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Despite the fact that the Washington Wizards are currently 16 games under the .500 mark, the lowly Eastern Conference franchise will be making its way down to Orlando as the NBA continues to ramp back up in the coming weeks.
However, the Wizards will notably be without both starting point guard John Wall (injury) and forward Davis Bertans (sit out).
As a result of such absences, Wizards general manager Tommy Sheppard made a point to comment on both Wall and Bertans while also emphasizing that Washington is supporting its players wholeheartedly at this time.
Tommy Sheppard says Bertans gave them plenty of heads up he wasn’t going to play: “We certainly support his reasons for not playing. … We know how much Davis means to this team moving forward."
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) June 29, 2020
Sheppard on Wall not going to Orlando: "Having somebody go into that bubble that’s not gonna play, that’s just more people going into the bubble. … I don’t think it’s wise to have people in and around the team that aren’t playing (because of) exposure."
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) June 29, 2020
John Wall encountered a slew of significant injury troubles over the past season, and he is is already expected to miss the whole 2019-20 campaign.
As for Davis Bertans, he chose to sit out the NBA restart to avoid sustaining any injury that may affect his next contract. The Latvian Laser is set to hit unrestricted free agency, and after a career year with the Wizards, he is poised for a massive payday.
As it stands today, the 24-40 Wizards sit in 10th place in the Eastern Conference, which is good for last place among the teams set to play in Orlando. The Wizards are currently 5.5 games behind the Orlando Magic for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
