GB

One reason Pollin let Jordan go was vividly illustrated on the front pages of newspapers yesterday: photos showed Jordan spinning away from MCI Center in his convertible. Note the tag on the Mercedes. Is it D.C.? Maryland? Virginia? No, it's Illinois, which promised the same lack of commitment to the team that he had the last time he was an absentee executive. Mystery solved.
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Jordan's replacement will, almost inevitably, lack the projection-sized image he cast, and will no doubt dull by comparison. But just maybe the Wizards can find a nuts-and-bolts bore, some guy without buzz, who actually knows how to put the pieces of a team together, who will eyeball talent, travel, juggle salary implications, stroke egos and do the tedious but requisite briefcase work that it takes to build a winning team.

Who is this lady, and whats her beef with MJ?

jazzy1

She's a columnist who writes about figure skating. She wrote an in depth article giving us the insight that Kwame Brown like's Popeye's chicken.

BCH

I will never forget on Korheiser's radio show how he releayed the story how the Post editors had given her a deadline on a Style column and she wanted to be funny and kept asking Tony for funny lines. He basically said to her she needed to do it herself or not write the style column because he wasn't going to feed her material.

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Where's the cake?

BCH

Sally Jenkins is a fool that knows nothing about the NBA or basketball in general. Her article is rife with incompetence in this area.

A downward spiraling team? Hardly that. Jordan rebuilt an aging, veteran, do nothing team into a team with an extremely young core, who's lack of accomplishment centered more around inexperience than how many hotdogs they ate before tip-off.

Jordan wasn't exploited? His reason for coming to play was to help build up a team he had every intention of returning to as the General Manager. If he wanted to get to the playoffs or win a ring, he would have gone to a better team. Because he took Abe Pollin at his word, and yes it was his word and yes he did lie, that he could come back to finish his 5 year stint.

The team was losing? They were in the playoff hunt until the final week of the season. Jenkins needs to wake up, she has no clue what she is blathering about. Yes they finished with a losing record, but this team is still headed in the right direction with what MJ left.

I am sure Abe Pollin is weary of over 15 years of losing but he is the one and only person to blame for it. If he was really looking for the best brains in basketball, Wes Unseld would have been sent packing many, many years ago. His statement that he has never lied in his life is hilarious, considering every report out there indicates that Leonsis was not part of the decision to fire Jordan, as indicated in the press release Pollin approved in his name. And you wonder why this organization is a joke?

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Where's the cake?

johnston797

Of course, Sally would not know this, but part of being a great businessman is finding people that you can do business with on a handshake.

If people prove untrustworthy, move on.

Looks like this is exactly what MJ has done.

p.s. BCH, great point about the press release. I love the "I've never lied" line. What a crock!

GB

What is Leonsis going to do now? What's his relationship with Pollin like?

He's got to be absolutely infuriated that the best chance to reinvigorate the franchise and to increase his own standing among owners (and value in $$$) drove out the parking lot in a convertable.

BCH

GB,

MJ could very well have been a piece in the battle between Leonsis and Pollin. That is my gut feeling about a lot of this.

MJ was Leonsis' man. Make no mistake about that. Leonsis bought the Capitals from Pollin and 44% of the Wizards. He has the right of first refusal and last offer to buy the Wizards when Abe wants to sell. However, Abe still runs the MCI Center, of which the Capitals aer a tenant. Leonsis was very angry at the end of the NHL season because of a slew of slights toward him and the Capitals by Pollin's Washington Sports and Entertainment. Leonsis was quoted as saying he was not going to turn the other cheek anymore. This started a back and forth between those in WSE and those in Lincoln Holding, Leonsis' group which MJ used to be a part of before he played. This was reconciled somewhat when Pollin sent Leonsis a letter apologizing to a degree, though there was not an actual apology in the letter. Remeber that Leonsis also had zero part in the end game ceremonies for MJs last game in DC, another thing that upset Leonsis.

Pollin said that he was interested in hearing what MJ had to say about returning to the francise and what he would do. Leonsis was told that as well, which is why there was dinner the evening before with memebers of Lincoln Holding, MJ, and lawyers to discuss the Wizards, and a guarded optimism that he would return. Leonsis knew nothing about what Abe had already planned. Does that sound a little suspicious to you?

Abe may feel that Leonsis is trying to push him out the door, and could have viewed MJ as a real threat to accomplish that quicker, which is why Pollin probably let him go without informing Leonsis, but had Leonsis there, so he could show him who the baddest man on the block still was.

The sad thing is that Pollin would prefer to have all of nothing, than a part of something because there is no empire for him to rule over. He has nothing to look forward to except the ill will of the city that used to admire him.

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Where's the cake?

TJ Kidd's Head

I think alot of what went wrong is simply because of Abe's ego. I think he knows his time is coming to an end, and he needed to show himself (and the rest of the country) that he still has power.

Like BCH pointed out, Abe probably felt that these young guns (MJ and Leonsis) were trying to bully him out of ownership, and well he lost it. That is why this whole situation seems so irrational.

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GB

There will be an expose in ESPN the rag, or SI soon and it will be fascinating. How do you rate this in comparison to the Phil/Mike/Reinsdorf problem?

The Chicago Tribune ran a clipped version of Sally Jenkins article in the print edition today. They quoted Wilbon and Boswell, but centerweighted her article and gave it the biggest quote.

BCH

This is a little different than Chicago. Chicago was more about basketball. Krause really did want to go in a different direction though there were personal issues around that as well.

This was more personal with basketball issues around it.

Michael Jordan the GM is replaceable. There is no question about that. MJ the player was hard to replace.

What the Wizards organization lost was more than a GM though, it was a lot of credibility in the NBA and with the city. Abe Pollin showed some true colors and that is what is going to cost this team and him.

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Where's the cake?

TJ Kidd's Head

No matter how Jenkins, O'Malley, and Abe try and spin this, they are still going to to get the sour end of the stick.

Jordan's moves as GM, as questionable as they have been, still doesn't warrant getting fired with no type of explanation. Jenkins can spew as much crap as she wants, but it wont change how it looks in the eyes of Wizard fans.

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GB

He did give an explanation: He didn't want MJ as a partner.

BCH

He hasn't said that to the public. What he said to the public was all spin.

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Where's the cake?

jazzy1

I think another part of this whole thing was Collins salvo the night MJ was honored. For the life of me I couldn't undertand why Collins called the disrespect he said was insidious. But looking back I think this was his way of bailing out on the Wizards of course BUT TO TAKE A JAB AT MJ. . I suspect Collins felt his control of the team was usurped by MJ early on. I think he figures that the players didn't respect him because they thought MJ had underminded him. I believe he thinks because of MJ's power and MJ's willingness to change the offense ,change the plays change the idea that was stated rather strangely this summer by Collins that MJ would come off the bench and play a supporting role. Remember things seemed odd because MJ said in contradiction of that if he were capable of starting that he would think he would have the chance to start. MJ never accepted the idea in the 1st place. When Collins lost out on this battle and MJ started starting Collins may have felt that the other players saw him as a lame duck pigeon for MJ's ploys so they lost respect for him.

This to me explains Collins saying after the critical comments about the disrespect and the timing of it that I'm a smart man I know the timing of when I say things. This wasn't to get the attention of the players but to get the attention of management and MJ . Collins wanted out and wanted it to appear as if the teams problems may have been because of MJ. He painted the picture of disaaray that very night. The Players if you remember seemed perplexed as to Collins statements. I think they were because the comments really were insidous coming from MJ not any one player or players.

I think all these factors played in the Wizards demise.

I never really percieved the Wizards as a team like the clippers. I always heard such things but never wrapped my mind around being locked in a perpetual spiral downward. I always thought the Wizards were really close to being respectable. I feel that way no longer Abe now appears to be as incompetent as the Clippers owner and maybe even worse. At least you know that Sterling is fiercely loyal to the bottom line no matter what, you know that going in. Abe though has made statements and gestures which led us to believe that the Wizards were playing the game on a higher level but now it appears the Wizards are doomed unless Abe sells.

I have no more optimism when it comes to the Wizards. I still like some of the players and really hope Kwame becomes the star I think he'll become because of the crap he's had to take but I see the groundwork already lay where when he becomes a star he'll want to leave the wasteland that is the Wizards also. Nothing good will come of this team and I've been fooled into thinking otherwise. Now at least I know to expect doom until the day Abe sells or unless well you know. Won't say it but you know what I mean.

jazzy1

Sally Jenkins article is so almost totally offensive that it is borderline racists. She says at one point that MJ should pay less attention to Nike AND gatorade then to his owner. HIS OWNER she could have said his employer,his boss, the man that owns the team he works for but she said HIS OWNER almost like MJ was a slave . Now I know what she meant but the implication is there throughout the article. She says MJ should have been more respectful to Abe almost suggesting that that had something to do with his firing. This is funny because as she says its buisness and certain emotions shouldn't be involved. She makes a point to say when you're unsuccessful you shouldn't be arrogant also. As if MJ should be shuffling along with his head down saying yessir Mr. Pollin. MJ put MONEY in ABE'S pocket took a minimum salary and busted his BUTT trying to get that team to the playoffs and he shouldn't be arrogant is she kidding. Because the team didn't make the playoffs but made a handful of money MJ should somehow lose his pride and tip lightly. I didn't agree with all the criticism MJ leveled at his teammates BUT lets be clear what he was saying wasn't a lie. And just because a GM picks players doesn't mean he absorbs the brunt of it if the players don't produce. He picked players based on their track record of production and their potential if they don't live up to that is it the GM's fault.

I am offended by Jenkins article and am offended by Abe Pollin's garbage. This whole thing is shameful.