Rookie has gaffes, but plays his best game Chris Singleton had been a nuisance all night, and now he had his chance for an exclamation point.
But somehow, after stealing a Mike Bibby pass in the fourth quarter of Friday’s game against the New York Knicks and taking off down the court, the Wizards rookie mistimed something. His fast break dunk attempt didn’t even clang off the rim, instead meekly skimming away.
| Up Next |
| Timberwolves at Wizards |
| When » Sunday, 1 p.m. |
| Where » Verizon Center |
| TV » CSN |
“I thought it was kind of funny I missed it,” Singleton said. “It was probably the first dunk I missed in two years. I missed one at Maryland, but that’s the last time I missed a dunk. I was like, ‘Wow. That’s the last time I missed a dunk.’?”
But while the Florida State product might’ve had his most embarrassing moment in Friday’s 99-96 loss, it was by far his best game for the Wizards (0-7) as he had 12 points, seven rebounds and hounded Carmelo Anthony for the entirety of his 27 minutes on the floor, also a season high.
The Knicks were one of the teams that passed on a chance to select Singleton in the 2011 NBA Draft, choosing Iman Shumpert with the 17th overall pick, one spot ahead of where Singleton was drafted by the Wizards.
“I vowed to make all the teams regret me, the teams that passed up on me,” Singleton said. “I was just trying to just play tonight and let everything come to me. Every time I step on the court, I get more and more comfortable.”
With a pair of 3-pointers against New York, Singleton improved to 7-for-13 (53.8 percent) from beyond the arc but rued not realizing that there was time to spare when he missed a potential game-tying shot with time left on the clock and a timeout.
“That’s one thing, probably awareness at the end of the game,” Singleton said. “That’s something I need to work on.”
Singleton also might’ve been a bit too anxious against Anthony, getting into the all-star right away at the end of the first quarter. Anthony torched both Singleton and second-year forward Trevor Booker en route to 37 points.
Wizards guard Nick Young, whose locker is next to Singleton’s, said he had a message for his young teammates: “‘Welcome to the NBA.”
