Washington Wizards: Potential Concerns for the Season
The NBA season is a long season. Eighty-two games allow you to find the right lineups, build team chemistry, improve your defense and ultimately, improve each and every game. There is no reason to overreact after the Washington Wizards lost to the Detroit Pistons Wednesday night 113-102 in the season opener, but there were some areas of concern that could be recurring themes throughout the season.
The Wizards knew they were giving up their defense anchor in Emeka Okafor when they traded for Suns center Marcin Gortat. They made the trade because of Okafor’s injury and the need to win now. However, on Wednesday it showed that the Wizards interior defense will be a concern throughout the season. The Pistons scored 56 points in the paint and manhandled the Wizards frontcourt. Trevor Booker, Nene and Gortat were the primary bigs throughout the game and none of them brought any sort of rim protection. The trio was also late on many rotations, which could have prevented multiple baskets around the rim. The rotations will improve as the year goes on and the team continues getting comfortable and trusting each other on defense. The problem is that the Wizards do not have a big man who has been a solid defender at any point in their career. They may have gotten somewhat exposed because of how young and explosive Detroit’s frontcourt is with Andre Drummond, Greg Monroe and Josh Smith. There are very few frontcourts like that in the league so the Wizards getting dominated in the paint in game one is not the biggest thing in the world. However, it is something to keep an eye on.
The Wizards backcourt shot 14-of-39 from the field Wednesday. The duo of John Wall and Bradley Beal is going to be one of the best backcourts in the league this season. However, they won’t be if John Wall shoots 8-of-21 from the field. Wall looked tentative shooting the basketball and took multiple ill-advised jump shots. He had spurts where he would attack the basketball and score at will. Then the next few possessions, he would take contested jump shots. It was puzzling. The Wizards need Wall to be able to knock open shots because of how reliant they are on his ability to drive and kick, but if the jumper isn’t falling he must attack the basket and get out in transition. If he is settling for jump shots and missing defenses have the option to play off him and take away his ability to drive. Wall has never been a good shooter and he struggled in the preseason even though it was a point of emphasis this offseason for him to be a much better shooter. Wall cannot be a sub-40 percent shooter for this offense to thrive. I have concerns about his jump shot and shot selection because of nights like Wednesday. If he cannot consistently hit jump shots, it is going to hinder Beal’s ability to make that sophomore leap we all expect. It certainly did on Wednesday when Beal went 6-of-18 from the field. There is a lot riding on John Wall’s shoulders, but that comes with being a max-contract player and he has plenty of time to get it right.
We all kind of expected it, but not this early. Nene is hurt. He injured his left calf in Wednesday’s game, but it is unknown if the injury is serious or not, reports J. Michael of CSN Washington. However, the point is that Nene has been plagued by injuries the last few years and the fact that he is already injured after the first game, minor injury or not, is a huge concern. The Wizards need all the bodies they can get down low. In order for the Wizards to be successful they need Nene on the court knocking down mid-range jumpers, rebounding, and banging down low on the block. Hopefully, Nene can get healthy and stay healthy because he is a key assest for the Washington Wizards.
It is easy to overreact after one game. In no way are the Wizards still not a potential playoff team in the Eastern Conference after the season opener, but there are a few things Wizards’ fans should be slightly concerned about. But just remember, you play 82 games for a reason.
[slider_pro id=”30″]