National Basketball Association

Washington Wizards Prioritized Getting Into Shape Before 2016 Training Camp

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Washington Wizards prioritized getting into shape before the start of this year’s training camp, which was an issue for some last year.

Last year, the Washington Wizards had one objective during training camp: learn how to properly space the floor and run whenever the opportunity presents itself. The problem is, it’s impossible to form an offense that’s based on running if everyone is out of shape.

For some reason, the Wizards’ coaching staff wasn’t transparent with their team last year.

Washington had played small-ball successfully with Paul Pierce at the four spot during the NBA Playoffs and most assumed that the team would continue to roll with the space-and-pace offense, but the coaches never came out and said anything.

The players weren’t prepared.

John Wall, the key to the entire offense, wasn’t even aware of the shift in offensive philosophy prior to the start of last year’s training camp.

“I don’t know,” Wall said when asked how close or far away he was from being in ideal shape last year. “Nobody on our team is even close. Even the shape I was in last season wouldn’t have me in shape for the system we’re running now.”

“If I’d knew about this all summer I would’ve added some more to my workouts,” Wall said. “We didn’t know until we got here. (quotes via CSN Mid-Atlantic)

This year, with Scott Brooks replacing Wittman, things have been different.

The players on the roster spent time working out together in Los Angeles and made sure that they wouldn’t have repeated that same mistake.

“Everybody came back looking polished. There is no person that came in looking crazy out of shape. Even the guys that have been injured; everybody looks like they’ve been working,” Kelly Oubre told reporters during media day.

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“That’s the biggest thing for me that I’ve taken away. I could respect that about everybody. Everybody came back to work ready.”

“It’s going to be a surprising year for a lot of people that don’t really expect us to do what we’re about to do,” Oubre said.

“It’s going to be a great year.”

Brooks, like Wittman, is a defensive-minded coach, but seems to be a lot more in-tune with the evolution of the game.

He’s cited the importance of advanced statistics several times since arriving to the nation’s capital and is a lot more open-minded than the previous head coach.

Washington was a top-10 scoring team this past season, but lost their defensive identity after focusing just on putting the ball through the hoop.

The Wizards had a top-10 defensive rating for two straight seasons, but fell to the middle of the pack last year. With Jared Dudley in the starting lineup, the Wizards had lost size and their interior defense had deteriorated.

The NBA is a copycat league. The Miami Heat, led by LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, and the most recent Golden State Warriors team, created a blueprint for winning. Having a dynamic offense, coupled with a sturdy defense, is the goal of every team in the league.

Those teams won’t be replicated, but everyone, including the Washington Wizards, will certainly try. Being in shape to play defense and run, though, is the first step. It looks like the Wizards have at least marked that off their checklist.

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