Washington Wizards: One weakness the Wizards can exploit vs. each play-in team

Washington Wizards vs. Boston Celtics

Weakness the Wizards can exploit: Banged up in Boston

Believe it or not, the Boston Celtics might be the most favorable matchup for the Wizards among all the possible play-in matchups. The Wizards have a losing record to the Celtics this season (1-2), but played them pretty well in all three games, losing one game by just one point.

While the Wizards have been playing some of their best basketball over the past month and a half or so, the Celtics have been crumbling a bit (4-9 in their last 13 games) and will be without Jaylen Brown for the entirety of the postseason. That injury, while devastating for Boston, makes the Celtics a little less scary. That sigh of relief you’re hearing is the Wizards relaxing a bit knowing they won’t have to deal with Brown in any possible play-in games. This season in two games vs. the Wizards, Brown averaged 26.0 points and 10.0 rebounds while shooting 50 percent from the floor and 45.5 percent from three.

Brown isn’t the only Celtic that’s less than 100 percent as we near the postseason. Marcus Smart, Robert Williams, and Tristan Thompson have all been sidelined recently with nagging injuries that could affect them — if not completely sideline them — for the play-in games.

The lack of depth and the possible absence of top contributors is something the Wizards must exploit if these two teams match up in the play-in tournament.