 The coach knows it, "Overall, John kind of led us". The star knows it, "He's batman, I'm Robin". It seems that everyone knows that the future of the Wizards is no longer Gilbert Arenas, but is rookie John Wall.
The former star, Arenas, used to be so much what makes John Wall, John Wall. Marketable, exciting, fun-loving. But the former agent Zero has pulled a Joaquin Phoenix and grown a beard, changed numbers, and even stopped smiling. A few years ago, before the gun fiasco and the injury, could you image Gilbert saying, “I lost all feeling a long time ago. Basketball is basketball. It doesn’t matter what floor I’m on.”? He is hardly the same person as he used to be.
Having a young stud like John Wall behind you doesn't help either. The teacher's plans seem to be: “Teach John (Wall) the ins and outs of the game and then eventually go on and move on, and I’m on my way,”
It appears that Arenas' stay in DC is slowly coming to an end, and strangely, he is okay with that. "There's few players that stay in the same city, so right now the city is John's. I'm not here to fight anybody. I'm here to play alongside of him" The strange, sad, saga continues...
NBA games are back, if only the preseason variety. But NBA play is NBA play. And with it comes some fireworks. Here's what you've missed so far.
The Rookies
 Odds are the 2010-11 NBA Rookie of the year will be a former Wildcat. From the 5 players taken from Kentucky in the last draft two had especially impressive debut performances.
John Wall: In 36 minutes of play Wall scored 21 points, and dished out 9 assists and had only 2 turnovers prompting this quote from Gilbert Arenas: "He's going to be great, he has a knack for finding people and getting to the basket. ... He's Batman, I'm Robin." More on this situation in a second.
Demarcus Cousins: Can you say double double average? First game after just one year at UK, and he managed to rack up 16 points and rebounds against the Suns, might be too early to tell, but looks good so far.
Evan Turner: The third pick in the draft didn't look so good from the field shooting just 1 for 6 from the court, but managed 12 points, thanks to a 10 for 12 free throw shooting night.
Derrick Favors: The Nets forward had a 14 point 9 rebound night against Israeli league team Maccabi Haifa.
The New Looks
 We got plenty of new faces in new places. There is nothing like putting on a new jersey, or if you are Amare Stoudamire, putting on nothing.
Shaquille Oneal: 8 points for the newest leprechaun, including a few ally-oops. Once again, he looks older.
Amare Stoudamire: 32 points ain't bad for a debut, however it wasn't against the Lakers, per se. Olimpia Milano didn't put up much defense against Stoudamire, but the Timberwolves defense held him up for 11 points against his first NBA opponent wearing the blue and orange.
LeBron James: In his first game not wearing the wine and gold, he dumped in 18, including 12 in the first 12 minutes of his debut.
Chris Bosh: Had 20, 6 rebounds, and 2 steals, in his first game outside of the shadow that is Toronto basketball. Welcome to the media world Chris!
Tracy McGrady: Not as heralded as the others on this list, the new Piston didn't even score in 8 minutes of play, but grabbed 2 rebounds. Maybe it was the jealousy of the big 3: "I'm happy for those guys, I look forward to, when I'm done playing basketball, seeing them win a lot of championships."
 1. Wizards- John Wall
2. Sixers- Evan Turner
3. Nets- Derrick Favors
4. T-Wolves- Wesley Johnson
5. Kings- Demarcus Cousins
6. Warriors- Ekpe Udoh
7. Pistons- Greg Monroe
8. Clippers- Al-Farouq Aminu
9. Jazz- Gordon Hayward
10. Pacers- Paul George
11. Hornet- Cole Aldrich
12. Grizzles- Xavier Henry
13. Raptors- Ed Davis
14. Rockets- Patrick Patterson
15. Bucks- Larry Sanders
It's been kinda boring since Allen Iverson began going downhill, but Reebok's future is starting to look brighter thanks to the talented and charismatic John Wall. Tomorrow, during the draft they will start airing their first commercial with Wall selling the new Reebok Zigtech Slash:
Honestly, I'm not digging it. They Iverson cameo was nice, but there wasn't enough real-life John Wall, and even that seemed forced and awkward. Let's hope they can improve on this "rookie effort".
Excellent post over at Sole Collector about incoming rookie, John Wall and a alleged deal with Reebok. The vector has been somewhat invisible in the shoe market recently. Allen Iverson, for a long time, was the face of the company, and they produced solid basketball shoes with the Questions. With Wall, they have a chance to pick up, arguably the only magnetic player in this years draft. Unlike years such as 2003, where LeBron, Melo, and Wade were able to sign with Nike, Jordan, and Converse, John Wall seems to be the only player this year with the ability to sell kicks right out of the gate.
Sole Collector Link
 2010 Draft Lottery is tonight. Here's what you need to know: Everyone is in it to draft Kentucky one-and-done John Wall, with Ohio State's Evan Turner being the consolation prize. Both are extremely talented, but any team who drafts Wall is automatically better, and could be looking at a increase in sales and attendance. Yeah, he's that good. But also up for grabs is Wall's teamate DeMarcus Cousins and his 15 point 10 rebound stat line, Kansas' Xavier Henry, and Derrick Favors from Georgia Tech. The New Jersey Nets (12-70) have the best shot at getting the number 1 pick with 250 chances, and in doing so, start off their bid to woo King James. The T-Wolves (15-67) get the next best chance to add yet another point guard with 199 chances. The Kings (25-57), who made it big with last years pick, Tyreke Evans, get another opportunity to add a Robin, or even another Batman to the great Evans with 156 odds. Golden State (104), Washington (103), Philadelphia (53), and Detroit (53) round out the probables to get the first pick. The complete list is as follows: New Jersey 12-70 250 Minnesota 15-67 199 Sacramento 25-57 156 Golden State 26-56 104 Washington 26-56 103 Philadelphia 27-55 53 Detroit 27-55 53 LA Clippers 29-53 23 New York (To Utah via Phoenix) 29-53 22 Indiana 32-50 11 New Orleans 37-45 8 Memphis 40-42 7 Toronto 40-42 6 Houston 42-40 5 via NBA.com So cross your fingers for your favorite losers, and tune in to see who's representing who on ESPN at 8.
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