Young Wizards Impressive As Summer League Ends

LAS VEGAS, July 15 -- The Washington Wizards wrapped up Las Vegas summer league play with a 79-67 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Sunday to finish with a record of 2-3. But the week was never about wins and losses.

With a trio of talented rookies in Oleksiy Pecherov, Nick Young and Dominic McGuire, the team's main goal was to get those players integrated into Coach Eddie Jordan's system while also evaluating such players as former George Washington forward Mike Hall, who played two regular season games for the Wizards last year, and point guards Aaron Miles and Brian Chase.

Coming into the games, Jordan said he was more interested in seeing how the young players would respond to coaching and handle the faster pace of the NBA than in what they could produce statistically.

"I thought they handled it pretty well," said Jordan, who observed all five games from a seat behind the bench while assistants Wes Unseld Jr. and Harvey Grant ran the team. "I thought they really tried to run what we wanted them to run. I thought Wes was good -- he got on them a few times and they responded very well -- and now it's just a matter of getting to training camp and playing against the big boys. We'll see what happens."

With Pecherov, Young and McGuire leading the way, the Wizards had one of the youngest and least-experienced teams in Las Vegas but improved as the week progressed. While Milwaukee played with NBA veterans such as former Wizards Billy Thomas and Awvee Storey, the Wizards put together a roster loaded with rookies and players with limited professional experience.

Pecherov was held out of Sunday's finale with a mild left ankle sprain, an injury he suffered during Saturday night's 76-71 win over Cleveland. The team's first-round pick in 2006, Pecherov averaged a team-high 15.2 points and 8.8 rebounds while shooting 44.2 percent from the field in four games.

"I thought Pesh really improved almost from quarter to quarter," Jordan said.

Young, who was taken with the 16th pick in the June 28 draft, capped his week by scoring 11 points on 4-of-9 shooting during Sunday's win over the Bucks. Young displayed NBA-level athleticism throughout the week but also struggled with decision-making; he finished with 16 turnovers.

"It's just been about learning how to play at this level, learning the plays and for me, just really concentrating on getting down in a defensive stance to guard people," said Young, who averaged 14.8 points on 38.8 percent shooting. "At first I was out there rushing a little bit, but after a couple of games, I was able to calm myself down. I felt I did a better job all the way around as the week went on but I still have a lot to work on."

If the team were to hand out an MVP award for the week, it likely would go to McGuire, who was drafted in the second round with the 47th overall pick. McGuire led the team with 18 points on 5-of-12 shooting with four rebounds Sunday night while playing a typically solid all-around game.

Listed as a forward, McGuire showed an ability to defend three positions and repeatedly attacked the basket off the dribble. According to a league source, the Wizards could sign McGuire to a two-year contract as soon as Monday.

Hall, who is not under contract but could be invited to training camp, turned in his best effort Sunday night by scoring 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting with six rebounds and a block in just under 28 minutes.

"It felt good to have some shots fall," said Hall, who shot 43.6 percent in five games. "But the main thing I cared about was playing hard, playing with a lot of energy and getting the win. If you do that, everybody looks good. As for what happens in the future, I can't worry too much about where I end up. I'm just thankful that the Wizards have given me an opportunity to show what I can do."

Notes: Jordan interviewed Lionel Hollins for the team's open assistant coaching position Saturday night but said he is still deciding what he wants to do with the position. . . .

In a matchup that was supposed to pit the NBA's top two draft picks against one another, former Georgetown star Jeff Green stole the show. Green, who was selected by the Boston Celtics with the fifth overall pick and then traded to the Seattle Supersonics on draft night, finished with a game-high 32 points and 13 rebounds in Seattle's 84-78 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers in the final game of the Las Vegas Summer League Sunday night.

Greg Oden, who was taken by Portland with the first overall pick, missed the final three games of summer league with tonsillitis, while Kevin Durant, who was taken with the second pick, finished with 28 points on 8-of-19 shooting with three rebounds. . . .

Caron Butler received the NBA's Community Assist award for his charitable work during the month of June.