Ready To Make A U-Turn?
An Easier Stretch Favors Wizards

By Ivan Carter
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, November 14, 2007

The veterans who make up the majority of the Washington Wizards roster are savvy enough to know that Sunday's 101-90 win at Atlanta, while certainly a relief, did not automatically smooth over the problems that contributed to their 0-5 start.

The season's first victory simply reminded the Wizards that good things happen when a team shares the basketball, avoids turnovers and digs in to make defensive stops in crucial situations.

"It would be naive to say that after one win, everything is fixed," said forward Antawn Jamison, who is averaging 20.2 points and 11.2 rebounds through six games. "It was just good that we finally showed glimpses of what we need to do to win against a team who had beaten some quality opponents. It was just gratifying to know that we played the way we're capable of playing. Now the challenge is to be consistent with it."

Consistency, especially in offensive execution, will be a goal for the rest of the season, starting with tonight's game against the Indiana Pacers at Verizon Center.

After averaging 18.8 turnovers in the first five games, the Wizards finished Sunday with a season-low 12; and after averaging only 15.2 assists in five losses, they totaled a season-high 26 against the Hawks.

On several possessions, including key ones late in the game, a Wizards player passed up an open shot because a teammate had a better one. The Wizards also set strong screens, spread out the Atlanta defense with good spacing and attacked the basket when the Hawks overplayed passing lanes.

The result was an offense that flowed in a way that it hasn't since last season, before Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler went down with season-ending injuries. All five starters scored in double figures for the first time this season as the Wizards shot a season-high 43.2 percent and held off a late Atlanta charge with scores on important possessions down the stretch.

"As much as people say we can score, you also have to execute," Coach Eddie Jordan said. "We want to score with efficiency, we don't want to take a lot of bad shots that lead out to fast breaks for the other team or take bad shots that are not in harmony with the team concept. We want to feel good about ourselves and share the ball because that helps out with our mind-set, and we also want set good screens and get good spacing. All of that goes into scoring. You don't just shoot shots and make them. You have to play as a team and share the basketball."

Better execution is particularly important because Arenas is still working his way back from offseason knee surgery. Arenas has experienced swelling and stiffness in the knee and has had it drained of fluid twice since Oct. 17.

However, he has played in all six games and team medical personnel have told him that the discomfort he has been feeling is an expected part of recovery. On Monday, Arenas underwent an MRI exam that revealed no further damage to the left knee.

"It's fine," said Arenas, who limited himself to shooting and ball-handling drills as the team practiced yesterday. "As long I take care of it, I'll be in good shape."

Arenas is averaging a team-high 40.3 minutes while putting up 20.3 points and 4.7 assists per game. But he is shooting 35.6 percent from the field and 13.9 percent from three-point range.

Following Sunday's win over Atlanta, Arenas said he plans to pick his spots offensively until he finds a "rhythm."

"I'm just letting Caron and Antawn take the majority of the shots," Arenas said. "If I'm feeling it that night, I'm feeling it. If not, I'll just run the team until I feel 100 percent."

Arenas has periodically flashed the shot-making and explosiveness that made him an MVP candidate last season.

He forced overtime in the season-opening loss at Indiana by making a three-pointer at the buzzer, and he blew through the Hawks' defense for a pair of crucial layups late in Sunday's game.

"It's just a matter of time until he feels like the old Gilbert," said guard DeShawn Stevenson, who went through a similar process after injuring his knee during the 2004-05 season while playing for Orlando. "A lot of what you go through is mental, just getting that confidence back. I give him until the end of the month and he'll be his old self."

The good news for the Wizards is that starting with tonight's game, the schedule should provide an opportunity to make up for the rough start.

Three of the next four games are at Verizon Center, and the next seven opponents (Indiana, Minnesota, Portland, Philadelphia, Charlotte, Golden State and Memphis) were a combined 12-27 through Monday's games.

The Wizards recovered from a 4-9 start last season, and several of the team's key players have been around long enough to know that a bad start does not necessarily lead to a bad finish. They also understand that turning things around will require more performances like the one they gave Sunday.

"We have to look at each game and say, 'This is what we have to focus on to win this game, these are the keys for this game,' " center Brendan Haywood said. "We can't take anyone for granted. Every team in this league is a challenge and you can't look at it and say, 'We should beat this team.' You have to go out there and compete. If we do that, we'll be where we want to be later on."

Wizards Note: The time of the Jan. 12 game against the Boston Celtics at Verizon Center has been changed to 7:30 p.m.