The Wizards’ third loss in four games, against yet another team under .500, was cause for … celebration?
Well, not exactly. But after Saturday’s 111-105 loss at the Los Angeles Clippers, star guard Gilbert Arenas tried to put a positive spin on what happened. Even if it’s likely others might disagree.
“This was a good loss,” Arenas said. “We’re almost in April and we are still first in our division. It’s just like every season, the last three seasons, teams have had the opportunity to take it away, but we always end up where we want to be. We want to be in third, and most likely that’s where we are going to end up.”
Actually, Saturday wasn’t a good loss; it was yet another blown opportunity to lengthen their lead in the Southeast Division. After all, Miami has lost two straight — also to teams with losing records (Indiana, Philadelphia).
But instead of gaining ground, the Wizards still hold a half-game lead over the Heat. And they trail Toronto by a half game for the third seed in the East.
They’re also now 1-3 on this five-game swing. The worst part: they play the one winning team on this trip tonight in Utah.
Then again, maybe that’s a good thing. The Wizardsare only 5-5 against teams under .500 this month and 9-8 against them in the last two months.
The problem on this trip stem partly from defense. Washington has allowed 246 points the past two games. And in Friday’s shootout loss at Golden State, the Wizards surrendered 135 points and let the Warriors shoot 58 percent from the field.
But defense has been a season-long issue.
And, certainly, it hurts not having forward Caron Butler. But too many teams win without key players for that to be a constant issue. Plus, the bench has actually produced the past two games. Guard/forward Jarvis Hayes has scored 14 points in each of the past two games and forward Darius Songaila has scored a combined 25 in the past two.
In fact, in the past two games, the bench has contributed a combined 87 points, 33 rebounds and 24 assists.
Arenas hasn’t had his best trip, despite the game-winning shot in Seattle. In the three losses, he’s made a combined 35 percent of his field goals (22 for 62) and 28 percent of his three-pointers (six for 21).
Fellow guard DeShawn Stevenson’s offensive struggles haven’t helped. He’s scored just 15 points in the past three games combined.
Road weary
» Washington’s trip ends tonight at Utah. The Wizards host Philadelphia on Wednesday and Toronto on Friday. Both the Sixers and Raptors have won two straight and six of 10.
» The Wizards now are 12-22 on the road. That record puts them seventh of the top eight teams in the Eastern Conference. Fortunately for Washington, 11 of its last 18 games are at home.
