Washington Wizards: 4 Players coach Scott Brooks is finally utilizing better

No. 3 – Garrison Mathews

It took six losses for Scott Brooks to finally decide Garrison Mathews deserved consistent minutes. Hallelujah! We the fans have been screaming for Mathews to get a spot in the regular rotation since the very start of the season!  After six DNP’s in the first seven games of the year, Mathews has averaged 21.9 and 14.6 minutes a game in the months of January and February, respectively. With the increased minutes, Mathews is quickly proving why he deserved them all along.

As a starter, he’s averaging 6.6 PPG and 2.0 RPG while knocking down 42.6 percent of his shots from beyond the arc (3.6 attempts per). Mathews has a quick trigger and an uncanny ability to draw fouls behind the three-point line. Getting to the free-throw line consistently is an art and Mathews does it well. He shoots 1.8 free throws per game (4.1 per 36 minutes) and knocks them in at a 92.5 percent rate. He’s pretty much automatic when he steps up to the charity stripe.

Inserting Mathews into the starting lineup was probably the best adjustment Scott Brooks has made all season because Mathews complements the other starters so well as a floor spacer. His ability to knock down the open shot creates more space for Bradley Beal, Russell Westbrook, and Rui Hachimura to isolate. Plus, he doesn’t need the ball for long to be effective. Mathews is a textbook catch-and-shoot sniper.

Last but not least, Mathews competes extremely hard on the defensive end. He may not make any All-Defensive teams anytime soon but he’s not a liability on that end of the floor and that’s all that matters.