Jossif Ezekilov
The Wizards got the No.1 pick…now what?
Tuesday night proved to be a historical one for the Washington Wizards, as they took the No.1 pick in this year’s draft with the fifth best lottery chance at 10.3%. The consensus even before the draft lottery was that Kentucky’s John Wall is a lock for the top pick in the draft. However, there is one problem with the Wizards drafting arguably the most hyped prospect since Lebron James. The problem stands at 6 foot 3 inches tall, and just recently was released out of a halfway house following a gun possession conviction.
Yes the problem is Gilbert Arenas. You know, the guy who has had three knee surgeries in two and a half years. The guy whose gun toting antics became the tip of the horrendous iceberg that was the 2009-2010 season for the Wizards, a season that was initially touted as the one which the Wizards, and Arenas, would come back to the NBA forefront. The guy who is still owed a whopping $80 million dollars. And, worst of all for the Wizards, Arenas is the guy who is currently slotted at the same position as John Wall.
The Wizards are clearly in rebuilding mode. They traded away three of their best players (Antawn Jamison, Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood) for young prospects and cap space, and are also looking to be at least secondary players (they have the cap space for at least one major contract) in what will be the biggest free agency in NBA history. The No.1 pick is the best tool a rebuilding team can have in its arsenal, and Wall looks to be the type of player a team drafts to be the new face of their franchise, much like Derrick Rose for the Bulls, Tyreke Evans for the Kings, or Brandon Jennings for the Bucks, but with the potential to be greater than all of them. Unfortunately, the guy who the Wizards formerly designated to be their franchise star is perched at the starting PG spot, the spot Wall is also vying for.
There are several scenarios that could play out here. The Wizards could just look in another direction, going with either Ohio State’s Evan Turner or Wall’s teammate Demarcus Cousins. The New Jersey Nets mentioned that they would also scout these and other players if they were to get the first pick. Turner or Cousins would fit well in the Wizards rotation, but they are not what anybody in Washington really wants right now. The Wizards want someone to fill the seats of the Verizon Center back up, someone to draw national attention, and the attention of another big time player they could sign. Furthermore, Wizards fans want the best player right now, someone who will provide immediate results. The 2001 drafting of Kwame Brown, arguably the worst pick in NBA history, is still a fresh memory in DC. Given this, the Wizards front office basically has their necks on the line with this pick. If they draft someone else, and they don’t pan out (especially if Wall shines on another team), heads will roll, and the attendance at Wizards games could drop to New Jersey Nets-like levels. Nothing against any other player in the draft, and there are some great prospects out there, but John Wall is clearly the safest pick for the Wizards right now.
Another scenario would be to start both Wall and Arenas in the backcourt. This seems like the win-win type of situation. Arenas is a shoot first guard and his game has always been closer to a shooting guard than a point guard’s. Wall could still be the point guard, run the offense, and have the same effect for the franchise discussed above. However, Arenas is again the problem here. He has not only always been a shoot first, but a “me first” type of player. From the outset of his stint in Washington, he has always been self-centered and egotistical. The Wizards organization compounded this by giving him the green light to be the franchise star and, despite rebukes from former coaches and teammates, Gilbert Arenas was allowed to do whatever Gilbert Arenas wanted to do. Will this attitude somehow magically change once the Wizards draft Wall and he has to share the spotlight in Washington? Is Arenas himself a changed man after spending a month in a halfway house? Somehow, I think not. Arenas still counts on being the go-to man for the Wizards. He has always thrived in that role, his narcissism always the driving force behind “Agent Zero”. He has never played second fiddle, and probably doesn’t understand the concept.
A switch to the two guard spot also means a total reworking of his game: playing more without the ball, shooting more effectively, being a bigger presence on defense etc. This has never been something that Arenas has cared to do. Sure, one can point to Steven Jackson and how he remade his game to better compliment his teammates in Charlotte once he was traded there. But that doesn’t apply to the case of Arenas. Arenas would be staying in his own comfort zone in DC, with little incentive to improve, other than through his own volition. Certainly, a soft-spoken coach like Flip Saunders will not be able to prod Arenas into cooperation, unlike Larry Brown, whose hard-ass tactics got Jackson to accept Charlotte’s program.
However, even if Gilbert Arenas did all of it, let go of egoism, accepted the changes, remade his game, allowed John Wall to the shining face of the franchise, while he played the role of supporting veteran, his effectiveness is still called into question because of the multiple knee surgeries. Even when Arenas played last season, he was clearly not up to the level that he was a few years ago. His shooting percentages were down, he missed layups, he was slow to get back on defense etc. It looked as if the surgeries had taken their toll on Arenas, and that is something the Wizards have to start thinking about.
The best solution for the Wizards and for Arenas is to trade him. A change of scene would be best for both parties involved. The Wizards would be free to make Wall their franchise player with no reservations, while Arenas could go to a team contending for the playoffs and make them better. The problem here is in Arenas’ massive $80 million dollar contract. Not many teams that have the cap space for that type of contract want to spend it on a player who has had off court troubles and multiple surgeries, particularly when there are so many big names on the free agent market. However, if Ernie Grunfeld is really the great GM he thinks he is, he would do everything in his power to make it happen, despite his initial statements Arenas will be a Wizard next year. Arenas, on his part, should welcome such a trade because, despite everything that has happened, Arenas loves the game and he wants to win. He has the potential to be for another team what Steven Jackson was for the Bobcats last season, the player that takes a team from mediocre to pretty good, or even better. If Arenas is the changed man that he says he is, this is what he would want.
The No.1 pick is a great turn of events for the beleaguered Wizards franchise. It gives them the chance to turn things around, and to select a new franchise player. But first, they need to figure out what to do with their old franchise player.
And they need to do it soon; June 24th is not a long ways away.
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