A glance at where the Washington Wizards stand after 14 games
By Randy Porga
The Washington Wizards have faced some harsh criticism early on, but despite a few shortcomings, they currently stand at 9-5 and are third in the Eastern Conference.
The Washington Wizards have faced some fairly worrisome concerns early on this season, but are still in good shape after improving to 9-5. Currently on a four-win streak, their longest streak so far, the Wizards have back-to-back games against a struggling Miami Heat team and have already won the first.
As a team, the Wizards have put on fewer exciting performances and more underwhelming and disappointing outings in just 14 games. Losing games at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors and the Phoenix Suns, it’s difficult to see what happened to this team’s identity. Or perhaps, it is more of a situation of how the Wizards’ identity has not evolved.
The Washington Wizards are an offensive powerhouse and nobody is doubting that, but on the other hand, the defense has been inconsistent early on and they still don’t have much in the depth department to make them a Eastern Conference Finals contender.
This is why they have fluctuated between beating average to below-average teams. The Wizards blew a lead against the Golden State Warriors, but it was far worse when it happened with the Phoenix Suns too. This should not worry fans too much for the entirety of the regular season, especially since Washington currently ranks 10th in defensive rating, but that fluctuation is definitely a concern for a seven-game series in the postseason.
Here are a few outliers and standouts for so far through the Wizards’ first 14 games.
The core and the rotation
John Wall, Bradley Beal and Otto Porter Jr. can score and that is one thing that can be counted on just about any given night. But at a closer glance, Porter may not be far behind Wall and Beal.
Porter has a better shooting percentage from the field and from beyond the arc than both Wall and Beal, and doing so at 16.4 points per game. He is performing as everyone had hoped, but the other offseason moves the Wizards made have played a part in recent games and the season overall.
Kelly Oubre Jr. is improving leaps and bounds from his previous seasons. It’s a small 14-game sample size, but he is playing like the real deal. Appearing in every game and starting in six, Oubre is shooting an impressive slash line of .435/.419/.828 on a huge leap of minutes and responsibility. His shooting could use some improvement from the field, but he has stepped into a larger role in a big way.
Ian Mahinmi continues to struggle to show anything to represent his former value and current contract. He is averaging 12 minutes a game and besides being in foul trouble at 3.1 fouls per game, he fails to produce much of anything. Mahinmi is averaging 3.4 points per game and 3.6 rebounds per game.
Jodie Meeks has become almost a non-factor in any efficient way, and about the same can be said for Tim Frazier, although he is averaging 4.0 assists per game. Meeks is scoring 7.3 points per game on a shooting slash line of .352/.286/.923 while failing to produce off the ball. Frazier is not doing much better either, scoring just 3.2 points per game on a slash line of .362/.211/.1000.
Mike Scott appears to be the leader of the free agent signings, scoring 8.5 points per game on a very impressive slash line of .506/.381/.813, which has certainly revitalized his value for the short-term.
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All in all, the story feels the same after 14 games with the Washington Wizards. The storylines during the offseason are still the running theme and they ask: Where’s the consistent defense? Where’s the depth?