Why Washington Wizards Don't Have Any Hype

The recent NBA schedule release accentuated a feeling that I’ve had for some time: the Washington Wizards do not receive the respect they’ve earned on a national and local level.

After back-to-back Eastern Conference Semi-finals appearances, five national television games (sorry, I’m not counting NBATV games) crystallized how this team is viewed and unfortunately, that perception extends beyond the national level and hits locally.

Let’s pretend the Washington Nationals and Washington Capitals are title favorites….nobody would flinch. The Washington Redskins? You may not hear any sane fan predict a Super Bowl run, but every year usually starts with some level of optimism (maybe this point would have gone over better pre-RG3 benching).

If you say anything positive about the Washington Wizards you’re often met with a strange look.

Say a championship is potentially on the horizon and that negativity turns into concern for your state of mind. Why though? The Washington Wizards have had more playoff success than the other big four teams in the area in recent history.

They’ve made it as far of Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Semis in each of the past two post-seasons.

History

The Washington Wizards/Bullets, prior to their recent iteration, have had a checkered history full of bad basketball.

The Wizards have not had a 50 win season since the 1978-79 season. That is a LONG time. Bad basketball can wear at a fan base and it seems to have done so here.

Since their last Finals appearance in that very same 1978-79 season, the Redskins have won three Super Bowls, the Capitals have made a Stanley Cup Finals appearance, and the Nationals have emerged on the local scene. A sustained period of irrelevance has undoubtedly had a lasting impact on the Wizards’ brand.

The End Of The Gilbert Arenas Era

The end of Gilbert Arenas era left a stain on the organization that’s been difficult to overcome.

Gilbert Arenas took the area by storm and was embraced in a way very few other athletes in this area have been. Unfortunately as quickly as his star took off, it came crashing down with Gerald Wallace, GunGate, and the following ramifications.

The Verizon Center crowd which had become accustomed to the histrionics and buzzer beaters which came with Agent Zero, instead was treated to a bad, non-entertaining style of basketball which left attending a Wizards game seem more funeral-esque.

Front Office/Coaching Staff

The Washington Wizards have moved in a new direction, but are still designed by the General Manager who oversaw the latest tear down of the organization (and subsequent painful rebuild).

No matter what good Ernie Grunfeld does, he’ll be pre-judged based on the ill-advised draft day trade for Randy Foye and Mike Miller, missing on Kawhi Leonard or Klay Thompson for Jan Vesely, selling second round selections, etc.

Putting the past behind, Grunfeld still has had a difficult time finding the right parts to surround his current nucleus of young players. Going into year six of John Wall’s career, Grunfeld still has not been able to find that stretch-4 to open the floor for him.

Randy Wittman shares blame as well. The strength of this team is the backcourt, and it should be the focal point of the offense, leading to an exciting brand of basketball that attracts fans. Instead we were treated to an offense that was 17^th in the NBA in points, 26^th in 3-point field goals made per game, and 16^th in pace.

The Wizards have one of the fastest point guards in the NBA on their roster; a one-man fast break, and a 42.7% 3-point shooter as his backcourt mate to compliment him. WHY ARE THEY 16^th IN THE NBA IN PACE! WHY DON’T THEY SHOOT MORE THREE POINTERS?

The Golden State Warriors differentiated themselves before winning a championship by implementing a style of play conducive to their players’ strengths and in doing so differentiated from the rest of the league.

One of the first things I learned in Marketing 101 was differentiation. Where do the Wizards differentiate themselves? They don’t and it’s a critical mistake the coaching staff is making given the strengths of the roster.

#KD2DC

The pursuit of Kevin Durant in the summer of ’16 may be what tips the scales back in the Washington Wizards’ direction eventually, but in the interim it’s creating a feeling of being “on hold”.

There’s a hesitancy to jump entirely on board with the sense that the organization hasn’t taken its big shot yet, and that big shot is in potentially bringing the 2014 MVP back home. It’s a legitimate hurdle based on the huge roadblock stopping teams from the Finals in the Eastern Conference known as LeBron James.

The question becomes, what if Kevin Durant doesn’t come to Washington next summer? Will any free agent/trade that results in any player other than Kevin Durant in red/white/and blue be viewed as anything other than a disappointment?

Or will that sense remain that the Washington Wizards are blocked by the one generational player currently playing in the Eastern Conference? Isn’t this pursuit also undermining the current roster in-place?

John Wall was recently ranked the 13^th best player in the NBA by SI and had the 13^th best-selling jersey in the NBA during the 2014-15 season; doesn’t he deserve more respect? Bradley Beal is a potential max-contract two guard coming off a post-season where he averaged 23.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.6 assists.

As recently acquired Gary Neal said when discussing why he chose Washington; “they’re certified”. While the shot at a talent like Kevin Durant is a shot this team MUST MAKE, the potential of the current nucleus can’t take a back seat.

Ownership

Ted Leonsis and Monumental had a monumental task as hand when they acquired majority control of this franchise (no pun intended). Coming off GunGate and at step one of a painful rebuild, ownership was tasked with creating a positive atmosphere during a period of bad basketball.

The results are up for debate, but as a partial plan holder then season ticket holder since the 2010 season, I can only speak from my own experience. Sometime I wonder if what the Wizards are doing is authentic or a Junior Varsity Version of what the Washington Capitals have done.

“Rock the Red” is unique to the Capitals, so when you hand out red shirts at Wizards games, it somehow seems a little less. #dcRising was a positive step, but it was just that and needs to be built on.

Back to differentiation again (a common theme), but what is unique to experiencing an NBA game at the Verizon Center? For an area with such deep basketball history at all levels, you don’t sense that history on gameday.

Media

Perhaps the biggest culprit of them all!

There are some good members of the local media who talk/cover the Washington Wizards and the NBA, but they are few and far between. When the focus of the Wizards offseason coverage is centered on Kelly Oubre’s selection in shoes and if that makes him the next Nick Young, you know there is a problem.

The intelligent thought provoking coverage of the team is often drowned out by old noise by members of the media who can’t get past the old Wizards/Bullets stigma. The Redskins will always get coverage, but the Nationals and the Capitals seem to get a positive coverage while any failure by the Wizards is often met with sarcasm and non-analysis.

Explain this to me: the Wizards have likely met expectations in each of the past two seasons while the Nationals have drastically underachieved in two of the past three seasons, but which franchise is covered in the better light?

The franchise can assist matters here by making the members of the front office, coaching staff, and players more available for coverage. An emphasis on accessibility can create a good rapport with the local media and change the lazy old narratives that still exist.

And finally…. The Fans

Sorry, but we have a role in this as well.

The team may not get the coverage or hype they deserve, but it’s the fans that have to create a distinct home-court advantage. You can’t do that when the crowd is all too often late arriving and rarely engaged until the second half.

There is no excuse for the number of late shows that often accompanied Washington Wizards home playoff games this past post-season. It didn’t take Bradley Beal too long to figure this out about the Verizon Center crowd when he said:

"“You definitely notice it,” guard Bradley Beal said. “Especially when you first run onto the floor and there’s nobody there. You look up in the third quarter and everybody’s there. So we definitely need that crowd to be loud for us in the beginning and get us going.”"

Forget the history of the franchise; this team is on the verge of potentially doing something special. How many teams can rival a nucleus that includes a 25-year old All-Star point guard who was recently ranked as the 13^th best player in the NBA by SI, a 22-year-old playoff tested two guard with his best basketball ahead of him, two exciting young wing prospects in Otto Porter and Kelly Oubre Jr., and a charismatic pick & roll center who is a perfect fit with the young backcourt.

Have they arrived here without mistakes? No, but nither has Golden State who made their fair share of mistakes as well (i.e. Ekpe Udoh in the ’10 lottery). It’s time to let go of the missed draft picks and poor trades. We all know that Kawhi Leonard could have been a Wizard. LET IT GO!

By design or by luck (probably a combination of both), the Washington Wizards are armed with a young nucleus, solid center, and $30+ million in cap space potentially as early as next season. While other local franchises might be on par, I have a hard time seeing how the Wizards should take a second seat to any other team locally in the quest to bring a title back to the District of Columbia.

When are the fans going to see that and embrace it; or are the fans “too cool for school” as Ted Leonsis touched on prior to the Wizards first home playoff game in 2014.

Diehard Wizards fans have the right to be angry. The franchise seems to be on the right track, potentially on the brink of exceeding anything they’ve done in the past 30+ years but they hype isn’t there.

Next: Why The Frontcourt Could Be Wizards' Fatal Flaw

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Why The Washington Wizards Don’t Have Any Hype Behind Them

By Osman Baig | Sep 9, 2015