Hopwood Out

In the fall of 2000, I made the decision to buy Washington Wizards season tickets. It was perhaps a little impulsive. I was new to the DMV and not fully invested in the Wizards, but at $410 for an entire season, there was pretty much no way to say no. As a transplanted New York Knicks fan (the Patrick Ewing-John Starks-Charles Oakley-Marcus Camby-Latrell Sprewell-Larry Johnson Knicks, that is...) who stood almost no chance to ever get some decent tickets to games at Madison Square Garden, the opportunity to go to a game anytime I wanted for a mere $10 per was too much to pass up.

About 12 years after I made that decision to buy season tickets, I'd become entirely consumed as a Washington Wizards fan, despite there being no realistic chance to that point (or since) that the team even stood a remote chance of competing for an NBA title. I never missed a game unless it really couldn't be avoided and my passion was all year round. Season. Postseason. Draft. Summer League. Free Agency. Preseason. Repeat. So I decided to start writing some of my thoughts as a Wizards fan down and post them on the internet. Why not? Seemed like a natural way to extend my love of this team to others.

It has never been easy being a Washington Wizards fan. Losing sucks. And there's been lots of it since 2000. But over the last few years, I've become convinced that this team is never going anywhere near the NBA Finals for one pretty significant reason: ownership. And so 20 years into being a season ticket holder and 366 posts (including this one) into this blog, I think I'm done with both. I'm out.

Clinching the only Division title in 20 years.

So far be it from me to drop an accusation like I did in the previous paragraph without backing it up so here goes. I used to love how I was embraced as a season ticket holder. There seemed to be so few of us at times. I literally didn't know anyone else who would even consider such an apparent waste of money. But the situation was great. Tickets were heavily discounted and the perks were great. 

But those perks started disappearing. Access to special experiences started to dry up. Tickets got more expensive to the point where it was clearly cheaper to buy them on the secondary market. Eventually, it seemed like I was paying more than I should to remain a part of a club which had no real benefit.

And honestly, all of that would have been OK if there had been on court success these past 20 years. I'm OK even paying for season tickets with no discount if there were a chance at a title. But this organization is clearly not run with the goal of winning, unless it can somehow be done under the luxury tax threshold. Spoiler alert: it pretty much probably definitely for sure cannot be done under the luxury tax. The repeated decisions that have led to failure are baffling: conducting coaching searches with just one candidate in mind; trading first round draft picks for a get-in-the-playoffs-and-maybe-make-the-second-round-now reward; insisting on building through the draft and only through the draft (hey, it worked for the Caps!); and trading away mistaken signings at a cost or for nothing. None of that is going to add up to winning, especially when you hang on to coaches who clearly aren't right for this team (or the NBA) just so you can avoid eating a $7 million salary. 

Fewer perks, an increased cost that's more expensive than secondary market value, management and ownership decisions that lead to repeated on-court failures. Why should I stay? So I can get my 21st season mark after the team failed to deliver on my 20th anniversary reward? No thanks. I'm done. I love the Wizards but it makes no economic or emotional sense to stay in. John Wall was the last emotional reason to hang on. That trade was just the catalyst for me to end it.

All-Star weekend 2015. Meeting Earl Monroe.

So don't get me wrong here. I'm still a Wizards fan. I want this team to win more than practically any other team out there (the New York Jets after 42 seasons are still the one I want to win most). But this ownership and these past few seasons have taken the passion out of the whole thing for me. I don't feel important as a season ticket holder and I'm not excited about either the team's current prospects for winning something (in 20 years as a season ticketholder the team won one division title and nothing else) or even one player on the current roster.

I will also continue to go to Wizards games. I'm actually looking forward to the time when we can go again and I can actually buy tickets for way cheaper than I would have been paying as a season ticket holder. Unless that is the current team (which is 0-4 as of this writing) actually turns into a contender. My money's on that not happening.

I'd like to think that I've made a difference in my 20 years as a Wizards fan. I've certainly been there for the Wizards in a number of ways. I've done two perfect seasons; seen the team on the road in 17 different NBA arenas (against 18 teams); attended every home playoff game in the last 20 years; been to the NBA Draft; been to Summer League seven years in a row in Las Vegas (2008-2015; there was no Summer League in 2011); been to the All-Star Game in New York when John Wall started the game; and was even there when the team clinched their one and only Southeast Division title in March of 2017. And yes, I know that last game was on the road in Los Angeles. I just happened to be there.

A very young John Wall signing at an Obama fundraiser in New York, 2012.

There are still some things I want to do, Wizards-wise. I likely won't ever make it to all 29 (I'm projecting forward to the Clippers having their own pad) other arenas to see the Wizards play on the road. But I'd love to one day watch a Wizards game courtside (yes, I know all I need to do is cough up about $1,000 per seat to do that); I'd love to see the Wizards play in the NBA Finals (absolutely no control over that); and I'd love to see a Wizards player enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. And I don't mean like Mitch Richmond or Paul Pierce or someone like that. I mean someone who you could legitimately think of first and foremost as a Wizard. I guess John Wall has the best shot, although that may be a super long shot. Might be waiting a while on that last one just like that Finals appearance.

I've had a great time writing this blog. Most of the stuff I've written on here has been stupid, silly stuff like ranking team logos and critiquing bobbleheads but I believe in everything I've written on this thing no matter how or when I've written it. It's been a labor of love and I've really enjoyed it. It's also connected me to a larger basketball community in D.C. in a way that I wouldn't have been if I hadn't ever written a single post on this thing. I've also met some people (some of whom have contributed to this blog) that I wouldn't have otherwise met.

Eight and a half years is a long time to write about a basketball team that has accomplished almost nothing and is owned and managed by people who have proved that they don't really know what they are doing. 366 posts (a leap year's days worth of posts, if you will), seems like a good number to end on.

I've dug up some of my favorite Wizards pictures over the years and included them in this post but the one below is still my favorite. I have no idea what's going on in the game but my friend Mike and I are clearly celebrating something good that the Wizards have done on court when nobody else (and I really mean nobody else) is paying the slightest attention or exhibiting any sort of excitement about what the Wizards are doing. It perfectly sums up my experience as a Wizards fan. It's even perfect that it's blurry.

It's been real. Go Wizards. Always.

2020

So two things right off the bat here: (1) I've been silent for way too long on this blog and (2) yeah, I know everyone thinks 2020 sucked pretty much as badly as anything as long as a year ever has. It's wrecked my year, it's wrecked my spirit, it's wrecked this blog and there's less than a month left so we don't really have to put up with this very much longer. On to 2021. And hopefully a return to normal.

Before I continue, this post is not supposed to be tone deaf but I realize it could come off that way. My year has been frustrating but I'm still alive and healthy and employed. There are more than 300,000 people who contracted COVID-19 who can't say that and millions more that have lost friends, relatives and jobs or have aftereffects of an illness that will never be cured. Compared to all those people, my year has been a breeze. I wouldn't wish 2020 on anyone but my heart goes out to those that have come through this thing way worse off than they started through no fault of their own.

Now back to that wrecking this blog thing...it's true. Since I started writing this thing in 2012, I published 51 posts every full year from 2013 to 2017 and then decided to take the summers off in 2018 and 2019 and dropped my output to 36. There's nothing magical about those numbers (no it's not for Michael Ruffin and Etan Thomas although it would be awesome if that were the case) it's just the way it worked out. This year? 9 posts through the middle of December (meaning before this post). Nine!!! Pathetic.

Speaking of pathetic, that's about how the Wizards' year has been don't you think? Let's recap, shall we? And yes, there's plenty of self pity here.

January

Do you know what it's like for your team to have no shot at winning anything before the season even started? I do. I'm a Wizards fan AND a New York Jets fan. There has been plenty of that hopelessness before anything started over the 20 years I've been a Wiz season ticket holder and the more than 40 years I've been a Jets fan. The 2019-2020 season was about as miserable as I have felt before the beginning of a campaign. The Wizards started 2020 with a New Year's Day loss to the Orlando Magic which dropped them to 10-23. I'd pretty much lost interest at this point. There was just no conceivable way that this team turned things around.

February

The All-Star Game is held in February without Bradley Beal. Why? Because Beal wasn't selected by the coaches to be an Eastern Conference reserve. Considering the success of the teams from which every other All-Star reserve was selected, it's difficult for me to argue with Beal's omission. Team success affects All-Star voting, at least among coaches. It just does. Deal with it!

March

After waiting through the first four months my 20th season as a Wizards season ticket holder, I finally get the information about my 20th anniversary reward, transportation to and from a regular season game with dinner pre-game. I select the March 15 game against the Thunder as my game. Then four days before that game, the NBA shuts down, dooming my reward that I've waiting 20 years to get. It's not the first time the Wizards have skipped a significant milestone. My five year reward was supposed to be a reception with a player but Agent Zero skipped out alleging a flat tire and the team never felt like that was important enough to reschedule. I got a signed basketball instead. It's not the same.

April

The season is still shut down. But...

So not only did the NBA shutdown affect my 20 year reward celebration, it locked Wizards fans out of the biggest bobblehead bonanza in more than a decade. Finally after single bobblehead seasons the Wizards low low low attendance forces the team to hand out more swag. April was supposed to be Bradley Beal Black Panther and Thomas Bryant bobblehead month. Never happened. Same for Rui Hachimura bobblehead night in late March. The Wizards probably have upwards of 9,000 or so of these things in some closet at Cap One. They could mail them to season ticket holders, but don't.

In typical fashion, there are clearly some of these things out there and on eBay. The Wizards have given away some of these to fans here and there and there was a promotional special for season ticketholders who visited the team store at Cap One a couple of weeks ago and dropped a minimum spend. It also appears that the team mailed out a special package to some fans with the Rui and Beal bobbles and some other swag. Some dude in Canada has one for sale. The picture is above. Have at it, fans!!

June

The NBA finalizes plans for The Bubble, a way for teams to finish out the 2019-2020 season. Not every team is a part of this thing but the Wizards are because they are close enough to the playoffs to be deemed competitive. There are going to be eight seeding games to allow teams on the outside of the playoffs looking in to catch the teams above them. If a team is within four games of the eighth place team there will be a series of play-in games. 

The NBA is wrong to deem the Wizards competitive here.

August

By the time the eighth month of 2020 starts, the Wizards have already seen Bradley Beal and Davis Bertans opt out of The Bubble and the team has already dropped their first of eight seeding games. It will get worse. It will take the Wizards until their eighth game to win one by which time they are long out of any sort of postseason scenario. The Bubble is a wasted experience.

The NBA came up with a way to get fans of the home teams engaged by having them attend games virtually having their likenesses pasted into seats on video boards. True to form, the Wizards "arena" under this scenario is more than half empty.

After their seeding games, the Wizards have the eighth worst winning percentage in the NBA for the 2019-2020 season. They entered The Bubble with the ninth worst winning percentage so by going 1-7 in July and August, they actually slid below the Charlotte Hornets in the standings, which last season were determined by winning percentage because not every team played the same number of games. In the annual NBA Draft Lottery, the eighth worst team moved up to the number three spot. But...the rules don't allow Bubble teams to slide below non-Bubble teams for the purposes of the Draft Lottery. The Hornets move up and the Wiz stay at nine. Figures! Push the knife deeper, why don't you?

December

The Wizards trade John Wall to the Houston Rockets along with a future conditional first round draft pick for Russell Westbrook. 

I'm crushed. I still haven't recovered emotionally. I can get my head wrapped around the idea that Russell Westbrook is going to hold the entire Wizards team accountable in a way that John Wall or Bradley Beal or Scott Brooks never have been able to but I'm still crushed.

In my 20 years of season ticket holder-dom, there have been only two players on this team that I have truly loved. They are (and there's probably no surprise here) Gilbert Arenas and John Wall. There's nobody else that's come close. Micheal Jordan, Antawn Jamison, Caron Butler and Bradley Beal have all been All-Stars in Washington over that time and Brendan Haywood and Martell Webster have been favorite players of mine at one time or another. But none of those guys have offered me hope of achieving something more than just mediocrity as a Wizards fan. Gil and John did that. Nobody else. 

The Wizards traded Gilbert Arenas because he ripped his knee up in a game against the Bobcats and did something immeasurably stupid by bringing a firearm into the locker room. The team apparently traded John Wall because someone in John's inner circle leaked a video of him flashing some gang signs at a party this summer. Not a smart thing to do, I get it, but the franchise has been talking about just wait until John Wall gets healthy for more than a year and right when he is they go and trade him. Makes no sense. That's all I'm going to say about that. Words can't express how faithless and utterly lacking in loyalty I think that trade is. I know...it's a business. John Wall offered me hope. The Wizards have taken that away.

Is that enough for this year? It is for me. The NBA season starts tomorrow. The Wizards open Wednesday at Philadelphia in front of no fans. I feel the same way I felt last October. The Wizards have no shot here at winning anything. Maybe they make the playoffs. Maybe they don't. If they make the playoffs this year then they get a mid-first round pick who likely won't make a difference to the team's future success in any real way and maybe they stay a playoff team the next season and then give up their 2023 first round pick as part of the Wall trade.

Maybe Russell Westbrook makes the Wizards better. Maybe Davis Bertans is worth the investment and maybe a draft pick pans out. What then? I get that it's unfair to say this but the guy who's supposed to be calling the shots for the Wizards was the team's third choice. Are we happy there? I know, the book's still out. But he did back a coach who's shown little ability to get the most out of his teams. Maybe Ted Leonsis called the shot on that one, not willing to part with $7 million for nothing, just like Ted called the Wall trade too. And refuses to exceed the luxury tax to take a shot at winning. Tell me where my hope is.

Where's Our Stuff?

So the NBA season is resuming July 30 in Orlando. With the Wizards by the way. And maybe no Kyrie Irving. Maybe. And it goes until when? October? Then the next season starts in December? When's that one going to end? Does it go until August of next year? Or is it a shorter schedule? Or compressed so we get tons of back to backs and three games in four nights type things? Will the players union stand for that? Will fans even be allowed in the buildings? Do we have to say see you in October 2021 to our favorite teams? 

So many questions, right? But I have to say the biggest one I have out there is "Where's our stuff?" Not trying to be greedy. Just stay with me here a minute or so. This one's not that long.

So the 2019-2020 season from a fans attending game scenario is done. But what about the free stuff the team had planned to hand out at the games that were cancelled? What happens to all that stuff? And most specifically, what happens to all the bobbleheads??????

So I get there's a ton of irony for me personally here. I've been begging and pleading with the Wizards to go above and beyond the one bobblehead they give away each year and they finally relent and give in and follow other great bobblehead-distributing franchises and then all the games with the bobbleheads have been cancelled? What are they going to do with all those things? What happens to the stash? And why can't loyal season ticket holders get a hold of them?

Before we go further, maybe we need to recap exactly what we fans are missing here. 

• Sunday, March 15 (vs. OKC): Beer Stein
• Saturday, March 21 (vs. Milwaukee): Glow-In-The-Dark Latvian Laser Bertans Socks
• Wednesday, March 25 (vs. Phoenix): Rui Hachimura Bobblehead
• Saturday, March 28 (vs. LAL): John Wall Phone Wallet
• Friday, April 3 (vs. Philadelphia): Black Panther Inspired Bradley Beal Bobblehead
• Wednesday, April 15 (vs. Indiana): Thomas Bryant Bobblehead

Now admittedly, I'm not super enthusiastic about all these giveaways. My phone probably doesn't fit in the John Wall phone wallet and as much as I love the idea of some glow-in-the-dark Davis Bertans socks, I'm not sure they are an essential fashion accessory for me. I still have my Sato socks from last year and I've never ever worn those things.

But a beer stein? And three bobbleheads? Come on...fans have got to be wondering what happens to those goodies, right? Right? RIGHT??

What corner of Capital One Arena is filled with 10,000 Beal and Rui bobbleheads? I'm guessing the same corner of the building that has those 20,000+ Thomas Bryant bobbleheads. I'm an architect and I've never met a client that didn't have enough storage space; they are always asking for more when we are designing their buildings. How about liquidating that inventory by allowing loyal fans to assume possession of all that merch and getting back a ton of closet space. I mean we'd be doing the team a favor.

The cancellation of the NBA season (and all sports for that matter) has been a total bummer. I mean if there's one thing we could have used in a time when those of us fortunate enough to be able to stay at home and work have essentially quarantined ourselves, it would be a team to root for, no matter how hopeful or hopeless the cause might have been. This truncated season was my 20th as a Wizards season ticket holder. I missed the end of the season and my 20th anniversary milestone reward. But most of all, I  miss having a brand new Rui Hachimura, Bradley Beal Black Panther and Thomas Bryant bobblehead securely nestled within my bobblehead collection. After 20 years and many many seasons begging and pleading for more bobbleheads, why can't we just get a package from the Wizards next week with all three of these things?

So here's my proposal to Ted Leonsis: get on a Zoom call this week and get someone or someones (with mask(s) or other sort of face protection of course) down to Cap One and start sending these giveaways out to season ticket holders to reward them for their years and years of loyalty. It's just the right thing to do. Please. Do it. For the fans. Three bobbleheads and one stein per season ticket holder. Throw the socks and the phone wallet in there too if you feel like it. But the stein and the bobbles please.

So for those of you really paying attention, I know I have not addressed the issue of the Isaiah Thomas bobbleheads, which we know exist since IT posted one on his Twitter feed and it's the cover photo of this blog post. If Ted actually reads this thing...come on, man...let us have that one too. Please?

Zooming With Jamison

It's now officially mid-May and there's still no basketball. Two months without the NBA. Sure, there's been some talk, the Draft lottery has been postponed, the Wizards have offered season ticket holders refunds and I've gotten an email from the Mystics to ask me about when I'm ready to come out and support the team. But basketball? No. Any meaningful event to slake the thirst of Wizards die-hard fans? Also no. And Scott Brooks' haircut doesn't count there.

And on the Mystics front...I'd love to come back and see a winner. Start the season and let me see how it goes with crowds in building at live sporting events and I'll be right there. But just expect me to be a late adopter about returning to crowds of strangers in enclosed spaces.

But the Wizards did manage to break up the ennui of mid-March to mid-May and beyond by hosting a live chat on Zoom with two time Wizards All-Star and general all around legend Antawn Jamison this afternoon. OK...so chat means a chat between AJ and Dave Johnson but it was still worth me tuning in at 1:30 this afternoon to see what the current Wizards Director of Pro Personnel was up to these days and maybe get a story or two from the seasons that made up four consecutive playoff runs in the mid-aughts.

When I got this invite earlier this week I leapt at the chance to participate, especially since the session was limited to just 500 season ticket holders. I signed up as soon as the email hit my in box, entered a question into the question jar that I knew would never see the light of day with this ownership group and then prayed I'd make the cut. I did.

The topics in the almost 50 minute chat ranged from Antawn's thoughts on ESPN's 10-part The Last Dance series on the Chicago Bulls championship teams to musings about how to build a team in an era of positionless basketball to comments on the relationships between the Wizards, Mystics and Capitals. He also covered how it feels to be back in the Wizards organization and just a brief description of what he does as Director of Pro Personnel. This last one I didn't actually know but it sounds like he does anything behind the scenes to get the Wizards better on the court.

All that was well and good, but I wanted to hear about those 2005 through 2008 playoff teams and the seasons that led to those four straight postseason trips. And we did get some of that.

Unshaven and unshowered is becoming the norm these days. With bobblehead Antawn Jamison on the call.

On how he made those crazy and unorthodox shots in games...

Apparently AJ never really learned any technique in high school. He just did what he wanted and was more athletic and just plain better than anyone he played against. When he went down to the University of North Carolina, he had to learn the fundamentals but he also had to face players bigger than him guarding the basket. Apparently getting those looping, scooping, underhanded and push shots got him around those guys. Seemed natural. Never practiced it. Doc Rivers apparently didn't believe it; swore it was scripted.

On how the mid-aughts Wizards would fare in the NBA today...

What's he going to say here? That the Wiz wouldn't cut it? He spread the love around to himself, Caron Butler (would score from anywhere), DeShawn Stevenson (can defend multiple positions) and Brendan Haywood (would be effective at both ends). But his highest praise was for Gilbert Arenas who he called James Harden and Russell Westbrook before those guys were around. High praise. And  you know what I wanted to hear more than anything was stories about Agent Zero.

On his favorite moment as a Wizards player...

Clinching the playoffs in 2005 and the look on Abe Pollin's face when he came in to the locker room after the game. I still remember that night. After the Wizards won their game against the Bulls at MCI Center, we stayed in our seats and the players stayed on the court to watch the end of the Nets-Pacers game and celebrated when New Jersey knocked off Indy. It was clear that Antawn took great pride in leading a team starving for playoff action from a postseason outsider to the first round of the playoffs.

On his favorite places to eat in Washington...

Home. Although he did mention Georgia Brown's as a top spot. I used to work a block from Georgia Brown's and used to take people there who I wanted to make an impression on. Good stuff!

Of course, Antawn also had to take a little swipe at Andray Blatche (the only other Wizards teammate that he mentioned besides the four above and Larry Hughes) by talking about what leadership means. How could he get on Seven Day Dray to get in the gym and work if he wasn't leading by example? He also made a couple of dubious claims, comparing the work ethic of Gilbert Arenas favorably with that of Kobe, Shaq, LeBron and MJ, and claiming the Wizards are looking for players with "Championship DNA" to the roster. Really? To both of those last two claims.

Finally, and because LeBron ain't...MJ is the GOAT.

And my question that I knew wouldn't get asked? What does Gilbert Arenas and this current ownership group need to do to get Agent Zero back to D.C. and part of the Wizards extended family. Told you there was no way current ownership would let that one out of the box.

This was a good break from the boredom of my 10th consecutive working at home week. It's sometimes good to reminisce about the good times.

Two final things. First, there was no need to worry about being one of the first 500 to sign up for this thing. Attendance on the Zoom call surged to 34 at one point in the conversation and that included Dave Johnson, AJ and whoever at the Wizards was hosting. Finally, I appreciate the personal shoutout from Dave Johnson on the call, who never seems to forget how we bumped into each other in the airport in Reykjavik in 2016. Thanks, Dave!

Glorious stuff! I still have this in my file cabinet from 2005.

If They Play, Will You Go?

On March 11, the city of San Francisco announced a two week ban on gatherings of more than 1,000 people in response to the then rapidly escalating number of cases of COVID-19 spreading along the west coast of the United States. For the first time, the prospect of an NBA game without fans was looming, with the Golden State Warriors set to host the Brooklyn Nets later that same week.

They never made it. Later that same day, an odd scene played in Oklahoma City's Chesapeake Energy Arena where the home Thunder were about to host the visiting Utah Jazz. Just prior to the opening tip, the players were evacuated from the court, the Jazz bench was swabbed with chemicals and eventually the game was cancelled around a rumor (which was true) that the Jazz's Rudy Gobert had tested positive for the COVID-19 virus. Games went on that night in Miami, Philadelphia, Atlanta and Dallas. The next day the whole league was shut down. It still is.

Since then, the league, players and media have talked about a number of different scenarios for the rest of the season. Play without fans. Make no decision until May at the earliest. Move the whole league to one spot (Vegas, anyone?) and play the whole rest of the season game after game in the same arena. Start the playoffs now and put every team in. Players said they wouldn't play without fans. Then flip-flopped quickly thereafter. Now according to commissioner Adam Silver "everything" is on the table. Realistically, everything's been on the table for a while now with all the ideas that have been thrown around in the last five weeks or so.

We are now beyond the scheduled end of the regular season (April 15 in case Wizards fan appreciation night wasn't circled on your personal schedule). We are supposed to be watching playoff basketball. But still, no decision from the league. It's still a waiting game. There's still too much money at stake for the owners and a lot of other people associated with the continuation of the NBA schedule for a decision to cancel to be made. I'm sure there are teams and players out there who don't want to stop. I'd put Milwaukee Bucks fans (worried about if Giannis will leave if the team doesn't win this year), LeBron James (worried about if Anthony Davis will leave) and Los Angeles Clippers fans (can their team finally make a conference finals appearance?) at the head of the line.

In the meantime, there's a new normal out there, whatever that really means. Staying at home. Working at home if you are lucky. Uncertain infections symptoms. Uncertainty around immunity if the disease is contracted and you survive. Sure there are people out there who seem very upset about the whole thing who are determined to protest the government's right to restrict their movement or who seem to feel this thing is no worse a killer than the flu or car accidents (last time I checked car accidents weren't contagious). but unless there's vaccine found pronto, there's no real concept of what normal or a new normal is going to look like.

The question then is, if the NBA somehow feels it's safe enough to resume games with fans, do you go? I don't think I do.

The last crisis that stopped American sports on a grand scale were the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York, the Pentagon just outside Washington and wherever Al Qaeda wanted Flight 93 that was downed in Pennsylvania to hit on September 11, 2001. After a pause in on field events, the United States got back to playing sports and rooting for their teams as a symbol of defiance against a terrorist organization determined to take down the American way of life. Our turning up en masse to congregate together was a glorious sign of solidarity and a message that we would not be afraid or defeated.

This COVID-19 situation is not 9/11. Coming together in a building full of friends and strangers is exactly what we should not be doing at this time. We should not be breathing the air that people next to us exhale or cough or sneeze in crowds of 12 to 20 thousand. Depending on who you are, that sort of behavior could do nothing to you, or get you very sick or kill you. How do we really know things are safe? What's going to make the NBA make that decision?

Maybe they plan to social distance. Airlines are still operating flights and have decided to seat folks every other row or every third row and no more sitting in the middle seats. It's not the recommended six feet but it's better than having someone sick in the very next seat. Does the NBA do the same thing? Do they operate with crowds of 8,000 or less than that with gaps in the seating? Every other row and every third seat? I can't imagine, even though it may actually be possible in some arenas and yes, Wizards fans, you know what I'm talking about.

I've been working at home for almost five weeks now. Other than runs at 5 a.m. or 6 a.m. to the grocery store and a weekly trip for takeout at our local ramen shop, I've mostly stayed inside 24/7. My car battery is dead. I roll out of bed every day and start working straight away in my pjs and the shirt I wore the previous day. I shower only after I work out, which I've been doing about five times a week. I have no idea right now what would make me feel comfortable enough to go out for real.

For sure, there's nothing that would go on down at Capital One Arena that would make me go to a building with more than 10,000 fans in it. The remaining regular season games in the 2019-2020 regular season? I don't think so. Not even if the Wizards were in real playoff contention (I know it's mathematically possible but come on...). Let's say the NBA decides to play out the regular season (they won't in my opinion). Do I go to see LeBron James and the Lakers visit D.C.? What about Zion Williamson? There are three bobbleheads left on the schedule. What about those? My answer here is no way for all of those. I love the Wizards and bobbleheads but no way do I go to a meaningless game for the rest of the current season. I'd think hard about going to pick up a bobblehead and come straight home but I can't even imagine that.

Why would we? Why should we put anyone at risk so Bucks, Lakers or Clippers fans could see their teams win a title and so the mostly billionaire NBA owners won't lose quite as much. Any resumption of the season would put players, fans, owners, staff, stadium workers, first responders, healthcare workers and more at risk. Why would we do that? So the Larry O'Brien trophy can be handed out? I know the teams don't want to give cash back to the fans for unplayed games but honestly, that decision can't be anything else really but inevitable at this point, right? The end of the 2019-2020 season seems like a no brainer here.

The bigger question is what happens after this. The NFL claims their season will start on time. Why? How do they know that? If there are enough empty hospital beds to accommodate a surge in infection from NFL games do we go ahead? The NBA has a couple of more months to figure out things for their next season. But in all honestly, unless things are completely under control I can't see myself heading to the Wizards season opener. And really, how can things be completely under control about five months from now? I know there's a long way to go but I can't see it.

Wizards fans frequently social distance at the beginning of games. A frequent sight during team intros.

Should I Go Wizards?

So it's April 5, the NBA is considering cancelling the season (if rumors are to be believed) and the Wizards STILL haven't sent me an email about the season being on hold. I find that last point to be unbelievable especially considering the NHL (never bought an NHL ticket in my life) and the Orlando Magic (just attended one game in Orlando ever) have checked in with me about their respective seasons being on hold. 

The Wizards did send me a note reminding me of the season ticket renewal deadline and letting me know they'd extend that for an unspecified period. Priorities.

I have not been watching the simulated NBA games during this suspension of play. I don't see the point. It's not the real Wizards players playing the video games. I can't get that juiced about a video game simulation of reality. Back when I was cooped up in an apartment in upstate New York I can't tell you how dominant the New York Jets were on Madden with me on the controller on my Nintendo and that never translated to reality either.

But a video game tournament between actually NBA players? Count me in!!! At least as long as 13 seed Rui Hachimura is representing himself and the Wizards (OK, maybe not so much the Wizards) is in the action. I spent an hour in front of the TV earlier tonight watching Rui take on Donovan Mitchell of the Utah Jazz in a game Rui was expected (by the seedings) to lose. I don't know who seeded this tournament by the way. The lower seed won three of the four games on day one by 16, 16 and 30 points. I guess there's not much data to go on here which raises the question why bother seeding.

Does this qualify as an esports event? If it does, this is my first time watching that genre of sports. I can't see much more of this in my future even though Rui managed to pull off the upset over Mitchell which I'm obviously thrilled with. The average Wizards fan hasn't had a lot of hope this year. The team's season was essentially over before it started, Davis Bertans gave it a good run in the All-Star Saturday Night Three Point Contest but ultimately came up empty and that's about it. Rui's our great hope here. Let's keep it going.

So here's the scoop: Rui's Los Angeles Lakers team took out Mitchell's Brooklyn Nets team by three. It was a four point game at half and the Nets took a brief lead in the second half only to have Rui bring LA back from behind for the win. If I'm understanding the rules correctly, I think Rui can no longer us the Lakers the rest of the way but I'm really not that sure. The game had a couple of time-space continuum issues: Kevin Durant is good to go despite still recovering from the achilles issue from last season's finals and Kenny Atkinson is still his coach, despite being relieved of those responsibilities by the Nets on March 9.

From an entertainment point of view here, I'm sure ESPN is disappointed that Rui won. Donovan Mitchell's the bigger game and Rui plays with about as much to say as I have when I'm gambling. That is...nothing. Too focused on the game. Mitchell was talking the entire time, more often than not to simulated Jarrett Allen. It worked for Rui I guess since he won.

Best line of the night: The non-response by both Mitchell and Rui to Rui's question "Should I go Wizards?" Silence from both. Rui's probably glad he didn't go Wizards. Stay away from that team please if you want a chance at winning this thing.

Second best line of the night: Donovan Mitchell with "I gotta get someone in the game who can guard LeBron." Yeah, not the first time that's been said I'm sure. Mitchell never solved that problem.

Other issues: (1) Home decor does not seem to be a strength for either player. Rui had some sort of art on the wall on his right side but overall...tons of beige/white painted gypsum board. (2) I have no desire to ever see a MyPillow.com commercial ever again. Why is that fool on my TV? (3) Of course, I wore my Rui Hachimura shirt.

Finally, is Coby White living in an apartment or a townhouse or house? To me, it looks like he's in an apartment. Glad I don't live below him with him doing basketball drills when he gets bored.

Rui's next opponent is either Devin Booker or Michael Porter, Jr. That game's going on right now. I'll be tuning in to the next one. Go Wizards! Sort of! 

Game over! On to Round 2!!!

Attrition

Every year since the 2014-2015 season, the Washington Wizards have been putting the names of each and every one of their season ticket holders on the court at Verizon Center / Capital One Arena. It's a pretty cool gesture that builds a little value and costs virtually nothing for the team to do. Once or twice a year (this year it was once), the team lets season ticketholders stay after a selected game and check out their names right there on the hardwood where the Wizards play. I skipped my session this year; I had sold my tickets that night and I already saw my name the prior game during my latest VIP session vs. the Cavs.

If you haven't noticed the names on the court while you've either been at a game live or watching on TV, I'm not surprised. They are pretty darned small. You might have noticed (but honestly probably not) sometime over the last half dozen years a sticker on the sides of the court on the opposite side from the player's benches that reads something like "DC FAMILY" or "dcRISING" or "@WASHWIZARDS". These are where the names of the season ticket holders are. 

It occurred to me last year when the Wizards sent this notice out that they are essentially publishing their list of season ticketholders here. Or close enough; they are actually just printing the way the season ticketholder wants their name printed and for most people this is probably the same thing. I then wondered if I could get an idea of how much season ticketholder attrition there was year to year just by saving last year's list and comparing to this year's. Yes, this would mean matching names year by year. Yes, this would be extremely tedious and a complete waste of time. Yes, I did it anyway.

If you had asked me what I would have expected at the start of this exercise I would have said three things: (1) the old time season ticket holder numbers, say 15+ years at this point, would be fairly stable; I mean after this much punishment and disappointment, why not keep coming back? (2) there would be obvious surges in season ticketholder numbers after successful season and not so much after failing to make the playoffs and (3) there would be substantially fewer numbers of season ticketholders this year than last year.

Before I get to all that,  a few clarifications. The years referred to below are the years when the season ticketholder started purchasing tickets. In other words, if the first purchase was for the 1999-2000 season, that account belongs to the nineties. Second, 2019 denotes this current season; 2018 is last season (mansplaining, I know). Finally, I'm merging the sixties and seventies together because there's only one account still active from the 1960s (1967, if you must know and it's Acme Paper. Kudos to them for sticking it out this long).

Here's how the list of names on the on court stickers breaks down by decade, this year vs. last year.

The Sixties and Seventies
2018 Number: 34
2019 Number: 26

The Eighties
2018 Number: 87
2019 Number: 66

The Nineties
2018 Number: 182
2019 Number: 140

The Aughts (or 2000s if you prefer)
2018 Number: 336
2019 Number: 245

The Teens (2010 to now)
2018 Number: 1,637
2019 Number: 928

These numbers represent the number of names on the court as counted by me. I have no idea if they are precisely the number of season ticketholders. But I have to think it's pretty close. Also, in checking the names (and yes, I checked every name) there were some names on the 2019 list that were not on the 2018 list. I'm assuming these are name changes based on season ticketholder preference. I know the company I work for has tickets. The 2018 sticker had one of our employees names on it; the 2019 one has our company name. In any event, I think the numbers above are close enough to accurate within say 1-2%. That's close enough for the conclusions I'm going to draw in this post.

Overall, from this year to last year based on counting names, the Wizards season ticket holder number dropped by 38.9%. In one year. I don't have historical context here to know if that number is high or low but I have to believe that is not the kind of attrition rate anyone in client management wants. Now, these numbers might represent way fewer dollars. If the 38.9% drop is solely in the upper deck, then the actual dollars lost is way, way lower.

Here's the bad news for the Wizards: the attrition rate is actually worse. The numbers above include the 114 new names added in 2019. The actual attrition rate for 1967 through 2018 is 43.8%. Yikes! The attrition rate for the nine years from 2010 through 2018 is slightly higher than 50%. I find this a little shocking. This can't say success on any level to the team.

Digging into the details, I'm surprised at a few things. First, as I assumed, it appears the number of season ticketholders spikes after playoff seasons. Generally the numbers are higher in seasons after playoff runs. But not always. There are still a substantial number of season ticketholders remaining from the 2011 season, the one where the team slashed a number of per seat prices in half. I'm surprised these people have stuck with it now that their cost has about doubled or maybe more.

I'm also surprised by the departures of '60s, '70s and '80s season ticketholders. Their attrition rate from 2018 to 2019 is over 20%. I guess enough was finally enough for some of those folks. These people (and indeed those with a little less tenure) should be hugely valued by the team. Although I guess when there are this few, it hardly seems worth bending over backwards to make a few people stay. Personally, I feel that in the customer service efforts over the last 10 years.

I'm not sure I really learned anything astonishing here and I don't think it was a total waste of time spending hours counting names but I'm glad I did it. I'm glad I know. And it sure does explain my account rep calling me way earlier than anyone has in past years.