Bobblehead Nation 2019

The NBA season starts October 22 so that means it's pretty much time for some excellent bobblehead giveaways over the next seven months or so, right? Well it does if you are (a) in the right location where your local NBA team is actually handing out bobbleheads, (b) are willing to travel somewhere on bobblehead night or (c) know when to check eBay for the latest bobbles that someone's looking to make a couple of bucks on. Either way (or if it's something different) you need to read this annual post.

Over the last month or so, NBA teams have been putting their promotional schedules up on their websites and we've about reached a critical mass where there is enough information to actually write a meaningful post with multiple dates and multiple teams. And this year there are no preseason bobble giveaways (we see you, Golden State Warriors) so everything in this post this year is actually in the future. Very excited about that last part.

This year's schedule is packed full. It features bobbles from some usual reliable sources like the Warriors, the Brooklyn Nets and the Charlotte Hornets but there are also some shockers on here. Every year I've been writing this post (this is year six), the San Antonio Spurs haven't published one promo schedule with a bobblehead. This year they have three on their calendar. Who'd have thunk it? For those of us Wizards fans, yeah we got the one and only one as usual. Keep reading way to the bottom of this post.

I'll give a spoiler alert and save folks in Atlanta, Detroit, Los Angeles (at least Lakers fans, anyway) Memphis, Minnesota and Sacramento from having to read this whole post. There's nothing for you in this one. The schedule's out and there are no bobbles to be found. Although the Lakers do have two nights just labeled TBA so maybe there's some hope for you there.

Without further ado, here's this year's post.

October 

30 Stephen Curry Popcorn Edition (Golden State Warriors)

Over the last four seasons, the Golden State Warriors have, by my count, handed out six Stephen Curry bobbleheads at pre and regular season games. Yep, for those of you who can do math, that's right...two years in there they gave away two. So it seems right that we would see yet another one this year. The Dubs did not disappoint, not even making it out of October, without a Curry bobble. I gotta tell you though, they are kind of running out of ideas. After multiple regular Steph bobbles, one wearing a San Jose Sharks sweater and even an MVP edition, there's this year's offering which is Steph standing behind a giant thing of popcorn. I got nothing here.

By the way, the Trolley Car in the picture above? Preseason giveaway. You'll probably need to find one on eBay at this point.

November 

20 Lou Williams Underground GOAT (Los Angeles Clippers)

If there's a must have on this year's NBA bobblehead schedule, this (shown above) has to be it. Sweet Lou shooting a J with his three Sixth Man of the Year trophies sitting on a shelf behind him. Are you kidding me? I should find a way to get out to L.A. right before Thanksgiving.

22 Spider-Man (Brooklyn Nets)

Something good is going on in Brooklyn. In the last few years they have been extremely bobblehead focused. This year they enter Warriors territory and have five on the schedule. Good for them. And for Nets fans. As if it weren't great enough getting KD and Kyrie to go to Brooklyn, they also get five bobbleheads. Brooklyn, it seems, is taking a bit of an unorthodox approach to this whole thing. There's a lot of Marvel tie-ins. Either that or the Nets had way more cap space than I thought and managed to sign Spider-Man with the Mid-Level Exception or something.

25 Draymond Green San Francisco Edition (Golden State Warriors)
There's a storyline this offseason that the Warriors decided to tear it all down and rebuild for a year. Gone is Kevin Durant, Andre Iguodala was traded and Shaun Livington retired. But they still have Steph Curry, an injured-but-soon-to-return Klay Thompson (just wait two days for the bobble on that one) and of course Draymond Green. Doesn't sound like any sort of rebuild to me. I'd love to see this team playing in Washington wearing the red, white and blue. Apparently the bobblehead version of Draymond Green this year is a San Francisco edition. Whatever that means. Show up November 25 to find out I guess.

27 Klay Thompson Headband Edition (Golden State Warriors) / DeMar DeRozan (San Antonio Spurs) 

While I have no ideas on the San Francisco Edition bobblehead on the Warriors' calendar, I'm pretty sure the Klay Thompson Headband Edition bobblehead is Klay Thompson wearing a headband. I could be off base on this one but I think I may actually have this right. I didn't remember Klay actually ever wearing a headband while he played. I found one picture: on ESPN on an article about him dropping an NBA record 14 threes in a game en route to scoring 52 against the Bulls. Maybe there's something there.

On the same day, the NBA stunner of bobblehead announcements kicks off with a DeMar DeRozan bobblehead in San Antonio. Who knows...maybe they give away bobbles in San Antonio every year and I just miss it but for me right now this is huge. Maybe it's because the Spurs' stock is dropping slightly? Who knows? If I'm a Spurs fan, I'm circling this and two other dates on my calendar a can't miss games.

December

3 Austin Carr (Cleveland Cavaliers)

I can't stand the Cleveland Cavaliers. I don't like what they did to the Wizards in three straight playoffs, I resent the fact that the NBA kept handing them number one overall pics, and I really really detest their owner. But, man, do they hand out some bobbleheads. Six this season. SIX!!!! 

It's the Cavs' 50th anniversary and they are pulling out all the stops bobble-wise. They are releasing bobbleheads as voted by the fans representing each era (as defined solely by the team itself - I'm debating attaching the name "era" to some of these) in team history. Austin Carr (ANOTHER first overall pick by the Cavs) starts the party off on December 3 representing what the Cavs are calling "The Early Years Era". Seems like they could have omitted the "era" from that one.

6 Giannis Antetokounmpo MVP (Milwaukee Bucks)
The Milwaukee Bucks haven't had a league MVP since 1974 (Kareem; he won three in Milwaukee if you must know) so it seems natural that they'd celebrate by casting Giannis in resin along with a pretty detailed MVP trophy. If the actual item looks like the picture (see cover photo of this post), this one's going to be worth showing up for,

11 Kevon Looney Stormtrooper Edition (Golden State Warriors)

In recent years, the Warriors have been a bobblehead collector's dream, not just for handing out plastic likenesses of their All-Stars but for celebrating success in bobblehead form deep into their rotation. This year is no exception as December 11 sees breakout star in the making Kevon Looney get his very own likeness in bobblehead form. It's the fourth of five total bobbles being handed out in San Francisco (remember they moved...) this year. Stormtrooper Edition too. Thinking Star Wars there.

20 Whammer (Cleveland Cavaliers)

Two and a half weeks after handing out bobblehead number one, the Cavs are back on the schedule with a Whammer bobblehead. Yeah, I had to look it up too. Apparently he's a polar bear who was the Cavaliers' mascot back in the day. Who knew? Whammer represents the "Gund Arena Era" in the Cavaliers 50th anniversary celebration. He's got to be wearing one of those top 10 worst unis in NBA history that they wore back in the day, right?

21 DeAndre Jordan Star Wars Night (Brooklyn Nets)
Somehow the Nets have managed some Marvel and Star Wars tie-ins this year. I hope they got a package deal from Disney. Bobblehead #2 in Brooklyn drops just before Christmas (these things make great presents, folks!) and one day after the ninth and final Star Wars movies. They get closer than Golden State did to the actual date but somehow I still feel they should have been out in front of this a bit.

22 Bango Snow Globe (Milwaukee Bucks)
I love mascots bobbleheads. Heck, I love anything associated with mascots at all. But a mascot bobblehead that's also a snow globe? Oh! My! God! And it's Bango too, who topped out at number four on my mascot rank (back when I used to do such stuff in the summers) before Hugo's return in Charlotte knocked him down to the five spot. Bango Snow Globe bobblehead? I'm there. Not really, though, since I'd have to go to Milwaukee right before Christmas. Nothing against Milwaukee (in fact, lots FOR Milwaukee). Just not going right before the holidays.

23 Deandre Ayton (Phoenix Suns)
Only in a world occupied by Kelly Oubre, Jr. can there be a bobblehead series called the Valley Boyz Bobblehead Series. Unfortunately for Wizards fans, that world is no longer Washington, D.C. Fortunately for Suns fans, Kelly is now re-signed in Phoenix and bobblehead fanatics in Arizona are the beneficiaries. Deandre Ayton is up first in this trilogy. That's two years in a row with an Ayton bobblehead. There's got to be something in Phoenix to make up for all that losing.

31 Terry Rozier Star Wars (Charlotte Hornets)
Michael Jordan may not like spending money on free agents, but he sure does love handing out bobbleheads. There are four on the calendar in Charlotte this year, starting with the third (and so far to my knowledge, last) Star Wars themed bobblehead this season. Freshly acquired point guard Terry Rozier gets things kicked off in the Queen City.

January

4 Mark Price (Cleveland Cavaliers)

The Cavs celebrate the "Richfield Coliseum Era" (the third questionable "era" celebrated so far in Cleveland) just after the turn of the new year. I'd definitely show up for a Mark Price bobble, who I assume will be wearing the Cavaliers blue jersey with the orange CAVS logo where the V is a basket. But...since I don't live in Cleveland and they aren't playing the Wizards, I'll be passing.

14 D'Angelo Russell (Golden State Warriors)

Mid-January ends the Dubs' bobblehead run for the 2019-2020 season with their newest All-Star in cast resin, D'Angelo Russell. They swapped Russell for Kevin Durant in the offseason from the Brooklyn Nets (where Russell was an All-Star). There are more plenty more goodies later in the season for Warriors fans but not in the bobblehead department. Have to wait until next year for another five or half-dozen or so.

18 Spencer Dinwiddie as Iron Man (Brooklyn Nets)
Marvel bobblehead #2 in the NBA is available for the taking (or the picking up) at Barclays Center in mid-January two days before the annual Dr. Martin Luther King holiday. After Spider-Man in November, you get Spencer Dinwiddie as Iron Man after the new year. What exactly is this going to look like? I assume he's not fully helmeted, right? Otherwise, it's just an Iron Man bobblehead, right? I should note this one is not on the Nets' promo schedule page on their website but was part of their Instagram promo night announcement. Trusting Insta is right here.

19 Patty Mills (San Antonio Spurs)
Bobblefest in San Antonio contines in late January with Patty Mills in bobblehead form. I'm telling you, if I'm in San Antonio, I'm not missing this stuff. I love that the Spurs are doing one of Mills, who is super valuable but will likely never get to All-Star game level. Wish the Wiz could honor more steady players like the Spurs.

31 Notorious B.I.G. (Brooklyn Nets)
I don't know what to say about this one. Bravo, Nets! This has nothing to do with hoops and it doesn't matter at all. Awesome!

February 

5 Paul George (Los Angeles Clippers)
This summer the Clips pulled off the biggest splash signings and trades of the summer, signing Kawhi Leonard on the open market and trading about a million draft picks to Oklahoma City in exchange for Paul George. Now they gotta win. The Clips have never even been to the conference finals before. Seems like this year might be the year. This is the second and final Clippers bobblehead of the year. So in other words, no Kawhi. I would bet that Kawhi has a clause in his contract that the Clips NOT make a bobblehead of him. Note this is not on the giveaway schedule on the Clippers' website but it was in the press release regarding the promotional schedule. I'm counting on the press release being right.

7 Kelly Oubre, Jr. (Phoenix Suns)
I have never ever ever bought a bobblehead off eBay or some other website. I'd consider breaking that fast for this Kelly Oubre bobble. Yes, I know, I've already got one in a Wizards jersey. I'm still bitter about that stupid trade last year.

22 Miles Bridges (Charlotte Hornets)
Miles Bridges got 25 starts and averaged 7.5 points per game as a rookie in Charlotte. With the Hornets being essentially completely irrelevant this year, he gets his first team-issued bobblehead. Good luck with all that.

28 Devin Booker (Phoenix Suns)
Bobblehead number three in the Valley Boyz Bobblehead Series is Devin Booker. Makes sense to me. Booker's been the only bright spot on the directionless Suns team the last few years. Can't wait to see what this set looks like together.

29 Zydrunas Ilgauskas (Cleveland Cavaliers)

Apparently the Gund Arena Era was so awesome in Cleveland that they are handing out two bobbleheads representing those 11 or so years, including one of former Washington Wizard Zydrunas Ilgauskas on February 29. I'm making fun of the Cavs' "eras" a lot here I realize but it's probably deserved. The Cavs still play in Gund Arena to this day, it's just that owner Dan Gilbert has re-named the place after his Quicken Loans and now Rocket Mortgages businesses.

March

1 "Dwayne" Bacon (Charlotte Hornets)
OK so honestly, I'd never even heard of Dwayne Bacon but apparently he's entering his third season with the Hornets. Maybe I'm completely out of touch with non-superstars in the NBA and if that's the case, I'm OK with that. Charlotte (for lack of a better choice) is riding a youth movement this year and I guess someone feels Bacon is a rotation guy. For the life of me, I can't figure out why the Hornets issued a schedule with Bacon's first name in quotes. From everything I can tell, his first name is actually Dwayne. I'm matching the Hornets website however.

4 Daniel "Booby" Gibson (Cleveland Cavaliers)

When I first started researching this post this date was pencilled in as a fan-voted bobblehead representing the New Wine and Gold Era in Cleveland. Apparently between the time I first saw the promotional schedule and the time I wrote this post, the fans voted for a Booby bobble. There wasn't much competition here. Some of the alternates were Delonte West, Wally Szczerbiak and Ira Newble. I mean, really? Ira Newble? I would have voted for Larry Hughes. LeBron was NOT on the ballot.

6 Dr. J as Black Panther (Brooklyn Nets) / Benny the Bull x Hebru Brantley (Chicago Bulls)
The Nets are the best. At least in the bobblehead department this year. I can't wait to see this one. How's Doc's afro gong to fit in here. Makes me jealous of Brooklyn fans. Almost. This is the last one in Brooklyn this season. What a run!

Over in Chicago on the exact same day, the Bulls are handing out a Benny the Bull bobblehead for at least the third consecutive year (last year's is shown above). This is also the only bobble handed out in Chicago this year which is quite the indictment of the Bulls' roster although if it were me, I'd be all over the Satoransky bobblehead. I'll confess, I had to look up what or who Hebru Brantley was or is (showing my age, I get it...). He's apparently a Chicago hip-hop artist. After the Lou Williams Underground GOAT bobble, I'd circle this as the most intriguing of the year.

7 Mystery (Charlotte Hornets)
Not much to say here. Watch this space I guess. Awesome that the Hornets are going four deep in the bobblehead department this year.

22 Rudy Gay (San Antonio Spurs)
If I'm a Spurs fan, I'm a bit puzzled here. I mean I know Rudy's been a solid contributor the last couple of years but he gets a bobble over LaMarcus Aldridge? Or even Dejounte Murray? Still, they are getting three bobbles this year. Don't be picky. I wouldn't be.

30 Fan-Voted Championship Era & Beyond (Cleveland Cavaliers)

The sixth and final bobblehead to be handed out in Cleveland this season will be determined by fan vote starting November 4 and ending a week later. It's gotta be LeBron, doesn't it? Two reasons why it might not be: (1) Cavs fans still hate LeBron and vote for Kevin Love or J.R. Smith or someone like that just to spite him or (2) owner Dan Gilbert doesn't even put him on the ballot. Number 1 is unlikely; number 2 is very likely and Gilbert also omits Kyrie from the ballot too.

April

15 Thomas Bryant (Washington Wizards)

If I'm a Wizards fan (and I am) I've been sitting around the entire NBA season to finally get a bobblehead handed out to me and my fellow fans at the doors of Capital One Arena. On the VERY LAST day of the regular season, we finally get one. And it's not (thank God) a Bradley Beal or John Wall default bobblehead. This year's offering is breakout star (from last year) Thomas Bryant who went from the waiver wire to a three year, $25 million contract in one year. I'm honestly a little surprised Rui Hachimura didn't make it here but lately it seems that rookies get about as much consideration for a bobblehead giveaway in Washington as they get in Scott Brooks' rotation.

As usual with this post, this list may not be comprehensive. As of the writing of this post, I'm missing schedules from Boston (no surprise there), Indiana, Miami, New York (also no surprise), Orlando, Philadelphia and Toronto in the East and Dallas, Denver, Houston, New Orleans, Oklahoma City, Portland and Utah in the West. Seems to me that Toronto (to celebrate their 2019 Championship) and Portland (50th season) would want to do something bobble-wise to celebrate this season. I'm also shocked that the Rockets haven't released a schedule; they are usually one of the first to chime in. Maybe there's a second post in the wings in the next month or so.

There are some other interesting non-bobble giveaways out there. Golden State is handing out some All-Star Voting Nesting Dolls and a Stephen Curry Action Figure. The Bulls are also getting into the nesting doll game with a Benny the Bull Nesting Dolls giveaway. If gnomes are your thing, both Milwaukee (Giannis Antetokounmpo) and the Brooklyn Nets (Jarrett Allen) have gnome handouts this year. 

The last thing I'll point out is that this year, there are only two days where multiple  bobblehead giveaways are scheduled on the exact same day. So theoretically, you could get them all in person (except two) given enough time and money. Happy bobble hunting, NBA fans!!!

Is That It?

From 2012 when I started this blog until two years ago, I wrote and published a post each fall called Free Stuff! That annual post was a preview of the Wizards promotional schedule and my writing of that column was generally accompanied by a circling of key dates when good stuff would be available at the doors of MCI Center / Verizon Center for me to add to my Wizards shelves at home. Lunch boxes, nesting dolls, action figures, stuffed G-Wizes and the top of the top giveaways: bobbleheads.

Last year I wrote about the Wizards promotional schedule but I didn't call it Free Stuff! becasue there was barely any stuff on it. I thought maybe this year (and I'm pinning this all on the fact that Ernie Grunfeld is gone for some reason) would be different. Maybe this would be the year when the Wizards would put out an honest to goodness promotional schedule.

It's not. 

This year's promotional schedule is:

• October 30: Schedule Magnet.
• December 18: Rep The District T-Shirt.
• April 15: Thomas Bryant Bobblehead.

That's it. Three nights. A schedule magnet, a t-shirt (that will surely be XL only and thus completely unwearable) and a bobblehead. Pathetic. There are teams out there giving away more bobbleheads than the Wizards are giving away things. This is awful.

Now being a Wizards fan, I have to see the bright side in getting disappointed year after year after year so I'll say two things here. First, I'm thankful the bobblehead isn't Bradley Beal or John Wall since those two seem to be the Wizards' default positions for the annual bobblehead. Second, last year the Wizards had three items on their promo schedule and added a pair of socks later on. Maybe there's hope for a fourth item. Probably a poster.

I'm disappointed. But then again, that's nothing new for me as a Wizards fan. I did circle April 15 on my calendar (or more accurately I took that game's tickets off the Ticketmaster resale site) and I will be showing up that night. 

The picture at the top of this post is the picture used by the Wiz in their announcement. Why? There's nothing Bradley Beal related or Rui Hachimura related about this announcement.

That's all I got here. Out.

The Finals

It's 2019 and the Washington Mystics are in the WNBA Finals. Just like last year. Two years in a row. This year behind a WNBA best offensive team in the history of the league with a superstar who just became the first WNBA player to shoot 50% from the field, 40% from beyond the arc and 90% from the free throw line. They are clearly the best basketball team of any sort here in the Washington, D.C. area.

Game one of the Finals tipped off yesterday, a game that the Mystics came out and won on their home floor just like they should. One down, two more to go until the franchise's first WNBA championship. Yes, it looked like a comfortable victory at the end of the first, second and third quarters for the home squad until a series of offensively futile possessions in the fourth allowed the opposing Connecticut Sun to catch up to within six.

So often in basketball games the team that makes a furious push to erase a pretty big deficit eventually runs out of steam and it happened to the Sun the moment Ariel Atkins hit a big three pointer from the corner and it just broke them. From there the Mystics cruised to victory. One - zero.

What a difference a year makes. 

Last year the Mystics were the clear underdog in the Finals, coming in to the playoffs as the three seed and going through Atlanta in five games to get to the Seattle Storm, the best in the league with Breanna Stewart and Sue Bird leading the way for that team while Elena Delle Donne played nursing a bone bruise she suffered in the Atlanta series. It showed. The Mystics got swept 3-0.

They also spent the postseason as nomads, being bounced from Capital One Arena in favor of a construction crew working to give the place a makeover. They played their series against Atlanta on the campus of George Washington University in the West End but then were forced all the way out to Fairfax on the campus of George Mason University. Home court advantage? Not really. We went to that one Finals game there last year and almost didn't make it on time. The traffic was horrendous. That campus is not built to accommodate any sort of traffic surge. 

This year the Mystics own the number one seed in the playoffs, sporting the league's best record overall and the only winning road record in the league. They might have gotten a little lucky. Minnesota's Maya Moore sat out the season and Breanna Stewart was out the entire season with an injury. Then again,  the Mystics are really good. 

They are also no longer nomads. Instead of bouncing between co-opted arenas this year they are playing in their home building, the brand new and oh so unimaginatively named Entertainment and Sports Arena in southeast D.C. The building is the home court of both the Mystics and Wizards' G-League franchise Capital City Go-Go as well as the Wizards main practice facility. It moved the Mystics out of the 20,000 or so seat Capital One Arena and into more intimate surroundings with a seating capacity of just a bit more then 4,000. 

Yesterday's Finals game was my first Mystics game of the season. I could offer a myriad of excuses for not going earlier than that but I won't. I just didn't make it happen and I'm fortunate that I saw the team win in a Finals game this year vs. losing in their only shot last year. It was also my first trip over to ESA.

Did I already say what a difference a year makes?

ESA is a little closer to get to than EagleBank Arena at GMU but the travel time was remarkably different. There was basically no traffic to get out to SE once you got around the Nationals afternoon traffic and the parking lot was super easy to find. 

The arena being rightsized for the crowd is also a huge plus. Watching the Mystics play at Capital One in a half or more empty arena (they only ever sold lower bowl tickets) was depressing. That building is not built to be rocking at 1/5 or less of its capacity. No matter how many people were there the place always looked empty. We even got moved from our end seats to second row on the side facing the television cameras once so the place would look more full on TV. The gym (because that's really what it is) was almost fully occupied on Sunday. I could see a few seats in the upper rows that were empty but the game was played in front of a full house.

This place is bare bones but it works. There's nothing fancy about the building on the outside or the inside. Sure the corridors are a little packed and the triangular space in the corner of the building that's been turned into a merch center is super small but it works. The only disappointment for me was the railing on the stairs actually blocking my view of the court. It got worse when people got to the top of the stairs and stopped to figure out where their seats are (why is this so hard) and blocked basically the whole lane area. It was worse if it was a mascot in the way.

But the biggest difference is on the court. This team is talented and this team is deep. I guess it helps when a former league MVP forces a trade to your team but while Elena Delle Donne is clearly the best player on the team / in the league it's way more than that. 

Three years ago Emma Meessemann was the best player on the Mystics. She opted to sit out last season (the life of a WNBA player often involves playing a full season in Europe in addition to international competition in the WNBA offseason) to rest. Now at the age of 26 she's in her prime and coming off the bench. She can easily go for 20 plus in a game. Off the bench. There's some luck in building this team but there's also some solid drafting and team building.

Two more games. That's all this team needs to bring the first professional basketball franchise to Washington since 1978. If you told me I would have to hold season tickets for 20 seasons to see a basketball championship in this season I'd have taken it. Of course, I have season tickets for the wrong team. I hope this team does it. They and the city deserve it. I won't likely be at any more Finals games this year but I'm glad I got one in. Let's go Mystics!

The 2019-2020 NBA Schedule

The Wizards schedule for the upcoming season was released this past Monday. I know, I know, it's Wednesday already. A late-ish night at work putting a proposal or two together and then a night out at Wolf Trap with the Stray Cats delayed my posting this by a couple of days. Wrote most of it Monday; just had to find some pics to go with the words.

This season promises to be pretty darn grim for the Wizards die-hard faithful but I've written this post every year but the first that I've been writing this blog and so I'm doing it again. Here are my lucky seven takeaways from the annual schedule release. 

But first...what is with this graphic the Wiz have rolled out this year? All-Star Bradley Beal and this year's number one draft pic Rui Hachimura make a ton of sense on the schedule. But what's with Troy Brown Jr. in street clothes and a backpack? Don't get it. Must be getting old. Let's get to my seven things.

1. Rough Start

So this year's already going to be rough enough with no John Wall likely for the whole year, the team trading away or just letting veteran talent walk and no cap space whatsoever to restock the larder. On top of all that, the league has to start this traditionally slow-starting team with three road games in four nights against Dallas, Oklahoma City and San Antonio? Looks like an 0-3 start to me to point this team in a great direction to start the season. I guess the good thing is if they manage to steal a game, the trip is a success.

Think things get easier once we open at home? Umm...no. The season opener is against James Harden, Russell Westbrook and the Houston Rockets (God that Westbrook part sounds odd). I'm thinking 0-4 here.

2. Sell High

I have paid entirely too much money for Wizards tickets over the past few years. This year I deleted a couple of generally worthless upper deck seats from my account but I'm still in for north of $8K with no help this year (thanks, Mike!). Looks like I'll be looking to sell what I can when I can, which means I'll likely be absent from the marquee games this year. Again.

So what are those? I'm thinking the Lakers, Golden State, the Clippers, New Orleans and Houston in that order. We get lucky with three of those five after football season is over (always a better time to sell) and got a gift with the Lakers game on a Saturday in March. No Eastern Conference games on the list? I'm thinking no. It's going to be another down year for the East now that the spectacularly successful Kawhi rental in Toronto is over. We didn't even get any resale value out of that one since amazingly Kawhi was still under most fans' radar last regular season.

Maybe Milwaukee provides some value.

3. No TV Love

By my count, the Wizards are on national television twice this year. Twice!!! And once is in November against Cleveland. I mean who's going to tune into that game unless ESPN gets guest broadcaster Steve Buckhantz to sit in on the play-by-play mike. It will probably just get cancelled. 

I get that the Wiz aren't a draw this year. Or maybe really any year the way some other teams are. But two games on national TV??? I mean we do still have one All-Star active. They can't get us one or two more slots? One of the two is an NBA TV game, which doesn't really count since it's just a broadcast of one of the two teams' live feeds. No respect! Not saying this team has earned any. Just no respect anyway.

4. MLK Day!

The Wizards have enjoyed a pretty nice run of consecutive years on the annual NBA Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. These things used to get interrupted by presidential inaugurations but it turns out it's really just by popular presidential inaugurations. As a result of the lack of conflict with the sparse Trump 2017 showing, this is the Wizards seventh consecutive MLK Day hosting a home game. Despite the seriousness of this day, this game is always welcome no matter how bad a season this Wizards are having. Here's hoping this one is just as meaningful as the rest. January 20 vs. Detroit in case you want to mark your calendar.

5. Big 3

No, this isn't a reference to the league started by Ice Cube that continues to spurn D.C. (the league - probably legitimately - claims Cap One is significantly more expensive than other venues) but I just had to get that in there.

Every year the schedule allows the Wizards to play each Western Conference opponent home and away and twice that amount for Southeast Division rivals. The rest of the schedule is filled with four games against six of the remaining 10 teams and just three against the other four. Getting three games against the right teams can get you an easier 5% of the schedule but get the wrong teams missing at home and it can cost you a couple of bucks on the re-sale market. 

This year's three game teams? Toronto, Brooklyn, Indiana and Cleveland. Three playoff teams (including the champs...sort of) is not a bad draw to get. Of course, the Wizards will be so bad this year that none of that will matter anyway. Just one home game against the Raps and Pacers this year. Not too broken up about that since Kawhi's not up north any more. No resale impact there for me.

NBA apparel in Rotorua, New Zealand. No Wizards stuff. Shocker!!!

6. Vacation Time!

Last year I went on vacation in early March figuring the Wizards would be on the road. They weren't. I missed six home games and in the process squandered more than $1,000 in loss via the resale market. This year, I'll be smarter. It's been a few years since I've worried about making sure I'm in town for Wizards games but this season I feel like I have to get to these un-sellable games rather than skipping town.

March is a great time to get out of D.C. Maybe the weekend of the 14th or 28th. Yes, I know there's a home game on the 28th but come on, it's the Lakers. No way am I giving up that resale opportunity.

7. Road Trip?

I believe I've left Washington and seen some hoops on the road each year I've been writing this blog so it would be a shame to not do that this year. But honestly, I want to go somewhere I haven't seen a ball game yet and the more places I go, the fewer there are left on the list.

This year's possibilities for uncharted territory? Considering I'm looking ideally for a Saturday evening or Sunday afternoon game, it looks like I'm stuck choosing between San Antonio in late October (out of town the next weekend so not good) and at Charlotte on April 11. I'd love to go to Charlotte for a game but honestly, this Wizards team will have probably crushed all my spirit by that time. If I open it up to Friday nights, then I can consider Oklahoma City in game two of the season (carries the same problem as San Antonio), Boston on March 13 (yeah I know I said that would be a great weekend for a vacation but I didn't mean to Boston) and Houston on April 10 (which has the same killed my spirit issue as the Charlotte game).

This might be the year I'm done. In more than one way. Holding out hope that the Wiz will be in contention in late March so I can go to the Queen City.

Too little to get out of this year's schedule? Too much? That's all I got. Season starts October 23. Not necessarily looking forward to this one I have to say. 

Tommy Can You Hear Me?

Tonight the Washington Wizards did a good thing. Maybe for the second time inside of a week.

Tonight the Wizards hosted a panel discussion for season ticket holders to break down their new basketball operations hierarchy. It was the first time in a long time the franchise has shown any sort of transparency about anything for season ticket holders. And I think that's a positive thing. No, it doesn't get us more wins or a division championship or an NBA title. It actually doesn't really get us anything. Except some communication. But that can be powerful.

So briefly...Tommy Sheppard's the guy basketball-wise for the Wizards, Mystics and Go-Go and even the NBA 2K Esports franchise (I mean...really? I'm trying to maintain an open mind here). Assisting him is Shashi Brown who's running the operational side of the things and who formerly got the Cleveland Browns all the hope that they have entering the 2019 NFL season (there's more to it than that but I'm trying to be succinct). Player development? John Thompson III (or JT3 if you prefer) formerly head coach at Princeton and Georgetown. Let's be real here: sometimes these young men entering the league acquiring vast wealth need some development physically but also straight up some advice. Finally, Dr. Daniel Medina is in charge of wellness, for lack of a better term. The difference between a talented basketball player and a dominant basketball player is sometimes health and conditioning. This is important stuff.

The panel discussion tonight was quick and mostly offered sound bites that could be taken cynically to mean absolutely nothing. Like I said earlier in this post, the Wizards didn't do anything tonight. They didn't sign any marquee free agents (or any free agents at all actually) or fire the head coach or do anything basketball-wise.

Free beer! Are there any two words in the English language more powerful?

But it is something different. 

It is different than no communication really for the past I don't know seven or eight years. When Ted Leonsis first got involved with the team there was a palpable sense of hope and connection. There was a dedicated email address where you could send your comments or questions and the owner of the team would actually respond personally. How cool was that? Ted also showed up for season ticket holder chalk talks and engaged in dialog with fans in a real meaningful way. Like one on one.

The last five or six years? All that's gone. Not much really. Silence about strategy except maybe some hopeful words before things failed and then cover ups around the resultant reaction (I see you summer of 2016 and also Otto Porter). I can't tell you how many season ticket holders I've talked to that have been blocked on Twitter by our team's owner (yes, that's you Ted) for posting a benign comment about firing Ernie Grunfeld (#FireErnie) before he actually did just that. Is this the way you want to conduct fan relations? I can't imagine.

Tommy Sheppard and tonight's event were a breath of fresh air. Tommy is not Ernie Grunfeld. I can't tell you the last time I was at an event (or even for that matter bumping into him in an airport which I have done) where what I got out of Ernie felt genuine or heartfelt. Tommy's not like that. He's in front of us talking into a microphone about hope or change or what needs to be done to succeed. Is he right? I have no idea. Will it work? Also no idea. But it's different. And that's worth something.

The rest of the organization is also different. It's pulling guys from the NFL and European football and college basketball and introducing a whole new setup. Will it work? Again...I have no idea. I often coach the people who work for me that if something's not working change it. Not in a random way but in a way that corrects the deficiencies that exist in their work process. The Wizards are at least intentionally changing things up. Too slow? For sure. Too late? It's probably never too late. 

I have to tell you that the Wizards have almost lost me. Or more accurately cast me aside in favor of people who will pay more for VIP experiences or one game party experiences who will leave when the going gets bad. Or gambling prospects. Or just ditching any hope of success to get under the salary cap. Or whatever. The vision coming out of this franchise has varied between confused to inconsistent to just plain puzzling. 

Tonight's event was hopeful. I'm willing to give it a try. Easy for me to say when I already bought in I guess. I expect that this season will be a disaster. But I'm willing to accept that in the context that it's no longer business as usual. It better not be. 

I've attended a lot of Wizards season ticket holder events in the last 19 years. I attended this one because it represented something different to me and I wanted to see if it was true. Turned out it was. The tone was different. I'll also say that the free beer and wine was different and welcome. Maybe it makes me seem like a lush but honestly the amount of season ticket holder events I've attended in Capital One Arena recently where I've had to pay for draft beer have been ridiculous. I mean, it's draft beer right? How expensive is that? You don't need to charge me for that. 

I'm encouraged. I don't think this team is going to be successful next year and I don't expect that I will renew for the 2020-2021 season. But tonight was the start of a conversation. I appreciate it. 

Trevor Ariza artwork? Really? Probably need to take this down.

Whose Signature Is That?

Last week I wrote my second to last Wizards blog post of the 2018-2019 season. Just like last year, I'm taking the summer off, although I will likely blog about the schedule when it's released rather that in September like I did last year. For now, I'm bullish on this coming season after what I see as a positive draft. Since my draft optimism stems mostly from the fact that the Wizards actually acknowledged that drafting in the second round is a good thing, there's tons of room for my euphoria to fully deflate before opening night. And it will. Pretty much can guarantee that free agency will do that.

Last week's blog post concerned the Sixth Man Referral program offered by the Wizards, a rewards benefit for current season ticket holders to refer new season ticket holders to the team. One of the gifts I received for my referral was a Wizards team autographed basketball, which now sits in the back of my closet on display surrounded by pictures of family, various power cords for phones and things and my bottles of prescription drugs (hey, I'm old and my diet hasn't been that healthy earlier in life!). I graded this reward as a C- for a couple of reasons. First, there are only 11 signatures on the thing. I know the Wizards tried to keep as few people on the team to avoid sniffing any sort of luxury tax but I don't believe you can carry fewer than 13 on a team so where are the other three? Second, some of these signatures are completely unintelligible. 

I'm hoping one of the half dozen or so people who occasionally read this blog can help me identify some of these. Here goes...let's start with the ones I can figure out before we move to those I need help with.

So this one is clearly Dwight Howard. It's a little lazy; just a large D with a 21. I guess these guys do have a lot of stuff to sign. Economizing is good.

Next up: Thomas Bryant. Very obvious T Bryant going on here with his #13 after it. Well done!

Then the rookie Troy Brown. Less legible than Thomas Bryant (the other TB) but there's clearly a T and B and his number 6 is fully understood.

Working our way down the ball...Kelly Oubre is the next one I find. I love Kelly's signature. Very well thought out and ready for use as a branding label (I would expect nothing else from this guy): a KO with the 12 inside the O. Good stuff!

On the same panel of the ball is Bradley Beal. Brad's signature has been the same since he got drafted. It's a little messy here so maybe I got the end of Brad's signing session but it's clearly "B Beal 3".

Now I need some help.

On the bottom of the ball, I have a clear Jason Smith autograph. Jason's helping me out immensely with a clear 14 next to his signature. I'm stumped on the other one. Assuming I'm looking at the beginning of last season (Jason Smith was traded mid-season so I think that's a good assumption) and I'm throwing away guys in training camp who didn't make the squad (not necessarily a good assumption), then I'm looking at John Wall, Otto Porter, Jeff Green, Tomas Satoransky, Markieff Morris, Austin Rivers,  Ian Mahinmi, Chasson Randle, Devin Robinson and Jordan McRae as possibilities. I cannot make the squiggle next to Jason Smith's name into any of these.

Next three...I got nothing here either. Maybe the one in the middle of these three is Tomas Satoransky? I can't begin to even explain which way up the other two signatures go.

Last one. I have no freaking clue. I looks like it's partially cut off, like whoever was signing was holding a piece of paper over the panel when they were writing and some of the signature ended up on the paper.

I'd appreciate any help. Also, if anyone out there wants this thing let me know. I own about 10 or 12 basketballs signed by various current and former Wizards. This one's not likely to make it to next season. Hopefully I will. Have a good summer everyone. Let's hope somehow Tommy Sheppard can make gold out of lead this free agency period.

Sixth Man Referral

The 2019 NBA Draft is in two days and the Washington Wizards do not have a general manager. Free agency starts shortly thereafter and I'm thinking they won't have anyone in place when that process starts either. This after firing Ernie Grunfeld so they could get a jump on the replacement GM process and later telling everyone they decided they are "playing the long game" on the search after being unable to convince Tim Connelly to leave the Denver Nuggets. What a mess.

On top of all that, they have worked out just one top ten draft prospect despite holding the nine pick, have used most of the salary cap on just five players and still think that Washington is a desirable destination for free agents and potential general managers. What a delusional bunch. Now the rumor is that the team intends to lure Masai Ujiri from Toronto with a boatload of cash and the prospect of ownership. Yes the same Toronto team that just won an NBA championship. It's the latest chapter in the "put all your eggs in one basket" strategy this team seems to employ time after time (see: Kevin Durant, Al Horford and Tim Connelly) before failing time after time. How did this franchise become the most dysfunctional team in the entire NBA?

Ted Leonsis gave Washington's front office an A for last year's offseason. You know who got an A? Toronto! You know who didn't? Washington. And this year's even worse so far. It's no wonder I haven't posted anything on this blog in a month. I'm sick just thinking about this team. Yes, I'll be back as a season ticket holder next year. But that's not what I'm here to write about today.

What I got in the fridge during my suite game last year. Also the current state of the Wizards' franchise.

Next season will be my 20th as a season ticket holder. Over all those years I've taken advantage of pretty much every current or now extinct benefit the team has offered from autograph sessions to chalk talks to VIP experiences to the Monumental Rewards programs to season ticket holder gifts to free seats to everything else that the team has concocted in an attempt to add value to the season ticket package that's not winning.

Buried somewhere on the Washington Wizards website, there is a page called the 6th Man Referral Program, which details the rewards available for current season ticket holders for referring new accounts to the team. I know, I know, what are the odds of someone actually wanting to buy Wizards season tickets? But hey, I found one last year and made a referral. So I thought I'd spread the news in case you find that one person out there in the metropolitan Washington area looking to be a first time Washington Wizards season ticket holder.

Despite the odds being against me in my 19 years as a season ticket holder taking advantage of this benefit, once you get it, it's pretty advantageous, especially if you manage to refer more than $10,000 of sales like I did. Let's take a look at the benefits of this program and how much value each one meant to me this past year. We'll grade them on an A through F scale, just like you used to get graded at school and just like Ted Leonsis handed out last summer. Spoiler alert: my grades are more accurate than Ted's!!

Complimentary All-Inclusive Food and Beverage Tickets to a Game

Grade: B+

My hope here was that the Wizards would see fit to set me up with four wristbands to the Etihad Lounge and I could feel like a king for a day. Or at least a few hours. Free food and beer always makes me feel like I'm on top of the world.

Alas, the four passes turned out to be in the (completely dead) Budweiser Brewhouse on the 200 level. Complaining? Not me. Free food and beer is free food and beer. Unexpected in this reward was a set of four seats in the lower level at about center court. It's the first time I've sat in that section in quite a while and I have to admit the view is better than it is from Section 109 two sections over.

So why a B+ on this one and not an A? Well an A would be the Etihad Lounge I think and the seats were about as far from the Budweiser Brewhouse as I could have gotten. Would have been much better sitting on the south side of the 200 level.

Refer less than $5,000 of sales and you get two seats, not four.

Wizards Team-Signed Basketball

Grade: C-
I love autographed stuff. I have I don't know how many signed pictures and basketballs and basketball cards and jerseys and other things I have squirreled away around my house. I should have loved this. A Wizards logo-ed basketball signed by the entire squad. How cool is that? Actually not really. I didn't love it and I don't love it.

I get that basketball players in the NBA are probably made to sign thousands of autographs per year and I'm sure that these types of team autographed collectibles are signed assembly line fashion one after the other. I think some of the guys who signed my ball were on their last legs. Some of the signatures are completely unrecognizable. So much so that I'm going to devote my last (probably) pre-summer break blog post to that object just to see if my eight or so readers can help me figure it all out.

It should be noted that this gift is only available for referrals of $10,000 or more of sales. 

Pair of Suite Tickets for a Game

Grade: D

I've sat in suites set up by the Wizards for games before. Usually these are communal affairs in the 200 or Lexus Suite levels where I'm sharing the space with 16 or so other fans who are on the same sort of junket as me: there for a game as a little bit of an upgrade perk. Sometimes there is a little free food; sometimes there's more than a little free food and you can actually make a meal out of the whole experience; and there's always been some sort of liquid refreshment.

This reward was a pair of tickets to sit in what would become the renewal suite. Nobody checking tickets, nobody there, empty refrigerator. No food. No drink. I actually skipped dinner thinking I could score some free food on this one. Denied! I ended up buying beer and a meal at the game and since we didn't sell our regular seats, I didn't even sit in the suite much longer than it took to take these two pics of the overpriced menu.

Trio of dips for $138 and a $6 bottle of Tabasco? Count me in! When I own the team.

$200 in Concession Credit

Grade: Incomplete

So honestly, I haven't gotten this one yet. After being promised several times by my account representative that the credit had been added and trying out my season ticket holder card to buy food or beverage only to be denied each time, I was told by someone else that the credit is applied during the season after the referral. 

Still not convinced I'm ever getting this one, which I would actually use.

You only get $200 for referrals of over $10,000. Less than that but more than $5K = $100. Less than that, just $50. Free money is free money. Unless you never get it. lower for less than $10K and less than $5K - $100 / $50

Credit for 2019-2020 Season

Grade: A+

So here, free money really IS free money. Anytime I can get anything off the price of my season tickets I'm on board. In this case, the discount is 5% of the referred sale off the price of your tickets, which saved me about $800 off the price of next year's tickets. Any way you slice it, this is an awesome benefit. The only way it could be better is if the discount was on something that would add a ton of value to my life. The 2019-2020 Wizards season is unlikely to do that.

The 5% discount isn't applicable at all referral levels. Less than $5K of referral gets you 1% off; between $5,000 and $10,000 gets you 3%.

The view from my completely empty suite.

So is the Sixth Man Referral benefit as good as it's advertised. I think the answer there is maybe. I definitely see easy, low cost ways for the team to increase the benefit to the referrer and really make this something special. But then again, this team isn't known for making small tweaks to season ticket holder benefits to add lots of value. On the flip side, they don't have to offer anything at all here and the $800 of next year's tickets is much appreciated. I'll be even happier if they come through on the $200 concession credit next year.

If you actually find someone who's looking to buy, you may as well make a referral. It's not like it's going to hurt you. In fact if anyone out there wants to buy, let me know and I'll refer you. But I do have some words of wisdom for potential referrers. My path to referral riches was not exactly easy.

First, if you are planning on making a referral, I'd call your account representative and let him or her know that you are planning on doing so. Don't just fill out the online form. I'd also screenshot the entry that you are making and the confirmation screen. I didn't do either and when I asked about the referral I had made, I was told the referral system didn't talk to the system the account reps use and that there was no way to verify the referral.

After that I spent maybe two or three months gently prodding my account representative with no results. I got the account number and name of the person I referred so they could check it out for me but got crickets. I'd recommend you document everything about this process.

Finally, I sent an email to my rep asking about if I was getting any discount on next year's tickets because if I wasn't it would really affect my decision to renew. Things moved pretty smoothly from there. Other than the oft-promised concession credit.

It shouldn't have had to come to that but eventually I got what was coming to me. Mostly.