Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin also confirmed the proposed move, saying that the state plans to develop an “industry-leading arena” and invest $2 billion in a new entertainment district that would also feature a practice facility, restaurants, and a shopping complex.

The completion of the project is scheduled for 2028. However, it remains subject to legislative approval by the Virginia General Assembly.

Ted Leonsis, the CEO and owner of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, said in a statement that the relocation would allow the company to “uphold our commitment to building an exceptional experience for our fans, employees, and partners.” 

“We are committed to providing world-class fan experiences while continuously evolving our teams, deepening community ties, and solidifying our role as leaders at the forefront of sports and technology,” Leonsis added.

Leonsis also revealed that his company wouldn’t leave Washington, D.C., for good. Monumental Sports & Entertainment also owns WNBA’s Mystics, and the franchise could move into Capital One Arena, the current home of the Wizards and Capitals.

Shortly after the proposal was announced, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser launched a bid in an effort to keep the Wizards and the Capitals. Bowser proposed a $500 million initiative, which has the backing of the D.C. Council, to renovate Capital One Arena. 

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According to ESPN’s NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the Wizards are receiving trade calls about Beal and are working together with the player in order to see if there is a deal to be made that would benefit both parties. Washington also can’t trade Beal without his consent since he has a no-trade clause.

Beal signed a five-year, $251 million extension with the Wizards last summer in an obvious statement about his commitment to the franchise. Washington was also happy to keep the face of their franchise in the building. But it is safe to say that things changed since then. 

The Wizards missed the playoffs, the fourth time in the past five seasons, while Beal struggled to say healthy and be on an All-Star level. The disappointing 2022-23 campaign led owner Ted Leonsis to clean out the front office and hire LA Clippers’ Michael Winger as team president.

Winger will not only be in charge of all the important decisions but has reportedly also received a green light to do anything he sees fit to bring a franchise to a better place. Many believe he will choose to rebuild, meaning Beal will be at the exit door.

Beal spent all of his 11 seasons in the NBA with the Wizards. He was a three-time All-Star and had an All-NBA Third Team selection from 2021 on his resume.

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Wizards general manager Tommy Sheppard had a chat with Chris Miller of NBC Sports Washington and said that Westbrook kept a “professional” attitude prior to leaving for Los Angeles. According to Sheppard, the 2017 NBA MVP only expressed interest in being traded if that meant he’d join the Lakers.

“Russell actually never asked to move on,” Sheppard told Miller. “He just said, ‘If I can get to the Lakers, that’d be something I would love to do. If not, I’ll be back here.'”

Sheppard also revealed that he proposed the Los Angeles Clippers as a potential destination, but Westbrook wasn’t open to that idea.

“So Russell was happy being here, and we were very grateful for him being here,” he added.

Westbrook ended up getting his wish and will now play in front of his hometown crowd alongside fellow superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The Wizards, on the other hand, received a strong package in return that includes Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Montrezl Harrell, and Kyle Kuzma, which will allow them to build around their All-Star Bradley Beal.

Westbrook spent one season with the Wizards and averaged 22.2 points per game alongside a career-high 11.5 rebounds and 11.7 assists. Washington made it to the playoffs through a play-in tournament before being eliminated in the first round against the Philadelphia 76ers.

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Things didn’t start well for the Wizards, however, as they fell into a 14-point hole at halftime. The Lakers looked like they were firing on all cylinders at that point despite missing All-Star Anthony Davis and point guard Dennis Schroder.

But thanks to a productive third quarter from stars Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal, Washington found its way back into the game. They then forced overtime, where Westbrook and Beal scored all of the Wizards’ points and carried their team to a memorable win.

After the final buzzer, Westbrook was sitting at 32 points, 14 rebounds, and nine assists, while Beal scored 33 points and added three steals.

“It’s been tough, but we’ve been sticking together,” said Westbrook after the game. “That’s the main thing. If you get caught up with everything else going on, teams and players tend to come apart, but we’ve been sticking together and communicating on how to become a better team, and it’s been paying off for us.”

LeBron James, this year’s favorite for the MVP award, starred for the Lakers and had a near triple-double with 31 points, 9 rebounds, and 13 assists. He had help in Montrezl Harell, who scored his season-high 26 points.

Wizards, who started the campaign 6-17, have now improved to 11-17 and find themselves No. 13 in the East with just two games behind the No. 8 seed.

Lakers, on the other hand, are currently on a three-game losing streak. They fell to the No. 3 seed in the West with a 22-10 record.

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Everybody predicted the Wizards to lose before the tip-off against Brooklyn on Monday night. They were in bad form, dealing with injuries and COVID-19 issues, while the Nets had won the last four and seemed like they are just getting hot.

Things looked like advertised for the better part of the game, with Brooklyn leading as much as 18 points. But defensive issues and the resilience of Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal turned the easy win into a wild finish.

With 12 seconds left in the contest, the Nets were up by five, and it looked like they had this one in the bag. But Ish Smith quickly inbounded the ball and got it to Beal, who drilled a three-pointer to cut the lead in two.

Brooklyn’s Joe Harris tried to get the ball back in the court in a hurry after Beal’s shot, causing a miscommunication between him and Kevin Durant. Garrison Mathew stole the ball, dished it to Westbrook, who sunk a dagger three to completely turn around the game in just seven seconds.

The Nets tried to respond in the dying second, but the previous sequence by Wizards was too much of a shock for them to make something happen.

Russell Westbrook was the man of the night, having scored 41 points with 10 rebounds and eight assists. Bradley Beal followed with a similarly great game, putting up 37 points to go with six rebounds and four assists.

Kevin Durant was Brooklyn’s best player, having a 37-point, seven-rebound, and six-assist performance. Joe Harris and Kyrie Irving added 30 and 26 points, respectively.

Despite the win, the Wizards still have the worst record in the NBA league at 4-12. Nets are second in the East at 13-9.

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According to Wizards head coach Scott Brooks, Westbrook is dealing with a quadriceps injury and will be on the sidelines for at least one week. The 32-year-old All-Star initially got hurt during training camp and never fully recovered.

“It was starting to get better, and then he hit it again, set him back a little bit,” said Brooks. “And then the last time, it was in Philadelphia [on Wednesday], he hit it again.”

This is a tough blow for the Wizards, who had high hopes for 2020-21 but opened the season with a disappointing 2-8 record.

The news also comes after Washington starter Thomas Bryant also got injured for the season. Bryant suffered a torn ACL in a loss to Boston Celtics on Saturday.

The Wizards acquired Russell Westbrook in the offseason, trading guard John Wall and a protected first-round pick to the Houston Rockets in exchange. The franchise hoped that pairing Westbrook with their superstar Bradley Beal could finally put Washington in contention in the Eastern Conference.

However, Westbrook hasn’t been able to provide that so far despite being on the verge of averaging a triple-double. He’s played seven games in a Wizards’ jersey and contributed 19.3 points, 11.3 assists, and 9.7 rebounds per contest so far.

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Apparently, LeBron got in touch with Arenas recently and asked him to keep an eye on his son during a training session.

As Arenas explained to NBC Sports Washington’s Chris Miller, “LeBron hit me on Instagram and said ‘My son is starting to train and he’s training with Dribble2Much. Can you go over there and put some eyes on him and let me know because I’m kind of worried about him.’ I went there, watched him, and gave him some pointers.”

After the session, Arenas had great things to report to his old friend: “He’s your clone, you don’t need to be worried,” he told LeBron. “Just from looking at him, you were probably taller, you’ve got the same speed, he probably jumps higher, passes probably the same, IQ probably the same, he shoots better and dribbles better.”

LeBron’s response to Arenas? “That is actually correct”

Bronny is currently 16 years old and is ranked 25th in the nation for his class, ESPN reports. He currently has offers to play basketball for colleges such as Kentucky, UCLA, Duke, Kansas, and North Carolina.

The post Gilbert Arenas Trains LeBron’s Son, Tells Him He’s His “Clone” appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Westbrook needed only three quarters to record his 147th career triple-double in the game against the Philadelphia 76ers, recording 13 points, 14 assists, and 10 rebounds before the final period. He finished the game with a stat line of 21 points, 15 assists, and 11 rebounds, but that still wasn’t enough for the Wizards to get a win.

Despite having a 10-point-lead entering the fourth, Wizards couldn’t hold onto it down the stretch and ended up starting the 2020-21 NBA season with a 113-107 loss.

Speaking with reporters after the game, Westbrook was self-critical and said that he was “kind of disappointed” with the way he played.

“Not good enough,” said Westbrook when asked to rate his performance. “Honestly, I am kind of disappointed in myself, just some mishaps and plays where I could have been better.”

But Westbrook did manage to impress his teammates, with his backcourt partner and fellow All-Star Bradley Beal saying that he loved the intensity that the 2017 NBA MVP brought to the team.

“Granted, it’s only one game, but I just love his energy, his competitiveness, and his accountability at the end of the day,” said Beal.

Westbrook joined the Washington Wizards earlier in the offseason after demanding a trade from the Houston Rockets. Reportedly, Westbrook felt that the Rockets are too “laid-back” and that he couldn’t play his game there.

Wizards gave up four-time All-Star point guard John Wall and a protected first-round pick to get Westbrook.

The post Russell Westbrook Debuts for Wizards With a Triple-Double appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The Wizards, who are mired in the bottom half of the Eastern Conference standings with a 32-46 record, let go of the man who has led the franchise for the past 16 seasons.

Grunfeld was hired as the team’s president and GM in 2004 after the team fired basketball legend Michael Jordan from the same role.

The former team president’s tenure with the team got off to a fascinating start after the 2004-05 Wizards compiled a winning record for the first time in 26 seasons and qualified for the playoffs.

Grunfeld would go on to construct teams that went to the playoffs 8 times in his 16 seasons leading the team.

The Wizards won only one Southeast Division title, however, in sixteen tries.

In addition, Washington never advanced past the conference semifinals in their several playoff appearances under Grunfeld’s leadership. His overall record with the team was 568-724.

Although the Wizards franchise made progress under almost two decades of Grunfeld’s leadership, team ownership ultimately decided that this was not enough.

For now, Tommy Sheppard takes over as the team’s interim president.

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The 29-year-old missed the last three games due to the same injury. He got injured mid-December in the game versus the Los Angeles Lakers and hit again on Boxing Day as the team played Detroit. His MRI revealed he didn’t have any serious concerns close to the end of last year but has been limited in his basketball activities ever since.

Six weeks from now will be February 14, and the Wizards will have faced the Toronto Raptors a day before that. Of course, the forward could be allowed to play that game but only if the team will be satisfied by his recovery efforts.

But even if he doesn’t play against the Raptors, he will be set to play the Hornets when the league breaks for the All-Star game. The Wizards also have the option of trading him now that his contract is nearly up. But with his average of 11.5 points, it is uncertain many people will want him just before the playoffs begin.

At the moment, Washington depends on Thomas Bryant as their main player and a team that has been inconsistent at times.

The post Wizards’ Markieff Morris to Miss At Least 6 Weeks with Neck Problem appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin also confirmed the proposed move, saying that the state plans to develop an “industry-leading arena” and invest $2 billion in a new entertainment district that would also feature a practice facility, restaurants, and a shopping complex.

The completion of the project is scheduled for 2028. However, it remains subject to legislative approval by the Virginia General Assembly.

Ted Leonsis, the CEO and owner of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, said in a statement that the relocation would allow the company to “uphold our commitment to building an exceptional experience for our fans, employees, and partners.” 

“We are committed to providing world-class fan experiences while continuously evolving our teams, deepening community ties, and solidifying our role as leaders at the forefront of sports and technology,” Leonsis added.

Leonsis also revealed that his company wouldn’t leave Washington, D.C., for good. Monumental Sports & Entertainment also owns WNBA’s Mystics, and the franchise could move into Capital One Arena, the current home of the Wizards and Capitals.

Shortly after the proposal was announced, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser launched a bid in an effort to keep the Wizards and the Capitals. Bowser proposed a $500 million initiative, which has the backing of the D.C. Council, to renovate Capital One Arena. 

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According to ESPN’s NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the Wizards are receiving trade calls about Beal and are working together with the player in order to see if there is a deal to be made that would benefit both parties. Washington also can’t trade Beal without his consent since he has a no-trade clause.

Beal signed a five-year, $251 million extension with the Wizards last summer in an obvious statement about his commitment to the franchise. Washington was also happy to keep the face of their franchise in the building. But it is safe to say that things changed since then. 

The Wizards missed the playoffs, the fourth time in the past five seasons, while Beal struggled to say healthy and be on an All-Star level. The disappointing 2022-23 campaign led owner Ted Leonsis to clean out the front office and hire LA Clippers’ Michael Winger as team president.

Winger will not only be in charge of all the important decisions but has reportedly also received a green light to do anything he sees fit to bring a franchise to a better place. Many believe he will choose to rebuild, meaning Beal will be at the exit door.

Beal spent all of his 11 seasons in the NBA with the Wizards. He was a three-time All-Star and had an All-NBA Third Team selection from 2021 on his resume.

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Wizards general manager Tommy Sheppard had a chat with Chris Miller of NBC Sports Washington and said that Westbrook kept a “professional” attitude prior to leaving for Los Angeles. According to Sheppard, the 2017 NBA MVP only expressed interest in being traded if that meant he’d join the Lakers.

“Russell actually never asked to move on,” Sheppard told Miller. “He just said, ‘If I can get to the Lakers, that’d be something I would love to do. If not, I’ll be back here.'”

Sheppard also revealed that he proposed the Los Angeles Clippers as a potential destination, but Westbrook wasn’t open to that idea.

“So Russell was happy being here, and we were very grateful for him being here,” he added.

Westbrook ended up getting his wish and will now play in front of his hometown crowd alongside fellow superstars LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The Wizards, on the other hand, received a strong package in return that includes Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Montrezl Harrell, and Kyle Kuzma, which will allow them to build around their All-Star Bradley Beal.

Westbrook spent one season with the Wizards and averaged 22.2 points per game alongside a career-high 11.5 rebounds and 11.7 assists. Washington made it to the playoffs through a play-in tournament before being eliminated in the first round against the Philadelphia 76ers.

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Things didn’t start well for the Wizards, however, as they fell into a 14-point hole at halftime. The Lakers looked like they were firing on all cylinders at that point despite missing All-Star Anthony Davis and point guard Dennis Schroder.

But thanks to a productive third quarter from stars Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal, Washington found its way back into the game. They then forced overtime, where Westbrook and Beal scored all of the Wizards’ points and carried their team to a memorable win.

After the final buzzer, Westbrook was sitting at 32 points, 14 rebounds, and nine assists, while Beal scored 33 points and added three steals.

“It’s been tough, but we’ve been sticking together,” said Westbrook after the game. “That’s the main thing. If you get caught up with everything else going on, teams and players tend to come apart, but we’ve been sticking together and communicating on how to become a better team, and it’s been paying off for us.”

LeBron James, this year’s favorite for the MVP award, starred for the Lakers and had a near triple-double with 31 points, 9 rebounds, and 13 assists. He had help in Montrezl Harell, who scored his season-high 26 points.

Wizards, who started the campaign 6-17, have now improved to 11-17 and find themselves No. 13 in the East with just two games behind the No. 8 seed.

Lakers, on the other hand, are currently on a three-game losing streak. They fell to the No. 3 seed in the West with a 22-10 record.

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Everybody predicted the Wizards to lose before the tip-off against Brooklyn on Monday night. They were in bad form, dealing with injuries and COVID-19 issues, while the Nets had won the last four and seemed like they are just getting hot.

Things looked like advertised for the better part of the game, with Brooklyn leading as much as 18 points. But defensive issues and the resilience of Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal turned the easy win into a wild finish.

With 12 seconds left in the contest, the Nets were up by five, and it looked like they had this one in the bag. But Ish Smith quickly inbounded the ball and got it to Beal, who drilled a three-pointer to cut the lead in two.

Brooklyn’s Joe Harris tried to get the ball back in the court in a hurry after Beal’s shot, causing a miscommunication between him and Kevin Durant. Garrison Mathew stole the ball, dished it to Westbrook, who sunk a dagger three to completely turn around the game in just seven seconds.

The Nets tried to respond in the dying second, but the previous sequence by Wizards was too much of a shock for them to make something happen.

Russell Westbrook was the man of the night, having scored 41 points with 10 rebounds and eight assists. Bradley Beal followed with a similarly great game, putting up 37 points to go with six rebounds and four assists.

Kevin Durant was Brooklyn’s best player, having a 37-point, seven-rebound, and six-assist performance. Joe Harris and Kyrie Irving added 30 and 26 points, respectively.

Despite the win, the Wizards still have the worst record in the NBA league at 4-12. Nets are second in the East at 13-9.

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According to Wizards head coach Scott Brooks, Westbrook is dealing with a quadriceps injury and will be on the sidelines for at least one week. The 32-year-old All-Star initially got hurt during training camp and never fully recovered.

“It was starting to get better, and then he hit it again, set him back a little bit,” said Brooks. “And then the last time, it was in Philadelphia [on Wednesday], he hit it again.”

This is a tough blow for the Wizards, who had high hopes for 2020-21 but opened the season with a disappointing 2-8 record.

The news also comes after Washington starter Thomas Bryant also got injured for the season. Bryant suffered a torn ACL in a loss to Boston Celtics on Saturday.

The Wizards acquired Russell Westbrook in the offseason, trading guard John Wall and a protected first-round pick to the Houston Rockets in exchange. The franchise hoped that pairing Westbrook with their superstar Bradley Beal could finally put Washington in contention in the Eastern Conference.

However, Westbrook hasn’t been able to provide that so far despite being on the verge of averaging a triple-double. He’s played seven games in a Wizards’ jersey and contributed 19.3 points, 11.3 assists, and 9.7 rebounds per contest so far.

The post Wizards’ Russell Westbrook Dealing with Quadriceps Injury appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Apparently, LeBron got in touch with Arenas recently and asked him to keep an eye on his son during a training session.

As Arenas explained to NBC Sports Washington’s Chris Miller, “LeBron hit me on Instagram and said ‘My son is starting to train and he’s training with Dribble2Much. Can you go over there and put some eyes on him and let me know because I’m kind of worried about him.’ I went there, watched him, and gave him some pointers.”

After the session, Arenas had great things to report to his old friend: “He’s your clone, you don’t need to be worried,” he told LeBron. “Just from looking at him, you were probably taller, you’ve got the same speed, he probably jumps higher, passes probably the same, IQ probably the same, he shoots better and dribbles better.”

LeBron’s response to Arenas? “That is actually correct”

Bronny is currently 16 years old and is ranked 25th in the nation for his class, ESPN reports. He currently has offers to play basketball for colleges such as Kentucky, UCLA, Duke, Kansas, and North Carolina.

The post Gilbert Arenas Trains LeBron’s Son, Tells Him He’s His “Clone” appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

Westbrook needed only three quarters to record his 147th career triple-double in the game against the Philadelphia 76ers, recording 13 points, 14 assists, and 10 rebounds before the final period. He finished the game with a stat line of 21 points, 15 assists, and 11 rebounds, but that still wasn’t enough for the Wizards to get a win.

Despite having a 10-point-lead entering the fourth, Wizards couldn’t hold onto it down the stretch and ended up starting the 2020-21 NBA season with a 113-107 loss.

Speaking with reporters after the game, Westbrook was self-critical and said that he was “kind of disappointed” with the way he played.

“Not good enough,” said Westbrook when asked to rate his performance. “Honestly, I am kind of disappointed in myself, just some mishaps and plays where I could have been better.”

But Westbrook did manage to impress his teammates, with his backcourt partner and fellow All-Star Bradley Beal saying that he loved the intensity that the 2017 NBA MVP brought to the team.

“Granted, it’s only one game, but I just love his energy, his competitiveness, and his accountability at the end of the day,” said Beal.

Westbrook joined the Washington Wizards earlier in the offseason after demanding a trade from the Houston Rockets. Reportedly, Westbrook felt that the Rockets are too “laid-back” and that he couldn’t play his game there.

Wizards gave up four-time All-Star point guard John Wall and a protected first-round pick to get Westbrook.

The post Russell Westbrook Debuts for Wizards With a Triple-Double appeared first on yoursportspot.com.

The Wizards, who are mired in the bottom half of the Eastern Conference standings with a 32-46 record, let go of the man who has led the franchise for the past 16 seasons.

Grunfeld was hired as the team’s president and GM in 2004 after the team fired basketball legend Michael Jordan from the same role.

The former team president’s tenure with the team got off to a fascinating start after the 2004-05 Wizards compiled a winning record for the first time in 26 seasons and qualified for the playoffs.

Grunfeld would go on to construct teams that went to the playoffs 8 times in his 16 seasons leading the team.

The Wizards won only one Southeast Division title, however, in sixteen tries.

In addition, Washington never advanced past the conference semifinals in their several playoff appearances under Grunfeld’s leadership. His overall record with the team was 568-724.

Although the Wizards franchise made progress under almost two decades of Grunfeld’s leadership, team ownership ultimately decided that this was not enough.

For now, Tommy Sheppard takes over as the team’s interim president.

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The 29-year-old missed the last three games due to the same injury. He got injured mid-December in the game versus the Los Angeles Lakers and hit again on Boxing Day as the team played Detroit. His MRI revealed he didn’t have any serious concerns close to the end of last year but has been limited in his basketball activities ever since.

Six weeks from now will be February 14, and the Wizards will have faced the Toronto Raptors a day before that. Of course, the forward could be allowed to play that game but only if the team will be satisfied by his recovery efforts.

But even if he doesn’t play against the Raptors, he will be set to play the Hornets when the league breaks for the All-Star game. The Wizards also have the option of trading him now that his contract is nearly up. But with his average of 11.5 points, it is uncertain many people will want him just before the playoffs begin.

At the moment, Washington depends on Thomas Bryant as their main player and a team that has been inconsistent at times.

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