Washington Wizards: 5 obstacles to contending in 2017-18
1. Slowing down LeBron James and the Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers and LeBron James are probably the Wizards’ biggest obstacle to contending in 2017-18. After all, to get to the NBA Finals, they will have to get through Cleveland.
The Washington Wizards went 1-2 against the Cavaliers during the regular season in 2016-17. One of those losses came in overtime, 140-135. The Wizards pushed the Cavaliers to the brink and it took the heroics of Kyrie Irving to save the day. Now that he’s gone, John Wall may have an easier time getting to the rim or he might not.
The scary thing about Cleveland entering this season is its depth, something that came to bite them in the 2017 NBA Finals.
The addition of Jae Crowder to the Cavaliers rotation gives them another lockdown defender to work with and takes some of the defensive pressure off of LeBron James. Crowder is younger and brings a different element not only on defense but also offensively.
Point guard Derrick Rose may be a key contributor as well, Dwyane Wade has joined the party and given center Tristan Thompson is expected to come off the bench, all of a sudden, Cleveland looks almost unbeatable.
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Oh, and I haven’t even mentioned Isaiah Thomas, who’s expected to be out until at least the All-Star Break.