Category: Washington Wizards Blog

Mike Jones of the Washington Times reports:

After missing the first nine games of the season, Wizards forward Antawn Jamison didn’t show the slightest trace of rust in his season debut against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday night at Verizon Center.

Instead, the two-time All-Star put his struggling team on his back and carried it to a 108-91 victory in front of a sellout crowd of 20,173 fans.

Jamison picked up career double-double No. 263, recording 31 points and 10 rebounds, and helped the Wizards snap a six-game losing streak.

“Me coming back and just trying to stop the bleeding a little bit, we found a way to pull it off,” said Jamison, who made 12 of 22 shots from the field and five of six from the foul line. “Guys did a great job of staying focused for 48 minutes.

The Wizards began the season with great hope. The return of Gilbert Arenas inspired many to believe this team could return to glory of a few seasons ago. But they got off to a rocky start and have won just three of their 10 games.

With Jamison back, keep an eye on them over the next week or so and see if they become more of a force.

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Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has signed free agent guard Earl Boykins and waived C/F Paul Davis.  Per team policy, terms of the contract were not released. We’ll post contract details this evening. It’s probably a very short, nonguaranteed deal.

“Earl is a proven veteran point guard who will provide us with leadership and stability off of the bench,” said Grunfeld.

Boykins has career averages of 9.4 points and 3.4 assists (2.8 to 1 assist to turnover ratio) in 520 career games over 10 NBA seasons.  Undrafted out of Eastern Michigan, Boykins has also played for New Jersey, Cleveland, Orlando, L.A. Clippers, Golden State, Denver, Milwaukee and Charlotte.  His best season as a professional came during the 2006-07 campaign when he averaged 14.6 points and 4.4 assists while shooting .898 (220-245) from the free throw line in 66 contests with Denver and Milwaukee.  Boykins played for Virtus Bologna of the Italian A League in 2008-09.

Davis appeared in two games for Washington this season and averaged 2.5 points and 1.5 assists in 4.0 minutes per game.

InsideHoops.com editor says: Boykins is actually shorter than a regulation size NBA basketball. To check into a game he has to stand on top of the scorer’s table so referees even see that he’s there.

Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that guard Mike James will miss the next four to five weeks with a fracture of the fourth metacarpal on his left (non-shooting) hand.

James, who registered six points and three assists in his one appearance for the Wizards this season (11/6 at IND), sustained the injury during Saturday’s practice session.  He missed the final nine games of last season with a fractured right pinky finger.

The AP reports:

Washington Wizards guard Mike Miller sprained his left shoulder in the fourth quarter of the Wizards’ game against Miami on Wednesday night and is expected to miss seven to 10 days.

Miller first hurt the shoulder in the third quarter in a collision with the Heat’s Mario Chalmers. He immediately clutched his shoulder and was taken to the locker room.

“It felt like it came out of place, went numb,” Miller said. “That scared me more than anything.”

Washington Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld announced today that the team has exercised their options on both guard Nick Young and center/forward JaVale McGee.  Per team policy, terms of the contracts were not released.

According to Mike Jones of the Washington Times, “Young, a third-year guard, will remain under contract a fourth year and will earn roughly $2.6 million. McGee, a second-year center/forward, had his contract extended a third season, and is due to earn about $1.6 million next season.”

Under the terms of the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement, the first two years of a first round draft pick’s contract are guaranteed while the third and fourth year of the contract are the team’s option.  Young was selected with the 16th overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, while McGee was selected with the 18th overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft.

Young averaged 9.3 points and 1.7 rebounds in 157 games during his first two seasons in Washington, while McGee averaged 6.5 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.0 block per game as a rookie with the Wizards last season.

Michael Lee of the Washington Post reports:

Reserve point guard Javaris Crittenton revealed after practice today that he had exploratory surgery last Friday on his left foot and will be out at least another month.

It was tough not to notice Crittenton, who was using crutches to walk down a hallway outside the Verizon Center practice court, his left foot carefully bandaged.

So far in his short NBA career Crittenton hasn’t made a real impression yet. He will need to make some noise in the near future if he wants to stick around in the league.

Gilbert Arenas of the Washington Wizards has been  fined  $25,000 for failing to make himself available to the media for interviews, the NBA announced today.

In addition, the Wizards organization has been fined $25,000 for failing to ensure that its players comply with NBA media interview rules.