Three discouraging thoughts from the Wizards’ 116-91 blowout loss at Sacramento:
Didn’t the Wizards just go through this? Yes, yes they did, exactly a week ago, when they made the lowly Toronto Raptors look like playoff contenders. Upon their return to Washington, the Wizards then talked about accountability, and now they’ve gone out and lost to arguably the worst team in the Western Conference in the same manner, dropping to an unacceptable 0-12 on the road. It really shouldn’t matter how many players were injured. Getting embarrassed like that on Wednesday even left usually Kool-Aid infused owner Ted Leonsis with pretty much nothing positive to say. It’s difficult to know how much longer the Wizards can sustain losses like this without making some kind of change. A quarter of the season has passed, and the Wizards’ three defining traits are massive steps backward, occasional encouraging losses with John Wall running wild and a mystery starting five revealed ten minutes prior to tipoff every night.
Sure, the rookies played well against the Lakers, but was it really time to flip the lineup? Injuries to Wall and Andray Blatche again forced Wizards head coach Flip Saunders’ hand in Sacramento to some extent. But the decision to vault Kevin Seraphin past Hilton Armstrong into the starting lineup to replace JaVale McGee was a mighty big reward for the rookie big man, and Trevor Booker didn’t seem ready for the responsibility of major minutes either. Moreover, there seems to be a shift going on in what Saunders values the most going forward, future potential and energy over experience and immediate results. Add in the knock-on effect to Gilbert Arenas and Kirk Hinrich, who start playing out of character themselves, and the Wizards look completely unfamiliar and discombobulated. Injuries or not, this makes the establishment of any continuity much more difficult.
Concern has to grow over Wall’s injury-prone tendencies. Out of the last 13 games, Wall has played in six and started four. After he first sprained his left foot at Chicago on Nov. 13, he was listed as day-to-day for the next week and a half, and when he came back, it was only two games before he was out again for another two. In the latest stretch, he lasted only four games. There’s no sense in trying to change the way he plays. But if he’s hurt, he needs to sit, perhaps for an extended period. The Wizards need him far more down the road than they do right now, especially with how inconsistent the rest of the team is playing.
