Bub Carrington, Wizards guard, 21 years old, last question of a long interview with WUSA9. His answer, word for word: “We just haven’t been told yet to go be the best version of ourselves.” Pressed by the reporter, he makes air quotes with his hands and explains that the roster was held back for the first pick of the draft. “We were trying to get AJ Dybantsa.”
Not told yet. Told by whom? I do it every Saturday at half past eight, on the mic, for free.
Let me run the entrance again. The caretaker switches off half the strip lights. The two projectors from the school fête. “Mesdames et messieurs, dames en heren, this is the moment. Tonight, for the first time, the team has been cleared to be the best version of itself.” Two seconds of blank. [jingle] “Make some noise!”
And then Carrington’s next line, still from Eurohoops: “But now, no one has handcuffs. Everyone’s shackles free.” That is a playoff intro. I’m keeping it.
Adam Silver has proposed fines of more than $10 million for teams that lose games on purpose, and he has flattened the draft probabilities. My proposal is simpler: announce the start of the effort with a jingle. It costs less.
That night the sound system cut the jingle after three notes. It has opinions. And Carrington was on the floor for all 82 games, two seasons running. No jingle needed for that one. Just saying.
It’s true, we checked: Eurohoops.
