photo source: flickr/buou

No sense in any theatrics....here's the deal.

Q1

11:02: Wiz run a clear out for Dee Brown, giving him the entire left side of the lane....easy drive for a layup on Steve Blake.

10:02: I'm thinking that Antawn Jamison will have his hands full with Aldridge tonight....who easily backs his way into the lane on AJ, but misses the short jumper in the paint...LaMarcus was unable to pay AJ back for the scoop shot he just hit on him.

9:49: Wiz go right back to AJ in the post against LaMarcus on the left block. Face up, mini pump fake, one dribble and righty hook-floater. 6-4 Wizards.

9:20: With Aldridge concerned about Dee Brown driving towards the middle off an AJ pick....Jamison fades past the 3-point line...open and easy kick back for the trey. 7 straight points for AJ. 9-6 Wiz.

9:03: This time, Portland isolates Oden against McGee on the right block...easy back down, fundamental pump fake, McGee bites....foul and two Oden FTs.

8:01: Dee Brown makes his first turnover in two games....Wiz breaking off a steal, looks like a three on two with McGee streaking down low, but Brown tries to hit DeShawn trailing and doesn't see a recovering Steve Blake.

7:30: With Blatche in for McGee, Portland goes to Oden again on the high left block....and the refs make a terrible foul citing Blatche for a foul. Not only did Andray not commit the harm, but Oden actually dipped his wing into him.

At least Andray is prepared for war with cotton already stuffed in his nose for some reason.

7:14: DeShawn Stevenson hits a step-back deuce on Blake....not really sure I like that shot from him, but the shot clock was down to 9 seconds. 11-9 Wiz.

4:41: Blazers almost get a second chance...Butler pays absolutely no attention to his man, Batum, going from the left corner all the way into the lane for an offensive board. Luckily, Jamison tips it away and the Wiz get the ball. Unluckily Dee Brown gets tripped up on the break and Oden ends up with a dunk. 13-11 Portland.

4:05: Dee Brown, aka Scrappy Doo, takes a charge...completely setting up Brandon Roy whose intentions were to drive and kick to Brown's man, Blake, in the corner.

3:49: Blatche makes a nice lengthy drive on Oden...if Greg is going to take advantage of his size, might as well exploit his lack of quickness. 15-13 Wizards.

3:01: Blatche hits a baseline jumper over Oden at about the DC logo....froze him with a jab-pump-jab combo...confident looking shot, funny how those go in more often for him. 17-15 Wiz.

2:34: Scrappy Doo slaps the ball out of Oden's hands, gets the ball from Blatche and breaks the length of the court of a layup.

Someone, Caron Butler, didn't realize that Travis Outlaw checked into the game. He's left wide open in the corner for a jumper after Brown's layup. 19-17 Wiz.

1:23: Wow...Andray Blatche fights for two consecutive offensive boards while the Blazers stand around like statues....something I'd expect Andray to be doing.

0:32: Etan checks in for Andray who'd picked up two fouls. Tapscott has used ten players so far....no AD, no D Mac,  and no Dixon yet. Big Oily on the inactive tonight? Yep.

Steve Blake looks older and not so much like an alien anymore....kinda.

The Wiz hold strong to finish the first up 26-19. Portland committed 7 turnovers for the quarter, 3 of them by Brandon Roy. Props to Dee Brown for setting the tone with oodles of pressure on Steve Blake which hindered the Portland offense. The Blazers were only 8-15 from the field while the Wizards were 12-21.

Q2

Antonio Daniels, Nick Young, Dominic McGuire, Darius Songaila and Etan Thomas to start the 2nd.

Damn Rudy Fernandez looks familiar...I'm going with John Turturro. Rudy yo-yos with Nick Young, who appears to kinda give up on his defensive stance. Rudy takes a step and hits a wild floater that is probably routine for him.

9:50: Nick Young gets space because of Portland's zone and nails his 2nd trey of the match. 31-24 Wiz.

The Wiz are bumbling a bit on offense...and I really don't like this lineup. Jamison checks in at the 8:42 mark.

With Brown out, AD in (and Young for Stevenson in a certain sense when considering defense), Fernandez and Rodriguez are running the show and the Blazers are able to do a lot more of what they want on offense.

6:30: Case in point: Rodriguez easily drives on McGuire, Young turns his head away from Fernandez to help...while Rudy fades deeper into the right corner....easy pass, too much space, trey ball from Rudy. Tie game at 37. Six straight field goals for the Blazers.

5:50: Jamison's high double off an Aldridge ball screen leaves LaMarcus open to drain a FT line deuce....the Blazers are 9 of 10 in the 2nd quarter and have scored on 8 straight possessions. 41-39 Portland.

Portland continues their run as the lineup of Daniels, Young, Butler, Jamison and McGee can't find a rhythm on offense. 45-39 Blazers with 3:45 left.

With about a minute and a half left, the Blazers have 8 assists on their 10 FGs in the quarter. Does Dee Brown vs. Steve Blake in the first quarter really make that much of a difference? I'm sure the Blaze O is aided by the cold Wizards O as well.

0:51: Caron hits his first FG of the evening, 45-43 Portland...I guess it's a good sign that the Wiz are only down two with Butler's lack of production.

Wiz play good D at the end and DeShawn barely missed a long trey at the buzzer...the score is what it was, 45-43 at intermission.

Steve Buckhantz's interesting stat: Wiz outscoring Portland 24-14 in the paint, but have not attempted a free-throw.

Half Points:

• Blaze: Oden 9, Outlaw 9, Aldridge 6, Roy 6, Fernandez 5
• Wiz: Jamison 11, Young 8, Blatche 6, Stevenson 4, Brown 4

Keep reading for the rest.

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photo source: flickr/Jim Frazier

Well, I snuck a peak at the score before clicking to watch the game on NBA.com. After seeing the win, I couldn't help but look at the box score. Upon seeing the box, I especially noticed Andray Blatche's stat line and uttered the phrase, "This muther effer....." I told my dad that the Wiz had won and he wondered aloud if Eddie Jordan was really the problem. "Surely we won't be able to tell after one game," I said. So I watched.....

Sidebar: For some reason, Ed Tapscott reminds me of Rock Newman.

Q1

No change in starters from the last game...McGee, Brown, Butler, Jamison and Stevenson.

Crawford, Morrow, Biedrins, Jackson, Maggette for the Warriors.

Well....on the first play, JaVale McGee wins the tap, cuts to the basket...and dunk, pass from Caron Butler. The Warriors just completely ignore him.

Next: McGee block, catch, break, and dunk.....do that, Oden. Wow.

McGee then loses track of Biedrins who gets open, receives a pass, basket And1. 4-2 Wizards.

Maggette...too fast for Jamison, blows by him. 6-5 Wiz.

The Wizards are getting the ball up the court fast.

Biedrins slips a screen, gets an easy pass, AJ can't handle, and hoop....Andris much more agile on offense than I remember him being before.

The slept on asset of McGee....handles.

AJ with a fast break oop....6 points in that fast break area so far. The low risk decision from Tapscott......run, run, run. Give Warriors a taste of own medicine?

Biedrins shows handles too...blocks McGee and casually brings the ball up the court upon seeing no available guards, the result of pressure from the Wiz.

Oh really? We fire the coach and Dee Brown is hitting open trey balls now? 15-14 Wiz.

6:27: Blatche checks in for the active and out-of-breath McGee.

If McGuire is the Taser, then Dee Brown is the Laser. He jets up court, without the ball, on the break off a steal and hits the layup off the pass from Stevenson. 17-14 Wiz.

Chris Miller reports that there is a "more talkative coach in the huddle" -- hmm, interesting endorsement?

What is this I see? Andray Blatche running from one spot to another?

Blatche hitting pump-fake dribble drive pull-up baseline jumpers from almost behind the backboard? Question mark?

I feel like I'm in a bizarro world.....well, I've already seen the Andray's stat line...it had to happen somehow.

Man, the Wiz are stealing and running like their life depends on it.....the cops are chasing them and they already have two strikes. Fast break points....10.  Butler hits two FTs to make it 25-18 Wiz.

Young checks in, joins Butler, Stevenson, Jamison and Andray.

Who is this Andray Blatche guy? Ya'll heard of him?

Oh yea, just noticed that AD is back in street clothes...makes sense. Don't want him trying to hang with the running men.

Nick Young hits a two at the buzzer after he bobbled the ball...we'll take it. The Wiz shoot 54% to lead 32-26 after one. 32 points = the most in the first period this season.

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Well, the Verizon Center certainly looks excited (sarcasm, there's nobody there).....and I'm sure to the chagrin of all, Eddie Jordan is going with the same starters (Dixon in for the injured Antonio Daniels).

Hey, the Wiz win a tip....strong move by Etan against Beasley on the opening play.

On the first play for the Heat, Chalmers easily drives on Dixon, pass and open make for Haslem. 2-2 tie.

9:48: Wade hits a baseline reverse layup as the shot clock expires. Help could have been better, but DeShawn absolutely froze on the close out as Wade, in the corner, received the cross court pass from Marion. 4-2 Heat.

Marion hits two of his patented ugly shots in a row....not sure why you'd want to patent that shot though. 8-2 Heat. (Meanwhile, Jamison has missed a hook-flip and a trey)

I'm beginning to wonder if the Wiz should just play straight up defense sometimes and stop all this doubling off the ball screen stuff (I'm also beginning to wonder if I've wondered this before).....they always get caught trapping out way too high and good passing teams easily find the open man, such as Udonis Haslem.....10-2 Miami (10 straight Heat points).

Eddie Jordan timeout and you can hear very light boos among the sparse crowd. 8:00 left. Miami is 5-7 (the 5 makes are accompanied by 5 assists), Wiz are 1-7.

6:18: Dixon drives and creates an open three for Jamison....I like 'em when they're in rhythm. 12-8 Miami.

The Heat haven't had any 2nd chances (offensive rebounds) this game.....yet, but they're not really crashing the boards either.

The Verizon is dead quiet at the sight of two crappy NBA teams missing shots in bunches. Miami calls a timeout and McGee and Young get set to check in for Etan and Dixon. Still 12-8 Heat with 4:50 left.

Insult on top of injury....Chris Miller is reporting that Eddie Jordan "revealed" today that DeShawn Stevenson has been dealing with a nerve issue in his hamstring. Antonio Daniels has also been ruled out for the Hawks game tomorrow.

3:17: The Heat have just been missing shots....but when the Wiz seem to be playing good defense, Dequan Cook hits a contested three at the shot clock buzzer. 15-10 Miami.

3:08: Jamison pretty back door pass to Caron for a dunk And 1. 15-13 Miami.

1:45: Dee Brown checks in for Stevenson.

There goes that double again. Marion slips the ball screen he was going to set for Cook. Not only do Jamison and Butler double Cook, but it's such a loose double that you could drive a truck in between them. Dee Brown takes a step off Quinn in the corner to dissuade the ball from going to the cutting Marion, but unfortunately, Quinn is too open for the direct pass from Cook. 21-15 Heat. It looks like Brown left the shooter, but what the hell were Caron and AJ doing?

That damn Chris Quinn. He hits a two in Nick Young's face to end the 1st. The Heat got a 2nd chance that time because McGee gave up on a Heat layup he thought was going down....but it didn't.

I will give Antawn Jamison an A for effort....he has 9 points and 4 boards after 1, but the Wiz shoot under 30% (6-22) as a team while the Heat shoot 50% (10-20....9 assists). 23-17 Miami Heat.

Q2

Young, Butler, McGee, Brown and Blatche start the 2nd.

The Andray Blatche Report: Wiz get a steal, Brown pushes the ball quickly up the court. The Wiz have five men running to Miami's two (with Quinn catching up), but have poor spacing...Brown ends up passing the ball back to Blatche who musters a miss from the FT line. Nick Young gets an offensive board, misses a fading turnaround on Cook with 18 seconds on the clock. Loose ball rebound. Andray looks like he has a beat on the ball, but he gets out-hustled by Quinn and Beasley who simply want it more.

Blatche is also making lazy cuts and carelessly swatting at the ball after the Heat have secured the board....he makes up with a drive and short J off the glass. 26-21 Miami.

McGee misses an oop trying to throw down a reverse....the reverse part didn't really look necessary.

8:40: Dom McGuire checks in for Butler....looks like everyone is playing tonight.

7:10: Blatche makes a strong drive....but for some reason throws up a running double-clutch one-hander...Miss...but to his credit, he works to get his own rebound, put-back, and foul...but misses the FT. 29-25 Heat.

Good News: Nick Young has picked it up after a mediocre game in Miami, and a slightly cold start tonight. He has 6 quick points.

Jamison and Dixon have checked in to join Young, Blatche and McGuire.

4:45: Caron Butler replaces the Taser.

Has anyone ever wondered why Joel Anthony pronounces his first name Joelle? It's a Canadian thing, I guess I wouldn't understand.

3:37: Nick Young gets D-Wade on skates.....splash, and it's a tie game at 33. The Wizards have gotten scrappier on D, forcing the ball out of Wade's hands more.

McGee back in for Blatche....with AJ, Dixon, Butler and Young. So should this be our starting lineup? JaVale has been quiet tonight....but at this point, I'd be fine with that. Yea, I know...change of heart on my part.

This Wizards unit is even moving the ball better. I spoke with my dad the other night, he said, "I see Nick Young is scoring a lot.....is that just because he is being a gunner?" I actually came to Young's defense, citing that he's passing the ball better, taking better shots, and has improved on defense, especially when it comes to contesting shots. Yes, me defending the Bean Burrito....didn't think I'd be doing that four months ago.

This just in: Dwyane Wade is still a bad dude. 7 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists.

Unfortunately, the Wizards give the Heat THREE second chances on their final possession of the first half. It ends with Dwyane Wade tipping in his own miss. Bad dude. 43-41 Miami Heat after 24:00.

Wiz shot 52% in the 2nd quarter....39% for the game. Miami is still up on rebounds, 25-20, but the Wiz have gotten to the FT line 11 times, making 8, while the Heat are only 2-4. Washington is also winning points in the paint 20-12. Hard to believe the Wizards have only taken two 3-pointers, making one.

Points:
Jamison - 13, Young - 10, Butler - 9
Marion - 10, Wade - 9, Quinn - 8

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Dear Dagger,

We need you. Hell, I need you. I'm a mess without you. I miss you so damn much. I miss being with you, I miss being near you. I miss your laugh. I miss your scent; I miss your musk. When this all gets sorted out, I think you and me should get an apartment together.

Sincerely,

Steve Buckhantz

Game time at 7:00 pm people, talk it up.

[photo source: flickr/wizardsdotcom]