The Wizards abandon their defense on occasion. Like in the third quarter of Wednesday’s Game 5 loss when those not named LeBron James drove at will, scoring easy baskets. It’s what teams have done all season.
The Wizards lack a true big man. They need a muscular power forward. They need a deeper bench.
Then again … they’re a resilient bunch; looking toward the future, they have a legitimate franchise player in Gilbert Arenas, a more-than-capable partner in Caron Butler with whom he can grow and the ultimate role player in Jared Jeffries.
If the playoffs have revealed anything about the Wizards, it’s this: they’re all of the above. Which is why they’re trailing, 3-2, entering Game 6 tonight. Washington has its plusses (an elite scoring trio) and its minuses (a forgetful defense). And, though they seemingly have outplayed the Cavs for much of this series, they trail because of those lapses. James and his two game-winning drives have had something to do with those woes, too.
“The series should have been over,” Arenas said. “We’re better than them. We just have to put this away.”
Washington’s problems won’t be solved anytime soon. And that’s why, if they force a seventh game, it’ll likely come down to a final shot again. Neither team is expected to do much in the second round against Detroit and both are using this round to gauge their progress.
The Wizards have proven they can score. They’ve also shown they can’t make the big defensive stop when needed.
They were criticized after the game for their defense. However, their defensive habits havebeen a season-long story; with strong moments followed by weak ones. When there’s no consistent defensive stopper in the middle, that’s what happens.
“If we’re horrible, then everyone else is horrible,” Arenas said. “We beat San Antonio and we beat Detroit three times. If they’re the best teams and they can’t beat us, then we’re doing pretty well.”
But they overcome those woes with Arenas, Butler and Antawn Jamison’s offensive prowess.
The Wizards have topped 100 points in the past two games. And that’s why they remain optimistic. The players didn’t mope around after practice Thursday, staying as they have all season: upbeat and loose.
“We can handle this type of situation,” Wizards coach Eddie Jordan said. ‘’I feel good, I really do. I’m this close to guaranteeing a win.’’
Which is about right. After all, the Wizards have also shown this all season: they’re adept at overcoming deficits.
According to Gil
» Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas went to the Cavs’ locker room after Game 5 and joked he was upset because he wanted to be known as Mr. Game 5 and was ready to print that on T-shirts. He nailed the game-winner in last year’s opening round against Chicago in Game 5 and hit two free throws Wednesday night with 3.6 seconds left in overtime.
» Arenas blamed himself for not calling timeout at the end of overtime. He saw the Cavs celebrating and thought he could get a clean shot, but was not far enough downcourt.
» Arenas called Brendan Haywood tonight’s X-factor, mainly for his defense against Zydrunas Ilgauskas.
