After two phenomenal wins against the San Antonio Spurs and Chicago Bulls, the Washington Wizards didn’t came out Friday night ready to play the below average Brooklyn Nets. Washington came out with a six-point lead after the first quarter, but it was all downhill from there, as the Wizards lost at home, 102-80, against the Nets.
On the surface, this is a very surprising loss for Washington, but after a couple emotional wins this could’ve been looked at as a trap game for the Wizards. This was one of the Wizards' most lethargic games of the season.
Give credit to the Brooklyn Nets, who played 48 minutes with energy and hustle but with all due respect, Washington did themselves no favors as they turned the ball over 19 times which led to 16 Brooklyn points. Every fifty-fifty ball went the Nets way and anytime Washington showed some fight, the Nets quickly answered.
The Nets were led by their point guard Jarrett Jack, who scored 26 points on 12-of-18 shooting while grabbing six rebounds and piling up seven assists. Brook Lopez also scored 26 points off the bench on 8-of-14 shooting from the field and 10-of-12 from the costless-throw line in only 23 minutes of play.
John Wall led the Wizards in scoring with 13 points and the only other player in double figures was Kris Humphries who had 12 points and eight rebounds off the bench. The rest of Washington’s starters combined to score 30 total points on 11-of-27 shooting which is a total of 40.7 percent from the field. The team as a whole didn’t knock down shots, as they shot 42.5 percent from the field and 23.5 percent from behind the arc.
It’s easy to notice the Wizards' poor shooting, but the turnovers and the lack of defense in the paint was a bigger issue. The Nets outscored the Wizards, 46-to-34, in the paint. Brooklyn was also aggressive, as they went to the costless-throw line way more than Washington. Brooklyn went 24-of-31 from the charity stripe compared to just 14-of-16 by Washington.
Washington looked like they were running in sand all night. They couldn’t push the ball up the court in transition which led to them playing Brooklyn’s style of play, which is more half court, grind it out type of basketball. It wasn’t pretty and that’s the way the Nets like it. Aside from an average first quarter, where the Wizards led, the crowd in D.C. was not engaged and the play on the floor never gave them anything to cheer about. Bad games happen from time-to-time, but you try not to do so in front of your home crowd.
Luckily, these two teams matchup tomorrow night in Brooklyn on a back-to-back. Washington has their chance to exact some revenge after this embarrassing loss. Anytime you get blown out, it doesn’t take much to get you focused and ready to play the next night. That is what Washington is going to have to do if they want to remain playing the way they have halfway through the season.