59 Fun Facts About Washington Wizards

What name did the Wizards' Chinatown arena, shared with the city's NHL team, take in 2017?

Capital One Arena: the building opened as the MCI Center in December 1997, became Verizon Center in 2006, and took the Capital One name in August 2017.

The team's original 1961 nickname referenced which Chicago industry?

Meatpacking: the Packers name honoured Chicago's stockyards, but it was also the name of the Bears' Green Bay rivals and was dropped after one season.

What was the franchise called during its second season, 1962–63, its last in Chicago?

Zephyrs: the renamed Chicago Zephyrs played one season, 1962–63, with Rookie of the Year Terry Dischinger, before the franchise moved to Baltimore.

The 'Bullets' name adopted after the 1963 relocation was borrowed from what?

A defunct 1940s–50s Baltimore BAA/NBA franchise: the new club revived the name of the original Baltimore Bullets, champions of 1948, who had folded in 1954.

Which rookie starred for the 1961–62 Chicago Packers, averaging 31.6 points and 19 rebounds a game?

Walt Bellamy: the 1961 first overall pick won Rookie of the Year and led the league in field-goal percentage while the Packers finished 18–62.

Which owner bought the Bullets with two partners for $1.1 million in 1964 and held the team until 2009?

Abe Pollin: he bought in for $1.1 million in 1964, became sole owner in 1968, and at his death in November 2009 was the NBA's longest-tenured owner.

Who is the only player in franchise history to win league MVP (1969) and Finals MVP (1978)?

Wes Unseld: he won Rookie of the Year and MVP in the same 1968–69 season, a double achieved only by Wilt Chamberlain before him, then was Finals MVP in 1978.

With which pick did the Bullets draft both Earl Monroe (1967) and their future MVP centre (1968)?

Second overall: Monroe went second behind Jimmy Walker in 1967, and the centre went second a year later, after which the Bullets jumped from 36 wins to 57.

Which team swept the Bullets in their first NBA Finals appearance in 1971?

Milwaukee Bucks: Lew Alcindor and Oscar Robertson swept Baltimore 4–0 after the Bullets had ousted the Knicks in a Game 7 at Madison Square Garden.

Which Hall of Fame forward did Baltimore acquire from the Houston Rockets in 1972?

Elvin Hayes: 'The Big E' came from Houston for Jack Marin in 1972, anchored the 1978 title team, and was traded back to the Rockets in 1981.

What was the team's name during its first season in the Washington area, 1973–74?

Capital Bullets: the name lasted one season, 1973–74, at the new Capital Centre in Landover, before the club became the Washington Bullets in 1974.

On which college campus did the Bullets play in November 1973 while their new arena was finished?

Maryland: the Bullets used the University of Maryland's Cole Field House in College Park until the Capital Centre opened in Landover on December 2, 1973.

What regular-season record did the Bullets post in 1974–75?

60–22: the 1974–75 Bullets won a franchise-record 60 games, ran away with the Central Division, and reached the Finals, where they were swept.

Which team stunned the heavily favoured Bullets with a four-game sweep in the 1975 NBA Finals?

Golden State Warriors: Rick Barry's Warriors, coached by Al Attles, won Games 1 and 4 at the Capital Centre and Games 2 and 3 at the Cow Palace.

Which team did the Bullets beat in seven games to win the 1978 NBA championship?

Seattle SuperSonics: Washington won Game 7 in Seattle 105–99, the city's first major pro title since the Redskins' 1942 NFL championship.

Which phrase, popularised by sportswriter Dan Cook, became the rallying cry of the 1978 title run?

It ain't over 'til the fat lady sings: coach Dick Motta repeated Cook's line throughout the 1978 playoffs as the underdog Bullets kept winning.

What was the Bullets' regular-season record in their 1977–78 championship season?

44–38: the Bullets won only 44 regular-season games in 1977–78, then went 14–7 in the playoffs to take the title.

In the 1979 East finals the Bullets came back from 3–1 down to beat which team in a Game 7 classic?

They beat George Gervin's Spurs 107–105 before losing the Finals to Seattle in five.

In August 1979 the Bullets became the first NBA team to visit which country?

China: the Bullets toured in August 1979 as the first NBA team to play there, beating the army's Bayi Rockets and a Shanghai team.

Which 7-foot-7 shot-blocker set a franchise record with 397 blocks as a Bullets rookie in 1985–86?

Manute Bol: the Sudanese rookie's 397 blocks in 1985–86 set an NBA rookie record and averaged just under five a game.

Which centre did the Bullets acquire from Philadelphia in 1986 in exchange for Jeff Ruland?

Moses Malone: the three-time MVP arrived with Terry Catledge for Ruland and Cliff Robinson and led the 1986–87 Bullets with 24.1 points a game in a 42–40 season.

Which 5-foot-3 guard, the shortest player in NBA history, did the Bullets draft 12th overall in 1987?

Muggsy Bogues: the 5-foot-3 Wake Forest guard played one season in Washington before Charlotte took him in the 1988 expansion draft, and he became a Hornets legend.

Which executive did the Bullets name as the first female president of an NBA franchise?

Susan O'Malley: having joined the Bullets' front office in 1986, she rose to the presidency, the first woman to hold that post in the NBA, and oversaw the business side for over a decade.

Which 7-foot-7 Romanian centre won Most Improved Player with the Bullets in 1995–96?

Gheorghe Mureșan: the Romanian giant averaged 14.5 points in 1995–96 to win Most Improved Player, led the league in field-goal percentage twice, and starred in 1998's 'My Giant'.

Which forward did the Bullets acquire from Golden State in 1994 for Tom Gugliotta and three first-round picks?

Chris Webber: he reunited with Michigan Fab Five teammate Juwan Howard, but shoulder injuries and off-court trouble led to a May 1998 trade to Sacramento.

Why did the team's owner decide in 1995 to drop the 'Bullets' name?

It had acquired violent overtones amid D.C.'s crime rate: with Washington suffering one of the nation's highest murder rates, and shaken by the assassination of his friend Yitzhak Rabin, he announced the change in November 1995.

Which of these was NOT among the five finalists in the contest to rename the Bullets?

Monuments was never on the list: the five finalists were Dragons, Express, Sea Dogs, Stallions and the winning Wizards, adopted for the 1997–98 season.

Why did the 'Wizards' name generate controversy when it was adopted?

'Wizard' is a rank in the Ku Klux Klan: 'Imperial Wizard' and 'Grand Wizard' are Klan titles, an unwelcome echo in a city with a large African American majority.

The 1997 Wizards colours of blue, black and bronze matched which other team with the same owner?

The Capitals had made the same switch from red, white and blue two years earlier.

In 1998 the Wizards became the 'brother team' of which WNBA franchise?

Washington Mystics: the WNBA expansion side launched in 1998 under the same ownership, were sold off in 2005, and came back under common ownership with the Wizards in 2010.

At what age did Michael Jordan come out of retirement to play for the Wizards in September 2001?

38: born in February 1963, Jordan was 38 when he returned in September 2001, surrendering his minority ownership stake in the Wizards to play.

Which high-schooler's first overall pick in 2001 helped get Michael Jordan fired as team president?

Kwame Brown: the Georgia high-schooler Jordan chose first overall in 2001 never averaged more than 10.9 points in Washington, and the pick was held against Jordan when he was dismissed in May 2003.

Which player, signed in 2003 thanks to Jordan's cap-clearing moves, became the face of the mid-2000s Wizards?

Gilbert Arenas: 'Agent Zero' signed as a free agent in the summer of 2003 and made three straight All-Star teams from 2005 to 2007.

Game 3 of the 2005 first round was the franchise's first home playoff game held where?

Within Washington, D.C. city limits: every earlier home playoff game had been in Baltimore or at the Capital Centre in Landover, across the District line.

How many points did the Wizards' star guard score against the Lakers in December 2006?

60: the guard scored 60, with 16 of them in overtime, in a 147–141 win at Los Angeles on 17 December 2006, a franchise record.

The 2009–10 Wizards season was derailed when their star guard admitted to storing what in his locker?

Unloaded firearms: he admitted keeping unloaded guns in his locker after a dispute with Javaris Crittenton, and a finger-guns pregame stunt got him suspended for the rest of the season.

Which sitting US president attended a Wizards–Bulls game weeks after his inauguration?

Barack Obama: the Chicago fan sat courtside at Verizon Center in February 2009 and watched his Bulls lose to a Wizards side heading for a 19–63 season.

Which owner took control of the Wizards in 2010 through Monumental Sports & Entertainment?

Ted Leonsis: the former AOL executive completed his purchase of the Wizards in June 2010 and published a list of 101 promised changes, including a return to red, white and blue.

Whom did the Wizards pick first overall after winning the 2010 draft lottery?

John Wall: the Kentucky point guard went first overall in 2010, ahead of Evan Turner, and made five All-Star teams in Washington between 2014 and 2018.

Which Wizards player became the first openly gay active athlete in a major North American team sport in 2013?

Jason Collins: the centre, acquired from Boston that February, came out in a Sports Illustrated essay in April 2013 and later played for the Brooklyn Nets.

Which veteran forward's two-year deal in 2014 helped the Wizards to a 46–36 record?

Paul Pierce: the 36-year-old signed for two years in July 2014, and the 46–36 Wizards then swept Toronto 4–0 in the first round.

Which player did the Wizards draft third overall in 2012 to pair with their 2010 No. 1 pick?

Bradley Beal: the Florida guard went third in 2012 behind Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, became a three-time All-Star, and was traded to Phoenix in 2023.

In 2016–17 the Wizards won a division title for the first time since which year?

1979: the Bullets had last topped their division in 1978–79; the 2016–17 Wizards' 49 wins were also the most since that season.

Whom did the Wizards receive from Houston when they traded their five-time All-Star point guard in 2020?

Russell Westbrook: he averaged 22.2 points, 11.5 rebounds and 11.7 assists in 2020–21, his fourth triple-double season, before being dealt to the Lakers that summer.

Which Japanese forward did the Wizards select ninth overall in 2019?

Rui Hachimura: the Gonzaga forward went ninth in 2019 as the first Japanese player ever taken in the first round, and was traded to the Lakers in January 2023.

Which French centre did the Wizards take with the No. 2 pick in 2024?

Alex Sarr: the 7-foot Frenchman, who played in Australia's NBL before the draft, went second behind Zaccharie Risacher after the Wizards' 15–67 season.

The three stars on the Wizards' 2015 'monument ball' logo represent D.C. and which two states?

Maryland and Virginia: the stars stand for the District and its two neighbouring states, echoing the three stars of the D.C. flag.

The Wizards' pink 2022–23 'City' uniform paid homage to what?

Cherry blossoms: the pink and white uniform echoed the Tidal Basin's spring blossoms and matched the Nationals' 2022 cherry-blossom 'City Connect' jersey.

Which 1978 title-team assistant returned as head coach in 1997 and ended a nine-year playoff drought?

Bernie Bickerstaff: Dick Motta's assistant in 1978 took over from Jim Lynam midway through 1996–97, and the Bullets clinched their first playoff berth since 1988 by beating Cleveland in the season finale.

Mayor Muriel Bowser's 2024 deal keeps the Wizards and Caps in D.C. until at least what year?

2050: the March 2024 agreement with the District for a publicly funded renovation of their downtown arena extended the teams' lease to 2050 after the Alexandria arena plan collapsed.

In which decade did the Bullets reach four NBA Finals, more than any other team?

1970s: the Bullets reached four Finals in the decade, starting in 1971 and including consecutive trips at its end, but won the title only once, in 1978.

The Baltimore Bullets' original blue-and-orange colours matched which two other Baltimore teams?

The Orioles and the Colts: the new Bullets borrowed the Orioles' orange and the Colts' blue, colours they kept until the switch to red, white and blue after the 1973 move.

What was the Bullets' home record at the Capital Centre in 1974–75?

36-5: the Bullets lost only five regular-season home games in 1974–75, then dropped both Finals games at the Capital Centre in the sweep.

Which team took Juwan Howard, Obinna Ekezie and Calvin Booth in the 2001 blockbuster trade?

Dallas Mavericks: Mark Cuban's Mavericks sent Christian Laettner, Loy Vaught, Courtney Alexander, Hubert Davis, Etan Thomas and cash to Washington in the February 2001 deal.

Which head coach led the Wizards to their 2005 playoff berth, their first under that name?

Eddie Jordan: hired in 2003, he coached the Wizards to 45 wins and a first-round upset of Chicago in 2005, the franchise's first playoff series win since 1982.

Which Georgetown All-American did the Wizards draft third overall in 2013?

Otto Porter: the consensus All-American forward went third in 2013 after Washington jumped five spots in the lottery, giving the team the third pick for the second straight year.

How much was Scott Brooks's five-year contract to coach the Wizards, signed in April 2016?

$35 million: the former Oklahoma City coach signed a five-year deal in April 2016, days after Randy Wittman was fired following a 41–41 season.

Whom did the Wizards trade away to acquire Kristaps Porziņģis at the 2022 deadline?

Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans: both were sent away in February 2022, Bertans carrying a five-year, $80 million contract that had produced little in Washington.

Who led the 15–67 Wizards of 2023–24 in scoring with a career-high 22.2 points?

Kyle Kuzma: the forward averaged a career-high 22.2 points in 2023–24, leading a team that finished 15–67 under interim coach Brian Keefe.