Washington Wizards: 3 takeaways from preseason loss against Heat

1. Game notes and positives

The Washington Wizards can be glad that this loss came during the preseason and have just one more remaining until there is no time left for excuses. So what else did we come away with from this matchup as the Wizards head into their preseason finale against the Knicks on Friday?

The open role at the 4 is the focal point of the preseason since Markieff Morris gave the timeline on which he will make his return. Jason Smith truly showed his ability to bounce back and really produce solid numbers with the starting squad.

Washington Wizards

Mike Scott is playing very well and better than most had likely anticipated, but it does seem reasonable the only reason the reins of the starting position won’t be handed over to him is simply the unfamiliarity with the team as a whole having just been signed this summer. The Washington Wizards are looking for chemistry to be the No. 1 quality of their started squad. In any case, Scott finished the night strong with 13 points in 24 minutes of play, shooting 5-for-9 from the floor and 1-for-2 from beyond the arc.

Tim Frazier had an off night shooting going 2-for-7 but proved to be a very competent backup point guard behind John Wall. He accumulated nine assists on 21 minutes of play, as well as making a clutch basket with five seconds remaining in the game to give the Wizards the lead.

Frazier would have been the man of the night if the Washington Wizards did not give up the costly 3-pointer to seal the game with 1.4 seconds remaining.

Ian Mahinmi bounced back as well coming off a poor performance. He shot 4-for-7 in 20 minutes of play, finishing with eight points, seven rebounds and no turnovers. Jodie Meeks had his worst preseason game so far on 3-of-11 shooting, missing all five of his 3-pointers 0-for-5 to manage 10 points.

All in all this team looks competent at offense, but must improve defensively to remain a top contender in the Eastern Conference during the 2017-18 regular season.

Next: Ranking all 30 starting NBA shooting guards for 2017-18

The Washington Wizards will wrap up the preseason Friday night as they meet the Knicks for the second time and should enter the regular season on a positive note.