Dylan Mitchell @oheyijust
After a strong start, the Wizards once again managed to give the game away against the Oklahoma City Thunder. After a lot of sloppy play, they surrendered a 50-38 halftime lead, and were lucky to be able to go to overtime with the Thunder. This was one of those games the Wizards just let slide away from them rather than closing it out. If they want to ensure they can keep up pace with the Atlanta Hawks, performances like this cannot happen again.
Nene (24pts, 3ast, 4rbs, 3blk) was a bright spot for the Wiz, and held a mismatch throughout the entirety of the game. After a quick two fouls early in the first quarter, Nene had to take a seat on the bench which led to less efficient offensive production from the Wizards. To win, Randy Witman needs to keep looking to Nene and his size advantage over many of the PF’s in the East.
Bench production, something that has been a bright spot so far this season, lacked its normal efficiency. Rasual Butler and Kevin Seraphin lead the bench with nine points each, along with four from Kris Humphries and one from Otto Porter. Bench production needs to get back to what it normally is if the Wiz want to beat Portland on Saturday.
Saturday will be a huge road test of the Wizards as they travel to Portland to take on Damian Lillard and the Trail Blazers. After a tough fought game against OKC, the two nights off should benefit the Wiz as they look to recover.
