Something Has To Change
I mean no disrespect to Wes Unseld Jr. or the Wizards’ front office, but the Wizards have the biggest losing streak of any team in the NBA right now. I blame poor coaching, not the players themselves, for that.
There is no shortage of talent on the Wizards’ roster and every player has their individual strengths and weaknesses. It’s also true that the Wizards are dealing with a seemingly unending cycle of injuries and a demanding schedule, but these are things out of a head coach’s control.
A head coach can, or at least should, utilize the available talent to the best of his/her ability. This is especially true when that talent includes (but is not limited to) a 1x NBA champion who rightfully wants the offense run through him, a developing player who proves every game why he’s an asset defensively, and a player who is consistently good on both ends, even though he hasn’t been signed to a permanent contract yet.
Seriously, how hasn’t Jordan Goodwin been signed yet?
The Wizards lost to the Thunder on November 16th because of a critical coaching mistake, in which Unseld had Monté Morris guarding OKC’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on one of the final plays of the game when Deni Avdija had been guarding SGA all night.
In fact, Avdija was guarding SGA so well that it looked like SGA was trying to get him to foul out of the game.
Morris isn’t a bad defender, but he’s not as strong as Avdija and it makes little sense to change who’s guarding the other team’s leading scorer when there are less than two minutes in regulation. I could understand it if Unseld was trying to keep Avdija from fouling out of the game, but there was hardly enough time left in the game for that.
It almost doesn’t need to be said that defense is an issue for the Wizards. Most of the team, including franchise player Bradley Beal, don’t defend their opponents, but players who are strong defensively don’t get enough recognition for their efforts, at least in my view.
I also don’t understand why Unseld likes to repeatedly run the same defensive plays when they’ve already proven ineffective. The saying goes, “if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again,” but I don’t think that means that there’s only one way to try something.
Following their head coach’s orders, this Wizards team ends up in 2-3 zone defense or outright double-teaming an opponent repeatedly, with little success. When the Wizards hosted the Los Angeles Clippers on December 10, one such attempt confused players and fans alike and derailed any momentum the team had heading toward the final minutes of regulation.
Again, I don’t think this mistake was the fault of any individual player. Corey Kispert did what he was told and went to double-team Kawhi Leonard with Avdija, though he didn’t need to be there (because defense isn’t Kispert’s strong suit, Avdija is a strong enough defender on his own, and in the past double-teaming an opponent hasn’t worked for the two of them), and the result was a poor rotation and a confused Kristaps Porzingis rushing a three-point shot. It feels rare for Unseld to call a timeout from where he stands on the sidelines, and very rarely does a timeout lead to a meaningful change. Very rarely does Unseld make a substitution that increases the momentum on the floor, rather than bringing it to a complete halt.
Kristaps Porzingis (6) guarded by Paul George (13) of the Los Angeles Clippers on December 17 | Stephen Gosling/NBAE via Getty Images, retrieved from nba.com
Lack of momentum is a recurring nightmare.
It’s almost comical the way this Wizards team starts almost every game with strength and confidence only to lose momentum at the end of every quarter, half, and game. When the Wizards visited the Indiana Pacers on December 9, for example, Rick Carlisle called a timeout less than a minute into the third quarter after the Wizards came in hot.
That same quarter ended with the Pacers going on a significant run that the Wizards couldn’t keep up with, and it came without any adjustments or timeouts called on our side. It was, unfortunately, reminiscent of the Wizards’ 42-point loss to the Brooklyn Nets (the biggest loss in franchise history), as that was another game where no adjustments were made and the players were almost on an island trying to contain Kevin Durant. That game also featured several unsuccessful attempts to double-team Durant.
After that loss to the Pacers, Unseld said “Our overall effort was good. I’m sure guys got fatigue, but that’s no excuse, you have to close it out,” which I both agree and disagree with. There were only nine players available that night, which meant more minutes for everyone even with another game the next night, but the seven players who scored used their time well.
I just don’t like Unseld’s statement because, though he doesn’t explicitly say this, it reads like he’s above taking responsibility or accountability for losing a game. This isn’t the first time he’s given an answer in postgame media that deflects criticism, and that’s unfair to the players because they do hold themselves and each other accountable.
Again, everyone on this Wizards team has strengths and weaknesses, and in spite of the repeated losses, there are plenty of highlights. But something is still going to have to change (more than one thing) for the Wizards to be solid, and to be contenders in the future.
And I think the first step of that change is to hire a coach who knows how to develop the potential in the younger core, or at least a coach who doesn’t wait until the eleventh hour to call a timeout.
