Nick Young has a feeling that his reputation for flaunting the silly may have contributed to his inability to get the kind of long-term contract that he desired in free agency.

“I have something to prove,” Young said. “I’m not going to take the joy away from me, because that’s how I am. But I’m going to try to tone it down.”

Young eventually had to settle for a one-year, $3.7 million qualifying offer from the Wizards. He will hit the market as an unrestricted free agent next summer.

“I’m trying to set the tone for where I want to be, my future and everything,” Young said. “I realize how serious they take everything in the league. I’m not trying to have those labels.”

Maurice Evans remains sidelined with a sore right knee and will get an MRI when the Wizards return home from Milwaukee.

Evans re-signed with the Wizards before their preseason opener but has been unable to practice the past week after development pain and swelling in his surgically-repaired knee.

He said the pain was reminiscent to what he felt before having surgery in August of 2010 to repair torn cartilage in his right knee and is “fearful” that the problem may have returned.

“I got to see why my knee is swollen, and we can go from there, so I can be effective out there,” Evans said. “I know, going out there at 70 percent, 60 percent, isn’t going to help this team right now. We understand that we’ve got guys who are playing and some of them are playing pretty well in my position, so it’s no point in trying. I could be insurance right now, obviously, but the reason they brought me in to be a veteran presence and truly help these young guys.”

Andray Blatche responded to criticisms of his criticism of the coaching staff for not getting him the ball in the low post by again going on Twitter to write, “Every body need to shut up I didn’t call out my coach or team mates I said I had a bad game need it n the post instead of jump shots.”

Coach Flip Saunders glossed over what Blatche had to say after practice, saying he was relieved to finally hear the 6-foot-11 big man finally declare that he was tired of being a “pick-and-pop” player.

“His reputation has been for six years that he won’t go in the post,” said Saunders, who once suspended Blatche two seasons ago for getting belligerent when the coaching staff demanded him to go inside instead of settling on jumpers.

“Him saying that he wants to go in the post, to me that’s, I like hearing him say that. We try to get him in the post,” Saunders said. “The other thing you have to understand is that other teams always aren’t going to let you do what you want to do. And he is a good post-up player.”

Andray Blatche finished with 11 points on 5-for-13 shooting, taking mostly jumpers, in a 90-84 loss to the Nets.

That didn’t sit well with the Wizards team captain, who addressed the crowd before tip-off.

A reporter asked Blatche to address Coach Flip Saunders’ comments that players were relying too much on individual production once the Wizards went comfortably ahead early in the second quarter, 37-17.

“He probably was talking about me for the simple fact that I said I need the ball in the paint to be effective,” Blatche said. “You can’t keep having me pick and pop and shooting jumpshots. Gimme the ball in the paint. That’s where I’m most effiective at. I’ve been saying that since training camp. I need the ball in the paint. I don’t wand to be the pick-and-pop guy I used to be because it’s not working for me.”

John Wall is committed to general manager Ernie Grunfeld's plan to rebuild the Wizards.

“He’s trying to add what we need,” Wall said. “He’s drafting the right guys . . . and keeping [cap] space open to add the right people to help us.”

Wall, 21, is spreading Grunfeld’s message of patience.

“We’re committed to doing it the right way,” Wall said. “We just want to be all about winning games here for a long time.”

Wall hopes to make Washington an attractive destination for free agents.

“It’s tough to win in this league when you only have one all-star," Wall said. "You’ve got to have a second guy with you or even a third guy. But I like it where I am. I like it here in D.C. Instead of going somewhere else, I would love to [help attract] people here.”

Nick Young thought his career year was going to produce a lucrative long-term deal, but a down free agent market and no reasonable alternatives forced him to sign his one-year, $3.7 million qualifying offer and stay with the only team he has known.

Instead of focusing on what didn’t happen, Young will put his attention on what he can control this season with the Wizards.

“I’m just taking it out on the league,” said Young, who averaged a career-best 17.4 points last season. “I’m not going to sit back and pout. Nobody owes nobody nothing. It’s a business, and if they want me back, I’ll come back to the Wizards. I’m happy to be here.”

Nick Young signed with the Wizards on Monday for their $3.7 million qualifying offer.

The Wizards had hoped to sign Young to a long-term deal, but the scoring wing was seeking a salary of approximately $9 million per year.

According to two high-ranking Western Conference officials and a high-ranking Eastern Conference official, Nick Young is seeking an annual salary in the range of $9 million per season – and few teams have the funds or the willingness to pay him right now.

“I do hear his price tag is pretty high,” one Western Conference official said.

Young averaged a career-high and team-leading 17.4 points per game last season for the Wizards, the highest among free agent shooting guards.

The Washington Wizards announced today that they have re-signed guard/forward Maurice Evans.

“Mo was a very good midseason addition to the team last season and we are excited to have him back with us,” said Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld. “In addition to the versatility and athleticism he brings to the lineup, he gives us another solid veteran presence along with Rashard Lewis, Roger Mason and Ronny Turiaf that balances nicely with our core of young players.”

Wizards owner Ted Leonsis again stressed his plan to build a championship-caliber team by drafting and developing young talent but also added that he expects the Wizards to eventually attract all-star talent to pair with John Wall.

“I hope to have our team to being considered a destination where players want to play,” Leonsis said. “Everyone knows that this is a fantastic city. If we can get the place rocking with lots of energy and we have an environment where they’re not just talented players, they’re welcoming, they’re embracing of people that join the team, word gets out and people will want to play here.”
Leonsis laughed off reports that depicted him as a hard-line owner, mentioning one account that labeled him a “hawk” following a meeting that he didn’t even attend because he was at a funeral.

“I voted yes for the deal,” Leonsis said. “It’s a partnership with the players, we’re in it together. As I said to the players at lunch, I only know of two relationships that I have 50-50 implications, one is with my wife, the second is with the basketball team and so I’m going to love them like their family, but I expect that same amount of love back. We all laughed and know we’re in it together, so I’m happy. I want to move on.

“My biggest issue in all of the discussions and negotiations was about competitiveness. I want to be able to build a team and keep it together, and I think that’s what the fans, before the fans can fall in love with your team, they need to know that ownership’s committed,” Leonsis said. “I anticipated a new system when I bought the team, that we could keep that team together, and I think we made some progress on that front. . . . I want to be more loyal to the players I know.”