Where's the Party At? MCI, Baby!

Juan Johnson was sitting in Section 403, Row F, corner of the basket, for the Wizards' final home game against the Bobcats on Sunday when his cell phone rang. "Man, I'm up in the nosebleed seats," he quipped to his caller. No matter. "As long as you're in the arena," said Johnson, "you feel the excitement. And it definitely helps by us making the playoffs."

The NBA playoffs begin on Saturday, but the Wizards are likely to start their journey on the road, in Chicago. MCI Center won't feel postseason excitement until sometime next week.

Johnson was viewing Sunday's game from an AAU coach's lens, and seeing all he needed to see. "I'm looking at execution and trying to point things out to him," Johnson said, motioning to his 10-year-old son, J.R., who, naturally, would have preferred sitting lower "so I would get Gilbert Arenas's jersey."

Lower would be where hotel manager Pete Mangione was sitting the other night. Courtside seats. "I hear the refs talking, I hear the players talking. It's pretty neat." On this night, a game official came over to admonish a fan who was a little too belligerent. To make his point, the ref asked Mangione's son to stand up. "You see this little boy right here? Next time I hear some profanity, I'm going to throw you out." Mangione was astonished. "I've never seen anything like that," he said.

Mangione had a great seat. But the so-called best seat in the house -- center court on the Wizards' side of the floor -- is occupied by public address announcer Kevin Heilbronner. Not that he can relax and leisurely enjoy the flow of the game. He has to inform the crowd what is happening on the court, call out celebrities, entertain, ad-lib and "hopefully not annoy people." There's a guy who sits a few rows behind him who looks like Albert Einstein. Heilbronner likes to put his face up on the big screens above for a few crowd laughs, which Mr. Genius takes in good stride.

In the nightly gimmick-as-entertainment department, Heilbronner gets a big assist from G-Wiz, the furry blue mascot with the long snout and those floppy shoes with the gold stars. G-Wiz has to read the crowd's mood. Sure, he is there "basically to be funny and get the fans involved," as he puts it. But you can't perform some of your antics if the crowd is down. He gets a script before each game, and he studies it, but a lot of his job is about judgment. "As a mascot, you've got to be aware of the situation." After six seasons with the Wizards, G-Wiz (no real names, please) is having the best time of his mascot career. "Fans catch that buzz that the playoffs are coming," he said. "They get on their feet more."

Coach Eddie Jordan is always on his feet. Talking.

"That's a good feed, Larry."

"Let's go, let's go, stay up."

"Basic pick-away, I want a basic pick-away."

He squats, stands, waves, claps and always looks dapper in his tailored suits. He frequently barks instructions.

"Fifty-five strong, 55 strong."