The Washington Wizards were looking to try and get something going before their current season gets way out of hand. Coming into the night, Washington was 7-12 and at the 12th seed in the NBA Eastern Conference standings. The Wizards and Wall battled the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night in a contest between two teams looking to find a way to sneak back into the playoff picture.
For the first time since Gilbert Arenas in 2007, a member of the Wizards scored 50 points. John Wall scored a career-high 52 points on 18-31 shooting, handing out eight assists, grabbing four rebounds, and swiping three steals. Wall’s first 50 point game matches Michael Jordan for the same number of 50 point games in a Wizards uniform. But despite a fantastic effort from Wall, the Wizards still lost to the Orlando Magic, 124-116.
And after the game, an unhappy Wall ripped his teammates’ effort level. The Magic were averaging 93.2 points and scored over 100 points in just five of their first 21 games but shot 52 percent in their victory and Orlando’s 124 points were a season high. The Orlando bench gave the starters a lift by scoring 73 points to outperform a Wizards bench that only scored 23 points.
Hopefully on Thursday, when the Wizards host the Denver Nuggets at the Verizon Center, Washington’s effort will improve to a level that can assist John Wall’s often stellar play.
