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The Washington Wizards is a professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C.. They play in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Home arenas International Amphitheatre (1961-1962) Chicago Coliseum (1962-1963) Baltimore Civic Center (later the Baltimore Arena, now 1st Mariner Arena) (1963-1973) USAir Arena (originally Capital Center) (1973-1997) Verizon Center (formerly MCI Center) (1997-present) The Early Years The team now known as the Wizards started as the Chicago Packers in the 1961-62 season. The next season, they changed their name to the Zephyrs. And the season after that, they moved to Baltimore, Maryland and became the Baltimore Bullets, no relation to the 1940s-50s Bullets franchise, in their first year there they finished 4th in a 5-team Western Division. Prior to the 1964-65 NBA season the Bullets pull off a blockbuster trade sending Terry Dischinger, Rod Thorn and Don Kojis to the Detroit Pistons for Bailey Howell, Don Ohl, Bob Ferry and Wali Jones. The trade worked out well as Howell proved to be a hustling, fundamentally sound player that helped the Bullets get into the playoffs for the 1st time in franchise history. In the 1965 NBA Playoffs, the Bullets stunned the St. Louis Hawks 3 games to 1 to advanced to the Western Conference Finals. In that finals the Bullets managed to split the Los Angeles Lakers in the first 4 games before losing to the Lakers 4 games to 2. The late 1960s & 1970s
The miracle 1977-78 season Although they had future hall of famers Elvin Hayes and Wes Unseld on the team, The Bullets finished the season 44-38 and were a longshot to win the NBA Championship, but coach Dick Motta used the famed phrase "The opera ain't over 'til the fat lady sings!" This became the rallying cry for the Bullets as they finished a playoff run that led to the NBA Finals, defeating the Seattle Supersonics in 7 games to bring a professional sports championship to Washington D.C. for the first time in 36 years. A tough act to follow The Bullets were the best team in a league that already had drug problems, selfish team play, on-court fight, and declining attendance. Now in the 1978-79 NBA season the Bullets moved to the Atlantic Division, but the team continued to play well as they easily captured the Atlantic Division title. However, they entered the 1979 NBA Playoffs by losing 8 of the final 11 games to finish the regular season at 54-28. In the playoffs the Bullets nearly blew a 3 games to 1 lead against the Atlanta Hawks, but still they beat the Hawks in 7 games. In the Eastern Conference Finals, they trailed the San Antonio Spurs 3 games to 1, but they mounted a big comeback by winning 2 straight games to force a Game 7 at the Cap Center. The Bullets would rally again, overcoming a 4th-quarter deficit to beat George Gervin and the Spurs 107-105 in one of the NBA's all-time greatest games and advance to the NBA Finals and a rematch with the Seattle Supersonics. In Game 1, the Bullets defeated the Sonics 99-97 on two game winning free throws, but that was the high point of the series as the Sonics would win four straight to beat the Bullets in 5 games and become the NBA Champions. 1979-1981 After a great decade, age and injuries finally caught up with the Bullets. In the 1979-80 season, they barely make the playoffs as they capture the sixth and final playoff spot with a tiebreaker despite posting a 39-43 record. In the playoffs, they were swept by the Philadelphia 76ers in a 2-game playoff series. The following year the Bullets failed to make the playoffs for the first time in 13 years, after the season, Wes Unseld retired and Elvin Hayes was traded to the Houston Rockets where he would finish his career there, ending a great chapter in the Wizards history. 1981-1982 With Hayes and Unseld gone, the team was now lead by Greg Ballard and Jeff Ruland. But though they were a team with no pure superstars, the 1981-82 Bullets surprised the NBA with a 43-39 record and made it back to the NBA Playoffs. Gene Shue was named NBA Coach of the Year for his surprising Bullets. The team would lose in the NBA Playoffs to the Boston Celtics. 1982-1983 The Bullets continue to play with the same talent they had in the previous year. they finished with a winning record but in a highly competitive Atlantic Division, they finished last and missed the playoffs. 1983-1985 The next two years saw the Bullets continue to play mediocre basketball as they finished with losing records but they made the playoffs in the new expanded NBA Playoffs format that involved the 16 best teams to make the playoffs, the Bullets were ellimnated in both years in the first round of the playoffs. 1985-1986 In the 1985-86 season, the Bullets got a big man named Manute Bol, whose specialty was blocking shots. That year, he blocked 397 shots (a Bullets record), part of a team that blocked 716 shots (a Bullets team record). But the Bullets finished with a disappointing 39-43 record, and were eliminated by the 76ers in the first round of the NBA Playoffs. 1986-1987 The Bullets acquire center Moses Malone from the Philadelphia 76ers for center Jeff Ruland. Moses would lead the team in scoring with a 24.1 points per game as he would be joined by Jeff Malone who averaged 22.0 points per game. The Bullets' 42-40 record would be their last winning season until the 1996-97 NBA season, in the playoffs they were ellimnated by the Detroit Pistons in 3 games. 1987-1988 To balance Manute Bol, who at 7'7" is the tallest player in NBA history, the Bullets drafted Muggsy Bogues who at 5'3" is the smallest player in NBA history. The Bullets would get off to a slow start as coach Kevin Loughery is fired 27 games into the season with the Bullets holding an 8-19 record. To replace Loughery, the Bullets hired former MVP Wes Unseld. Under Unseld the Bullets played much better as they were able to sneak into the playoffs again with a record of 38-44. After losing the first 2 games on the road in the first round of the 1988 NBA Playoffs to the Detroit Pistons, the Bullets fought back and forced a 5th game with 2 home wins. However, back in Detroit for game 5, the Bullets are beaten by 21 points and were ellimnated in the playoffs. It would be 9 years before the Bullets would return to the NBA Playoffs. 1988-1989 The Bullets played a little better as they finished with a 40-42 record but they missed the playoffs by two games. 1989-90 The Bullets got off to a 5-1 start but hopes of a good season fades quickly as they lose 16 of 18 games form Mid-December to Mid-January. They would finish with a 24-58 record despite stellar seasons by Jeff Malone and Bernard King, who averaged 24.3 and 22.3 points per game respectiviely to lead the team. 1990-91 The lone highlight of the Bullets 30 win season was the successful comeback effort by Bernard King as he came all the way back from knee surgery he suffered while playing for the New York Knicks in the 1984-85 NBA season to finish 3rd in the NBA in scoring with a 28.4 points per game highlighted by 2 50-point performances. 1993-94 Injuries continue to bite the Bullets as key players, Rex Chapman, Calbert Cheaney, the club's 1st round draft pick miss significiant stretches and Pervis Ellison miss almost the entire season, the result was a miserable 24-58 record, but help, was on its way. Bullets become the Wizards In 1995, owner Abe Pollin announced that the franchise was to be renamed because Washington Bullets carried violent overtones. A contest was held to choose a new name and the choices were narrowed to the Dragons, Express, Stallions, Sea Dogs, or Wizards.• A new logo was unveiled and the team colors were changed from the traditional red, white and blue to blue, black and bronze, the same colors as the Washington Capitals, a hockey team also owned by Pollin. That same year the Wizards moved to the then MCI Center, now called Verizon Center. The Verizon Center is also home to the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League, the Washington Mystics of the WNBA and Georgetown Hoyas men's college basketball team. 2001-2002 After retiring from the Chicago Bulls in early 1999, Michael Jordan became the Washington Wizards’ president of basketball operations as well as a minority owner in 2000. However in September 2001, Michael Jordan came out of retirement at age 38 to play basketball for the Washington Wizards. Michael stated that he was returning “for the love of the game.” Before the All-Star break, Michael was only one of two players to average more than 25 points, 5 assists, and 5 rebounds as he led the Wizards to a 26-21 record. Cleveland Cavaliers’ head coach John Lucas even insisted that Michael was the league’s first-half MVP, saying, “He’s doing it with smarts and not the same talent he had…What he’s done this year is off the charts…Our league has the best 300 players in the world, and the best one is 39 years old.” Moreover, Michael was helping the Wizards win in spectacular fashion, hitting game-winning buzzer beaters against the New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Phoenix Suns. Unfortunately, after the all-star break, Michael’s knee could not handle the workload of a full-season as he ended the season on the injured list, and the Wizards concluded the season with a 37-45 record. Still, Michael had led the Wizards to an 18-win improvement from the previous season. 2002-2003 Jordan announced he would return for the 2002-2003 season, and this time he was determined to be equipped with reinforcements, as he traded for All-Star Jerry Stackhouse and signed budding star Larry Hughes. Jordan even accepted a sixth-man role on the bench in order for his knee to survive the rigors of an 82-game season. However, a combination of numerous team injuries and uninspired play led to Jordan’s return to the starting lineup, where he tried to rebound the franchise from its early-season struggles. The move led to mixed results, as several of Jordan’s younger teammates complained about playing in Jordan’s shadow and his unfair expectations of them. By the end of the season, the Wizards finished with a 37-45 record once again. Jordan ended the season as the only Wizard to play in all 82 games, as he averaged 20.0 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 1.5 steals in an astounding 37.0 minutes per game. Departure After the season, Wizards' majority owner Abe Pollin discarded Jordan as part-owner and team president, much to the shock of teammates, associates, and the public. Without Jordan in the fold the following year, the Washington Wizards were not expected to win, and they didn’t. Despite the signing of future All-Star point guard Gilbert Arenas, the team stumbled to a 25-57 record in the 2003-2004 season. Jordan's stint with the Washington Wizards was closely watched by both fans and the media. While the team failed to qualify for the playoffs in either of Jordan’s two seasons as a player, the team was competitive and sold out arenas around the league. Everyone watched the Wizards to see if Jordan was still the same player he was with the Chicago Bulls, and at times he was. However, at other times, it was clear that time had caught up with him. 2004-2005 The 2004-05 NBA season saw the team (now in the new Southeast Division) post its finest regular season record in 26 years (45-37) and marked the first time the franchise had ever made the playoffs as the Wizards. During the regular season, the scoring trio of Gilbert Arenas, Antawn Jamison and Larry Hughes was the highest scoring trio in the NBA and earned the nickname of "The Big Three." Hughes also lead the NBA in steals with 2.89 steals per game. Arenas and Jamsion were both named to the 2005 Eastern Conference All-Star team, marking the first time Washington had two players in the All-Star game since Jeff Malone and Moses Malone represented the Bullets in the 1987 All-Star Game. With a 93-82 win over the Chicago Bulls on April 13th, 2005, the Wizards clinched a playoff spot for the first time in eight years *, with the last time the team had made the postseason was in 1996-1997, when it was still known as the Bullets. Long suffering fans celebrated by buying over 16,000 playoff tickets in two and a half hours the day tickets went on sale *. In Game 3 of the first round against the Chicago Bulls, the Wizards won their first playoff game since 1988. In the Wizards Game 5 victory in Chicago, Gilbert Arenas hit a buzzer-beater to win the game * and the Wizards took their first lead in a playoff series since 1986. In Game 6 at the MCI Center, the Wizards won their first playoff series in 23 years, defeating the Chicago Bulls 94-91 and becoming only the 12th team in NBA history to win a playoff series after being down 0-2. In the second round, the Wizards were swept by the Miami Heat, the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference in the 2004-05 NBA Playoffs. 2005-2006 The 2005-06 NBA season was one filled with ups and downs. The beginning of the season was marred with talk that the loss of Larry Hughes to the Cleveland Cavaliers would greatly impact the team. Yet during the regular season, the Wizards again had the best scoring trio in the NBA, this time consisting of Arenas, Jamison and Caron Butler as the "Big Three." The Wizards started the 2005-2006 season at 5-1, but went on a 8-17 funk to go to 13-18 through 31 games. Then, they went 13-5 in the next 18 games. On April 5th, 2006, the team was 39-35 and looking to close in on the 45 win mark achieved the previous year, yet Caron Butler suffered a thumb sprain and the Wizards lost all five games without him. Caron returned and the team pulled out their final three games, against the Pistons, Cavs and Bucks, all playoff bound teams, to finish the year at 42-40 and clinch the 5th seed in the Eastern Conference. They averaged 101.7 points a game, 3rd in the NBA and tops in the East and clinched a playoff berth for the second year in a row for the first time since 1987. Their first round match up with Cleveland was widely seen as the most evenly matched series in the 2006 NBA Playoffs. The teams exchanged wins during the first two games in Cleveland, with Game 2 highlighted by the Wizards holding LeBron James to 7-25 shooting from the floor while Brendan Haywood gave James a hard foul in the first quarter that many cited as the key to shaking up the rest of LeBron's game. In Game 3 at the Verizon Center, LeBron James hit a 4-footer on the way down with 5.7 seconds left to take the game and the series lead for the Cavs with a 97-96 win. Coach Eddie Jordan, Wizard players and fans, believed that James was traveling when he hit this shot. Arenas missed a potential game winning 3-pointer on the other end to seal the win for the Cavs. Game 4 saw the Wizards heat up again, as Gilbert Arenas scored 20 in the fourth quarter after claiming he changed his jersey, shorts, shoes and tights in the locker room and the Wizards won 106-96. Yet in Game 5 & 6, the Cavs would take control of the series, both games decided by one point in overtime. In Game 5, despite the Wizards being down 107-100 with 1:18 to play, the team drove back and eventually tied the game on Caron Butler's layup with 7.5 seconds remaining to send the game to OT, where LeBron James would tip-toe along the baseline to score with 0.9 seconds left in overtime to send the Cavs to a 121-120 win. The series came back to the Verizon Center for Game 6, where the game went back and forth all night. The Wizards blew a 14-point first-quarter lead, then for 24 minutes, from early in the second quarter to early in the fourth, neither team led by more than five points at any time. The Wizards blew a seven point lead with just under 5 to play and needed Arenas to hit a 31-footer at the end of regulation to take the game to overtime. Yet in OT, Arenas missed two key free throws after James taunted Arenas at the line, the Cavs rebounded the ball, went downcourt and Damon Jones hit a 17 foot baseline jumper with 4.8 seconds remaining to give the Cavs the lead for good. Caron Butler would miss a 3-pointer on the other end to seal the game, and the series, for the Cavaliers. 2006-2007 In the offseason, head coach Eddie Jordan received a contract extension, and despite losing free agent Jared Jeffries to the New York Knicks, Washington signed free agents DeShawn Stevenson and Darius Songaila. In the NBA draft, Washington selected Oleksiy Pecherov, although Pecherov will play this season in Europe. The 2006-2007 NBA season started on November 1, 2006, in a nationally-televised contest against Lebron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in a rematch of the 2006 first round playoffs between the teams. This was the first regular season game for new Wizard DeShawn Stevenson. In a neck-and-neck contest, Washington eventually fell 97-94 to Cleveland. The Wizards opened their 2006-2007 home schedule with a 124-117 win over Paul Pierce and the Boston Celtics, in a game which Gilbert Arenas rebounded from a subpar performance against Cleveland with 44 points. Season-by-Season Records |- !colspan="6"|Chicago Packers |- |1961–62 || 18 || 62 || .225 || || |- !colspan="6"|Chicago Zephyrs |- |1962–63 || 25 || 55 || .313 || || |- !colspan="6"|Baltimore Bullets |- |1963–64 || 31 || 49 || .388 || || |- |1964–65 || 37 || 43 || .463 || Won Division Semifinals Lost Division Finals|| Baltimore 3, St. Louis 1 Los Angeles 4, Baltimore 2 |- |1965–66 || 38 || 42 || .475 || Lost Division Semifinals|| St. Louis 3, Baltimore 0 |- |1966–67 || 20 || 61 || .247 || || |- |1967–68 || 36 || 46 || .439 || || |- |1968–69 || 57 || 25 || .695 || Lost Division Semifinals|| New York 4, Baltimore 0 |- |1969–70 || 50 || 32 || .610 || Lost Division Semifinals|| New York 4, Baltimore 3 |- |1970–71 || 42 || 40 || .512 || Won Conference Semifinals Won Conference Finals Lost NBA Finals||Baltimore 4, Philadelphia 3 Baltimore 4, New York 3 Milwaukee 4, Baltimore 0 |- |1971–72 || 38 || 44 || .463 || Lost Conference Semifinals || New York 4, Baltimore 2 |- |1972–73 || 52 || 30 || .634 || Lost Conference Semifinals || New York 4, Baltimore 1 |- ! colspan="6"|Capital Bullets |- |1973–74 || 47 || 35 || .573 || Lost Conference Semifinals || New York 4, Capital 3 |- ! colspan="6"|Washington Bullets |- |1974–75 || 60 || 22 || .732 || Won Conference Semifinals Won Conference Finals Lost NBA Finals || Washington 4, Buffalo 3 Washington 4, Boston 2 Golden State 4, Wash. 0 |- |1975–76 || 48 || 34 || .585 || Lost Conference Semifinals || Cleveland 4, Washington 3 |- |1976–77 || 48 || 34 || .585 || Won First Round Lost Conference Semifinals || Washington 2, Cleveland 1 Houston 4, Washington 2 |- |1977–78 || 44 || 38 || .537 || Won First Round Won Conference Semifinals Won Conference Finals Won NBA Finals||| Washington 2, Atlanta 0 Washington 4, San Antonio 2 Washington 4, Philadelphia 2 Washington 4, Seattle 3 |- |1978–79 || 54 || 28 || .659 || Won Conference Semifinals Won Conference Finals Lost NBA Finals || Washington 4, Atlanta 3 Washington 4, San Antonio 3 Seattle 4, Washington 1 |- |1979–80 || 39 || 43 || .476 || Lost First Round || Philadelphia 2, Washington 0 |- |1980–81 || 39 || 43 || .476 || || |- |1981–82 || 43 || 39 || .524 || Won First Round Lost Conference Semifinals || Washington 2, New Jersey 0 Boston 4, Washington 1 |- |1982–83 || 42 || 40 || .512 || || |- |1983–84 || 35 || 47 || .427 || Lost First Round || Boston 3, Washington 1 |- |1984–85 || 40 || 42 || .488 || Lost First Round || Philadelphia 3, Washington 1 |- |1985–86 || 39 || 43 || .476 || Lost First Round || Philadelphia, 3, Washington 2 |- |1986–87 || 42 || 40 || .512 || Lost First Round || Detroit 3, Washington 0 |- |1987–88 || 38 || 44 || .463 || Lost First Round || Detroit 3, Washington 2 |- |1988–89 || 40 || 42 || .488 || || |- |1989–90 || 31 || 51 || .378 || || |- |1990–91 || 30 || 52 || .366 || || |- |1991–92 || 25 || 57 || .305 || || |- |1992–93 || 22 || 60 || .268 || || |- |1993–94 || 24 || 58 || .293 || || |- |1994–95 || 21 || 61 || .256 || || |- |1995–96 || 39 || 43 || .476 || || |- |1996–97 || 44 || 38 || .537 || Lost First Round || Chicago 3, Washington 0 |- ! colspan="6" align="left" | Washington Wizards |- |1997–98 || 42 || 40 || .512 || || |- |1998–99 || 18 || 32 || .360 || || |- |1999–00 || 29 || 53 || .354 || || |- |2000–01 || 19 || 63 || .233 || || |- |2001–02 || 37 || 45 || .451 || || |- |2002–03 || 37 || 45 || .451 || || |- |2003–04 || 25 || 57 || .305 || || |- |2004–05 || 45 || 37 || .549 || Won First Round Lost Conference Semifinals ||Washington 4, Chicago 2 Miami 4, Washington 0 |- |2005–06 || 42 || 40 || .512 || Lost First Round || Cleveland 4, Washington 2 |- !Totals || 1672 || 1972 || .458 | colspan="2"| |- !Playoffs || 75 || 105 || .412 !colspan="2" | 1 Championship Players of note Basketball Hall of Famers Not to be forgotten Retired numbers Upcoming Stars Other Famous Players Washington Hall of Stars The Washington Hall of Stars, a series of banners on the right-field wall of Robert F. Kennedy Stadium in Washington, honors several D.C. sports heroes. The Bullets/Wizards figures honored are: The Hall also honors Arnold "Red" Auerbach, who played collegiately at D.C.'s George Washington University, and Horace "Bones" McKinney, who played for the Washington Capitols in the early days of the NBA. Both men also coached the Capitols, who played from the NBA's founding in 1946 until the team folded in 1951. Media information Most games are carried on Comcast SportsNet which is available in the Washington, D.C. area and other parts of the Mid-Atlantic states. Alternate local carriers include WDCW-TV and cable station NewsChannel 8. Wizards games are announced by Steve Buckhantz and Phil Chenier. Chick Hernandez serves as a sideline reporter for some broadcasts. Other facts | |||||||||
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