Ted Leonsis told Grant & Danny Thursday that he doesn’t like to fire executives…but that’s exactly what he did with both of his teams this spring, axing Capitals head coach Peter Laviolette and then replacing Wizards GM Tommy Sheppard with an all-new front office.
The former may have been a mutual parting of ways…but when it comes to the latter, it’s clear Leonsis thought it was time for something new.
But did that idea come to Leonsis after seeing the Commanders being sold, and thinking of what new ownership may do to DC’s football franchise?
“I hope people are ready to be patient,” Scott Jackson, in for JP Finlay on Friday, said during BMitch & Finlay. “This is significant, as in we’re changing direction, as it is with the Commanders now a month into the exclusive sale process. In a sense, the owner is still here with the Wizards, but he’s totally done something he’s never done with any of his teams to set the structure, and I find that interesting. There’s a lot of excitement around what’s going on with the Commanders, but I feel like the Wizards have gotten some juice from this.”
“They’ve gotten lax over the last couple years; the Commanders weren’t doing the things they were supposed to do, and it was more negative than positive, and they had everything at their beck and call,” BMitch replied. “They did get a Cup out of the Caps, but you look at how many years it has been – was that enough?”
Scott & BMitch discussed the Caps’ future and then how Michael Winger once again sounded confident and already ready with a plan when he joined the Junkies earlier Friday…but Mitchell had to give Winger some flack for Thursday’s presser starting a little later than noon.
“It is still mysterious to me that he was late to his own press conference, and he shouldn’t have been late unless he was trying to make a major trade,” BMitch said. “What was he discussing?”
Related
Scott was watching Commanders minicamp practice so he didn’t see it, but he does wonder what changed for Ted Leonsis after signing Bradley Beal to a max deal last year.
“We don’t know what these guys are going to do, but you don’t bring these people in here to stay status quo,” Scott said. “You could’ve done that with Tommy Sheppard.”
“If you want to tell people we’re rebuilding and be straight up with it, they’ll buy it,” BMitch replied. “And, if you want to run it back, you just have to be honest with them. If you’re going status quo, they expect you to win with what you have, but either way, you have to be honest. Me, I don’t see this thing looking the same within two or three years.”
Listen to Scott Jackson and Brian Mitchell’s entire conversation about the Wizards above!
Follow BMitch & Finlay on Twitter: @BMitchliveNBCS, @JPFinlayNBCS, and @BMitchandFinlay
Keep up with 106.7 The Fan via:
Audacy App | Online Stream | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram