Washington Wizards start off 2019 with the Atlanta Hawks
The Washington Wizards will begin 2019 by hosting the Atlanta Hawks Wednesday night.
The Atlanta Hawks and the Washington Wizards have split the season series at one a piece. Two games remain on the docket between the two teams. The end of 2018 didn’t go according to plan for the Wizards since they lost John Wall to season ending heel surgery.
Tonight marks the return of Otto Porter, who missed 10 games and hasn’t played since December 10. It will be interesting to see how Porter and Trevor Ariza mesh in the starting lineup. Jeff Green will move back to a reserve role but shouldn’t see a decrease in minutes.
Washington will be without Markieff Morris due to some upper back issues. The Hawks will be a little depleted as well since two of their best wing players, Kent Bazemore and Taurean Prince, are out.
Let’s take a look at the game details below.
Game Info
Game: Washington Wizards vs. Atlanta Hawks
When: Wednesday, January 2
Where: Capital One Arena
TV: NBC Sports Washington, Fubo TV
Tip-Off Time: 7 pm Eastern Time
Injury Report
Wizards: Dwight Howard (Lumbar microdisectomy procedure-Out) John Wall (Heel-Out), Markieff Morris (Back stiffness-Out)
Hawks: Kent Bazemore (Right Ankle Sprain-Out), Dewayne Dedmon (Left Knee-Out), John Collins (Illness-probable)
Projected Starting Lineup
Wizards: G-Tomas Satoransky, G-Bradley Beal, F-Trevor Ariza, F-Otto Porter, C-Thomas Bryant
Hawks: G-Trae Young, G-Kevin Huerter, F-TBD, F-John Collins, C-Alex Len
Prediction
Porter’s return should ignite the team. The Wizards needs to put 2018 behind them and focus on turning the season around. There isn’t much time left to do so and it needs to start with a win against the Hawks.
Wall was a crucial part of this offense. He was great isolation scorer and elite playmaker. Washington will now have to switch up the style of offense a little bit. Since Bradley Beal is the only legit scoring threat, the team will have to focus on making the extra pass and playing better defense.
A few bright spots have been Tomas Satorasnky and Thomas Bryant. We all know from past experience that Satoransky will have no problem filling the void of John Wall and Bryant is poised to continue his break-out season. The combination of Ariza and Porter will be something to look forward too as well.
Containing John Collins will be a big focal point for the Wizards in tonight’s matchup. Collins has been averaging 21.3 points and 12.8 rebounds per game this last month. If Ariza, Porter, and Green shut him down, then Washington should be able to cruise to a victory.
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It will be exciting and somewhat refreshing to see this new Wizards lineup. I see Washington starting off 2019 the right way and ending this homestand with a win.
Final Score: ATL- 104, WSH – 114