The Washington Wizards have grown accustomed to relying on the scoring of guard Gilbert Arenas. In Sunday’s 101-90 victory at Atlanta, however, the Wizards found a way to win on a day in which Arenas scored 18 points. It was a positive development as Washington (1-5) ended its five-game losing skid.
Make no mistake. Arenas played a major role, penetrating the Atlanta defense and keying the Wizards’ best ball-movement game so far. Arenas had six of the Wizards’ season-high 26 assists.
“I like to think of him as the quarterback of the team, especially down the stretch,” said coach Eddie Jordan. “He called the right plays, at the right time, for the right people.”
All five starters excelled. Caron Butler (24 points, 8 assists) finished and distributed, combining with Antawn Jamison (23 points, 15 rebounds) as the forward duo had their top combined scoring output. Center Brendan Haywood (13 points, 12 rebounds) had his fourth double-double. DeShawn Stevenson, mired in a shooting slump (26 percent), hit 4 of 6 shots.
The win came after Jamison and Butler called a players-only meeting following Friday’s 118-92 home loss to Denver Friday.
Washington hosts struggling Indiana (3-3), which has lost three straight, Wednesday night.
