Nov 7, 2012; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; “What did I do, coach?”. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

Ben Mehic:

After capping off such a great season last year, I honestly expected Kevin Seraphin to emerge amongst some of the top young big men in the NBA. Instead of becoming one of the league’s most improved players, Seraphin quickly failed to live up to expectations.

With Nene struggling with injuries right out of the gate, Seraphin was asked to step up and fill his role. Seraphin tried to assert himself offensively, much like he did last year, but failed to do so efficiently. Instead, Seraphin became a black hole once he touched the ball under the basket. Unlike Nene, the possession would consequently end once Seraphin got the ball in the post. Although he’s very capable of knocking down his patent mini-hook, Seraphin would settle for face up jump shots way too often, making him an unreliable offensive threat. When Seraphin was traded to Washington on draft day, I remember the NBA analysts characterizing him as a “bruiser” and someone who knows how to utilize his size. Needless to say, he’s become a finesse player who uses his size to take terrible shots.

I personally think the majority of Seraphin’s trouble’s on the court have come from his lack of awareness. Teams have now started to double-team Seraphin in the post, consequently neutralizing him under the basket. Once he gets double-teamed, Seraphin either rushed up a terrible shot or turned the ball over. Washington’s coaching staff, including head coach Randy Wittman, have worked with Seraphin throughout the season, in order to help him quit these bad habits. Once Seraphin learns when to shoot, when to pass, and how to play acceptable defense, he’ll ultimately become the player we all know he can become.

There aren’t too many 23 year old centers in the NBA with the skills Kevin Seraphin possesses. Let’s hope Seraphin gets back on the right path , or he’ll definitely see a lot more DNPs next season.

Grade: F

March 3, 2013; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Wizards point guard John Wall (2) talks with Wizards shooting guard Bradley Beal (3) against the Philadelphia 76ers in the fourth quarter at Verizon Center. The Wizards won 90-87. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

The Washington Wizards have concluded yet another sub par season with last night’s loss to the Chicago Bulls. Washington finished with just 29 wins, but have shown more promise this season than they have in the past several years. Since there are no Wizards on the roster in contention to win any major individual awards, I thought it would be a good idea to commemorate their performances by recognizing them in this years “Season Awards.”

Most Valuable Player: John Wall gets this recognition by default. Wall missed the first 33 games of the season, and in that period of time, the Wizards had a record of 5-28. That’s pathetic. In fact, John Wall had been ranked “the second most indispensable point guard”, right behind Chris Paul. With John Wall in the lineup, the Wizards finished one game below .500, winning 24 of 49 games. For the first time in his career, John Wall averaged nearly 19 points per game, mostly due to his improved perimeter shot. If John Wall continues to improve, he’ll continue to climb the ranks amongst some of the top NBA point guards.

Defensive Player of the Year: According to HoopData, the Washington Wizards were the seventh best defensive team in the NBA in terms of efficiency. With John Wall out, the Wizards were forced to rely on their scrappy and intimidating defense in order to stay competitive throughout the season. Emeka Okafor had emerged as the true defensive anchor on the team, and has been a large part in changing the teams defensive culture. Much like Tyson Chandler of the New York Knicks, Emeka Okafor’s strong defensive presence helped instill that same defensive mentality to the rest of the guys on the roster.

Most Improved Player: At the beginning of the season, I was really hoping Jan Vesely would be mentioned in this category. Sadly, John Wall will once again get this recognition by default. His improved perimeter shot has added a new aspect to his offensive game, making him virtually impossible to defend. It’s clear that Wall had worked on his jump shot during the offseason, but his long layoff had caused some concern amongst the fan base.  John Wall’s shooting percentage have all increased this season, but his three point shot is still a work in progress.

Sixth Man of the Year: Coming into the season, I think we all expected Trevor Ariza to be the starting small forward. As it turns out, Ariza was quite productive off the bench. Martell Webster had been hot all season long, which forced Ariza to take the “sixth starter role.” He struggled at the beginning of the year, but picked it up during the course of the season. Ariza had one of his best games of the season against the Los Angeles Lakers, scoring 25 points, most of which came from his 7 made threes. I was really down on Ariza at the start of the season, but I really like how he adjusted and ended up being a capable contributor for the Wizards on both sides of the floor. Not only did Ariza provide a spark on offense, but he was probably Washington’s most versatile defenders. Let’s hope Ariza can stay healthy next season.

Most Surprising Player of the Year: Who would’ve thought Martell Webster, a late roster addition, would mean so much to the struggling Wizards? Dealing with back issues, Webster was a health concern throughout the majority of his career. When healthy, Martell Webster is one of the best shooters in the entire league. He shot over 42% from downtown, ranked just below Steve Novak in 3 point percentage. Webster added a dynamic to the Wizards they hadn’t had in quite some time. With John Wall getting to the bucket at will, defenses were forced to collapse, often times leaving Martell Webster wide open in the corner. Not only did Webster contribute on the floor, but simply put, he’s an awesome person. Webster is probably the funniest and friendliest player in Washington’s locker room.  I’m sure the Wizards got a lot more production out of Webster than they had anticipated, but they’ll certainly try to resign him this off season.

Most Disappointing Player of the Year: Kevin Seraphin. And it’s not even close. Seraphin looked like one of the most promising guys on the roster last season, but underwhelmed to a large extent this year. Seraphin showed lack of awareness on the court, turned the ball over in the post, and I don’t even want to get into his defense. Let’s just say he allowed Nazr Mohammed to score 17 points in 22 minutes last night. He has all the tools to become a successful NBA player, but he needs to improve his mentality. He wasn’t bad, but he didn’t live up to expectations.

So. who gets your picks in this years “Season Awards”? Let me know in the comment section.

Kevin Seraphin’s minutes have gone up by 25% this year while his attempted field goals has gone up by an astonishing 72%. He has turned into the bigger, chubbier, less American version of Jordan Crawford. How many Jordan Crawford’s do the Wizards need? I can’t answer that question. What I can do is present you the definitive source on Seraphin’s thought process in every situation possible. See below: