Wizards’ Monthly Recap - November to December
November was a frustrating month for Wizards fans and players alike. The four-game winning streak in the middle of the month was bookended by tragedy, and a lot of improvement needs to be made going into December.
The Wizards suffered their biggest loss in franchise history on November 4 against the Brooklyn Nets (128-86), who were without Kyrie Irving at the time. This game was Corey Kispert’s regular-season debut (the guard suffered an ankle injury during preseason).
It also featured solid shooting performances from Bradley Beal (G), Kyle Kuzma (F), and Kristaps Porzingis (F/C), who scored 20, 19, and 14 points, respectively, but no other positives came from this game. The defense was lacking across the board, the entire team rushed offensively and missed many opportunities to close the lead, and Coach Unseld made no adjustments to get the Wizards back on track.
TL;DR, this was just an ugly game of basketball. November ends for the Wizards with a rematch against Brooklyn, this time in Brooklyn with the addition of Kyrie Irving (G).
I’m not particularly concerned with the Nets’ roster in the days leading up to this game; I just want to see a better game from the Wizards (UPDATE: Washington was defeated 113-107 in the rematch). Don’t be afraid to make adjustments, be careful on offense, make solid shots, and guard Kevin Durant.
One of the games I was most nervous about this month took place on November 10 when the Wizards debuted their cherry blossom city edition jerseys and hosted the Mavericks. This game was going to be a test of teamwork and drive, and the Wizards passed with flying colors in a 113-105 victory without Beal and Porzingis.
Kuzma (33) moving the ball for the Wizards on November 10 | retrieved from nba.com
So how and why did they pull off the victory?
Kuzma and Hachimura combined scored 59 of the Wizards’ points and featured impressive showings from Barton (F), Avdija (F), and Gafford (F/C).
Barton scored 14 points, Gafford scored 11, and Avdija scored 12, his season-high at the time. And somehow, the Wizards won despite abysmal three-point shooting from the entire roster.
After defeating the Mavs, the Wizards would win their next three games, all at home. Curiously, all of these wins were without Beal, who was absent due to COVID and took time for conditioning.
Beal’s return should have been a triumph. When the Wizards hosted the Oklahoma City Thunder on November 16, it should have been a Wizards masterclass. In theory, Beal coming back only added to the strength of the team, but the Wizards played a messy game and lost 121-120 in one of the most devastating games I’ve ever seen.
Even though the Wizards set the record for the second-most threes scored in the first half in franchise history and the fact that all of the starters were in double figures, the team wasn’t in sync.
The bench struggled all night, and Coach Unseld waited too long to make adjustments. The Wizards could have won had Unseld chosen to have someone other than Monte Morris (G) guarding SGA at the end of the game. Not that Morris is incapable of the assignment, he was just the wrong choice at the moment.
The last game I’m going to include in this recap was the recent blowout victory over the Timberwolves (142-127), but it’s worth noting that struggles with Beal continued through November, even in games that the Wizards won. It seems like his offensive style doesn’t fully fit in with the rest of the team, and that’s definitely a point of concern for the future.
However, the Wizards don’t have to run the offense solely through Beal all the time, not with Porzingis and Kuzma having had solid performances recently.
Porzingis scored 41 points against the Timberwolves, setting a new career high, and was strong on both sides of the floor. Kuzma also had no turnovers, which is something that hopefully can continue going forward.
Another strong defensive performance from Avdija and the usual shooting from Beal were also important to the Wizards’ success, even though there was inconsistency from the bench and another notable lack of adjustments from the coach.
Kristaps Porzingis (6) blocks Anthony Edwards (1) | Stephen Gosling/NBAE
So what do the Wizards need to do to have a successful December? It’s simple:
1. On the coaching side, the team makes the necessary adjustments and uses timeouts when things aren’t going well.
2. The players need to step up on both ends, especially on the defensive end (rarely does anyone on the Wizards take the initiative on defense aside from Avdija).
3. Beal doesn’t need to solely control the offense, especially in moments where he’s turning the ball over a lot the way he’s been recently.
