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.