Category: Washington Wizards Blog

Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has re-signed center Marcin Gortat. According to multiple reports, the contract is for $60 million over five years. That’s a pretty sizable investment, and more than Gortat was expected to receive.

“Re-signing Marcin was a top priority for us this summer so that we could maintain continuity and improve on what we accomplished last season,” said Grunfeld. “His scoring ability, rebounding and defensive presence are matched only by his work ethic, leadership and personality, which all combine to make him an excellent fit in what we are trying to build moving forward.”

Gortat averaged 13.2 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 33 minutes per game last season with the Wizards. He shot .542 from the field while appearing in a career-high-tying 81 games. The Polish native led the team with 37 double-doubles and was second in the NBA in double-doubles (20) after the All-Star break. He finished in the top 10 among centers in scoring, rebounding, field goal percentage, assists, blocks and double-doubles. Gortat had five games of 20+ points (including a career-high 31 at Toronto on 3/31) and 22 games of 12+ rebounds (including a career-high-tying 18 at Miami on 3/10).

In 11 playoff games last season, Gortat averaged 13.0 points, 9.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocks while shooting .492 from the field. He raised those averages to 14.8 points and 10.2 rebounds while shooting .578 from the field in the Eastern Conference Semifinals and notched new playoff career highs with 31 points and 16 rebounds in the Wizards’ Game Five win at Indiana.

In seven seasons with Orlando, Phoenix and Washington, Gortat holds career averages of 9.4 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in 438 career games. He has shot .545 from the field while playing 24.2 minutes per game. He was acquired by the Wizards along with Shannon Brown, Malcom Lee and Kendall Marshall from Phoenix in exchange for Emeka Okafor and a protected 2014 first round pick on October 25, 2013. Gortat was originally selected with the 57th overall pick in the 2005 NBA Draft by Phoenix, who then traded his rights to Orlando for future considerations.

The Washington Wizards announced today that forward Martell Webster had successful microdisectomy surgery yesterday to repair a herniated disc in his lower back. He will begin the rehab process immediately and is expected to miss approximately three to five months before resuming basketball activity.

The procedure was performed by Dr. Robert Watkins Jr. in Los Angeles following consultation with team doctors earlier in the week. Webster sustained the injury during a routine workout at the Wizards’ practice facility last week.

Webster averaged 9.7 points and 2.8 rebounds while shooting .392 from three-point range in 78 games (13 starts) for the Wizards last season.

The Washington Wizards had an excellent season, made the playoffs, and appear to be moving in the right direction. And now their head coach has been rewarded for it.

Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has signed head coach Randy Wittman to a contract extension. According to CSN Washington, the deal is for three years, $9 million total, “but the final year isn’t fully guaranteed.”

“We are pleased with the progress the team has made on the court and with the culture we have been able to build with Randy as our head coach,” said Grunfeld. “We will look to continue that momentum with him deservedly leading this group of dedicated and hard-working players.”

Washington won its first playoff series since 2005, defeating the Chicago Bulls in five games in the first round. The team advanced to the Eastern Conference Semifinals where they fell in six games to the Indiana Pacers, marking the first time since the 1978-79 season that the team had won two games in the second round of the playoffs.

“This team and this organization have made significant strides over the last two-and-a-half seasons and I’m excited to be a part of the next step in that process,” said Wittman. “The players and staff all feel that this is the beginning of something special and we’re dedicated to building on our positive accomplishments while striving to improve and reach the next level of success.”

The Wizards finished 44-38 in 2013-14, representing a 15-game turnaround. The team’s 44 victories were the most since they won 45 in 2004-05, while their 22 road victories were tied for the most in the Eastern Conference and marked the highest team total since 1972-73 (23).

“Randy’s leadership and preparation allowed him to implement and build an unselfish team mentality over the last several seasons where defense comes first and every player is held accountable,” said Wizards majority owner Ted Leonsis. “The result is a Washington Wizards team that proudly represents our fans and our city both on and off the court and has us looking eagerly toward what we can accomplish moving forward.”

Wittman has led the Wizards from the sidelines since taking over the team on January 24, 2012. During his two full seasons at the helm, the team has ranked in the top 10 in several defensive categories during the regular season including opponent field goal percentage (fifth in 2012-13), blocks (seventh in both seasons), opponent points per game (ninth in 2013-14 and eighth in 2012-13), opponent three-point field goal percentage (sixth in 2013-14 and 10th in 2012-13), turnovers (fourth in 2013-14) and opponent offensive rebounding (fourth in 2013-14.

In addition, the Wizards were one of seven teams (Indiana, Oklahoma City, San Antonio, Memphis, L.A. Clippers and Chicago) to rank in the top 10 in defensive efficiency in each of the last two seasons (seventh in 2013-14 and fifth in 2012-13).

On offense, the Wizards have ranked in the top 10 in three-point field goal percentage (fifth in 2013-14 and 10th in 2012-13) and assists per game (eighth in 2013-14).

Wittman earned a place in the record books during the team’s postseason run, as he became just the fifth head coach in NBA history to win his first three career NBA road playoff games and joined Pat Riley as the only other coach in NBA history to go 5-1 in his first six career playoff matchups on the road.

The Wizards say the NBA has investigated a person who made threats to the team on Twitter during its first-round series against the Chicago Bulls.

Center Marcin Gortat said Thursday after practice that there was “one gentleman who really threatened us, actually made some terrorist threats to us.”

Gortat, who is from Poland, said that “he was saying there was a bomb on the plane and stuff, that my country’s going to get bombed and all my family’s going to die, just stuff like that.”

— Associated Press