(Photo: Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images)
Wizards 114
Bulls 110
December 31, 2017 | Capital One Arena | Washington, D.C.
For just the second time in over two weeks, the Washington Wizards have beaten a sub-.500 team. In the past three opportunities, they have beat Orlando, but lost to Brooklyn and Atlanta. Despite the Chicago Bulls coming in having won 10 of their best 12, the Wizards were able to stay within shouting distance most of the game and eventually finished a comeback to send the DC Family home (or to the club) happy to end 2017. Happy New Years everyone!
Bradley Beal Brings Big Balling Buckets
The soon to be All-Star (if he is not at this rate, it is insanity on the part of the coaches since they will be voting for reserves) dropped 39 points on 16 of 29 (55.2 percent) shooting including a career-best tying seven three-pointers in a season-high 45 minutes. During the fourth quarter, he had a stretch where he scored 15 straight points for the Wizards. Arguably, the more surprising part of his final stat line were a career-high tying nine assists and nine rebounds.
“He's able to stay aggressive and still be hot ball [moving the ball quickly] so [he] makes the right reads at the right time – finding guys with open shots,” John Wall said. “Using [him], when you get hot or be aggressive, as a decoy at times, and also being able to get to the basket and finish at will. He's already shooting the ball very well but the way he attacks the basket, plays it a mid-range game, I think he should have had 10 assists today. He should have had a double-double, maybe a triple-double, but the way he played was big for us and helped us get the win.”
He joked after the game that he was upset first and foremost with two missed free throws at the end of the game, but also that he was close to a 40-point triple-double. To his credit on the missed free throws he helped Mike Scott and Kelly Oubre Jr. hustle after the loose ball for a game-sealing offensive rebound.
Beal joins elite company with James Harden, Vince Carter, Russell Westbrook, LeBron James, and Steph Curry to have 39 points, 9 rebounds, 9 assists, and 7 three-pointers in a game.
“I’ve been saying this – going on the second year now – that Brad’s an All-Star,” Scott Brooks said. “I thought he was an All-Star last year, he led us in a lot of different games and [averaged] 23 points. It’s not just the 23 points, it’s the defensive play that he does, it’s the passing. We’re very blessed, we have two guys in the backcourt that are All-Stars. Hopefully, we can keep playing well and win some games. I think we’ve won seven out of our last 10. It’s all about winning games and if you win games and you play for each other, individual awards come. If you focus on that, you’re focused on the wrong things. I’ve talked to Brad many, many times and he has not mentioned All-Star to me.”
John Wall, Inefficient Scoring, But Still Lethal
With under a minute to play, Wall was shooting a miserable 5 of 19 from the field and miffed by repeated no-calls by the referees despite strong drives into the painted area. Despite the poor shooting night, Wall grabbed a rebound and raced down floor with one thing on his mind: aggressively attacking he said post game in not so many words. Wall blew by the defense and scored a layup with a foul call despite being 2 of 6 around the rim earlier in the game.
Wall had his usual 9 assists to go along with 6 rebounds and 4 blocks, one shy of tying his career-high, as he provided solid post defense when switched onto a bigger player in Washington’s small ball lineup. “I'm not going to back down from any matchup,” Wall said about battling guys like Nikola Mirotic down low.
Three-Point Shooting Surge Here To Stay?
Against Houston, the Wizards attempted a franchise-high 36 three-pointers. They matched that record against the Bulls and made 16 of them for a fiery 44.4 percent from beyond the arc. After Porter made seven on Friday, Beal took on that role on Sunday. For just the 10th time in team history, Washington has made 16 or more three-pointers. All of them have come in the past 12 seasons, but four have come in this season including three coming in the past eight days (vs. Orlando, vs. Houston, and vs. Chicago).
“Team basketball,” Wall attributed the recent success. “Just moving the ball. Guys making extra passes is all it is. If somebody's open, make the extra pass. It's easy to make wide-open shots than it is sub shots. We got guys who can make some tough ones but when you're moving the ball and just trusting the offense, anything can happen.”
Shortened Rotation and Small Ball
Bradley Beal played the entire second half and Wall and Otto Porter Jr. each played more than 20 minutes. Jodie Meeks and Ian Mahinmi did not see the floor after halftime. Mike Scott and Markieff Morris each took turns playing center during the game in part to combat Nikola Mirotic and Lauri Markkanen on defense as well as better shooting on offense. With the way the NBA is headed, an 8-man rotation with Satoransky, Oubre, and Scott off the bench may be the future for Washington come playoff time.
“I thought that our small ball did a good job of getting rebounds and getting stops,” Brooks said. “Obviously, when you have a smaller lineup, you have the ability to have more three-point shooters on the floor. A lot of teams are going small, and we’re one of them also. It’s nothing against our bigs, but we just have to keep adjusting. It could be game-to-game. I thought Ian [Mahinmi] was our main guy to give Houston trouble scoring last game, and I thought our small ball gave them trouble scoring, especially in that fourth quarter. Mike [Scott] can battle their bigger players. I know [Robin] Lopez had a couple of post ups down low, but that’s not how they want to play, nobody wants to play that way, that’s a low-percentage shot throughout the league.”
Better Effort In The Second Half
In the first half, Washington allowed Chicago to grab 8 offensive rebounds that they turned into 10 second chance points compared to the Wizards’ two. The Bulls were also getting to wherever they wanted on the court with 34 points in the paint, but the home team was able to flip a switch at intermission. Chicago had just 1 offense rebound in the second half, while Washington had 9 that they cashed in for 17 second chance points. The late offensive rebound by Oubre was the result of pure hustle.
After giving up 38 first quarter points, which Brooks partially attributed to his team not having experienced how fast they run before and then kidded he was surprised Chicago did not go for 50 in the first frame, Washington only allowed 72 points in the final three quarters. Now if only the Wizards could save the second half effort in a bottle and unleash it for a full 48 minutes against every sub-.500 team, then they would be very well off.