Washington Wizards Blog – Page 21 – NBA Blog

Jodie Meeks will reportedly stay with Wizards

We are now in a crucially important period of the basketball offseason: Awaiting the draft, but also seeing which players enter free agency. Some will do so automatically because their contract has officially ended, but with others it’s by choice, either by the player or the team. In the case of the Wizards, here’s the Washington Post with an update on Jodie Meeks:

In an expected move, Washington Wizards guard Jodie Meeks exercised the player option of his contract for the 2018-19 season, according to league sources. Meeks’s return will signal a hit to the salary cap while also ensuring the Wizards will be shorthanded to start next season.

With Meeks, the Wizards have 10 players under contract. The sharpshooter is expected to earn $3.45 million next season and though his individual income appears meager compared to the team’s core players John Wall, Bradley Beal and Otto Porter Jr., the cumulative amount will push the team’s 2018-19 salary past $124 million.

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Wizards win Game 4, tie Raptors series 2-2

The Raptors were an excellent team almost all regular season, winning 59 games (second most in the entire league) and clearly played at a higher level than in the past. And started strong in the playoffs, winning their first two at home against Washington. But the Wizards did what was needed and defended homecourt in DC, tying the series 2-2. We have a battle on our hands. Here’s the Toronto Star with more:

Maybe Casey’s team will respond more favourably in the friendly environs of the Air Canada Centre. As it was, the Raptors capped a forgettable trip to the U.S. capital with a second straight loss, 106-98, to leave their best-of-seven series deadlocked at 2-2. For the second straight game the Raptors saw an early lead undone by careless turnovers and unforced mistakes. For the second straight game, the Wizards got a big performance from Bradley Beal to vault themselves back into the series. Even after Beal fouled out with 4:58 to play — after he scored 31 points on 19 field-goal attempts — the Wizards got it over the finish line. John Wall inserted a dagger, making one of his floating mid-range jump shots to put the Wizards up 102-96 with 58 seconds to play. Wall, for whom the Raptors have yet to find an antidote, finished with 25 points and 14 assists.

Yet again, Toronto’s vaunted depth failed to show itself, leaving all-stars DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry to carry far more of the load than they did en route to 59 regular-season wins. DeRozan responded to a steady diet of single coverage with a big game, scoring 35 points and getting to the free-throw line 18 times. Lowry, meanwhile, scored 19 points, going 4-for-6 from three-point range. But Toronto’s other starters were less effective. And Toronto’s bench, which averaged 42 points a game during the regular season, contributed just 22 points. C.J. Miles was 0-for-3 from three-point range. Delon Wright had just seven points on seven shots.

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Wizards sign Ty lawson

The Washington Wizards have signed free agent guard Ty Lawson.

“Ty’s experience and ability will give us extra depth in the backcourt during the playoffs,” said Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld. “He’s a veteran player who can score and distribute while bringing additional postseason experience.”

Lawson has averaged 12.7 points (.460 FG%, .359 3FGt%, .770 FT%), 6.0 assists, 2.7 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 29.2 minutes per game in 551 contests (345 starts) over his eight NBA seasons with the Denver Nuggets (2009-15) Houston Rockets (2016), Indiana Pacers (2016) and Sacramento Kings (2016-17). During his time with the Nuggets, Lawson appeared in 416 contests (307 starts) over six seasons, averaging 14.2 points, 6.6 assists and 1.2 steals per game. He also averaged 19.0 points and 6.0 assists during the 2012 NBA Playoffs and 21.3 points and 8.0 assists in the 2013 NBA Playoffs (and helped the team reach the playoffs in his first five seasons).

His best overall season with the Nuggets came in 2013-14 when he averaged 17.6 points, 8.8 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 62 games. Lawson averaged a career-high 9.6 assists per game in 75 games for the Nuggets during the 2014-15 season. He was originally selected with the 18th overall pick by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2009 NBA Draft before being traded to the Nuggets on draft night.

A native of nearby Clinton, MD, Lawson most recently played this year with the Shandong Lions of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA), where he averaged 25.5 points, 6.5 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 2.2 steals in 46 games. He scored 55 points for the Lions on February 12.

Win over Heat was key for Wizards

We’ve reached the part of the year where for many NBA teams, each win matters. The postseason isn’t here yet, but it’s still a pivotal moment for squads whose destiny may revolve around whether they qualify for the postseason or reach the lottery and possibly land a higher draft pick. As for teams that surely expect to reach the postseason, every win against an opponent in their conference with a similar record matters greatly. Here’s NBC Sports Washington with the latest on the Wizards:

The Wizards earned themselves a much-needed breather amid a hectic Eastern Conference playoff race on Tuesday night.

By beating the Miami Heat, Washington snapped their season-long three-game losing streak. It has been a tough few days with losses to the Warriors, Raptors and Pacers, but the Wizards are finally back in the win column.

With the win, the Wizards took a 2-1 lead on the Heat in their season series. They will play for a fourth and final time on Saturday. If the Wizards win that game, they will own the playoff tiebreaker for seeding purposes.

The Wizards moved to 37-28 on the season and 11-6 since John Wall went down with a left knee injury.

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Wizards sign Ramon Sessions to 10-day contract

The Washington Wizards today signed guard Ramon Sessions to a 10-day contract.

“We’re very familiar with Ramon,” said Wizards President Ernie Grunfeld. “He’s a veteran who can play both guard positions and will add depth to our backcourt.”

Sessions returns to the Wizards after playing one-and-a-half seasons in Washington (2015 and 2015-16), appearing in 110 games (eight starts) while averaging 9.2 points, 3.0 assists and 2.5 rebounds. He was originally acquired from the Sacramento Kings in exchange for Andre Miller at the 2015 trade deadline.

In his 11th season, Sessions (6-3, 190-pounds) has averaged 10.4 points, 4.1 assists, and 2.7 rebounds for the Bucks, Timberwolves, Cavaliers, Lakers, Bobcats/Hornets, Kings, Wizards and, most recently, the Knicks, where he played 13 games (three starts) earlier this season. The Myrtle Beach, SC, native was originally selected by Milwaukee in the second round (56th overall) of the 2007 NBA Draft.

Wizards trade Sheldon Mac to Hawks

The Washington Wizards announced today that they have traded guard/forward Sheldon Mac to Atlanta for a protected 2019 second round pick.

Mac, who underwent surgery to repair a torn left Achilles tendon in October, has not appeared in a game this season. He averaged 3.0 points and 1.1 rebounds in 30 games for the Wizards last season after signing as an undrafted free agent.

John Wall scoring big in January

The Wizards were defeated by the Milwaukee Bucks 104-95 yesterday, finishing their five-game homestand 2-3.

John Wall recorded 27 points and nine assists, his fifth game with at least 25 points in January.

25+ Point Games, January
Lou Williams 7
John Wall 5
Giannis Antetokounmpo 5
DeMar DeRozan 5
Kevin Durant 5

Wall is averaging the second-most points in the Eastern Conference in the month of January (seven games) and the most assists in the entire NBA in that same span.

Points Per Game-EC, January
DeMar DeRozan 30.8
John Wall 25.9
Giannis Antetokounmpo 25.6

Assists Per Game-NBA, January
John Wall 11.3
Kris Dunn 7.9
Goran Dragic 7.0

Kelly Oubre Jr. notched his 30th game this season with at least 10 points, the third-most on the team this season (Beal-41, Wall-32).

— Wizards Notes

Wizards doing about as well as they did last season

A post shared by Washington Wizards (@washwizards) on Jan 10, 2018 at 6:26pm PST

The Wizards currently have the fifth best record in the Eastern conference, behind the Miami Heat. Solid. But more was expected from a team that brought back last year’s roster and should presumably be improving, not staying the same. Here’s the Washington Post reporting:

But now that the 2017-18 Wizards have reached the crossroads of the regular season, they look strikingly similar — or only slightly better, in some instances — to last year’s team.

The Wizards are 23-18, just one game better than last year’s pace despite the organization going all in on its belief that continuity with Wall, Beal and Otto Porter Jr. would lead to greater heights.

Through the first 41 games, Washington has produced an offensive rating of 106.3, the 11th best mark in the league — the exact same number and ranking the team held at this point in the season a year ago. While the Wizards have shown marked improvement on the defensive end, ranking eighth in the league with a 104.0 defensive rating, that progress has not helped the team win more games.

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And here’s NBC Sports Washington with more:

The positive side is that the Wizards are comfortably in the Eastern Conference playoff race at fifth despite missing several key players at times due to injury. Wall has missed 11 games, Markieff Morris missed eight and Otto Porter has missed four.

Health has been a big difference between last year and this year. Last season they didn’t have any significant injuries to their starting lineup and after 41 games they were 22-19, a game behind their current pace. That team advanced all the way to the seventh game of the second round of the playoffs.

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Wizards lose competitive game to Bucks

A post shared by Washington Wizards (@washwizards) on Jan 6, 2018 at 7:06pm PST

The Wizards dropped a competitive game to the Milwaukee Bucks last night, 110-103. The Wizards fell to 4-2 this season in the second game of a back-to-back.

The loss snapped a five-game home winning streak for the Wizards, who last lost at home to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Dec. 17.

Markieff Morris recorded his third consecutive double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Three-straight double-doubles is the longest streak of Morris’ career. Morris has also led the Wizards in rebounding for six-straight games now.

John Wall tallied 16 points and 16 assists in the game, a season high for assists this year. It was the most assists Wall has recorded in a game since his career-high 20 against the Bulls on March 17 last season.

The Wizards lost for the first time this season when all five starters scored in double-figures, Washington is now 5-1 in those games this season.

— Wizards Notes

Wizards set to face Pelicans

A post shared by New Orleans Pelicans (@pelicansnba) on Dec 16, 2017 at 10:00am PST

The Wizards are set to face the Pelicans tonight. An intriguing matchup for anybody in the league, the Pelicans have two of the biggest names in the NBA frontcourt world: DeMarcus Cousins and Anthony Davis. But the team as a whole is 15-15, tied for the 7th best record in the Western conference. Very solid, but unspectacular.

Here’s NBC Sports Washington discussing the Pels:

Few teams in the NBA offer a matchup problem as unique as the New Orleans Pelicans, who feature two All-Star big men in Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins. One is lanky with arms that reach to the sky. The other is wider and known for his brute strength. Both can move and shoot unusually well for their size.

On Tuesday night, the Wizards will see the Pelicans’ twin towers for the first time since Cousins landed in New Orleans. He was acquired from the Kings in a Feb. 20 trade, just 16 days after the second and final meeting between the teams in the 2016-17 season.

Cousins is a player the Wizards know well. He and Wizards guard John Wall teamed up at the University of Kentucky back in the 2009-10 season before the two were drafted into the NBA. Veteran players on the Wizards have played against both Cousins and Davis over the years. But now they have to deal with them at the same time.

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