently the Auto Show over-promised without actually having a commitment. Turns out no Wizards player will actually be appearing. Instead Kristi Tolliver will be joining G Wiz (who will be there in accordance with the original annoucement - whew!) over at the Walter E. Washington Covention Center. Yes, she's a basketball player and she's a member of the Wizards organization. She's just not a Wizards player as promised.

With the Wizards heading towards the Draft Lottery rather than the postseason and with the date slated to be Washington Wizards Day being three days AFTER the end of the regular season, seems like there's been a change in plans. I can't blame the Wizards or any of their players for this one (well, other than the organizational failure that caused them to miss the playoffs that is). I mean, who wants to go sit and sign stuff for fans when your team's season has come to an unexpected end in a year when the whole organization under-performed?

The person I feel worst for here is Tolliver. She's been working all season for the Wizards while being paid a total of $10,000 and now they make her go sit at the Convention Center to say hi to fans and baby sit G Wiz for a couple of hours. I think Kristi Tolliver is awesome as a player and for what she's done with the Wizards the last eight months or so and she's as worthy a person as any to represent the Wizards at an event like this. She's just not what was promised. I might go anyway. Having no actual Wizards player there might be a refreshing change. At least Kristi hasn't been underperforming every game she's played in over the last season.

The Auto Show used to be in January. This year it moved to April which doesn't jive well with the NBA's schedule. No fault for the Auto Show there. They just need to not advertise what they can't deliver. If it's any consolation for Wizards fans, they did the same thing to Capitals fans. The initial promse was Slapshot and a Caps player. Instead, you can go say hi to play-by-play man Craig Laughlin. Oh, and of course, Slapshot will be there.

Wizards STH Roundtable: Renewal Time!

It's late February and that means two things for Wizards fans: (1) the trade deadline has passed and (2) the Wiz are asking their loyal season ticket holders for some cash for the next season. This year, those two events could be seen as intimately entwined with one another and I'm having difficulty seeing that as a good thing in any way right now. Throw in a catastrophic John Wall achilles injury and a very vocal quest for the postseason issued by the team (which might also be seen as a distraction from what was really a cost cutting exercise) and this season might test season ticket holders' mettle more than any other year in recent memory.

Time to head out and get the pulse from five members of the Wizards DC12 Club on five very relevant subjects in Wiz-land. Oh, and by the way, this team ain't making the playoffs no matter how much they tell Trevor Ariza and Jeff Green that they love them. These are perilous times indeed for Washington basketball fans. Let's see what our panel thinks about the state of the team and whether tickets are worth it at all anymore. Five questions. Five people. 25 answers.

1. Season Ticket Prices for the 2019-2020 season were announced last weekend. At least for next season, prices are frozen. How do you feel?

Patrick (Section 421; Season 4): The only seats I'd ever consider (unless my salary reaches six digits)  are in the 400s. As the prices have continued to increase during my four-year tenure as a season ticket holder, I decided to stick to seats within the similar price I have been paying. The seats I pay for in Section 421 didn't change and it looks like most, if not all, seats in the 400s didn't change. I'm disappointed that season ticket rates did not go down. The rates this season were already higher than they should have been. Considering John Wall is most likely not going to play next season and, who knows, maybe Brad won't be around next year, Monumental should be lowering the prices!

Josh (Section 109; Season 6): Ted and Monumental probably thought they were throwing us a bone by not raising prices but this season my prices were 20% higher than last. So that still works out to a 10% annual increase and I don't think the organization has performed well enough to "earn" such a raise. The idea, which they are touting in their materials, that next year's upgrades to the TV screen/scoreboard at center court and the ability to have wraparound advertisements on an LED strip is a new "benefit" for season ticket holders is a bit insulting.

Kim (Section 117; Season 11): The freeze placed on the ticket prices is a marketing strategy to hopefully entice season ticket holders to renew since the team has played so poorly. Ernie Grunfeld's mid-season trades did not help the team synergy or the morale of the fans.

Marcus (Section 104; Season 5): Prices stayed the same, which feels right. As much as we may have hoped for it, I didn't think they would actually lower the prices. Any increase, however, would have been a disaster. 

Jonathan (Sections 109/415; Season 19): How do I feel? Relieved. For the first time in a few years, neither my lower level seats nor my upper deck seats increased in price. This is a good move by the team considering I didn't really expect them to cut prices (which would have been a better move). Next year is likely going to be seen as a wasted year by a portion of the fan base and if they end up locking up Trevor Ariza or Jeff Green on long deals or sign Jabari Parker or Bobby Portis to deals with player options, they might be right. Raising ticket prices would have killed renewals in my opinion. My 400 level seats at $40 per game are still a complete waste of money that can easily be bested on the secondary market most games. My seats in Section 109 are still about the same price they were before Ted Leonsis slashed prices after the 2010-2011 season. It's ironic but one of the worst things Ted did to himself was to cut season tickets in some locations in half. He could have maintained those seats at the same price for eight years in a row. Instead, he's gotten them back to about where they were in 2010 and faced criticism for raising prices multiple times.

2. Otto gone. Oubre gone. Kieff gone. Mahinmi still here. Wall out 'til 2020. Where does that leave the Wiz?

Patrick: It's going to be a depressing season next season, especially if the franchise has the same coach and general manager. I had already tuned out of this season a couple of months ago when I realized I couldn't get consistently decent entertainment from watching this Brooks-led team. Considering that there will be only five players coming back next year for sure (I expect Dwight Howard to take the player option and, no, we are not paying Jabari Parker $20 million next year), this team is in total disarray and I don't see how the Wizards can be a formidable playoff team for the next couple years. At the very least, I would hope that the team can offer us fans entertaining basketball, even if in a losing fashion. That's all I'm asking for. Hey, Ted, Remember your 10 point plan?

Josh: The Wiz situation is just horribly depressing. I became a season ticket holder towards the end of Brad's first year. I went to Florida, so having Brad, and also remembering how awesome John was at Kentucky, made me excited about what was about to happen with the team. Then they made the playoffs for the first time in the Wall era my first full year as a ticket holder. There was just so much promise and excitement. Now it has all come crashing down - with a ton of disappointment along the way. Bad coaching and even worse management and, of course, some bad injury luck. Ugh it's just so bad.

Kim: It leaves the team in the basement...rebuilding again with everything on Beal and Satoransky. Thomas Bryant needs to hit the weight room to bulk up a bit so that he doesn't get pushed around as much. He's a "diamond in the rough" and looking forward to his development. Mahinmi...(heavy sigh) such an albatross. $15.9 million bench-warmer who is laughing all the way to the bank.

Marcus: In trouble. Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be any hope for the Wizards in the near future. John's injury is a major blow to the franchise. It's very possible that he will never be the same again and the supermax will really hinder the Wizards' potential and flexibility for the next few years. The only real hope is for the ping pong balls to have that Irene Pollin magic.

Jonathan: Drifting. Honestly, what's the plan? Are we going to just say we expect to contend each year, put a toe over the luxury tax line and then decided to sell off players and give away picks when it turns out we are not as good a team as ownership says we should be? And then do the same thing over and over again each year? Is anyone going to figure out a short term or long term plan because this "win now" mentality that's driven the team to make band-aid move after band-aid move without ever actually "winning now" is nuts. 

3. Did you try selling any of your tickets this year? How did that work out for you?

Patrick: I will be attending the fewest number of games I've ever attended these past four years. I maxed out the number of games I could return via the Fluid Ticket Program and tried to sell the other tickets. Unless the Wizards are playing a marquee team like the Warriors, there is no way I could break even on my tickets. My section isn't particularly a place where a potential buyer would prioritize, but looking at prices on third-party sites makes me wish I just bought my tickets on StubHub.

Josh: I tend to get to only 12-15 regular season games a year, and this year I went a bit less because of how depressing the team has been. I depend on the resale market to help me afford my tickets but the resale market has been depressed too and I will probably end up with double the costs for my tickets compared to last year, even when adjusting for the season ticket price increase.

Kim: No. Not applicable for me.

Marcus: I've sold more tickets this year than I have in any of the past years as a season ticket holder. The Ticketmaster site keeps getting increasingly difficult to use. They've taken away some of the useful stats of actual seats sold to help you with pricing. They have implemented a "recommended price" feature that I've used with some success. The biggest issue is that there isn't really too much demand for Wizard basketball outside of LeBron or Steph coming to town. It really seems like a better deal to not have season tickets. 

Jonathan:  I did because I felt I had to. The increased cost of season tickets meant unfortunately I wanted to recover some of my cost so I sold the Golden State and Lakers games without thinking about it. I also have upper deck seats so I tried to unload at least two tickets per game. It was tough. 400 level tickets by and large are worthless. Of the 26 home games so far, I've sold just four games for more than I paid. Of the remaining 22, I've sold 10 for $10 per seat or less and I've eaten two more entirely.

4. The Wizards promotional schedule has a bobblehead giveaway on April 5. Who should it be?

Patrick: This is a no brainer for me but let me think about this more strategically. Let's see...who on this team actually deserves some recognition? It should be someone who has been playing a decent number of minutes. Therefore, it can't be the rookie. My favorite bench warmer, Jason Smith, is no longer around. It should also be someone who has been on the team for a while. *looks at roster* Wait a minute...how many players were even on this team before this season?!? Since John and Brad already have had their own bobblehead nights, I'll name my favorite non-All-Star player on the roster: Tomas Satoransky.

Josh: Ooof. Tough one. I guess Thomas Bryant has been the most fun player to root for this year? I'd like a Kara Lawson bobble - she's so great, my daughters (who I take to all of the games) love her, and she and Buck make me more proud of the Wiz organization than anyone else at this point.

Kim: Tomas Satoransky. He has really stepped up as the most improved player in my opinion for the last two years while John Wall was out injured. His confidence has greatly increased and he's not hesitant like he used to be. They should put his jersey in the team store as well.

Marcus: Thomas Bryant. That would be my dream. It's probably Bradley; I don't think that he's had one in quite a while.

Jonathan: Tomas or Thomas. If I were asked to make a prediction, I'd say it's going to be an All-Star Bradley Beal bobble, which would be the fourth team-issued Beal bobble. It's too bad the Wizards self-limit their own options here. I'm sure they want to hand out something that will make fans turn out for the giveaway alone and scheduling just one bobble per year gives them no flexibility to give a role player and possible future star a shoutout for hard work and good play. The solution here, of course, is to give away more than one per season like a lot of other teams do. I'm rooting for Satoransky or Bryant and expecting Beal. And as a side note, the Wizards are masters at self-limiting their own options across the board.

5. 2019-20 season: in or out or on the fence? 

Patrick: I'm not COMPLETELY out. If I had to give a percentage, I'm about 99.99999999% out. If Ernie Grunfeld is fired before the renewal date, I'll renew my tickets, but pay for the cheapest seat available. The benefits and incentives we get as the most basic of season ticket holders (i.e. not Courtside, VIP, etc.) have gotten worse over the years to the point I don't think we are being appreciated. *sigh* Why do I even root for this franchise?

Josh: I will temporarily renew to hold my tickets but if Ernie is still the GM heading into the draft I am canceling my tickets. Ted blocked me on Twitter, so that's the only way to make my frustrated voice heard at this point!

Kim: On the fence!

Marcus: Extremely on the fence for a couple of reasons. Like I stated before, it seems like it would be cheaper to find secondary market tickets for every game than to have season tickets. The other is a personal reason; my wife and I are about to have our first child due in March and I'm sure that will mean fewer trips to Capital One next year. I love my current seats, though. That might be what will keep me in.

Jonathan: Right now I'm on the fence. This is my 19th year and I always said I wanted to make it at least 20. I'm a glutton for punishment, what can I say? I appreciate the gesture by the team to keep ticket prices the same next year. Some of my years as a season ticket holder have been pretty good to me from a finacial standpoint. I'm willing to give it at least one more year if the team will let me not renew my upper deck seats. If they won't do that, I might be leaning towards out.

400 Level Signage Ranked, Part II

This is my last post about the new picture signs installed over this past summer at Capital One Arena. I promise. In November, I posted my ranking of the 22 signs installed in the 100 Level of the building assuming that was all the money Capital One cared to spend on these things. About a week later I made my first trip of the season to the 400 Level and found 34 more signs. I posted part one of my countdown on that level last week. Now I'm handling the top 17 on the upper deck. Then I'll be quiet about signage in the building for a while. Probably.

Let's see what I found on the top level of Cap One that's better than what I showed last week.

17. Playoff Bound (408/409)

Sometimes the playoffs are something to celebrate so I'm putting this sign at the 17 spot in this countdown. I do find the concept of this one a little curious though. I mean it's not like the Mystics had some long playoff drought. This sign is dated 2006. The Mystics made the playoffs in 2004, 2002 and 2000. Why this year? They made it as the four seed with an 18-16 record. Don't think I'm going to figure this one out.

16. Young Guns (410/411)

So let me get this straight: this sign celebrates the fact that the Washington Capitals found multiple young players in the draft that are actually good. In many, many ways this speaks volumes about the ownership of the Capitals and by default also the Wizards and Mystics. And Valor I guess; I keep forgetting that's a sport. This ranks 16th on this list because this standard is like a minimum bar for some franchises. Of course, these young guns did go on to win a Stanley Cup I guess.

15. Bondra's Goal (402/403)

I guess this is good for Peter Bondra. Score three goals in a game and get a contract extension. And we wonder why Andray Blatche got an extension for a couple of good months of play.

14. Holtby Saves 44 (406/407)
So it seems to me that this sign isn't really celebrating Braden Holtby saving 44 shots in a single playoff game; it's more about the fact that his effort in this one game propelled the Caps to a series win against the Boston Bruins. And maybe recognizing Holtby individually for being between the pipes for the 2018 Stanley Cup championship run. Why do I think that? Because yes, the Caps got by Boston but they bowed out in the very next round in the 2012 playoffs. And 44 saves isn't like an NHL record or something (it's 92, if you were wondering). Still this signs sits 14th because it spotlights Holtby and he deserves his own spotlight.

13. Wes Unseld Named NBA MVP (400/401)
Only one Wizards / Bullets / Zephyrs / Packers player has ever been named the NBA's Most Valuable Player and that's Wes Unseld (obviously). No, it didn't happen in Washington; he played for the Baltimore Bullets. But as a basketball fan, I think it deserves a sign celebrating the accomplishment. Oh...and Wes was also Rookie of the Year this same season. Only player to ever win both of those in a single season.

Oddly enough Alex Ovechkin has won the Hart Trophy (the NHL's MVP award) three times and he gets no sign for that. Even though he did it in the building. Can't figure out the logic behind some of these things. 

12. Dozen Goals (417/418)
It's not often a hockey team scores 12 goals in a single game. The Caps have done it once since the current building opened and that was in January of 2003. I'm having second thoughts about putting this one ahead of Wes Unseld's MVP season but it did happen in the building after all.  I need to post this before I change my mind.

11. Dale Hunter Number 32 Retired (412/413)

10. Phil Chenier Number Retired (431/432)

There are a total of six retired number signs that were added over the summer. Earl Monroe, whose number was retired after the move to MCI Center / Verizon Center is down on the 100 level. You can find the other five upstairs. I ranked Gus Johnson, Elvin Hayes and Was Unseld 21st, 20th and 19th respectively in last week's post because their numbers were retired before the Wizards moved to downtown Washington. Chenier's and Hunter's numbers were not; they were retired right at 601 F Street NW. Chenier's ranked higher because basketball is better than hockey.

Phil Chenier's 45 is the fifth number retired by the Bullets / Wizards and all five of those players are represented on signs in the building. The Capitals have retired four numbers and oddly enough, only Hunter is celebrated in sign form around the concourse on the 100 or 400 level. I don't know what Rod Langway (#5), Yvon Labre (#7) or Mike Gartner (#11) did to deserve to be snubbed but they were.

9. All-Star (John Wall) (433/400)

8. The #1 Pick (428/429)

John Wall has played a huge part in the identity of the Washington Wizards franchise over the last nine seasons (how has it been that long??) and deservedly so. I ranked him as the best Wizard all time (Wizard, not Bullet)  a couple of years ago based on his play over the years and his five All-Star appearances, which is two more than any other Wizard.  These two signs mark two pretty important milestones in John's career: his selection number one overall in the 2010 NBA Draft and his selection to the All-Star team for the first time.

7. Eastern Conference Best (405/406)

Yep, believe it or not, the Washington Mystics were the WNBA Eastern Conference's best in the 2010 season, long before they made the Finals this past season. They also started three players (Monique Curry, Lindsey Harding and Crystal Langhorne) in the WNBA All-Star game. Of course, there's a picture celebrating the regular season because in the postseason they bombed, losing 0-2 to the four seed Atlanta Dream.

6. 300 For Kölzig (423/424)

Olaf Kölzig in the Capitals' all time leader in games won and he won a lot of them at the MCI Center / Verizon Center. There's a lot of value in celebrating accomplishments accumulated one game at a time over the span of years. Kölzig did something here worthy of note. And sure, Olie won 300 but he only went one over that number. His career total stands at 301. Braden Holtby has 245 as of this past Sunday. What happens then? 

5. U2 (404/405)

I put most of the concert signs in the 400 level in the mid-20s (22 through 28 to be exact) of this sign rank. Well, except for Keith Urban who is deservedly dead last. But U2? No way could I put this band with the rest of the acts 17-23 spots higher. U2 is a breed apart in this bunch. As an aside, can you imagine even seeing U2 at a venue this small (which is bigger than most bands will ever hope to play)? Crazy that they weren't already doing stadium shows when MCI Center opened in 1997.

4. Community Assist (403/404)

What beats U2 and team success by the Mystics? John Wall giving back to the community, that's what. Every year since the 2011-2012 NBA Season, the NBA has handed out an annual award to a player to honor their community engagement and charitable work and/or philanthropy. At the end of the 2015-2016 season, John Wall received the award for his work making Washington, D.C. and Raleigh, NC. This is important stuff. In many ways much much more important than winning on the court. Well done, here. Proud of John for this one.

3. The Dalai Lama (427/428)

I get what you are thinking: is the Dalai Lama really more important that all this Wizards and Capitals stuff? More important than the Mystics and Valor? Than Keith Urban and U2? Yes, he is. Much more important. One could argue as the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism and international peace symbol and conscience of all that is good that he should be number one. But he's not on this countdown. Not today. The Dalai Lama played 601 F Street. How cool is that?

2. 17-Game Win Streak at Home (416/417)

This seems like a distant memory at this point but two years ago (yes, just TWO YEARS ago) the Wizards ran off 17 straight wins at home on their way to their first and only division title in my 19 years of being a Wizards season ticket holder. Since then? Not so much success. We'll always have the 2017 playoffs, I guess. Can't see the Wiz having the same success this year.

1. Finals Win (430/431)
Just as was the case with the 100 level signs, there is no accomplishment in the building better than the Stanley Cup Finals win so any sign celebrating anything to do with that series and that championship comes first, number one, all the time. This sign outside sections 430 and 431 commemorates the first win in Washington that put the Caps up 2-1 en route to winning four straight and closing out the Golden Knights in Vegas five days later. 

That's it. Until they put some of these on the Club level, which they likely won't. But if they do, they should right the wrong that they have done by omitting all mention of the Wizards post name change and pre-Leonsis ownership. Those players on the mid-aughts team are not a stain to be erased from the team's and building's history. Happy about this current Wizards team making the second round of the playoffs and putting two players in the All-Star Game? We should be equally happy about the team 10 to 15 years prior doing the same thing, only with three All-Stars.

400 Level Signage Ranked, Part I

If you've been reading this blog at all in the last couple of months, you'll know that there was a significant renovation of Capital One Arena this summer. Heck, you might even accuse me of being a little obsessed with this building renovation and I wouldn't dispute it. A couple of months ago, I posted my ranking of the best new signage installed over the summer at the entrances to the 100 level seating sections. At that time, I figured the lower level of the building would have been the only spot in the building that management (or Capital One, depending on your perspective) would have sprung for some new signage.

Turns out I was wrong. About a week after I published that November post, I made my way upstairs in the building (to pour my own beer, if you must know) and found a whole new set of signage up on the 400 level. So now I have to rank the upper deck signage also of course. The same disclaimers apply: generally basketball beats hockey, events in the building beat events not in the building and concerts and shows usually take a back seat to sports. I'm not making any effort here to provide a consolidated ranking of all signs in the building. Honestly, I don't see the point. I mean, after all, this blog is mostly pointless anyway.

There are 34 signs on the 400 level. I'll be counting down from 34 to 18 in this post and then doing the top 17 in another post. It would be just too long to do all 34 in a single sitting.

34. Keith Urban (426/427)

Keith Urban? Really? There were 56 picture signs installed around Capital One Arena last summer including 12 related to concerts (3 downstairs and 9 upstairs) and they picked Keith Urban as one of those 12? I've seen Bob Dylan in the building twice and he's not one of them but Keith Urban is? And no Madonna either? Although the last omission is likely due to Madge going on stage 2-1/2 hours late for one show which did not make Ted happy. This sign is the worst. 

33. Arena Construction (418/419)

As I mentioned during my first post, posts about the building are not events that happened in the building. Sure the construction was important because without the construction there wouldn't be a building at all but this does not qualify for a sign. They should remove this one immediately. Well, after they take the Keith Urban one down that is. :)

32. International Horse Show (414/415)

31. Disney On Ice (424/425)

Every year it seems the Wizards go on the road for about a week or maybe a little more and either the horse show or Disney on Ice moves in. I've never been to either of these events but they rank this low on this list because they are not in any way unique to the building. Disney gets the nod over horses because horses kind of freak me out. 

30. ArenaBowl Champions (401/402)

I guess I feel happy for these guys who won the ArenaBowl. Most people will never win a professional sports championship even if it was in a four team league and the team's regular season record was 2-6. I also in theory genuinely root for these players in life. This is their shot at glory and some may actually make it out and make it big a la Kurt Warner. But this signs sits at 30th on this list because it's just not a relevant sport. Sorry for being petty but that's how I feel.

29. Harlem Globetrotters (429/430)

The Globetrotters might have been easily ranked with the horse show and Disney On Ice. I elected to put them here because I think Arena Football is more pointless than watching the 'Trotters beat the Washington Generals every night. They can't rank too hight though because it's totally non-competitive basketball. Then again, there have been seasons that you could easily say that about the Wizards. 

28. Foo Fighters (407/408)

27. Andrea Bocelli (420/421)

26. Justin Timberlake (415/416)

25. Bruno Mars (411/412)

I mentioned under the Keith Urban entry above that there are nine signs featuring concerts on the 400 level. I'm electing to group seven of the other eight in the next seven spots, starting with artists that I have not seen at MCI Center/Verizon Center/Capital One Arena. Foo Fighters, Andrea Bocelli, Justin Timberlake and Bruno Mars are ranked in the order I would probably go see them. There is one more artist I haven't seen in the building on a sign but they are just head and shoulders above these four (and the next three). Go ahead and mock me for putting Foo Fighters last. 

24. Christina Aguilera (422/423)

23. Bon Jovi (432/433)

22. Lady Gaga (419/420)

And then there are the artists I have seen at MCI Center/Verizon Center/Capital One Arena. Yes, I have actually seen Christina Aguilera and Lady Gaga there (I've also seen Britney Spears there but they chose to not give Brit her own sign). These three are listed in the order that I would probably go see them again. I debated about this list a good bit but ultimately Gaga would win out over Bon Jovi.

21. Gus Johnson Number Retired (425/426)

20. Elvin Hayes Number Retired (409/410)

19. Wes Unseld Number Retired (421/422)

When MCI Center opened in 1997, there were three retired numbers from the Washington Bullets hanging from the rafters (there are now five; Earl Monroe and Phil Chenier have been retired since the building opened). The retired numbers of Gus Johnson, Elvin Hayes and Wes Unseld are all celebrated in the 400 level signs. If the retirement happened at MCI Center or Verizon Center or Capital One Arena, they would surely be higher on this list. However, they didn't; so they aren't. I've ranked these three based on my perception of their value to the franchise and its history. Debate away. I'm sure if anyone wanted to, they'd have to get through their disgust at my musical artist rankings right before these three. Except for the Keith Urban thing, that is.

18. All-Star (Bradley Beal) (413/414)

More stuff that didn't happen in the building. Sort of; I mean obviously Beal spent half (give or take) of his audition for the All-Star game at 601 F Street NW. In a spoiler alert, there's another one of these for John Wall elsewhere on the 400 level; Wall just gets ranked higher than Beal because I like Wall more than Beal. Although this season is certainly changing my opinion of Brad in a big way.

So at this point in my ranking of signage on this level, there are three retired Bullets players (don't worry - Phil's coming too) and recognition of All-Start appearances by Beal and Wall. There is nothing about the teams in between the Bullets and Ted's 2010-and-after version of the Wizards. And I think this completely sucks. There are a ton of fans including me who watched Arenas, Butler and Jamison play in the building and they get nothing. Not a single sign. No mention. For a team that at one point in 2007 led the Eastern Conference at the All-Star break. Eddie Jordan coached the All-Star team that year. Couldn't that get a mention even? Over Keith Urban maybe? Guess not. The revisionist history here is annoying to me. Those guys deserve better.

End of Part I. Part II next week.

John Wall

I know I'm a little late on this one. This post (and in fact this whole blog actually) isn't intended to break news. I've spent the last few days thinking about the events of this week and how to put them into words. Monday night my friend Mike and I were discussing why John Wall wasn't on the bench during the Wizards loss to the Atlanta Hawks (!!!). Tuesday we knew. Achilles. Brutal. Threw my whole world off.

John Wall is my favorite current Wizards player. I mean it's not even close. I never loved Bradley Beal's game and attitude until maybe this year (that would be seven years into his time in Washington) and Otto never did much for me. Kieff Morris? Dwight Howard? Please. John's my guy. Has been since he got here and pulled this franchise back to the playoffs. True, I do own a Tomas Satoransky t-shirt which I wear occasionally but John's my favorite. Now he's gone. For a while. Still under contract and counting against the cap. But he's not going to be on the court for a while now.

Despair. Pity. Anger. Regret. Hopelessness. Helplessness. I've felt all of that this week. Why can't the Wizards ever have anything good? What's going to happen to the chances for this team for the next two seasons? Why did I pick this franchise? Is Ted Leonsis going to use this injury as an excuse to make no change in the franchise even though he said no excuses? Why is there never any long term plan? Is Ernie Grunfeld ever going to be ushered out of the building? Why did I buy season tickets this year when I know this team is never ever winning it all?

This news sucks. Think it's bad for you and me and any other Wizards fan out there? Think again. Most to all of us have not just torn our achilles tendon. Most of us have not undergone surgery on the same part of our body that affects our ability to walk and do the job that sustains us. This is not my body we are talking about. The person this devastates the most is John Wall. And anyone that feels differently is just making no sense.

Yep, I know John Wall is making north of $37 million next year and his salary alone is consuming more than 30% of the salary cap. Who cares? Are the Wizards in trouble next year? Sure they are. Does this injury kill our chances to make it to the NBA Finals? Maybe, if you believe we ever had a chance to begin with. I think sometimes we think that because the team that we root for has invested a lot of money in a player, that man (the player) cedes all right to have a healthy body at the end of his contract. 

From a certain perspective, John is lucky. He's not an undrafted free agent that's killed his ability to make money with little to show for it. That part doesn't matter to me so much. As I grow older, I feel more and more empathy for these guys that are laying their bodies and maybe their lives on the line for a chance at glory. From a certain perspective, it's just not worth it. I'm lucky that I never had to make that choice.

I'm rooting for John Wall to come back soon at full strength. Maybe there will be a Wizards team on the other side of this that is assembled well enough to grab at some glory I've never seen since I've intimately entwined my life with this club. But the important thing is that he's well and can walk and run and jump normally again. Right now that's really all I'm looking for out of this situation.

Random Observations

It's been about a month since we've seen either John Wall or Markieff Morris on the court in a Wizards uniform and I was actually enjoying the team the Wizards are fielding these days. They were scrappy, they were trying hard, they move the ball well and they were winning, albeit at home more often than not and not necessarily against the cream of the NBA crop. Then they played the Cavs this past Tuesday and the Spurs two nights before that. Defense? What defense? Two big issues still loom over this team apart from their defensive prowess in the last week: (1) they have to (and I really mean HAVE to) fix that salary cap situation unless Ted Leonsis is on board with exceeding that luxury tax line next year and (2) I'm sure that Scott Brooks is going to hit the reset button on everything next season when Wall and Dwight Howard will be back in the starting lineup.

Do I still think the team should sell at the trading deadline and give up on their chances to make the playoffs and get out of the first round? You bet I do; they won't make it out of the first round anyway. In the meantime, I'm still heading to games will be rooting as hard as I can for the team.

Over the last couple of months it seems like there have been a bunch of really odd or random things happen around the court at Capital One Center. None of these things warrant a post in and of themselves so I've been saving these up for a compilation of random thoughts type post. I've now got enough to write a full post I think. Here goes nothing.

Why Do They Do That?

In about the first or second game of the season this year, I noticed the Wizards pep squad or ground crew or whatever they are moving a beige cloth over the center court logo and the two lanes under the baskets at either end of the court right before the starting lineups were announced. This didn't make any sense to me from my seat in the lower level, especially since they sometimes had to wait for the opposing team to get out of the way down at the far end (from my perspective) of the court so they could cover that lane.

Then I sat upstairs and lo and behold, there's some fancy pregame laser projection during the introductions. I assume this is part of the arena upgrades that happened this summer since I haven't noticed it before this year. I get that most people in Capital One Arena are likely not confused about this but I was and it's not a bad pregame effect. Definitely an improvement over past years. The view of what it's like from Section 415 is in the cover photo of this post.

Crowded House

I rarely hang around for halftime shows at Capital One Arena. I'm usually too busy heading somewhere in the building for a halftime beer and have been conditioned over the last few years to getting nothing but non-professional halftime performers (Red Panda, I miss you!). But earlier this month against Milwaukee I stuck around and witnessed what has to be the single most dense mass of people I've ever seen on a basketball court in person. It was some kind of coordinated cheer session with multiple multiple different groups. It was pretty stunning. See if you can see any reasonable space in the picture above. I can't.

Random Jerseys

Every so often, you'll see someone at a Wizards game with a completely random opponent jersey that just makes you wonder what was going on in their head to make them buy the jersey they have on. On MLK Day this year I walked by some dude wearing a number 7 Brandon Jennings Pistons jersey (I complimented him on his choice!) which amused me because I don't think Jennings' time in Detroit was especially notable. And yes, I do have Brendan Haywood, Andray Blatche and Chris Singleton jerseys in my closet at home.

But the one that got me most in recent memory was some guy in the second or third row at the Bucks game in early January wearing a T.J. Ford number 11 jersey. I get that Ford was a pretty high draft pick for the Milwaukee franchise back in 2003 but he only stuck around for three years (he was injured one of those three) and those were not particularly remarkable in any way. But his last year in a Bucks' jersey was 2006 for crying out loud. So this guy's been either stashing this thing in his closet waiting for his next NBA game to roll around or he wears this often to go see the Bucks play. Whatever's going on, this guy has my complete and utter respect. This is solid.

Where's G-Man?

For the first time in like forever (at least that's the way it works in my memory) during the Philly game (great win by the way) on January 9, the Secret Service Dunkers made an appearance. I don't really go for any sort of timeout type entertainment but there's something about these guys that I love. Might be the name and the uniforms, which I think are super creative and super Washington, D.C. It's certainly not the dunking, which I guess is what they are really all about. 

They were introduced that Wednesday night not as the Secret Service Dunkers but as G-Man and the Secret Service Dunkers. They even had that name on the large red mat they land on after they dunk. Only...no G-Man. There hasn't been any G-Man in years has there? Didn't the Wizards kill him off like four or five years ago? I can't remember seeing him recently and he wasn't there during the game against the Sixers. Yet he was introduced and his name is on the equipment. Is Ted just too cheap to spring for a new pad?

Beal vs. Wall

In the offseason three years ago, Monumental Sports installed a Wizards Franchise History display that showed the history of the team's primary uniform all the way from the franchise's inception in Chicago in 1961 to today. Or at least through the 2015 offseason anyway. The display is shown in the photograph above and features jerseys all the way from Walt Bellamy with the Chicago Packers (number 8 top left) to John Wall (number 2 top right) with today's team.

In the last couple of months or so, the team has swapped out the current primary road uniform (what Nike now calls the Icon Edition) for this season't City Edition, the black version of last year's white City Edition featuring not Washington or Wizards across the chest but The District of Columbia. It makes sense, right? I mean you want the hottest version of your unis in a case like this I guess so more people will go out and buy one.

The only curious thing is they switched John Wall's jersey out for a Bradley Beal jersey. Because Wall's injured I guess???

I'll end with that. Milwaukee up next Saturday night. Assuming it's going to be a little more difficult this time.

Wall out. Beal in.