Bleacher Report - Articles by Rohit Banerjee

NBA: Should the Washington Wizards offer Gilbert Arenas a Huge Contract?

Rohit Banerjee — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 07:32:56 -0400

Word out of Washington, along with every major sports site and agency covering the NBA, is that Gilbert Arenas, also known as Agent Zero, Hibachi and Clutch Touch (Ok, I made that last one up), is seeking a six year, $124 million dollar deal after opting out of the last year of his contract.

If the figure he is demanding seems outrageous, it is because it is the highest salary a team can offer an unrestricted free agent. Another member of the "Big Three," Caron Butler, of whom it can be said finally asserted himself as rising star in the league, is under contract through 2010-11, and is not seeking a new deal. Gilbert made close to $12 million last year, while another member of the "Big Three," Antawn Jamison, made close to $16.3 million.

If you haven't heard, Jamison is also an unrestricted free agent with several teams, most notably the Wizards and the 76ers, pursuing him.Wizards general manager Ernie Grunfeld has stated that resigning Jamison and Arenas are his top priorities, but that is now under question because of the salaries each of the two would command. Jamison is one of the most sought after free agents not only because of his stellar 21.4 points and 10.2 rebounds, but also because of the veteran leadership he would bring to a young team along with his playoff experience.

Arenas, in typical Gilbert fashion, has gone on record as saying that he will not return to the team if they do not "take care" of Jamison first. Furthermore, he has even offered to lower his asking rate in order to ensure that Jamison gets paid. While Gilbert's sincerity is admirable, it is also a little questionable because by demanding a max deal, he has put the Wizards in the questionable position of maybe having to choose between Jamison and himself.

So the central question is, who do the Wizards need more, Antawn Jamison or Gilbert Arenas?

Gilbert missed most of last year following a knee surgery and his return, while widely heralded as a possible lightning rod for the Wizards to rally around, has since drawn criticism. It has been said, even amongst Wizards fan circles, that Gilbert's larger than life personality overshadowed the team spirit and camaraderie developed by the Wizards going into the playoffs. They were playing better team defense, relying less on steals, and committing less turnovers. Finally, Arenas has always been a shoot first point guard, focusing more on his point total than the assists he hands out—perhaps not the best mentality for a point guard.

On the other hand, no one can fault Eddie Jordan, the Wizards' head coach, for inserting Arenas into the lineup almost immediately following his return. Arenas is undoubtedly one of the most underrated superstars in the league, if not a top five player. When healthy, he is a threat night in and night out impose his will and score without check whenever he wishes. Before the 2007-08 season began, there was a general feeling shared by Wizards fans and league pundits alike that he was one of the candidates to win the NBA scoring title before he went out with the injury.

Evaluating the degree of necessity Jamison provides to the team is a little more difficult as he has missed only 15 games in the last three years, while putting up a very consistent 20 points, 10 rebounds average on the stat sheet in his tenure with the Wizards. Despite his strong rebounding presence, Jamsion is also a serviceable three point shooter, putting up 33.4% from the three-point line last season, respectable considering he is listed as a forward on the roster.

However, as another columnist on BR pointed out, his tendency to settle for the three takes away from the Wizards' ability to collect offensive rebounds as their best rebounder is 20 feet or more away from the basket. Despite providing veteran leadership on the Wizards team for the last four years, Jamison is a veteran of nine full years in the NBA, and at 32 years of age, one has to wonder about offering him a lucrative long term deal.

It is becoming increasingly clear that Arenas will not get his wish of a max contract as most teams with the money to spend to employ his services (already few in number) are set at the point guard position. Interestingly, Jamison has kept quiet about his wishes—while he seems to want to stay with the Wizards, he has made no indication that he will not test the free agency waters before making a decision.

Compounded with the fact that he might be a more tempting target than Arenas, Jamison might end up being the more difficult to retain asset the Wizards have. Consider that the Wizards drafted JaVale McGee, an extremely raw young power forward out of Nevada with an NBA body but not an NBA game. Furthermore, the Wizards already have Nick Young and Dominic McGuire, two promising young guards with solid passing and ball handling ability on the roster. This team will have no problem scoring.

Taking all these factors into account, the fact of the matter is, the Wizards will hurt themselves more in the long run by passing on Jamison to retain Arenas, rather than the other way around. Both players should be aggresively pursued, but Jamison is the clear cut, must-have player in this equation.

The Washington Redskins' Questionable Trifecta of Picks

Rohit Banerjee — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 08:40:51 -0400

In the weeks after the NFL Draft, a lot of draft gurus, members of the media, and most importantly, members of the Redskin Nation were left scratching their heads after Washington selected THREE...read that again...THREE pass catchers with their first three picks.

While it was widely concurred that in order for Jim Zorn to excel in his west-coast offense, a large, fast, and physical wide receiver would have to be one of the top priorities, nearly everyone felt as though drafting the same prototypical player thrice in one round was a bit superfluous.

Despite the questionable decisions made by the Redskins' front office concerning these three players, one thing that can be agreed upon is that the team made the correct decision to trade down and add more value. It was generally felt as though the players the Redskins were targeting would be available later on.

The most pronounced need outside of the wide-receiver position was on the defensive line. A pass rusher was needed to complement Andre Carter, who had a quiet 10.5 sacks last season.

Some players discussed included Phillip Merling and Calais Campbell. As it turned out, Merling was the first pick taken in the second round, two ahead of the Redskins. At that point, the obvious choice was Devin Thomas, the best all-around receiver in this year's draft.

The real head-scratcher was taking Fred Davis with the second pick. With not only a proven, pro-bowl player in Chris Cooley at the position, but Campbell still on the board, it was a major surprise when the Redskins picked a tight end in this draft.

As it turned out, Campbell was selected two picks later, just ahead of Malcolm Kelly, and the Redskins' second round came to an end.

Each of these picks came with question marks. Devin Thomas could turn out to be a one-hit wonder with only one sensational season at Michigan State (he transferred from a smaller school), Malcolm Kelly ran a slower-than-expected 40 and then blamed it on the surface at Oklahoma, and Fred Davis has forever been followed by questions about his desire and work ethic.

All in all however, while the progression of picks was a little surprising, there can be no denying that the Redskins picked up plenty of value and talent in this draft by snagging three of the twenty best prospects available.

The logic is that Zorn will run a lot of two tight-end sets in his new offense, with Davis ready to get major playing time from day one. Kelly and Thomas are currently the No. 3 and No. 4 receiver for the Redskins, in no particular order, with Moss and Randle-El solidly set as the No. 1 and No. 2 receivers, in that order.

However, something to keep in mind is that with the addition of these receivers, Randle-El will be able to play the slot, his more natural position.

As a final point, it should be noted that the Redskins' offensive line was devastated by injuries early in the season, with the losses of veteran stalwarts Jon Jansen and Randy Thomas.

Similarly, with Jason Campbell having a full year of starter duty, minus some injury time, under his belt, the offense should be more productive than last year.

While the team is implementing a new type of offense, Campbell is not only used to learning a new offense, but has played in the west-coast system before, albeit for one year.

It is safe to say that while the Redskins might not be a 10-11 win team, there is a chance that they might sneak into the playoffs in the weak NFC and surprise some people late in the season.

Wizards at Full Strength (Almost): Playoff Run Possible?

Rohit Banerjee — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 20:42:19 -0400

Wednesday, April 2, 2008: Wizards vs. Bucks

It was a seemingly normal, ordinary game with a decent team playing a mediocre team. The latter was completely out of the running for a playoff spot and Washington needed a few more wins down the strength to clinch the fourth or fifth spot going into the postseason.

I used to watch the Wizards games religiously until I went to college outside the area and only the nationally televised games could be viewed. So I have to keep up on the score by going to the Sports Illustrated scoreboards and hitting refresh every minute or so to try and stay in the action.

I remember I was a little late getting to my computer, so the game was well into the second quarter when I first got a look at the score. Nothing too exciting, Wizards with a decent lead and Caron Butler leading all scorers. I scroll down and suddenly my heart stops, all I read is the stat line: Arenas, Gilbert, 8:04, 4-5 10 pts. Can this be, has my idol finally returned after countless delays, holdups and last-minute "not cleared by doctors" notices? Has the beast named Arenas finally returned?

Yes! With the Wizards in the middle of a surprisingly strong season, given the early loss of their superstar point guard and the constant injuries to other key players, it seems as though the basketball gods are finally smiling on the Wizards.

Whoops, I spoke to soon, the Wiz inexplicably drop a game to the hapless Bucks putting the "clinched playoffs" asterisk on hold. To add insult to injury, Jamison went out of the game with a sprained right shoulder and has so far missed two games to the Heat and the Bulls.

Right now the Wizards own the fifth spot in the East with a chance to potentially move up to the fourth spot and three games on the road against the Eastern Conference. Leading the Celtics, playoff-bound 76ers and the Pacers with two home games against the second spot Pistons and the third spot Magic.

This means that four of the final five games will be against stiff, playoff-bound competition meaning that the Wizards might drop a few spots before the postseason.

Hopefully, with the return of Arenas and Jamison in the coming days, Washington can put together some momentum going into the playoffs and potentially surprise some people in the first round. Don't be shocked if this team comes out and puts together a powerful playoff run; and while they probably won't challenge for the conference champions, expect the Wizards to make it to the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.