Washington Wizards Mailbag Monday: What It Takes To Beat The Golden State Warriors

Washington Wizards Mailbag Monday: March 28, 2016

The Washington Wizards had a rather unpleasant week that was capped off by a double-overtime loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves at home and a win over the lottery-bound Los Angeles Lakers on the road.

Washington is currently half a game behind the Chicago Bulls for the ninth spot in the Eastern Conference. The problem is, only eight teams are going to the postseason and the rest will head home.

Right now, the Wizards are still below .500 and it will take spectacular play for them to get into the NBA Playoffs this year. But, it’s a new week.

As always, we’ll start it off by answering some of your questions.

Thanks for participating. If you want to be featured in next week’s edition, feel free to give us a shout: @WizofAwes.

Happy Monday!

At this point, this is just the type of player Otto Porter is.

Porter’s biggest flaw is his inconsistent jump shot. When he’s hitting his looks from the perimeter, he’s probably Washington’s third most reliable offensive player. He’s made roughly 47 percent of his shots this season and he’s been pretty inconsistent all year long. That’s actually not that bad.

Aggression really hasn’t been an issue. He’s been firing away from deep as of late.

Over the past five games, Porter has shot over 12 times per game. He’s made about 47 percent of his total shots and close to 44 percent of his 3-point shots, so he’s been really solid lately.

Confidence is probably going to be his biggest weakness throughout the course of his career.

The key difference between someone like Porter and a star is confidence. Porter gets shaken when he’s not hitting and begins to think. The worst thing you can do when you’re open is think. You can see it on his face. He starts shooting the ball differently and looks discouraged.

Some players just either have the confidence or don’t. Porter is obviously a skilled player, but he’ll never be a consistent threat until he gets that swagger.

According to John Wall, Markieff Morris could have played against the Lakers on Sunday, but chose to sit out just to be ready against the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings.

If Morris plays, everyone – excluding Alan Anderson, who’s been out of the lineup this whole season – should be ready to go.

There won’t be one difference maker in terms of defense. Obviously, the pressure will be on John Wall to somewhat shut Stephen Curry down, but it’s a team effort. The San Antonio Spurs beat the Warriors by switching quickly and closing gaps. Without much room, Curry had to take tougher shots than usual and his production was nullified.

The Warriors are so damn good that it’s unfair to put the pressure on a single player.

Having Morris on the floor is going to be huge. Washington is going to be able to switch Morris on someone like Klay Thompson when necessary instead of having Jared Dudley look ridiculously uncomfortable on a guard.

The Morris and Draymond Green match up might be the most important of the game.

You can expect Curry and Thompson to be spectacular, but in many ways, Green is their most important player. He’s been averaging close to a triple double this season, which is insane. The two forwards are as intense as they come. That match up should be fun – for sure.

Here’s a quick reminder, though: the Warriors haven’t lost a game at The Oracle Arena all season long. If Washington can beat them on the road, it will be the biggest victory in the team’s recent history.

We probably are not going to make the playoffs so Why aren’t kelly/Eddie playing?I don’t want to see thorton or Temple anymore – via @bench_mobbb

It’s mind boggling, really.

Washington is really trying to make the playoffs and they think leaning on the veteran, Marcus Thornton, might help them do that. He’s replaced Gary Neal in the lineup, so he’s getting the minutes Neal would have gotten. Regardless, Thornton isn’t better than Kelly Oubre and Jarell Eddie. He should not be on the court over the rookies.

So, to answer your question, they aren’t playing because the Washington Wizards – specifically Randy Wittman – trust the veteran more than the rookies.

Blake Griffin, Kevin Love and DeMarcus Cousins are the three players that come to mind, but the Washington Wizards will need more than just Beal to net themselves one of those stars.

If the Clippers get bounced out of the playoffs early again, the Clippers might have to make a change. Griffin’s season has been an absolute disaster.

He’s been injured all season long and decided to punch a team employee earlier too. Everything that could have gone wrong for Griffin has. If the Clippers want more depth, they could add Beal and Otto Porter for Griffin.

The same goes for Kevin Love.

Love has never really fit in with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He’s in his second season with the team and they still haven’t figured out how to use him correctly.

When the Cavaliers inevitably fail to win the championship, they could also look to trade Love for someone who could adapt to LeBron James‘ game more. Beal would be a catch-and-shoot guy for Cleveland and would take pressure off Kyrie Irving.

Seeing Beal in a Cavaliers jersey would make us all simultaneously vomit, but Love would be a perfect fit in Washington. He can space the floor and rebound. Love needs a guard that can distribute and Irving isn’t that type of player. Love’s father, Stan, played for the Washington Bullets too. It’s just something to consider.

Of course, my love for Boogie Cousins remains unaltered. Washington needs a second star and Boogie would be exactly that. Boogie and John Wall were born to play together.

It really depends who’s on the floor. I never want to see Marcus Thornton on the court with John Wall and Bradley Beal. If you’re going to play small, you need someone who can adequately defend the small forward spot. Garrett Temple, oddly enough, kind of works in those situations.

I don’t mind it, as long as it makes sense. When there’s a scoring drought, having three guards on the floor is theoretically a solid idea. John Wall is going to get the other guards the ball in the right spots and they both are capable of hitting from deep.

The Wall and Ramon Sessions combo has been okay, too. It’s really just a matter of being able to hit shots from the perimeter. Expecting those smaller lineups to get stops is kind of unfair.

Kelly Oubre’s absolute ceiling is probably Paul George. Will he ever reach that ceiling? Probably not.

Oubre will likely become a Rudy Gay/Trevor Ariza hybrid if he ever gets a chance to develop with the Washington Wizards. He’s super athletic, defends well and can stroke it from deep. He’s everything you would want in a 3-and-D player, yet still takes some questionable shots – hence Rudy Gay.

Oubre has All-Star caliber talent, but he’s still raw. He needs to continue developing his ball handling. Most importantly, though, Oubre needs to put on weight. He’s just 20-years-old, so he’s going to need some time.

Next: Why Missing The NBA Playoffs Is Good For The Wizards

Oubre is exactly the type of player you would want one your roster now that the NBA has changed. He very much exemplifies everything a wing player is.