After another season without a playoff appearance, it’s time to look at how each Washington Wizards player performed this year.
Given that they used a staggering 25 different starting lineups during the 2019-20 season, the 25-47 record the Washington Wizards amassed doesn’t look as bad. That said, it would be foolish to assume a quarter’s worth of lineups greatly contributed to their season-long struggles considering how bad the team was the season prior, even when they had John Wall, Bradley Beal, and Otto Porter Jr.
Instead, Wizards fans should be concerned about a defense that surrendered 4.9 more points per 100 possessions than the league average and ranked last in defensive rating. Yes, it should come as no surprise that a team that employed Isaiah Thomas and had no discernable rim protection (only the Sacramento Kings were worse at defending shots inside three feet from the rim) struggled to keep opponents from scoring at will, and the offense, while shockingly impressive early on, lacked the firepower to keep pace (15th in points per 100).
But what specifically went wrong with this team? Conversely, did anything go right? To answer those questions, we’ll need to delve into each player’s (who finished the year with the team and played at least 800 minutes) 2019-20 body of work and summing their respective efforts with a tidy letter grade.
Will anyone get an “A”? Again, the Wizards weren’t good, so probably not, but you won’t know for sure unless you view the next couple of slides.