Washington Wizards Are Gaining Valuable Momentum Before The NBA Playoffs
By Ben Mehic
The Washington Wizards haven’t met a lot of expectations this season. They’re going to fall short of winning 50 games and the team is still too reliant on John Wall. Even though the season has been up-and-down, the Wizards are looking to finish the regular season on a high note.
It might seem like a long time ago, but the the Wizards were playing some of their worst basketball of the season just a few weeks ago. Losses to the Philadelphia 76ers and Minnesota Timberwolves demoralized the entire team and all optimism heading toward the NBA Playoffs appeared to be gone.
Fast-forward a few weeks and the Washington Wizards are just one game behind the fourth place Toronto Raptors. They’ve strung together three straight wins, including a victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on the road. The sky is still intact and won’t fall, after all.
Wizards Get Lift From Unlikely Players
Prior to the beginning of the season, the Washington Wizards were credited for putting together a much deeper roster than last year’s team that got bounced out of the semi-finals. The additions of Kris Humphries, Paul Pierce and DeJuan Blair were supposed to solidify Washington’s spot as a top team in the Eastern Conference.
Unfortunately, that’s not quite what happened.
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Pierce has given Washington a boost offensively and he’s been a competent defender, but the 37-year-old has been inconsistent.
Blair never cracked Wittman’s rotation and was often used as the team’s victory cigar at the end of blowout wins.
Humphries has replaced Trevor Booker‘s on-court production, but at times, the Wizards have lacked the intensity Booker and Al Harrington brought to the table.
Humphries also dealt with a groin injury which sidelined him for weeks, forcing Wittman to look for production from an unlikely candidate — Drew Gooden.
Last year, Gooden became one of the NBA’s top comeback players as he filled in for Nene during the final stretch of the regular season. Similar to last season, Gooden has stepped up and become a major contributor. His ability to stretch the floor and rebound has been a godsend for Washington’s archaic, uncreative, offense.
Wittman turned to Rasual Butler and Martell Webster a few weeks ago, hoping he’d get a similar lift from them that he got from Gooden, but that obviously wasn’t the case. Both veteran forwards failed to take advantage of their playing opportunity, and Wittman finally opted to give Otto Porter a chance.
Of course, Porter should have been given the chance right from the start, but I guess it’s better late than never. Before Saturday night’s game in Memphis, Porter scored 15+ points for three straight games, all of which he started in place of Pierce (rest).
Porter’s length, movement without the ball and willingness to run in transition has made him a perfect fit along side Wall and Bradley Beal. While Pierce has lived up to expectations, Porter gives Washington a different look. The former third overall pick has flourished with the starters and will likely become a key part of Washington’s rotation going forward.
The Washington Wizards have also gotten a big lift off the bench from Ramon Sessions, who they acquired in a trade-deadline deal with the Sacramento Kings in exchange for fan-favorite Professor Andre Miller.
Like most fans, I criticized the move immediately. Sessions, though, has been very solid since he’s begun donning the red-white-blue uniform.
Sessions, for whatever it’s worth, has been the league’s best defensive player since joining the Wizards. More importantly, however, he’s given the team a big lift on the offensive end of the floor.
Although he’s not the greatest finisher in the world, Sessions has a knack for creating contact and getting to the free throw line.
Miller is still an elite-level distributor, but Sessions has given Washington an offensive punch that they desperately needed.
The Wizards, all of a sudden, seem to have a solid rotation before the start of the NBA Playoffs. Players like Drew Gooden, Otto Porter and Ramon Sessions have increased their confidence and made the most of their chances. Once Pierce and Nene return to action, Washington will have some different options to work with. The challenge will be shortening their rotation before the playoffs begin.
Taking Advantage Of A Soft Schedule
The Washington Wizards have the chance to secure home court advantage in the NBA Playoffs. A few weeks ago, their chances at finishing in the top four seemed very unlikely. After a couple of dominating wins and a soft schedule, Washington will have the opportunity to sneak up on the Raptors or possibly even the Chicago Bulls.
Here’s a look at their remaining games:
- April 8th: Philadelphia 76ers
- April 10th: Brooklyn Nets
- April 12th: Atlanta Hawks
- April 14th: Indiana Pacers
- April 15th: Cleveland Cavaliers
On the surface, it might seem like the Wizards have a few challenging games coming up, but in reality, they should be considered the favorites in all of their remaining games.
The Sixers are, well, the Sixers. Brooklyn has been playing well as of late, but they’ve always struggled against Wall and Co. Atlanta will likely rest most of their starters, given that they’ve secured the first spot in the conference. Indiana is making their final push for the playoffs, but they’re still not the same team they were last season, even though Paul George is slowly making his way back. Cleveland, like Atlanta, will likely rest their starters.
Unless something disastrous happens, the Washington Wizards should win most, if not all, of their remaining games. At this point, as John Wall pointed out, it’s not even about placement in the standings, it’s about finishing the season with momentum before the NBA Playoffs.
"“I think we’re playing the right way….We want to play with a lot of momentum going into the playoffs. That’s key.”"
The Wizards could end up salvaging what might’ve become a depressing end to their 2014-2015 NBA season. The Hawks and Golden State Warriors have been fantastic this season, but the playoffs are completely unpredictable. If the Washington Wizards want to do something special, they have to gain momentum before the start of the playoffs.
Right now, that’s exactly what they’re doing. Let’s hope they continue to build upon the momentum they’ve gotten recently.