Washington Wizards: 3 standout stats

Second chance points

This statistic might not be the most important, but it sure is alarming. Looking at a more macro level of the league, the Wizards look to be in trouble with rebounding. Their actual rebounding numbers aren’t awful, as they rank 16th in rebounds per game, putting them at about middle of the pack. The problem lies with the amount of second chance points the Wizards give up, which heavily stems from a team’s ability to offensively rebound in a game.

In the 2017-18 NBA season, the Wizards are only worse at giving second chance points than he Phoenix Suns and Atlanta Hawks. The Wizards give up 13.9 points per 100 possessions on second chance opportunities and for reference, the Charlotte Hornets, who rank first, give up 9.5 points per 100 possessions. It’s alarming that a playoff team would be in the same ranks as the Suns and Hawks, who have a combined 18 wins on the season.

One reason why the Wizards may be giving up more second chance points this season could be because of Marcin Gortat. Gortat is having the worst rebounding season he’s had since 2012 with just 8.5 per game. If the team wants to address the amount of points other teams are getting off of second chances, they may want to find ways to keep Gortat closer to the rim. Look at this play below:

Gortat, instead of coming over with help defense on LeBron James, decides to immediately box out J.R. Smith. Smith makes no effort on the play but Gortat decides to get rid of his box-out stance and leap for the ball. LeBron, who missed his well defended shot, has all the time in the world to grab the board and put it back up before Gortat lands.

Next: 2017-18 Week 10 NBA Power Rankings

In this situation, there’s no need for Gortat to jump. He needs to centralize his box-out position under the hoop and let the ball fall to him. It’s plays like this that may become a real problem in the playoffs if the Wizards don’t address their second chance defense.