Breaking losing streak a tall task at Lakers
There’s no question the rebuilding Wizards came into the season expecting to sacrifice results for progress. But at some point the only acceptable measure of progress is results, and it’s not just that the Wizards haven’t gotten any on the road, they haven’t even been close.
“We gotta worry about playing the right way, getting better,” Wizards head coach Flip Saunders said last week. “If you do that, you’re going to give yourself a chance to win. Games that we’ve won are games that we’ve competed and had chances.”
But the Wizards (6-13) have been far more prone to not competing for 48 minutes on the road, whether it’s playing against a cornered and frustrated Miami Heat or being privy to a Steve Nash master class on the pick and roll. Washington’s last four road losses have been by an average of nearly 17 points, and facing the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers (14-6) creates a built-in excuse for that trend to continue.
| Up next |
| Wizards at Lakers |
| When » Tuesday, 10:30 p.m. |
| Where » Staples Center, Los Angeles |
| TV/Radio » Comcast SportsNet/106.7 FM |
“It’s time for us to step up, each one of us individually and try to make something happen, not offensively but defensively and vocally-wise, stay together at this time on the road because we need to,” said forward Andray Blatche, who has been Washington’s steadiest offensive contributor of late (21.5 points in the last four games). “We gotta have each other’s back and get the losing streak out of the way.”
The Lakers ended a four-game skid last weekend with a victory over Sacramento. They also will meet the Wizards a week from Tuesday at Verizon Center.
