GO-GO keeps its rhythm through development
By: Wayne Cole (Photos via @CapitalCityGoGo/ Twitter)
Chances are if you are from Washington, D.C., You know Chuck Brown, Beat ya Feet, and the Congo drums all deal with Go-Go music. The GoGo I’m talking about involves players, coaches, and basketball. Capital City, to be precisely nicknamed the Go-Go, make its rhythm at Entertainment and Sports Arena, beating its feet to a different drum, developing its game to sync with the prospect of hearing their players and coaches get an NBA call-up which would sound as sweet as a song by Rare Essence.
The G league affiliate of the Washington Wizards is developing great habits. They are coming off a 21 – 10 season, which saw them advance to the second round falling to the Raptors 905 in OT 131–126. In that game, they were led by Jordan Goodwin, who finished with 35 and is a current Two-Way player who this team will rely on, as well as other returners and new players.
The Capital City Go-Go roster has some familiar faces returning, led by two-way players Jordan Goodwin and Jordan Schakel, Jaime Echenique, who Coach Mike and GM Amber Nichols call the best big man in the G, Devontae Shuler, and Craig Sword.
Coach Mike on what return players have added to their game, Jaime is in “great shape, faster and slimmer.” It should also be known he worked with Marcin Gortat, who called Jaime “very skilled.” Craig Sword is “becoming more disciplined as a defender.” He is already known for his defensive presence but is refining it, which should cause nightmares for opposing teams. Jordan Schakel, known for his elite shooting, has added an “off-the-bounce game; he’s a shooter, but he can now get to the cup if guys run him off,” says the coach. Devontae has added “passing and court vision, just making the simple pass,” said Coach.
Amber Nichols says what excites her about the roster is “we got more athletic, added defensive prowess; Kris Dunn is going to be an excellent vet for us, kinda like how Greg Monroe was for us last year. Jordan Goodwin and Jordan Schakel continued extensions from last year, Jamie Echnique is arguably the best big in the G League, and Craig Sword is back, someone who is flying under the radar but is starting to wake people up defensively. I really like our exhibit 10 guys; Quenton Jackson is an amazing athlete, amazing toughness, and amazing competitiveness; Davion Mintz, it’s really crazy he’s a Vet in a rookies body just in terms of how he thinks the game everyone at Kentucky had nothing but great things to say about him. Makur Maker, with his versatility and skill set, his ability to stretch the floor, and his size, is just something we had to have, so I’m excited to see how all these mesh together.”
While Amber has assembled the roster, Coach Mike will be in charge of putting the players in places to succeed on the court. I asked the question about roster excitement to him, and here is what he said.
“We have a unique mixture of Size, Athleticism, and skill. We have Kris Dunn, who is a big guard who can post up and guard multiple positions. Guys like Makur Maker, who can shoot the ball and is almost a 7-footer who can guard multiple positions, he can guard some threes, some fours. Guys returning like Craig, you know Craig does a little bit of everything; Jaime coming back, we just have a good mixture of pieces that fit together really well.”
Coach Mike Williams and Amber Nichols will welcome Washington Wizards players who may not get time to the Wizards to get reps and time with the Go-Go. Amber says, “verbiage is important; it’s not a demotion to come down to the G, and instead, it’s going across the hall instead of going down; words matter.” when asked, both responded they are prepared to give lottery pick Johnny Davis time as well as 2nd-year player Isaiah Todd.
Amber says the Wizards and Go-Go use the same language, and plays, so everything is more accessible to players in both systems. Having the Wizards and Go-Go under the same building also gives them an advantage, such as discussing plays, seeing practice up close, and building rapport. Most NBA/G League teams do not practice nearby or in the same facility. Last year during Covid, Go-Go players received call-ups from the Wizards; Amber called it a “testament to Tommy Sheppard for looking in-house.”
I told Coach Mike he set a standard of going to the playoffs last year, the first time in this Organization’s history, and how he plans to build off it. “it’s funny you asked that Wayne; because one of the things that’s been on my mind a lot is just because we had success last year doesn’t mean we will have success this year and I’ve been thinking a lot about that we can’t skip steps, so while last year was great, we made the playoffs we have a different roster. A lot of our staple guys are not here, and it’s a challenge, I’m excited, and I believe in our group this year as I did last year. We can build off that experience myself, Amber, and the returning guys. We can’t be complacent. This is a brand new year, brand new opportunity, and we have to treat it as such.”
You have a general idea of the player’s strengths and the team makeup, but what about the Coaches who will lead them on the court? I asked both Coach Mike, and GM Amber Nichols, about what excites them about the Go-Go Coaching Staff.
Coach Mike says, “they’re wonderful; I think their experience is so diverse. We have Barbara Turner, who played a UCONN, played Overseas, played in the WNBA, she coached in the WNBA, she coached for the Rockets. Arinze Onuaku who played for a long time with a bunch of teams. Derrick Allen, who brings some head coaching experience over from Germany, and he played for a long time. And, of course, Landon Tatum, who has been with the Wizards organization for the last seven years, but he’s done a lot of things around two staffs, Coach Brooks and Wes, and he’s done player development he’s been an assistant, and I think this will be a great chance for him to grow and develop as a coach and do some things he wouldn’t be able to do in year’s past.”
Amber Nichols said, “ I’m really excited about Mike’s staff. We checked all the boxes in the experience we wanted to add. Derrick Allen has International experience; he’s a former player and coach, which really excited us just in case we do have guys who want to play Internationally. He can acclimate guys to what to expect over there, and if we look to get young international draft players, he can help acclimate them to the organization. Landon Tatum bringing that Wizards presence, who’s been awesome. He knows what these guys have to do to impress at the next level, and he knows what NBA coaching staffs are looking for from G league guys, so he’s been able to voice that. Arinze Onuaku has a really successful playing career playing internationally with a stint in the NBA; he’s been really good for our bigs showing them the way and teaching things they can apply in the game. Barbara Turner is just the icing on the cake. She has experience playing at UCONN, played in the W, and played overseas; she coached with the rockets last year and helped Alperen Şengün acclimate to the states, and then she went and coached in Atlanta this past WNBA season. She’s been great with the guys. Her temperament, her experience how she holds guys accountable this is a really good staff, and I’m excited to see how they do this year.
I’ll also add that Peter Fusilero, who joins the staff as video coordinator and player development, brings significant experience as well, with stops at Georgia, Kansas, and UIC. He’s been around the game and has a rapport with current and former NBA players that will translate to the G league.
Many people focus on players’ work in the offseason, but I wanted to gauge how Coach Mike Williams got better or improved as a coach for his team.
I asked Coach Mike how did he [make lemonade] this summer. He paused and called it a great question. He replied and said “fresh mindset” and “developed relationships, and committed to his development as well as watching the film, and talking to coaches.” he also brought up one of the team’s values, “Kaizen,” a Japanese term that means “continuous improvement” It would be a shame if I talked about it to everyone else and didn’t do it myself he said. He feels like he got better by being a better communicator, watching film, and being involved in TEAM USA. He laughs, “all that encompasses how I made lemonade this summer.”
You may be asking what is “make lemonade.” for now, it’s something special I’ll keep between the team and me. If you’re good at context clues, you may pick it up, but it’s almost like a secret code; I became close to the team and began to use it in my life. I like to remind the coach and players, especially in the postgame, how they made lemonade. I just gave you a reason to come to a game and find out what it means as well…🍋
Coach stressed that his job is to get players prepared in the event the Wizards may call a player up. Coach also said he wants to make sure everyone is getting something from this experience; “the G League is for everyone to develop, not just players, coaches, front office, and medical; I feel a great responsibility to help people get to where they want to be, so I have to make sure I have the broad perspective and bird’s eye view.” Coach’s goal is to maximize his time with everyone, be intentional and develop everyone.
Amber said it best, “with no disrespect to the Euro league. The G League may be the second-best league behind the NBA.” I’d have to agree. There is no night off in the G; you get high-level competition, and someone is always looking to take your spot. The G is filled with NBA-level talent fighting to make an NBA roster.
Ironically, the Capital City Go-Go opens the season on November 5, 2022, at 7:00 pm at Entertainment and Sports Arena against the team who ended it last year, the Raptors 905. I would encourage any fan of basketball to attend a game. Over 50% of opening night NBA rosters had former G league players, which will only grow. You can get good seats, close to significant action, and you might even be able to say, “I saw that player in the G before he was a star in the NBA.”
You can follow me on Twitter @ waynec0le for all Capital City Go-Go exclusives, news, video, and updates.
