Flip Saunders Says John Wall, Wizards Played in Too Many Summer Leagues

The NBA has been back since Christmas, yet the Wizards picked up their first victory of the season on Tuesday. There are a  couple of other teams with two wins and several others with only three, but at the moment Washington appears to be in a class of its own. Naturally, people want answers. The Wizards were one of the league’s worst teams a year ago and vowed to improve with their young talent this season. Instead, they have gotten worse. On Monday, Flip Saunders gave an interesting excuse regarding take on what has contributed to his team’s struggles.

“I’ve never been a proponent of (summer exhibition games),” Saunders said according to CSNWashington.com. “I think you pick up too many bad habits and a lot of things you think are going to be very easy [are not]. I don’t think I saw a charge all summer long.

“Usually what happens is it’s on the best player and the coach. That’s part of the responsibility that we all have. The positive thing is that when you’re the best player, you’re usually the one that can (help most). You can help change things around as the coach can.”

While JaVale McGee and other players also participated in summer exhibition leagues, Saunders is surely talking about John Wall.  Wall called out his teammates for playing selfish basketball last week, but his game hasn’t exactly been sharp either.  He is averaging just over 13 points per game and has turned the ball over nearly four times per game.  Like many other players on the team, it often appears as though Wall can’t shake the lockout cobwebs.

Between Andray Blatche complaining about his role in the offense and Rashard Lewis sitting out after an argument with an assistant coach, the Wizards seem extremely unfocused.  The good news is there is plenty of time to turn it around. The bad news is there is ample time remaining for it to get historically bad.

H/T to Eye on Basketball for the story