What is the time to be an NBA fan.
The Knicks are a surprise contender in the Eastern Conference riding a nine-game winning streak, and the only team that can be proud of a similar streak is the … Washington Wizards.
Not exactly two faces of NBA potential in recent seasons.
Sunday night’s 119–110 win over the Cavaliers marked the Wizards’ eighth straight win – the team’s longest win streak since 2001, when Michael Jordan came out of retirement to play for DC for the second time
The Wizards’ late-season turnaround (27–33) is mostly due to their dynamic backcourt pairing in Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal. During the Wizards’ hot streak, Beal has averaged 32.1 points per game, and Westbrook has 22.4 points, 13.1 rebounds and 11.8 assists.
Beal, who had 33 points on Sunday, became the second player in franchise history to connect with Alvin Hayes to reach 13,000 points. It was a quiet night for Westbrook, who still managed to record a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Center Robin Lopez contributed 14 points in 5-for-5 shooting and the Wizards bench also shone with 51 points.
“It’s a blessing, but we don’t pat ourselves on the back or anything like that because we’ve still got our work done,” Beal said After Sunday’s win.
The Wizards’ much better defense and a Midderson trade for center Daniel Gafford have also helped their newfound success.
Just before the trade deadline, the Wizards dealt with Troff Brown Jr. and Moritz Wagner as part of a three-team trade with the Celtics and Bulls along with Gafford and Chandler Hutchinson. Since acquiring the 22-year-old Arkansas product, Washington has gone 10–1 and averaged 11 points and six rebounds – more than double his average production in Chicago.
In Sunday’s win over the Cavs, Athletic Gafford recorded 12 points on 5-for-7 shooting, six rebounds, two assists, four steals and four blocks in 27 minutes of play.
If the play-in tournament began on Monday afternoon, Washington would compete for a playoff berth. They are currently the 10th seed in the East and two games ahead of the Bulls for the final play-in spot. Four play-in teams will compete for the final two playoff places.
Other Eastern Conference teams projected to make the play-in (Heat No. 7), Hornets (No. 8) and Pacers (No. 9).
Washington has 12 games left, of which seven are on the road, three are back-to-back. They will face teams that are still dying for playoff positioning: reigning champion Lakers, followed by the Mavericks, Bucks, Hornets and Spurs. The Wizards will face the Pacers and Hawks twice.
Citing the team’s “mental and defensive lapses” against the Cavs, Beal said the Wizards can’t repeat those issues when they take on the Spurs on Monday night.
“We are sure that they should not be against a good team like Spurs. It means a lot to be a part of history and to be in this situation. . . But we still got a lot of things to improve in a very short period of time, ”Beal said.
The Wizards have not been to the playoffs since the 2017–18 season.
Meanwhile, the Knicks continue to move east and are in a position to claim the fourth or fifth seed, while neck-and-neck with the Hawks at 34-27. If the Knocks can lock in the number 4 seed, they will make a home-court advantage at Madison Square Garden for the first round of the playoffs. They were not on a nine-game winning streak since the 2012–13 season.
Strange NBA bar, indeed.
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