Hawks 113
Wizards 99
December 27, 2017 | Phillips Arena | Atlanta, GA
The Washington Wizards had their best win of the season against the Boston Celtics on Christmas Day. Two short days later, they had one of their worst losses of the season, and it was not absolutely their worst loss because they have laid eggs numerous other times throughout the year, against the Atlanta Hawks. It was not a 35-point blowout like in Brooklyn, but it was nearly as embarrassing.
“We're too selfish,” Bradley Beal said point blank. “Offense and defense. Plain and simple. It's frustrating because it's just the inconsistencies that's killing us. It's really killing us. We got to figure it out.”
“It’s like you play well in Boston,” John Wall began. “You play as a team, you move the ball very well. We’re playing team defense. We’re doing the little things to help us win … [but] tonight we didn’t do that and that’s the reason why we lost.”
“It's unacceptable,” Scott Brooks said. “I take the blame as much as the players take it. We all are responsible for this and we got to do a better job of playing and competing and staying focused throughout the 48 minutes.”
Defense Was Atrocious
Washington might have been beaten by 40-points if Atlanta did not shoot 11 of 37 (29.7 percent) from beyond the arc as many of their looks were good and they normally shoot 38.3 percent from deep. To give up 35 fourth-quarter points to a team that does not have double-digit wins on the season is pitiful. The guards and wings could not keep anyone in front of them, which led to the bigs having to rotate over and give up easy points. As a result, the Hawks had 50 points in the paint. Everyone was at fault, John Wall and Bradley Beal included.
Kelly Oubre Jr. played great in the fourth quarter against Boston, but he had some defensive lapses that carried over to Wednesday. Marco Belinelli abused him for 19 points to the point that Scott Brooks had to move Oubre to another player. "I can go look at myself. I let my man score way too many times. ... I feel like I didn't do my job to the best of my ability," Oubre self-criticized, which is refreshing because no one else has called themselves out for poor play. I semi-kid, but a Randy Wittman team would not be showing these defensive efforts.
Effort Was Atrocious
The Wizards won in Boston as a result of hustle, heart, and effort. They had 14 offensive rebounds, fourth most on the season, because they fought after 50-50 balls and came out on top because they wanted it more. That was the opposite case tonight as the Hawks grabbed 53 rebounds, a season-high for Atlanta, including 16 on the offensive glass, which is the third most allowed by the Wizards this season. The home team turned those second chance opportunities into 19 points. On a free throw attempt by Miles Plumlee that Washington was intentionally putting on the line expecting him to miss, they did not focus in and grab the loose ball that they knew was coming. That underscores the issue.
Offense Was Atrocious
The Atlanta Hawks have the worst record in the NBA because of their penultimate worst defensive rating at 108.5 points allowed per 100 possessions. Somehow the Wizards only scored 42 points in the second half. They shot just 38.9 percent (14 of 36) from the field. In the fourth quarter, the starters with Oubre instead of Marcin Gortat were a combined -58 in just 39 combined minutes. Beal was 1 of 5 from the field in the final frame. It just felt like Washington was not running offense, but relying way too much on isolation and hoping that one-on-one matchups could be won and shots would fall. Matchups were neither won nor were shots falling.
A recent trend has been Gortat sitting on the bench to finish games, which allows for more defensive flexibility, but at what cost? Gortat provides a unique skill set of screening that can turn an offensive possession from having no success to getting an open shot attempt for Beal or Otto Porter Jr. after a simple pick. With Miles Plumlee and John Collins on the floor, two traditional big men, there is no reason to leave Gortat on the bench.
Talk Is Atrocious
Everyone apart of the team is saying the right thing as exemplified by Beal and Wall’s quotes to begin the story. The problem is that it is the same old sob story every time they have a bad loss. They know it is about effort, about playing for one another, about taking every team seriously. The frustrating thing is that they never seem to take it to heart. Wall and Beal are as much of the problem as anyone else on the team so speaking as if it is only the fault of others is atrocious. I doubt it ever happens, but it would be refreshing for them to say, ‘I sucked, I cost my team today, I was a big reason why we lost.’ Gortat said after the Celtics game that he wished the Wizards played on national television every game because players simply show up under the bright lights. He is not wrong, and it is embarrassing that this is the reality for this team.
This Season Is Becoming Atrocious
The Wizards have now lost 10 games against sub-.500 teams, through 35 games, after losing just 9 such games all of last season.
at Lakers (1-2): Washington blows a 10-point lead with 7 minutes to play by only scoring 13 points in the fourth quarter.
vs. Suns (3-4): Without Eric Bledsoe, Phoenix came back from a 22-point deficit as TJ Warren put up 40 at Capital One Arena.
vs. Mavericks (1-10): Wizards trail coast-to-coast against the then worst team in the NBA by allowing Harrison Barnes to drop 13 points, getting outrebounded 53-39, and surrendering 36 points in the first quarter.
at Hornets (7-9): Washington blows a 9-point lead with just over 3 minutes to play by allowing Dwight Howard and Jeremy Lamb combine for 50 points.
vs. Portland (11-8): Wizards blew a 17-point lead with 9 minutes to play, 11-point lead with 4:15 to play, and 7-point lead with 1:33 to play.
at Clippers (8-15): Without Blake Griffin and Patrick Beverly, L.A. ends the first half on a 62-36 run and then gets a game-winning three-pointer from Lou Williams with 1.2 seconds to play when down 2.
at Nets (10-15): Wizards starters combine to go -69 and only score 3 points in the final 5 minutes.
at Nets (11-19): Wizards starters combine to go -116, trail (by as much as 40) cost-to-coast, and get outrebounded 60-35.
at Hawks (8-25): Every player besides Tomas Satoransky (+2) and Chris McCullough (+4 in garbage time) is a net negative, give up 16 offensive rebounds, score 42 points in the second half against the NBA’s second worst defense.