One Play That Defines the Wizards
Lost! Left behind! Is this what has come of Otto Porter’s young career?
Does this play define the Wizards right now as a whole? Just a step…or a couple steps too slow. A whole lot of changes, without a lot of progression. The players on the court might be different, but with Randy Wittman and Ernie Grunfield, it feels like the results don’t change.
After a hot start to the season, the Wizards have come back to earth and are 6-14 over their last 20 games. After the All-Star break, the Wizards lost five in a row, including losses to the Pistons, Timberwolves, and Sixers.
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I thought the Wizards feasted on bottom-feeder teams. Apparently not. Despite being 24-8 against teams below .500, over the last 10 games against these teams, the Wiz are only 5-5. The Wizards have struggled with teams above .500 all season, only compiling a 10-19 record against them.
As the No. 5 seed currently, the Wizards would be playing the Cavaliers, whom they have struggled against as of late. The last two games against Cleveland have resulted in the Wizards being blown out 113-87 and 127-89.
Some of the blame for the team’s struggles has to be put on Wittman. With his A.D.D. lineups, a role player might play 30 minutes in a game followed by a series of games in which they barely see the floor. This might explain Porter’s lack of awareness in the video above. He probably just forgot that he was on the court due to his inconsistent usage throughout the season.
When given opportunities, Otto has occasionally shined. Last Wednesday against Minnesota, he contributed 13 points in 29 minutes. Two nights after that, he put up 19 points in 37 minutes. His reward for those performances…playing only 14 minutes the next night against Detroit.
So should fans give up all hope of this team making any noise in the playoffs? I wouldn’t go that far as the team has had to overcome injuries to Bradley Beal and Paul Pierce. However, a word of advice to fans would be to temper expectations.