The end of the 08-09 Wizards season
--Sebastian Salazar
“Gil’s City” was a ghost town.
“Antawn’s Army” is desperate for recruits.
The curfew in the “District of Caron” must be 6:30 pm.
When a professional basketball team loses 75% of its games, attendance is sure to suffer. But the paltry numbers in the cheesily-named fan sections at the Verizon Center, show something beyond suffering for Washington Wizards fans. It’s called extinction.
Wizards fans have never been overwhelming. Even in recent years when Washington became an Eastern Conference playoff staple, the nation’s capital never quite went hog-wild for the Zards (DC will always be a pro football town first). That being said, Washington hoops aficionados had come to expect a postseason, and then they got this season. To call it a regular season is too kind… injuries, a first-month coach firing, Gilbert Arenas continued absence, and a rising force from within their own building conspired against the Wiz. Fickle sports fans have switched their attention and allegiance to the young, exciting, and playoff-bound Washington Capitals. You see it on the evening news and in the papers, hear it on sports talk radio, and feel it in the stands. The NBA is an afterthought around the beltway, and it will be this way for a while.
Sitting in the season ticket section I thought I'd get a chance to hear from some of the fans who had hung on for this whole terrible ride. But the truth is, season ticket holders had sold (or more likely given away) these tickets months ago. A friend who shares part of a season ticket package told me that of the 15 games he's entitled to attend he made it to roughly 5. He's been to more Caps games than that. This same friend isn't sure he'll re-up for next year, but if he decides to, he'll be able to upgrade his seats by 8-9 rows... for the same price. That's how many people won't be coming back.
It’s sad to see the Wiz drop off the radar like they have. Maybe they’ll get some buzz back if Washington lands the number one pick in the NBA Draft lottery. Getting Blake Griffin would probably boost season ticket sales, but that’s not likely to happen. The odds will end up around 80-20 against the Wizards winning the top selection. Any player besides Griffin won’t generate enough hype to get the Wiz off the last page of the Washington Post sports section any time soon.
The Wizards final home game of the 08-09’ season was a fitting end to a campaign that never had a chance. Ahead for most of the contest, Washington blew a late lead when Chris Bosh hit a 3-pointer with 10 seconds left. Caron Butler’s last second response predictably fell short and a season that needed to end, finally did. Thank god it didn’t go to overtime.
I checked into our contracts and Sebastian is technically right-- we don't operate on a "quota system". We DO, however, operate under a antagonistic banter system, so there's the loophole... we can and will respond to any comments of our choosing with said sarcasm.
Posted by: Take 2 Sports | April 21, 2009 at 02:21 AM
Haha... I'll see what can be done about a Caps article, the buzz is down a bit here after their loss last night in Game 1. As for the previous comment we DO NOT operate on a quota system. Do we?
Posted by: Sebastian | April 16, 2009 at 12:20 PM
Sorry, Ziegler... Only 1 article about the rise to power of an American hockey team per playoffs, and Take 2 has already gone with the Bruins. Our decision is final.
Posted by: Take2Sports | April 16, 2009 at 06:28 AM
Great to hear the Caps are getting lots of support in D.C. They have the most exciting and offensively dynamic forward and defenseman on their team. Glad to see, at least in one large U.S. metropolis, that hockey is finely getting the credit it deserves for being a great ticket. How bout an article not on the extinction of the Wiz, but the rise to power of the Caps?
Posted by: Jonathan Ziegler | April 16, 2009 at 04:05 AM