Off The Bench - Washington Wizards

NBA Hall of Famer and former Bullet Bernard King joins the podcast to talk about his new book "Game Face: A Lifetime of Hard-Earned Lessons On and Off the Basketball Court," his journey from being the 12th man off the bench early in life to one of the greatest scorers ever. King goes through some of his favorite moments of the book, where his game face came from, returning from a terrible knee injury, playing with the Bullets in D.C., and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

After a big win in Toronto, the guys break down the Wizards' win over the Raptors, Bradley Beal's 114-point week, Otto Porter Jr.'s jump, the upcoming four-game homestand, and more. ESPN's Rachel Nichols (25:00) joins Off The Bench to talk about growing up in the D.C. area, where John Wall and Bradley Beal rank among the best backcourts in the NBA, working in the sports media business, and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

NBA analytics writer Tom Haberstroh joins Off The Bench to discuss the bizarre start to the NBA season, contenders and pretenders in the Southeast Division, why he’s not worried about the Wizards, the best stats to evaluate the NBA, and his new venture with Spotlight Media Ventures, new podcast network Leverage The Chat, and Bleacher Report Mag. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The guys go through the Wizards' trip out West, give their takeaways from the team's 4-2 start, previewing the Phoenix game on Wednesday, and more. Then, The Washington Post's Tim Bontemps (25:00) joins the podcast from San Francisco to talk about the impact of Gordon Hayward's injury and other NBA storylines, the growth of Otto Porter Jr. and Kelly Oubre Jr., the Wizards' competitive nature, and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Reaction from the Wizards' 102-99 overtime loss to the Lakers, what has gone right so far with a 3-1 start, the importance of at least splitting the trip out West, previewing Friday's big Warriors game and Sunday's matchup against the Kings, and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The guys discuss the Wizards' strong 3-0 start, including observations from the team's first three games, Otto Porter Jr.'s hot start, Kelly Oubre Jr.'s development, previewing the Lakers game, and more analysis. Bullets legend Wes Unseld and his wife Connie (21:00) join the podcast from Baltimore to look back on their memories of the 1977-78 championship season, being the face of the Wizards franchise, the next step for the current Wizards team, and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The guys react after the Wizards' 120-115 win to tip off the 2017-18 season including keys to the game, John Wall and Bradley Beal's combined 53 points, how Marcin Gortat and Kelly Oubre Jr. stepped up, how the team looked overall, and looking ahead to Detroit. Then, NBC Sports Washington and ESPN's Kara Lawson (18:30) joins Off The Bench to discuss her role as the Wizards' new TV color analyst, how the Wizards have looked in practice, why she's optimistic about the team's chances, being one of the only female color analysts in the industry, and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

With the season starting this week, the guys dive in on the 2017-18 Wizards season with keys to the season (3:00), the potential of the Wizards' small-ball lineup (11:00), bold predictions (16:00), going for the No. 1 seed in the East (20:00), looking at the rest of the East (25:00), previewing Wiz-Sixers (32:00), and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

ESPN NBA insider Brian Windhorst joins Off The Bench to discuss how the NBA offseason has become a season of its own (1:30), how the salary cap has impacted free agency (3:30), the way the Wizards built their roster through the draft (7:00), why the Wizards will win at least 50 games (10:00), why John Wall is the best point guard in the East (12:45), the role Scott Brooks has played in the Wizards' growth (17:30), the era of players understanding their power (23:00), how fans are more educated about the NBA than any other sport (29:30), his prediction for the Wizards (38:00), and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The guys discuss Sheldon Mac's injury (1:30), Daniel Ochefu being waived (5:15), guys fighting for remaining roster spots (9:00), the red-hot Jodie Meeks (10:00), and other preseason storylines. Then, Meeks (14:30) joins the podcast from training camp about camp, being a veteran in the locker room, coming to a new team, his value as a shooter, and more. Lastly, Andrew Sharp (26:00) of Sports Illustrated gives his thoughts on the Wizards’ chances in the East, John Wall’s impact on the game, expectations out of Otto Porter Jr., why Bradley Beal is still improving as a player, how the NBA talks about the Wizards nationally, and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Long-time Bullets executives Bob Ferry and Jerry Sachs join Off The Bench look back on the 40th anniversary of the 1977-78 championship season and how it all came together. Topics include: The inside story of getting Bob Dandridge from Milwaukee and his importance to winning the championship (1:00), comparing basketball scouting from now and then (6:00), the inside story of picking up Charles Johnson after Phil Chenier got injured (8:30), Sachs’ role in the franchise’s business operations and growth (14:00), Ferry on adapting to changes in basketball scouting (19:00), an in-depth look at the 1977-78 championship playoffs (21:00), winning so much in the regular season in the ‘70s and then finally winning a championship (29:00), building the Bullets brand over time (31:00), drafting Muggsy Bogues and Manute Bol (32:50), and final thoughts on the championship season (35:00). See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Brian Scalabrine (NBC Sports Boston and SiriusXM NBA Radio) and Frank Isola (New York Daily News, ESPN, and SiriusXM NBA Radio) join Off The Bench to discuss the crazy NBA offseason (2:00), the Wizards' outlook in the Eastern Conference (6:00), pressure on John Wall (9:00), Otto Porter Jr.'s expectations (11:30), the Wizards' goals in the 2017-18 season (14:30), other predictions around the NBA (20:00), and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Second-year guard Sheldon Mac joins Off The Bench to discuss his offseason, working out with John Wall in Miami, being with his family in Houston during Hurricane Harvey, and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The guys give some observations from training camp Day 3 and insight from practice all week. Then, Ian Mahinmi (9:00) joins the podcast to talk about his summer, getting healthy, his clothing label French Deal, excitement for the 2017-18 season, and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The guys break down the first day of training camp from Richmond and discuss how the team plans to replace Markieff Morris for the next 6-8 weeks as well as the hiring of Kara Lawson as the team's primary TV analyst. Then, new big man Mike Scott (20:00) joins the podcast to talk about coming back home to play in D.C., what happened in Charlottesville, his emoji tattoos, scary movies, and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Otto Porter Jr. joins Off The Bench to talk about his summer, motivation to improve, his love of cars, why he won't change after signing his new contract, and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The guys discuss John Wall's induction into the University of Kentucky Hall of Fame, Training Camp, and other storylines. John Wall joins the podcast (11:00) to take us through his "career summer" and offseason, "wolf season," goals and expectations for the 2017-18 season, what it means to join the UK Hall of Fame, Kobe Bryant's Mamba Challenge for him, Phil Chenier's number retirement, and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Phil Chenier joins Off The Bench immediately after finding out his number 45 will be retired by the Washington Wizards organization, the fifth number retired in franchise history. Included in this episode: Chenier's reaction to finding out and what it means to him (1:45), the emotional night ahead in March of his jersey being retired (7:00), the 40th anniversary of the Washington Bullets 1977-78 championship season and why it’s bittersweet to him (10:00), and the future of the current Wizards and the team’s outlook in the league (23:00). Then, the guys call Chenier’s long-time broadcast partner Steve Buckhantz to surprise him with the news (32:00), and the two tell the best stories from their near two decades together, including how they first met, hotel room pranks, showing up to the wrong stadiums, and much more (37:00). Finally, Chenier shares what he’s been up to this summer, future plans with Monumental Sports Network and CSN-Mid Atlantic, and wrapping up the special announcement (102:00). See Privacy

Training camp is only a few weeks away and the guys return to discuss the implications of the Cavaliers-Celtics blockbuster trade, how the trade impacts the Wizards, what to know heading into the 2017-18 Wizards season, John Wall's offseason, and more. Other topics include the Mystics' first round win and WNBA playoffs, NFL season starting and Super Bowl picks, MLB postseason approaching, and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The guys break down the Wizards' 2017-18 schedule, including notes on the team's 30 national TV games, 23 weekend home games, holiday games, and road trips, as well as other offseason tidbits from the team. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.