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| Wizards playoff game in 2008 |
I was lucky enough to have a wealthy (and generous) family friend around when Micheal Jordan decided he wanted to end his second retirement and play for the Wizards. I'd make my way to the MCI Center, sit among well known DC media makers and politcos, courtside, and watch the greatest basketball player of all time perform for the almost-good-enough Wiz. That was just amazing. I was as close as Jay-Z at the Garden: I could trip a referee. Jordan was aging, but magical. The Wizards sold out every game back then.
We never won a championship with Jordan -- he was summarily dismissed from all front office and playing duties just two years after coming to DC. Wiz never made it to the playoffs during his time with the team. Eventually though, the Arenas-Jamison-Hughes-Butler crew took the Wiz back to the post-season in the mid-2000s but they couldn't get past established powers (Heat, Cavs). They provided the city some good times and optimism though. And they were entertaining and one could believe that our team had, at the least, a chance to win.
Not so much right now. This Washington Post article pretty much sums it up for me: I support the team and can probably be convinced to go to a few games for the night-on-the-town value, but in the end, I'm mostly looking forward to better days. Here's to the Wizards not packing it in, giving it all they have and getting up off of the mat after this season, ready to go in 2012-13. Have a great weekend!
