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WASHINGTON WIZARDS 2007-2008 SEASON ANALYSIS
In a year that the Wizards could have gotten away without competing or could’ve given up on their season, Washington chose the high road instead. NBA superstar point guard Gilbert Arenas spent the vast majority of the 2007-08 season in a suit reclined on the bench or off on his own working tirelessly on his rehabilitation regimen. Pride is what drove the Wizards to continue in their winning ways even without their leader. Caron Butler, Antawn Jamison, and DeShawn Stevenson gave hardship the deathstare and worked together to compensate for the massive scoring deficiency left by the injured Arenas. In the end, the Wizards have discovered a peculiar sense of family; this comes from total reliance and trust in one another to carry the scoring load on any given night. An offense that used to showcase Gilbert Arenas about 70% of the time was swapped for a spread the wealth mentality that has led to Washington entering the playoffs yet again. Apparently the Wizards mixed in a movie night in the midst of their preseason training camp because they have perfectly embodied the quote from The Three Musketeers: “All for one, and one for all!” Now that Arenas is back in the lineup, Head Coach Eddie Jordan must make sure to lower Gilbert’s shot total and raise his assists in order to maintain the current state of equilibrium on the roster. WASHINGTON WIZARDS -- TOP 3 PLAYERS1. Gilbert Arenas — 19.4 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 5.1 apg, 1.8 spg, 77.1% (FT%), 32.7 mpg
Gilbert Arenas has never seen a shot he didn’t like. When most viewers see a man defensively smothered, Hibachi only sees one thing, the rim. Due to his clearly noticeable lack of shot selection, Arenas frustrates his coach almost as much as he upsets his opponents. Arguing against an Arenas shot choice is usually not a wise decision because he catches fire on a regular basis. Whenever this occurs, Gilbert starts draining threes as if they were freethrows.
2. Antawn Jamison – 21.4 ppg, 10.2 rpg, 1.5 apg, 1.3 spg, .4 bpg, 76% (FT%), 33.9% (3p%), 43.6% (FG%), 38.7 mpg
In his ninth year out of North Carolina, Antawn Jamison has provided the Wizards with a solid foundation upon which they could lean during the absence of Arenas. At 6’9” Jamison alternates between playing the three and the four positions. His ability to score on a variety of teardrops and long range jumpers allows him to mix it up in the post or fill in on the wing. Clearly one of the two most significant reasons for the Wizards’ 2008 Playoff berth, Jamison has earned every penny of his paycheck this season.
3. Caron Butler – 20.3 ppt, 6.7 rpg, 4.9 apg, 2.2 spg, .3 bpg, 90.1% (FT%), 35.7% (3p%), 46.6% (FG%), 39.9 mpg
Making his second appearance in the NBA All Star game this season, Caron Butler definitely earned this honor with his passionate play in ’08. Along with running mate Antawn Jamison, Butler filled in the scoring void left by Hibachi. Displaying a bit of a nasty streak, Caron Butler grinded his image into each game by diving for loose balls, rebounding, pushing himself defensively, and scoring with alarming efficiency (check his shooting percentages above). Expect Butler to showcase his skills even more in the postseason as Washington works to shock the East and come out on top.
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