JWaLL Posted March 24, 2010 Report Share Posted March 24, 2010 WASHINGTON (AP) -- It's the last thing a bad team on a long losing streak needs -- a tantrum and a boycott from a young player who was just starting to put up some good numbers. Andray Blatche was benched after the first 7 1/2 minutes of the Washington Wizards' 95-86 overtime loss to the Charlotte Bobcats on Tuesday night. Coach Flip Saunders said Blatche didn't want to listen when the coach tried to talk to him about playing better defense."He didn't want to hear it," Saunders said. "I told him, 'If you don't come and talk, if you don't want to be coached, you're not going to play.' We had coaches go up to him three different times, they said he didn't want to play. Fifteen years, never seen anything like it."He can be (mad) at me, whatever, but you never leave your teammates out to dry like that. Not when you've lost 11 games in a row and you've got a chance to win a game. Uncalled for. We'll deal with it." Asked if Blatche will play in Wednesday night's game at Indiana, Saunders said: "I would doubt it. I don't know, but I would doubt it."Blatche was not made available for comment. He had left the Wizards' locker room by the time it was opened to reporters.Blatche had become the team's go-to scorer following the suspension of Gilbert Arenas and the deals that sent Antawn Jamison, Caron Butler and Brendan Haywood elsewhere before the trade deadline last month. Inconsistent, often undisciplined and slow to mature over his first 4 1/2 NBA seasons, Blatche moved into the starting lineup by default and had been averaging 23.2 points and 9.4 rebounds since the All-Star break. Washington, however, has lost 12 straight. Ironically, his spat came on the day the Wizards issued a flier touting Blatche as a candidate for the league's most improved player."You know what I'm disappointed in?" Saunders said. "I'm disappointed that since we've started him, he gets 60 percent of the offense run through him. Coaches aren't wrong, no matter what. When a coach wants to teach you something, and you think you're above that, because you've played 16 games, good games? I had Kevin Garnett, that guy you could say one thing, he's up there, 'What do you want, coach? I want to get better every time.' He never copped that type of attitude. That's ridiculous, it really is."Saunders also said Blatche has lost the credibility of his teammates. "Dray's still a young player, and he'll go through things like that," guard Nick Young said. "It's a disappointing situation from both ends. We really could've used Dray tonight. I told him, 'You're playing well -- you don't want to mess it up.' ... You've got to man up sometimes." http://www.nba.com/2010/news/03/23/blatche.benched.ap/index.html What a [expletive]ing baby... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigdog17k Posted March 24, 2010 Report Share Posted March 24, 2010 Wow, he's good too. This is the last thing he needs to be doing right now. -_- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Feelgood Posted March 24, 2010 Report Share Posted March 24, 2010 What an idiot. If I was Flip, I wouldn't play him at all the next game, maybe even the game after that. It's immature of Blatche to cry like a baby, especially when you've becoem the team's go to guy in games. He needs to realize that the Wizards are giving him a chance to become more than just a role player in this league. I'm losing respect for Blatche very fast. WIth this and him earlier making comments saying he's "underpaid". Just play basketball and let your skills show what kind of a player you can become and how much money you should be making. This kid needs to grow up...and fast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JWaLL Posted March 24, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 24, 2010 He's not appreciative of the opportunity he's been given. Nick Young would KILL to have the role Blatche is in right now. But of course, Blatche being Blatche, it's never good enough for him. He'd rather bail on his teammates and whine on the bench than take constructive criticism for his defense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Poe Posted March 24, 2010 Report Share Posted March 24, 2010 So, all this is for.... not listening to his coaches advice?? Wow, you've got to be kidding me. Does he have any idea how many people would freaking kill to even be a third stringer in the NBA?? Unbelievable. I hope he at least has a legit excuse on his end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Regime Posted March 24, 2010 Report Share Posted March 24, 2010 Dude thinks he is the [expletive] now lol. First the contract extension and now this. <_< Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AboveLegit Posted March 24, 2010 Report Share Posted March 24, 2010 He's not appreciative of the opportunity he's been given. Nick Young would KILL to have the role Blatche is in right now. But of course, Blatche being Blatche, it's never good enough for him. He'd rather bail on his teammates and whine on the bench than take constructive criticism for his defense.Exactly. Nick has talent, we've seen it over the years, yet I haven't heard him ONCE talk about the minutes he receive. I applaud him for that. Now here's the issue, trade rumors will arise, contract negotiations will be more of a hassle, and Blatche will start to complain more. I don't know what to do with this kid, earlier in the season he cried about not receiving any shot opportunities in one game... He just doesn't get it, you're the main piece of this puzzle in DC next to Gil, you are all we have in terms of talent and what's ahead of you, if you were sensible, you'd realize we will extend your contract. I just can't believe the [expletive] hole we have been in.. I've never witnessed anything worse in my years of watching professional sports, this is just terrible. Tensions are high, everyone on the roster and front office is stressed out, and frustration is growing everytime we step on the court. We're on a 12 game losing streak following this loss... normally I'd say things couldn't get any worse than it already is, but I'm from the DC area, this [expletive] has been going on with our sports teams for a LONG long time. We won't trade Blatche, but people will speculate what's next for our franchise. I just don't know what we can do. Flip constantly compares Blatche to a Garnett-esque player, he just lacks the determination to get better. If I was in Blatche's position, I'd be honored to even be considered near Garnett's level. This kid has a huge ceiling, I mean HUGE, he can be a top 5 scorer at his position one day. And people wonder why there are concerns with Demarcus Cousins... All-Star talents... and the maturity level of a 5 year old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Feelgood Posted March 25, 2010 Report Share Posted March 25, 2010 You wanna know who didn't complain about their contract being in the top 3 smallest on the team at the time yet being the best player on the team? Brandon Roy. Not once did he ever complain that he was underpaid despite winning rookie of the year, despite making the all star game the next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AboveLegit Posted March 25, 2010 Report Share Posted March 25, 2010 You wanna know who didn't complain about their contract being in the top 3 smallest on the team at the time yet being the best player on the team? Brandon Roy. Not once did he ever complain that he was underpaid despite winning rookie of the year, despite making the all star game the next year.The difference is, Roy is smart and mature.. Saunders said that Blatche wasn't playing D. Given the potential level of idiocy we're dealing with here (Blatche) he's probably just too dumb to realize he was playing bad D, or has his head up his [expletive], so Saunders is definitely right on that topic, but it seems Blatche's criticism (of Saunders) is mostly focused on the fact that Saunders claimed he refused to the go back in the game afterward, something AB denies. Also, Saunders alleges that there were 3 coaches sent over to talk to him and each time he shut them down. Blatche is definitely an idiot for his remarks regarding the earlier parts of the incident, like when they took him out and he "wasn't hearin' none o' dat." However, given what we know, I don't know what to believe about the situation as of now. Blatche is still responsible for his actions, but for all we know, they might not be as bad as they appear right now.... but they very well could be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owner Real Deal Posted March 25, 2010 Owner Report Share Posted March 25, 2010 You have to believe Saunders 110%. Blatche is young and has the IQ of a frog, and Flip is a respectable coach who had no trouble coaching Garnett and a very, very unselfish Pistons team. Blatche needs to take in everything an NBA vet or a coach tells him, respect his teammates more (because that's showing disrespect to both coaches AND teammates), and get it together. Otherwise, he'll end up getting in deep with another big-name coach, waived from a team or two, and pushed out of the NBA, much like Marbury was. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Feelgood Posted March 25, 2010 Report Share Posted March 25, 2010 Due to him being immature, I don't think he'll ever be as good as he could be. Only time will tell but in my eyes, he'll just be a player that's a really good role player, especially when Gilbert comes back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AboveLegit Posted March 25, 2010 Report Share Posted March 25, 2010 Due to him being immature, I don't think he'll ever be as good as he could be. Only time will tell but in my eyes, he'll just be a player that's a really good role player, especially when Gilbert comes back.IF he's in the NBA, playing the way he has been, he won't be a role player. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren2ThaG Posted March 25, 2010 Report Share Posted March 25, 2010 Considering he's something very special he'll learn sooner or later especially he wants to be an All-Star. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.