Washington Wizards: 3 Role Players that will be key for play-in tournament hopes
By Jamal Bedell
The Washington Wizards are streaking at the right time with five straight wins. Here are 3 role players that will be key for their chances at the play-in.
The Washington Wizards are finally starting to stack some wins. They’ve won five straight games and are 7-3 in their last ten games. In the Eastern Conference standings, Washington currently sits in 11th place at 24-33. The Wizards have the same record as the 10th place Chicago Bulls, who own the tiebreaker over them after winning the season series 2-1.
We all hope Zach LaVine returns soon after it was announced he will miss several games as he enters into the NBA’s health and safety protocol. This is horrible timing for the Bulls, however, and LaVine’s absence will surely increase the Wizard’s odds of making it into the play-in tournament. Plus, the Wizards’ remaining strength of schedule is favorable. According to tankathon, the Wizards have the 24th hardest remaining schedule, while the Bulls and Raptors — the two teams the Wizards are fighting for the final spot — have the seventh and third hardest remaining schedules, respectively. With Russell Westbrook continuing his tear of triple-doubles and Bradley Beal dropping 30-point games every night, Washington just needs the “others” to step up.
There are only 15 games remaining in the regular season but they will be crucial games as this Wizards team tries to make a playoff run that looked nearly impossible just a few weeks ago.