TUESDAY, JULY 27, 2010
KLMNO SOCCER
NOTEBOOK United will hear in Sept. about possible new stadium in Baltimore by Steven Goff
D.C. United is awaiting the re- sults of the economic feasibility study being conducted by the Maryland Stadium Authority in regard to a possible project in Bal- timore near the Ravens football and Orioles baseball facilities. United President Kevin Payne ex- pects the final report to be re- leased in September. “I won’t categorize [the stadi-
um effort], but in Maryland, there is a clearer, tried-and-true proc- ess,” Payne said Saturday. “It’s po- tentially a fairly clean deal be-
cause there is a developer, there is available land and there’s the Maryland Stadium Authority. Once the economic report comes out, then the city and the state will decide if ultimately that is something they want to move for- ward with.”
Baltimore is the only site in
Maryland under consideration at the moment, Payne said. As for Washington: “We are
quietly having some conversa- tions in D.C. with developers and others. We will see if there are any real possibilities here,” Payne said, adding that Poplar Point, the club’s first choice for a new facility
to replace RFK Stadium, “is a fair- ly confused situation right now” because of issues with the transfer of land from federal to city hands. And Virginia? “We still have had a few conversations with the developer,” Payne said “It’s a little more difficult to do things like this in Virginia because it’s harder to finance. Effectively, the public entities will not get involved.”
Decision looms on Junior United will decide this week
whether to offer a contract to Bra- zilian midfielder Junior Carreiro, an 18-year-old right wing who has been training with the club for
several months. He is the younger brother of Fred, the former Unit- ed attacker now with the Philadel- phia Union. Judging from General Manager
Dave Kasper’s comments about Junior, an offer is in the works. “He is a good long-term prospect,” he said. “In the last two months, coaches have spent a lot of time with him becoming more of a two- way player, but he has good at- tacking qualities, good vision, he’s a good passer, strikes the ball well. He is someone we would see more down the line and not coming in and making an immediate im- pact.”
PROFESSIONAL BASKETBALL TRACEE HAMILTON Hinrich will add consistency hamilton from D1
and they’ll want him to bring some of that magic to D.C. He’s also been a leader at every
level. Sons of coaches can go in two directions on the court: They can turn into obnoxious blowhards or floor generals. Hinrich, who played for his father from third grade through high school, made it through Door No. 2. Father and son won the Iowa state championship in his senior season at Sioux City West High School. He then polished his game at Kansas under Roy Williams. That meant running the offense as well as hard-nosed hustling on defense. He took the Jayhawks to consecutive Final Fours; fans wept on Senior Night in 2003. The Bulls drafted him seventh
PHOTOS BY JAHI CHIKWENDIU/THE WASHINGTON POST Guard Kirk Hinrich averaged 13.4 points and 5.8 assists while with the Chicago Bulls, who drafted him seventh overall in 2003.
Hinrich, new Wizards guard, knows some moves are good
Feisty competitor deftly avoids thunderstorm but not expectations
by Michael Lee
Kirk Hinrich and his wife, Jill, had just finished house hunting on Sunday when the two decided to explore their new surround- ings. But the afternoon stroll along the monuments and later through Georgetown was cut short when the two looked at one another and the new Washing- ton Wizards guard realized it was “unbelievably hot.” The couple wisely retreated to their air-conditioned hotel room only to discover that the timing couldn’t have been better as the District was hit with a sweeping, violent storm. From their win- dow, they spotted Boy Scouts fighting off wind and rain, tree branches blowing wildly, and probably had to wonder if they had really left behind the Windy City. “We got inside about 15 min-
utes before it started going cra- zy,” said Hinrich, whom the Wiz- ards obtained with the 17th over- all pick Kevin Seraphin from the Chicago Bulls in a deal that was agreed upon before the NBA draft. Hinrich established a reputa- tion as a feisty competitor, defen- sive specialist and unassuming leader in seven seasons with the Bulls, where he’s averaged 13.4 points and 5.8 assists after being drafted seventh overall out of Kansas in 2003. But just as he couldn’t predict the Sunday storm on his wife’s first visit to his new town, Hinrich didn’t ex- pect to get traded to Washington this summer. “It was a bit of a shock. I really
didn’t see it coming. I know the last couple of seasons my name has been in trade rumors. This one kind of hit us a little bit blindsided,” Hinrich said at his introductory news conference, which came nearly three weeks after the trade became official, with the Wizards only sending back 2006 second-round pick
“It was a bit of a shock. I really didn’t see it coming,” Hinrich said of going to the Wizards after playing seven seasons with Chicago.
Vladimir Veremeenko. “But you know I’m very appreciative of my time in Chicago. They gave me an opportunity to become a pro player and grow as one, but I think our family is very excited for a change. More importantly for myself, I’m thrilled to have a fresh start. I’ve been with Chica- go a long time and we have a young, very talented team [in Washington] and I’m excited for the opportunity we have ahead of us.” The Bulls shipped Hinrich to
Washington hoping to clear cap space in order to sign two mar- quee free agents this summer, a gamble that never took shape. The Wizards gladly accepted Hinrich — who is owed $17 mil- lion over the next two seasons — the draft pick and an extra $3 million that came with the deal. But team president Ernie Grunfeld was especially elated to get a 29-year-old guard who has been a second-team all-defensive performer and was the starting point guard for the United States bronze medal team in the 2006 World Championships. Grunfeld admitted that he has wanted to acquire Hinrich since he was general manager for the Mil- waukee Bucks. “He went the pick before and I think it’s safe to say if he hadn’t gone before us, he would’ve gone to us to Milwau- kee,” said Grunfeld, who settled for T.J. Ford in his last move be-
fore joining the Wizards later that summer. “We’ve been fol- lowing his career and obviously, he hasn’t disappointed yet. He brings it every night. He’s been a winner his whole career in col- lege and the pros. He’s a very, very versatile player. He’s an out- standing defender. He’s played with a point guard who was the No. 1 pick and he’s mentored him.” Hinrich has been credited with ushering along all-star point guard Derrick Rose, the No. 1 overall pick in 2008, and the Wizards are hoping that he can have a similar influence on their current top choice, John Wall. Wall has been compared fa- vorably to Rose since both play- ers spent one year playing for John Calipari, but Hinrich played down the effect he had on Rose.
“I wouldn’t say I was hands
off; I worked with him a lot, but everybody was like, ‘Oh, you mentored Derrick Rose.’ I feel like I got way too much credit for it,” Hinrich said. “I talked to him and stuff like that, but he was very good. With my versatility, I was able to play alongside him and complement him pretty well, I feel.”
When asked how that experi- ence will help him adjust to play- ing with Wall, Hinrich said, “I’m excited to get out there and play with him. He’s an excellent play-
er, an excellent talent. We’ll see how it goes.” Hinrich actually had a role in one of the greatest moments for the Wizards franchise in the past decade, when Gilbert Arenas buried a jumper over him and Ty- son Chandler in Game 5 of a spir- ited first-round playoff series in Chicago in 2005. Arenas is expec- ted to return to form an interest- ing back-court duo with Wall af- ter getting suspended 50 games for bringing guns to the locker room. Grunfeld said all three guards should share time on the court together. “Gilbert is one of the toughest guards in the league, the way he can shoot with his range and his speed,” Hinrich said. “I’ve played against him a lot and I’m looking forward to being on the same side with him. My impressions of him is that he’s a good kid and we’re going to go out there and have a lot of fun.” Hinrich is joining a franchise
undergoing a makeover, rebuild- ing from the ground up and mov- ing from high-octane offensive machine to a rugged, blue-collar team. He said he fits into the new direction of the organization. “I feel like I’m 22 again. I’m just fired up, trying to prove myself and prove that the Wizards can be good,” Hinrich said. “It’s chal- lenge and I’m excited for it. I feel like we definitely have the per- sonnel to be a playoff team. More importantly, just from the out- side, it feels like this town has had a hard time with all the stuff that’s been going on. Hopefully, we just go out there, play hard for them, play some good basketball and it’ll be good.”
leem@washpost.com
VIDEO ON THE WEB Kirk Hinrich talks about his time in
Chicago and his excitement about playing for the Wizards.
PETER JONES/REUTERS
From his Iowa roots to Kansas to the Bulls, guard Kirk Hinrich has been a winner and increasingly has been looked to for leadership.
“He brings it
every night.” — Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld, on newly acquired guard Kirk Hinrich
overall that summer, and if he hadn’t gone seventh, he’d have gone eighth, because Wizards GM Ernie Grunfeld, then with the Milwaukee Bucks, wanted him badly. After his first season, he was named to the all-rookie team with some names you’ll recognize: LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and Carmelo Anthony. In seven seasons in Chicago,
Hinrich averaged 13.4 points, 5.8 assists and 2.2 turnovers, went to the playoffs five times, and was voted captain four times. In fact, at all levels of the game, Hinrich was a leader, without even trying. “It just seems like everywhere I
go, the way I play, my teammates really respect me,” he said. “It started out, I wasn’t very vocal, I tried to lead by example. I wasn’t even trying to be a leader. Guys are always looking to me for that. As I moved on in my career I knew that my teammates were looking to me for leadership. I tried to become a better leader and be more vocal and everything like that.” Hinrich is a physical player who has had a few on-court incidents in his day. Pat Riley once famously accused him of deliberately hurting Wade’s wrist during a game. He threw his mouthpiece into the stands during a playoff game against the Heat in 2007 and should have been ejected, but got away with it.
And that’s about it. There are
no DUIs haunting his past, no off-court incidents. To put it bluntly, he won’t be bringing any guns into the locker room or embarrassing his team. Instead, you’ll get consistent play from a guy who never quits. He’s as steady as the summer heat in D.C. Hinrich also has an Iowa taciturnity about him. When he learned in June that the Bulls had arranged to trade him and the draft rights to Kevin Seraphin to the Wizards for the draft rights to Vladimir
Veremeenko, he was less than happy, but the deal wasn’t official, so he kept his mouth shut. The deal was completed on July 8, and when the Chicago Tribune finally tracked him down, he said only nice things about the Bulls, who had just dumped him to clear cap space to enter the race for the James-Wade-Bosh trifecta. “It was a bit of a shock,”
Hinrich said. “I really didn’t see it coming. I know the last couple of seasons my name has been in trade rumors. This one kind of hit us a little bit blindsided. But you know I’m very appreciative of my time in Chicago. They gave me an opportunity to become a pro player and to grow as one.” He’s heard a lot of talk about how he mentored Derrick Rose during Rose’s rookie season in Chicago, and he’s quick to demur, saying that he’s getting too much credit and that Rose is simply an incredible talent. He says the same thing about new teammate and No. 1 draft pick John Wall. The Wizards’ plan calls for Hinrich to share time in the backcourt with Wall and Gilbert Arenas, whom Hinrich called “one of the toughest guards in the league.”
“I know Gilbert and first of all,
I feel like he’s a top player in the league, no question,” said Hinrich, who prefers playing point guard but insists he’ll be happy with either role. “I’ve played against him a lot and I’m looking forward to being on the same side with him. My impression of him is that he’s a good kid and we’re going to go out there and have a lot of fun.” Hinrich smiled ruefully when talking about Arenas, whom he has good reason to know. The Wizards guard hit the game-winning shot to beat Chicago in Game 5 in the first round of the 2005 playoffs – right over Hinrich. So the newest Wizard had the best seat in the house for one of the franchise’s last happy moments. He’d like to give Wizards fans some new happy moments. He and wife Jill, whom he has known since his Iowa days, just bought a house in McLean and are preparing to move. “Our family is very excited for the change,” he said. “I don’t know exactly what
Washington fans [think], how they view me, but I’m excited to get here and let them get to know exactly how I play,” Hinrich said. “I’m just really excited to have a fresh start. I’m motivated as a player individually and as a team to bring the excitement back to town.” If Hinrich – with the help of
Wall and the other youngsters – can do that, then perhaps one day there really will be a Kirk Hinrich Day in Washington.
hamiltont@washpost.com
United has a roster slot avail- able following Christian Castillo’s departure. It could also place midfielder Brandon Barklage on the season-ending injured list, Kasper said. Junior played the second half of United’s 4-0 victory over Portsmouth on Saturday.
Injury update
Defenders Marc Burch (foot) and Dejan Jakovic (hamstring) are scheduled to resume full workouts this week. Midfielder- forward Chris Pontius (foot) might be available for Saturday’s match at Real Salt Lake. Defender Juan Manuel Peña (quadriceps) is
still at least a week away. . . . The highly acclaimed soccer
documentary “Pelada” will be shown Tuesday night at the Ava- lon Theatre in Northwest Wash- ington. United assistant coach Ben Olsen will introduce the film. Other D.C. players, as well as di- rector-producer Ryan White, are scheduled to attend. Twenty per- cent of proceeds go to the club’s charitable arm, United for D.C. . . . The roster for the U.S. national
team’s friendly against Brazil on Aug. 10 at the new Meadowlands stadium is tentatively scheduled to be announced early next week.
goffs@washpost.com
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