‘Wizards Home O King, Jr. pener’
courtesy of ‘MudflapDC’
On this Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday, it’s really quite appropriate that we’re talking about dreams.
Who would have thought that it would be one from Wizards forward Andray Blatche?
“I had a dream last night. That we won today, then we won the road. I woke up, then had a dream that we made the playoffs.”
What Blatche failed to tell the media is if his dream happened to have any hints on the type of game him and the Wizards would have in the 108-101 win over one of the best from the Western Conference, the Utah Jazz.
For example, did this vision of his have any premonition about his run-from-behind block on Raja Bell’s breakaway? Did it predict the John Wall Assist Party (reservations for a career-best 15 when all was said and done)? JaVale McGee’s sick finish on this JWall Alley Oop?
Most importantly…did this dream say anything about the box score day that Dray himself would have? You know, hints about his tenth double-double of the season, clues toward the 10 points he threw down in the first quarter en route to 21 on the afternoon, or maybe foresight for his season-high four blocks that pushed him over 100 on the year?
Did it answer important things such as whether or not I would write this entire column in question form?
We don’t know many more details on Dray’s dreaming or my writing style. What we do know is that the Wizards put in a really admirable home performance against one of the better teams in the NBA, and Blatche played a big part in what was a solid team showing by the Wizards. Six players ended up in double digits for scoring while the Wiz shot 54 percent from the field.
Probably the best sign that this young team has some potential is how they held together even while Deron Williams and Al Jefferson willed the Jazz back into it toward the end. Getting as close a three points with 90 seconds to go, the Wiz made their last few possessions count. Wall’s dime that set up Nick Young for a dagger three pointer set Verizon on fire, and it ensured that the home team would keep the victory in tact (Young kept his hot streak going, as well, riding a strong third quarter to 25 points himself).
One thing that nearly got the Wizards in trouble was keeping a hold on the ball. With 20 turnovers – a whopping seven from John Wall, too – it kept Utah around for a little too long. Lucky, the Jazz were suffering from what may have been jetlag and the early time of the game, shooting a very cold sub-40 percent in the first half before finally getting the shooting together in the third. A hot team wouldn’t have given the Wizards an opportunity like these Jazz did, and a gutsy, dream-fulfilling victory may have been just out of reach.
So, dream on, Andray Blatche. A trip to Milwaukee is on your itinerary for Wednesday, and if you want to break that winless-on-the-road streak, the Bucks would be suitable suitors to offer up a first away victory this season. The Wizards will be back in action at Verizon on Friday against Steve Nash, Jared Dudley and the Phoenix Suns, and plenty of seats are still available.
