(Photo: Washington Wizards)
The Washington Wizards finished their exhibition games on Friday night with a 110-103 win over the New York Knicks who again sat Kristaps Porzingis. Washington countered by resting John Wall, but that did not slow down Bradley Beal from finishing with 24 points on 7 of 13 shooting for 29 minutes. Kelly Oubre Jr., 21 points, and Jason Smith, 17 points, led the supporting class as it now looks like the latter will begin the season as the starting power forward.
Could Tomas Satoransky Push For Backup Point Guard Playing Time?
On first glance, I would quickly say no as the Wizards are pretty confident in Tim Frazier's game, but the second-year player is looking more relaxed and comfortable after a rocky rookie year. In 22 minutes as the team's backup point guard, Satoransky finished with 10 points on 5 of 6 shooting, 5 assists, and 3 rebounds. Should Frazier struggle behind Wall, Washington may have an in-house prospect to rely on instead of locking to sign a player at the trade deadline like last year's Brandon Jennings. An evergreen quote from Brooks almost two weeks ago hints at the team's trust in Satoransky.
"He was moving the basketball [and] he competes," Brooks said. "The one thing that I love about Tomas is that he plays hard. He tries to make the right plays; he has improved his outside shot. He’s athletic, he’s long and athletic."
The 15th Spots Goes To ... Carrick Felix?
When Sheldon Mac had the incredibly unfortunate Achilles tear on Sunday, it set off a domino effect for the Wizards roster, which was unexpected. With the good chance that Mac remains on the roster for the year because of luxury tax implications of waiving him, but the need for another wing, reserve center Daniel Ochefu was waived. Ochefu's, who was coincidentally signed by the rival Celtics on Friday, 15th spot seems to be secured by 27-year old Carrick Felix. The wing is in competition with veteran point guard Donald Sloan, but the latter did not play in the final pre-season game despite Felix showing out in the entire fourth quarter. Felix finished with 1 of 2 shooting, both from three, and a rebound and will likely be the 15th man on Washington's roster to begin the season.
Next Time, It Counts
With the shortened preseason and earlier start to the NBA season, the Washington Wizards are five days away from taking on the Philadelphia 76ers on ESPN next Wednesday. Between playing a Chinese team, the Knicks twice without Porzingis, the Heat without Goran Dragic, Hassan Whiteside, and Dion Waiters, and the Cavs' G League team, some may question whether the Wizards are actually ready. Despite the lack of competition, the team has been having spirited practices since training camp, while Scott Brooks is implementing the new pieces on the bench without having to rest anybody this early in the season. The starters have showed their lethal play on the offensive end, which was well complimented by bursts from bench players as well over the past two weeks. It is highly, highly unlikely Washington would start the season anywhere close to their 2-8 clip from last year and that starts by defending their home court against the talented youth of Philadelphia.