Washington Wizards Mailbag Monday: Breaking Down Possible First Round Match Ups

Washington’s chances of winning – like any other teams’ – will increase if their best players are on the court. That means the starters will play 35-plus minutes every night during the postseason. But that also means the rotation will get cut.

That’s basically standard procedure in the NBA. Teams want to increase their chances of winning, so the 11th, 12th and 13th men won’t get much run.

Mahinmi, Bogdanovic and Jennings are in. The rest, I’m honestly not so sure about, including Jason Smith, who’s been deadly from behind the 3-point arc lately.

There’s only so many minutes that Brooks can give out and some otherwise deserving players will have their playing time reduced. Oubre, who’s been outstanding defensively at the end of this season, will have to really separate himself to crack Brooks’ rotation in the playoffs.

The difference will be made by the starters.

Bogdanovic and Jennings have the ability to swing a playoff game, but the series won’t be determined by the bench. It’s going to be determined by John Wall, Bradley Beal, Otto Porter, Markieff Morris and Marcin Gortat. If Wall and Beal have an off game, you can bet the Wizards will find themselves on the losing end in the playoffs.

Remember – this isn’t the regular season.

Coaches approach the game differently and it’s played at a slower pace. The game’s a lot grittier. Washington has a roster to win in the playoffs and will exploit certain match ups. They’ll almost certainly have a nightly advantage in the back court and they have to milk that for as long as they could.

Mahinmi, Bogdanovic and Jennings will be in the rotation, as long as they remain healthy. The others, well, that’s to be determined. Out of all the remaining players, Smith could have the biggest opportunity to play.