The Knicks defeated the Wizards by a score of 103-100 Wednesday night at Madison Square Garden. This game had more interest than your traditional preseason game, with the starters playing up until the final buzzer. Carmelo Anthony gave the Knicks the lead with a three-point play with 13 seconds remaining and Otto Porter was unable to knock down a potential game time three-point attempt from the top of the key as time expired. 

Even though they dropped the preseason finale, a lot of good came out of this game for the Wizards. John Wall looked phenomenal, scoring 29 points (10-16 FG) and adding 7 assists and 4 steals in 33 minutes. Wizards fans were happy to see him back on the court after he missed the previous preseason game against the Pelicans with knee tendonitis. The most important performance, however, was probably that of second-year swing an Otto Porter Jr. Porter was the third overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft, but struggled to log significant minutes during his rookie season. With the departure of Trevor Ariza in the offseason and now the injury to Bradley Beal, it has become imperative that Porter becomes a bigger contributor to this team. Well he started off with an excellent Summer League campaign and has continued his strong play into the preseason. As for the game against the Knicks, Porter went toe-to-tow with Carmelo Anthony for a large portion of the night. Porter finished the night with 22 points (9-15 FG) along with 3 steals and 2 rebounds in 30 minutes. The emergence of Otto Porter Jr. will be a big storyline to keep track of throughout the Wizards seasons.

Other Game Notes:

Marcin Gortat looked slightly out of rhythm, scoring just 4 points (1-6 FG) in 33 minutes.

Paul Pierce was held out of the lineup for the second consecutive game.

Newly acquired PG John Lucas III recorded 2 rebounds and 1 assist in 14 minutes but did not attempt a shot.

The Wizards open up the regular season on Wednesday, October 29 against the Miami Heat.

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About the author
Matt Carr
Matt has a passion for all things DC sports. Expect a lot of articles revolving around the Redskins, Wizards, Nationals, and Capitals.