Empty the Bench

Maybe it’s time for Washington Wizards head coach Eddie Jordan to issue his players a gag order on trash-talking. All it’s accomplished thus far is waking up last year’s Eastern Conference champion from its late-season slumber just in time for them to thrash the Wizards to the tune of a two games to none lead in this increasingly heated series.

Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Brendan Haywood Photo Credit: Icon SMI

That’s not to say we don’t enjoy these pithy back-and-forth exchanges between the Wizards and Cavaliers. Because we do. And if the Wiz can somehow get back on track and emerge victorious in Game 3 this evening, you can bet there’ll be some loose lips on both sides.

But for any of it to actually mean anything, the Wizards need to first do something they haven’t done yet: back up their trash talk on the court. Win a game. Beat the Cavaliers.

DeShawn Stevenson’s comments about LeBron James are well-documented; so are Gilbert Arenas’ musings about how he was hoping all along to face Cleveland in the first round (refresher, if you need it). While they both get an “A” for entertainment value and successfully adding a good dose of hype to the matchup, they also have both earned a “D” for on-court performance thus far. In the first two games, Stevenson has combined for 5-16 FG, 15 points, 30% from behind the arc, 1 rebound, 7 assists, 1 steal, and 2 turnovers. Arenas actually had a solid performance in Game 1 (24 points on 50% shooting in just 27:47), but followed it up by laying an egg in Game 2: 7 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 turnovers, 20% FG.

Now, following the rough-and-rugged play that characterized Monday’s game, one that saw James and his teammates hit the deck—hard—after a series of fouls that bordered on cheap shots, Wizards starting center Brendan Haywood has joined the trash-talk fray:

Find out what Haywood had to say, and our reaction to it, after the jump…

”When you’re running out on the court like Jeff Van Gundy, yelling at the refs the whole game, it’s a little ridiculous,” Haywood said, referring to the 1998 incident when then New York Knicks coach Van Gundy grabbed onto Miami Heat center Alonzo Mourning’s feet in an attempt to break up a fight.

”Just coach your team. We’re not trying to hurt anybody,” Haywood said. ”You don’t have to come out there trying to win acting awards. C’mon Mike. That man’s name is LeBron James not LeBron Brown. He’s not your son.”

Here’s the link to the full story. For his part, James came to the defense of his coach, saying ”he’s always defended me and that’s why I respect him. I’m happy he’s my head coach; I’m happy he’s stuck up for me.”

I have no problem with hard, clean fouls in the NBA, especially during the playoffs. I grew up watching the Bad Boys bruise and batter and intimidate their opponents, after all, and loved every minute of it. Postseason play is supposed to be more physical, just like it is in the NFL and NHL. At the same time, you can’t blame Mike Brown for defending his superstar, one of the best basketball players on the entire planet.

And you can’t blame Haywood for getting a little annoyed by it. Should he have let his annoyance leak out into the media, however? Especially with his team coming off a serious ass-whooping and facing a do-or-die Game 3? Based on the recent history of his teammates, the answer is no. Until the Wizards actually win a game in this series, all this post- and pre-game talk just sounds foolish.

Tags: Brendan Haywood, DeShawn Stevenson, Gilbert Arenas, LeBron James

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