Not Drinking the "Gator-Aid": Washington Wizards 2012 Draft Review and General Fantasy GM Thoughts

I haven't done much of these posts, as I usually feel it's not my style to do so, but as an enthusiastic sports observer, I guess I should do more of these.

The NBA Draft was last night, and I wanted to offer a few thoughts on it. Mainly, on the Washington Wizards, since they are the team that I follow and have the most interest in. I am not going to offer much commentary (if at all) on the other teams, since I don't know each individual team's situation and needs, and I will mainly comment on what the Wizards did, and offer a few thoughts on it. I know the Wizards aren't really "buzz-worthy" or a general topic of national interest, since they have been bad for so long, but since it's my blog, I can discuss this if I want to.

Overall, I would give the Wizards a C-/D+ in the draft. The Bradley Beal pick at #3 overall was just an okay pick for me. I'm not sold on him and not drinking the Orange "Gator-aid" (pun on Kool-Aid) as much as most of the Washington fans and media seems to be about this kid. Don't get me wrong, he does seem to be the best shooter coming out of the draft, and the Wizards was in a desperate need for a scorer when they got rid of one of their "knuckleheads" Nick Young. That's what they are anticipating him to be. But, I'm usually always kind of weary if you're bringing a rookie in to these situations and expect him to carry a full load. Before the draft, the only scorer/wingman they had was Roger Mason Jr (who is a free agent, if I'm not mistaken), so their options at the 2 position is quite limited. This 19-year old kid will be coming in to a situation to bear the expectation that he probably has to score at least 13-15 points a night for this team to be successful. That's not a good situation for a kid to get into. In my opinion, a reason why Wall hasn't developed quite as quickly (though still quite good) as many have hoped, is because from day 1, he was expected to carry a team full of knuckleheads. Sure, a good amount of those players are now gone, and the team has better talent, but the team should've learned that they shouldn't put too much pressure on young kids and expect them to carry the team. This pick seems to be indicative that they haven't learned that lesson.

Another reason why I was weary of the Beal pick was that when he first started in Florida, he struggled with his shot. He didn't really make a name for himself until late in the season, and going into the NCAA tournament when he lit it up and led the team to the Elite-8. The NBA is a different monster, and who's to say that he may get into another slow start (which is likely), and if he does, that this time, since the talent he's going against is on a different level, that his confidence won't be shot?

But, since the Wizards made that deal with New Orleans last week to get rid of Rashard Lewis to acquire Trevor Ariza and Emeka Okafor, most people who followed this team knew that it was likely they would go with Beal with this pick. This trade was a good trade in that it got took Rashard Lewis' salary out of the books, and we seem to have upgraded the forward and center positions (from 3-5), but I don't think this was the best trade we could've made. This trade made us older on the 4-5 positions, which I feel isn't the positions you aren't supposed to get to get older, since these guys spend most of their time on the paint, and endure most of the punishment of the NBA game. 

If we made a trade, I was hoping we could get a proven 2-guard vet on a deal, who can shoot, that would not only help Wall and the Wizards on the backcourt game, but also directly and indirectly mentor him on how he can be an elite guard in the league. The said player didn't have to be "elite" himself (to most standards), but just good enough to be very complementary to what Wall brings to the table, while at the same time, already was at league long enough to know the rigors of the NBA, and what he brings to the table. If we acquired that same kind of guard in free agency, I would have been good with that as well. Ray Allen is an unrestricted free agent this year, and I believe that the Wizards should have at least put a bid on him, even if it's just for a 1 or 2 year contract. It was highly doubtful that he would've came here, but if they put a serious bid for him to come here, he would have at least considered it, and would have sent a message to Wall (who is a few years away from the end of his rookie contract), that they are serious in winning. Guys like Michael Redd, and Tracy McGrady are also available in free agency. By most, they would be considered "has-beens" who are a shell of what they were in their prime, but I see them as players who knew what it took to be good, and could be great compliments to John Wall, as a player, or as a person.

People would say that the main reason why this trade was made was to get rid of the Rashard Lewis contract. However, if the Wizards weren't able to get rid of the Lewis contract via trading for a 2-guard, they could have resorted to a buyout (which was rumored to be around 13-14 million). I can't speak for Lewis, and although it's a far cry from what the 24 million he was getting due this year, I'm guessing he would have agreed to those terms because it was obvious he didn't want to play there.

Don't think that I was trying to imply that the Wizards didn't get better from the trade last week. They got a lot better. However, as noted, I believed they could have gotten even better than that, ultimately in a longer period, if they made other moves.

As far as who I believed they should have drafted last night, I truly believe they should have drafted the best available player in Thomas Robinson. He is a long term answer in the 4-position, as he is a very pure power forward who averaged a double double in college, and instantly improves that position a lot. Many have told me that the Wizards are very deep in the position, and although they have a lot of players in the 4/5 position, doesn't necessarily make it deep. Trevor Booker is a short, but wide, power forward, who I don't think will come close to the level of Charles Barkley (like many Wizards faithful are hoping for). Jan Vesely, is a long, tall, but lanky power forward, who would rather run than post, and Kevin Seraphin has the bulk of a center, but not the height (6'9" 275 lb), so he's a tweener in that position. The "purest" PFs the Wizards have are Nene and Chris Singleton, who are utilized more in the 5 and 3 positions, respectively. If the Wizards had a player purely designated in that role, who can play good minutes and produce, this team may have taken the next step. I believe Thomas Robinson could have been that player. He ended up being drafted at 5 by Sacramento, and he has competition there with Demarcus Cousins, but if he ends up unseating him as a starter and gets to play, the Wizards will see what they missed out on.

As far as the other pick that the Wizards made, the 32nd overall pick in the 2nd round, it was a typical Ernie Grunfeld/Ted Leonsis pick. Don't get me wrong, I have a lot of respect for Ted Leonsis, as I follow several of his principles from his "Business of Happiness" book, but ever since he's owned the Wizards, the Wizards have overvalued international talent and drafted them, seemingly because they were international, and international diversity seems to be good for a team on the long run (see the Dallas Mavericks, San Antonio Spurs, etc). Every single year since Mr. Leonsis owned the team, it seems an international player was drafted probably higher than he should have been (Seraphin in '10, Vesely in '11, and Satornasky in '12). What happened to taking the best player available? I know they missed out on drafting Ricky Rubio in 2009 (instead, practically giving the pick away for players who only played one year), but this is ridiculous.

But, as usual when I'm more on the negative side when it comes to the DC area sports teams, I am hoping that I am wrong. Maybe Beal will turn out to be the "Ray Allen type of shooter" that many are projecting him to be, and will be a great compliment to Wall, and maybe Ernie Grunfeld will still have a job with the Wizards in 2 years. I do think the moves they made were pretty good, but I don't think they were the best moves, and that they were good enough for them to compete any time soon.

Like I said, I hope I'm wrong. But we'll see.

#OBE

OBE and Ovi at the Capitals Convention

In the spirit of the start of hockey season today, I thought that I would briefly evaluate on an experience I had this weekend. I had the privilege to attend the Capitals convention, held by Washington Capitals NHL hockey team. 

Many people would know that I am a huge mark for Washington DC sports. As far as Washington professional hockey is concerned, my appreciation for it is no exception. I do admit that I haven't followed this team as long as many of the die-hards our there, but I have followed them a lot longer than most of the bandwagon fans that has recently followed this team during the past couple of years when the team just started getting good. I have followed this team during their perennial playoff runs, as well as their first Stanley Cup run in the late 1990s, and have been interested with them ever since. From the acquisition by Ted Leonsis, to the signing of Jaromir Jagr (ugh), to drafting of all the young stars, and the eventual rebuild to prominence, I have been followed this team for more than a decade.

Since this team has captured a part of my heart, I figured I'd show some support and attend this event. I wanted to see what it was like. I wasn't able to attend the previous year's convention, and I heard the experience was pretty good. From the revealing of the 2011 Winter Classic Jersey, to the return of Olie the Goalie to the Capitals organization, there were definitely a lot of things to look forward to in this convention. There were also lots of opportunities to take pictures with players, autograph sessions, panel discussions, and even lots of things for the kids (such as games, street hockey, etc). There were also plenty of opportunities for local vendors to showcase their wares.

To get to my experience, I wanted to absorb the atmosphere, do as much as I can, and meet as many players and alumni as I can. In reality, it was a bit impossible to do all that... so I had to narrow it down to a few main objectives to try to accomplish. Meet Alex Ovechkin, shake hands with Ted Leonsis, get some Winter Classic Gear, and hopefully get something for free that my nephew might like. I was able to do 3 out of those 4 things.

After the Winter Classic gear was revealed, I thought I would get some kind of WC paraphernalia. Therefore, I decided to get a John Carlson #74 Winter Classic shirt. This convention was the only absolute place to get gear like this. I also bought a big magnet of the W eagle logo to stick on my car (which along with the Nationals' "DC" logo, is one of my favorite logos in sports).

As far as possibly getting something for my nephew, I was able to snatch a huge Alex Ovechkin poster for him when the cheerleaders were throwing free stuff out. I was about to get him a Slapshot (the Caps' mascot) bobblehead, but some inconsiderate middle-aged man snatched it from my hand when the cheerleader threw it to my direction. I was honestly pretty upset when that happened and was about ready to curse out and fight the old man, since I was going to give it to my nephew and the old man had 3 posters already. However, my pacifistic side got the better of me. Instead of the bobblehead, I was able to get the poster. I did almost hurt myself getting it though, because if grown men are desperate to snatch prizes away from others, then I had to be more aggressive. So, I had to dive to get a prize. I don't know if Joey can appreciate this yet, since he's not the sports fan like I am, but as he grows up and gets more interested in sports, I'm sure he will.

But speaking of Ovechkin, as good as having a poster of him was, I am glad to say that I have had the pleasure of meeting him. I had "meeting an MVP" in my bucket list, so it was important for me to meet him. Therefore, I signed up for a picture opportunity with him. I had to shell out a few extra bucks to do so, but I felt it was worth it. The picture turned out nice. Take a look...

Meeting him ended up being the highlight of my day. And although I slightly upset his reps by doing so (since I apparently held up the line for two very long seconds *sarcasm*), I got to give him that copy of "You Are Awesome". He's already accomplished a lot, so he doesn't need to read it to be reminded of being awesome... but it couldn't hurt. I also did give a copy of the book to one of his lesser known teammates, Mathieu Perreault during the autograph session. Perreault has been re-assigned to AHL's Hershey Bears, so I'm sure it can impact him more if he reads it.

But, as you may guess, the one thing that I didn't get to accomplish was to meet the Caps' owner Ted Leonsis. If you have read this blog previously, you would know how much respect I have for the guy, and I even have meeting him in my bucket list. I wanted to personally thank him for the impact he had in my life, and in philosophies, and I was hoping that I would have gotten him to sign my copy of his book "The Business of Happiness". To me, meeting him would be like meeting Donald Trump for most people. The bright side is, since I do plan on being plugged in to this area and attending a few Caps and Wizards games/events, I'm sure I'll eventually get a chance to meet him.

But, overall, the convention was definitely a great experience. Sure it wasn't perfect, as there were long and confusing lines, crowded areas, rude people and staff members, but it was still a great event that I would recommend that fans of not only the Washington Capitals, but fans of hockey can enjoy. Whatever mistakes they made, will eventually be corrected the following years, knowing the organization that's running it. And as someone who has been around his share of events, and appreciate event management and community engagement, I really found this event worthwhile. It can also be a great event to take the kids (so long as they can appreciate it). There's something for everyone.

But, I figured I'd it's appropriate to talk about this experience, not only because the NHL season started today and I'm pumped about it... but also to again remind all my readers that it is important to do what you like, invest in your interests, meet your heroes, and have as much fun as you can. And in some points, if the situation isn't the best, you still have to make the best of it. Out-of-the-box empowerment? You're damn right it is.

OBE and Ovi? You bet! No 6 degrees of separation needed here. :-)

D4P...PD!!!

-OBE

PS: Let's go Caps!

"Monumental" Advice from Ted Leonsis

In my previous blog posts, I have not been shy for my admiration for Ted Leonsis, owner of Monumental Sports and Entertainment (which controls the Washington DC pro sports hockey and basketball teams). He wrote a blog yesterday that I think everybody should read, especially if you're using social media, whether for , to connect with friends, associates, mentors, or even admirers. Check it out...

http://www.tedstake.com/2010/08/07/advice-to-sports-personalities

He addresses this to "sports personalities", but I truly believe a lot of the advice he mentions in this blog applies to everyone who uses social media. He gives obvious, but great advice to be authentic and genuine, to be transparent, and to be consistent "warts and all"... just to name a few. I went to a few business conferences and some businesses outsource their blogs to others and wonder why they aren't as trusted as Mr. Leonsis is.


But also, this article shows you how to "act as if" and how to treat your activity in social media as if you are a celebrity. This sort of continues to what I was saying in my post a few days ago... you never who may be watching or who can be looking for you. And if you do anything questionable in Facebook, then you have to re-evaluate yourself.

If you look at it, you have to act like your important, because once you do, that's how you'll be viewed. And ultimately, how you are viewed (and how you view yourself) determines how you will be respected by your peers, and by yourself. So what I'm saying is, even though you aren't under the public eye like say... Kobe Bryant, you have to watch yourself like you are. That might sound cliche, but there's a lot of truth to that if you think about it.


Before I have read this... I have been trying to apply most of what he said here in my pages. I don't set my Facebook or Twitter profiles to private, and keep them all public, because I want people to look me up and find me after seeing my work and/or seeing me talk. Therefore, I have to watch myself and carry myself in a way that is not detrimental to myself or my reputation. I can't be saying things like I desire to have sex with a certain girl, or post and argue something that make others who visit my page question my intellect.

The most notable thing that he mentioned here that I'm working on now is to be consistent and to blog and use these internet outlets everyday. As you can see during the past week, I've been working hard to do that.


So if you have the time... please read Ted's post. There are tons of social media "gurus" out there that claim to know how to use social media for business or for general use, and the information they'll give you is no where near as good as what you'll read in Ted's post, in my opinion. (Believe me, I've seen them, and I know). So, check out the post when you can. You won't be disappointed. Again, here's the link...


http://www.tedstake.com/2010/08/07/advice-to-sports-personalities/


D4P...PD!!!
-OBE

Rocking the Red and Unleashing the Fury

Alright... I said I'd talk about "other sports" in my last blog. And, since my favorite team, The Washington Capitals are in the midst of a 10-game winning streak, I thought it's a good time to bring them up.

First off, I just want to say that I'm not like most of the Caps fans here in the District that just jumped in the bandwagon in the past year or so. I have been following the Caps ever since their last Stanley Cup run when they fell short to the Red Wings in '98, and people didn't know who "Olie the Goalie" was. In fact, I can even tell you who scored the winning OT goal against Buffalo who brought us to the Cup Finals that year (for those of you who don't know, look it up... but his name is the capital of Alaska). I can tell you the captains since that run, and I even got some Caps paraphernalia with the old crappy logo. Although, I do admit that they were tough to watch during the re-building years (sort of like how the MLB's Nationals are now, who I also am fans of). Like I said, I'm pretty much the ultimate "DC" homer in sports (with the exception of DC United, since I can't get into soccer).

But moving right along, ever since that Cup run, they've blown up the team, rebuilt, and got to where they are today... as of now, at the top of the Eastern conference. They just won their 10th in a row against Tampa today, and I honestly could see this streak going for probably a few more games. Next, they play a Boston team, that's on a bad of a slump as any team can get (with the exception of the Oliers, whose losing streak is longer than our winning streak). And they are just playing mind-blowing hockey!

Here are just a few stats...

• They are currently leading the NHL at 214 goals... the closest team to them has 187 (San Jose)
• They scored 65 more goals than they have allowed, also leading the NHL. Closest team to them is at +53 (also San Jose)
• They have a 23 point lead in the division (in basketball terms, they have about a 11.5 game lead over their closest divisional opponent).
• 4 of their players have over 50 points, 9 over 25.
• They are averaging 3.82 goals per game (almost 4 goals per game).

And, the best part is... they are doing all of this with their star Alex Ovechkin scoring less, and their #1 goaltender Varlamov on the shelf. Everybody is contributing. Jose Theodore has filled in well during this run and has not looked like "Jose Three-or-more". And the kid Neuvirth is solid between the pipes as well. In this streak, with the exception of 3 games (Detroit, the comeback SO vs Florida, and the recent one against Tampa), they have won their games handily. Most of which by at least 3 goals.

I'm not gonna go out there and start predicting '10 Stanley Cup champs at this time of the season. They still have a very long way to go to get there. But, I will say (and have been saying for a long time) that the sports fans here in DC really has a team they can be excited about and proud of. It's just a shame that only a few people are just discovering this now. Let's just hope, that come June, we'll still be "Rocking the Red".

But on a somewhat related note, I did buy Caps owner Ted Leonsis' new book from Amazon "The Business of Happiness". As I've said in a previous blog, he's definitely one guy in my short list that I strive to be one day because of all that he's accomplished, while at the same time, staying grounded, genuine, and even accessible. I for one am very interested to know his "secret sauce". Even if I accomplish just a small fraction of what that man has accomplished, I would've probably lived a good life.

Til next entry...

D4P... PD!!!

John

John's "Take" (...On a Couple Bloggers He Follows/Followed)

I don't read too many blogs religiously (for the reasons that I mentioned in the first entry). For me to really follow someone's blog, I have to be thoroughly interested in them, captivated by them, and more importantly, have a lot of qualities that I either have, or am striving to have.

One blog that I really loved when it was around was that of Gilbert Arenas (the point guard for the Washington Wizards). From what I remembered of his blog, a lot of his entries were LONG, since he posted once every few days or weeks. But, he was such a captivating and quirky personality, that you can actually see it in his blog, and I usually ended up spending a lot of time reading most of what he wrote down. Some of it was stuff was controversial, and some of his stuff was slightly insightful and gave a nice perspective on how it was like to be one of the top point-guards in the NBA. That's what made his blog great. In fact, if I remembered correctly, Michael Wilbon once said in an episode of "Pardon the Interruption" that Gilbert's blog is the only blog he read. Too bad it's not around anymore though.

Another blog that I enjoy that really comes to mind (that I'll discuss more in detail) is that of Ted Leonsis. He was a former executive of AOL, and is now the owner of the Washington Capitals NHL franchise. If you haven't had a chance to check out his blog "Ted's Take", I encourage you to do so.

In my opinion, despite his success, he really comes out as one of the most genuine owners, and people out there, and in my opinion, he is a gold standard of what people should strive to be. When he was younger, he got into a near fatal accident, and since then, he has compiled a 101-things to do "bucket list", and has done many great things, like start businesses, make millions of dollars, buy the Washington Capitals (and turn them around), while also doing his part to better the world through philantrophy. He has already completed more than 70 items out of 101 in his impressive list, which is pretty impressive. Not only that, he is probably one of the few owners in sports who would take the time to actually interact with his fans, whether it's going to the streets to shake his hand, or allowing fans to send him e-mail. (I actually had a "back-and-forth" with him on Facebook in a few occasions).

In his blog, he covers a lot of stuff, from his day-to-day "involvement" with the Caps, as well as some news and opinions on his many other projects and (like his work in "filmantrophy" in SnagFilms). And, when he gives his opinions, you can tell he really watches how he carries himself, while at the same time, stays absolutely genuine while doing it. When the Caps played the Penguins in the NHL playoffs this past year, I'm sure he may have had opinions on how the series was handled, but he showed class by giving the Penguins nothing but the utmost respect and credit after they won the close series, and later the Stanley Cup. And after reading his blog, you can really sense that winning the Cup is something that he really wants and that he feels that his team is extremely close to getting it done. A lot of owners in sports can actually learn from Ted's humility and class (*cough*Dan Snyder*cough*Mark Cuban*cough*).

As a speaker, and as someone who once worked for a huge media conglomerate at one point, I have been blessed to meet and interact with a good amount of "successful" people (rich, famous, or both). Although I haven't met Ted in the flesh as of yet (which is something that I plan to eventually do at some point), he easily tops that list. Plus, despite how successful and busy he probably is, he still finds a way to connect with everyone, and even finds a way to blog (at times, several times a day).

I said to myself at one point, that if I ever got back into blogging, I'll try to follow the same example of "Ted's Take". I want to connect with my readers as much as I can, go on record with my opinions, while staying humble, genuine, and grounded and not appearing too "important" (that last part, I feel is a quality that I feel a lot of "successful" people lack). Hell, even the title "Obe's Dose" is somewhat of an homage to Ted, since it's two words short, and it's sort of a clever, alliterative title with my name on it.

I never believe in "idolizing" people, but if you can see the great and heroic qualities in them, and simply just strive to have those qualities, in my opinion, you should be in a good spot. In this entry, I'm not idolizing Ted, but just simply recognizing some of the qualities that makes his a great person. Like I said, in my opinion, he is probably the gold standard of the personality that people should strive to be. And if I can do just some of the things he does (blogging like he does would a small example), I can probably go real far.

D4P...PD!!!
John