Commentary

NBA Offseason Buzz: Wizards

Arenas' erratic behavior leaves doubts on how far Wizards can advance

Originally Published: September 22, 2009
By John Hollinger and Ric Bucher | ESPN Insider

Want to know who's heating up for a big season on the hardwood? Insider is tapping into John Hollinger's projected player efficiency ratings to see who's trending up and down across the NBA. Ric Bucher rounds out the report by examining a pivotal player you'll want to watch as the season approaches. The series concludes with the Washington Wizards.

The worst team in the East is now regarded as a playoff team, at worst. New coach Flip Saunders certainly has guided teams with less talent to the postseason and, if healthy, Gilbert Arenas, Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison comprise one of the conference's best nuclei outside of Cleveland, Boston and Orlando. But their front line is still vastly undermanned and if they have the big three healthy and energized at season's end, it will be the first time.

To see which player is taking off, which is crashing to Earth and which name you'll need to know for the 2009-10 season, you must be an ESPN Insider.


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Ric Bucher

NBA Reporter, ESPN The Magazine Senior Writer
  • Senior writer for ESPN The Magazine
  • Co-authored "Yao: A Life in Two Worlds"
  • Full-time beat writer/NBA analyst since 1992

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