A few days ago, when the Washington Wizards played the New York Knicks in London, owner Ted Leonsis said the team doesn't plan to tank for the remainder of the season or ‘ever' and they would still like to keep on competing in hopes of earning a playoff spot come April.
Wizards head coach Scott Brooks seems to agree.
With a 19-26 record, Washington is currently ranked 10th in the Eastern Conference, just three games behind eighth-seeded Charlotte Hornets (22-23). And with just 37 games left, Scott Brooks thinks that the Wizards are now in survival mode.
“It’s basically survival mode,” Brooks told Roman Stubbs of Washington Post. “We want to keep fighting to put ourselves in a position to win a playoff spot. To do that, we’ve had to play a little bit different and our guys have stepped up.”
The Wizards have been playing without All-Star guard John Wall who underwent season-ending surgery due to a tear in his Achilles tendon. They have won six of their last ten games, including a much-needed win against the Knicks.
Coach Brooks said that they are in a familiar situation and have responded well to it.
“It’s something we did a little bit last year, when [Wall] missed half the season. Last year, we didn’t know what to expect. Now we knew what to expect because we have been through it before … we’re playing good. We’re playing good on both ends of the floor.”
Without Wall, the Wizards had to adjust on both ends of the floor. They have slowed things down a little on offense and have employed a lot of half-court sets, with Bradley Beal as their primary scoring option. On defense, the acquisition of Trevor Ariza has helped the team too.
The next few weeks will determine whether or not the Wizards make the postseason. Right now, they are focused on Monday's showdown with the Detroit Pistons, a team that is just one game above them in the standings.
However, the true test for the Wizards comes against the Golden State Warriors who will visit them on Thursday. From there, Washington's schedule will be filled with games against both the contenders and cellar dwellers.
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