Standing the East: 14th

Win/Loss Record: 7/32

This week…

• Happy MLK Day!

• Wizards go 1-3 this week including our 7th season win over the Hawks

• Weekly Headlines: Ryan Rollins has been shoplifting 🧐 

• Why the Marvin Bagley trade has a lot of upside

• Upcoming schedule

Weekly Recap

^{Cavs OKC beat Wizards at home 136-128}

This was one Zaz and I had to see in person. For a little background, Zaz grew up in Oklahoma so he’s been waiting 8 years since 2016 for the Thunder to finally be back at Capitol One as a real contender. To refresh your memory, 2016 was the year of KD’s heartbreaking departure to the Warriors.

The Wizards kept this game competitive for the most part to the surprise of many of Thunder fans at Capitol One. They shot over 49% from the field and over 46% from three. Unfortunately, OKC was even more efficient shooting a whopping 59% from the field and over 50% from beyond the arc.

Jordan Poole had a solid game, leading the Wizards with 24 points, 5 assists and only 1 turnover. We need more games like this from Poole if he is going to have any trade value. Kuzma contributed 22 points, 15 rebounds and 5 assists but went 0-5 from the 3-point line. Tyus Jones continues to impress after delivering 18 points, 9 assists and 3 steals.

The Thunder’s big 3, however, were too much for the Wizards to handle. Shai, Chet and J. Williams combined for 84 points on 70% shooting 🤯. The highlight for me was seeing Chet Holmgren in person who had a crazy stat line:

That guy is super impressive at such a young age and definitely my vote for Rookie of the Year. Here is what Kuzma had to say about Chet…

^{Pacers outshoot the Wizards to win 112-104}

This was a great chance for sneaky win for the Wiz given the fact that Tyrese Halliburton was out with a grade 1 hamstring strain. The Wizards started off decently in the first half, shooting 41% from the field, out-rebounding the Pacers 30-24 and getting it done on the defensive end with 5 steals and 4 blocks. The Wizards let by 2 at the half.

The second half was a different story entirely. The Pacers made run at the beginning of the 3rd quarter and never looked back, out-rebounding the Wizards and making 90% of their free-throws. Jordan Nwora had an emphatic dunk that felt like a door slamming on the game at the end of the 3rd…

@lethalhoops

Jordan Nwora BODIED Daniel Gafford For The Poster Dunk😱😱😱😱 #nba #basketball #highlight #trending #jordannwora #indiana #pacers #indianapac... See more

Bilal Coulibaly did not have a great game, only contributing 5 points on 1/5 shooting, but his one bucket was probably the highlight of his year thus far. Check it out below.

@djak_devinette_joueur

Bilal Coulibaly il envoie fort. #bilalcoulibaly #posterdunk #dunk #washingtonwizards #joueurnba #nba #basketball #basketteur #basketballfr... See more

^{Wizards dominate Hawks for 7th season win 127-99}

The Wizards caught the Hawks on their second night of a back-to-back and took advantage. Kuzma got hot in the first quarter and set the tone for the rest of game. He had 22 points by halftime with the Wizards up by 11.

However, the third quarter is when the Wizards really did their damage, outscoring the Hawks 41-24, essentially forcing the Hawks to waive the white flag.

The Wizards held the Hawks to 34% for the night and Trae Young, who was mainly guarded by Deni Avdija, to 21 points overall. Kuzma led the way with 29 points in 27 minutes, Poole had 20 points in 26 minutes, and Avdija had 19 points, 14 rebounds, and 9 assist in 37 minutes.

The Wizards had six players score in double figures including Corey Kispert, Daniel Gafford, and Bilal Coulibaly.

^{Wizards lose the battle of the bottom on MLK Day 119-127}

This was the battle of the NBA’s worst two teams on a snowy MLK day in DC. You would think the Wizards would get the win at home for pride and Kuzma’s recent trash talking of the Pistons, but that wasn’t the case.

Instead, Kuzma shot a disappointing 7 of 21 (33%) from the field and was ejected in the fourth quarter after getting his second technical foul. The Pistons, on the other hand, shot an impressive 56% from the field and an astounding 19-41 (46%) from three.

The Wizards managed to keep it close for most of the game but Detroit pulled away in the final quarter. No Cade Cunningham, no problem. Alec Burks led all scorers for the Pistons with 34 points going 8-12 from three. Detroit’s youth also showed up with Jaden Ivey scoring 24 points and Jalen Duren scoring 20 points.

Tyus Jones led all Wizards with 22 points and added seven rebounds and six assists helping his trade value. Jordan Pool had 16 points on 6-14 shooting (43%), hurting his trade value.

Wizards Headlines

Why the Bagley-Livers trade is good news for the Wizards

This has been the most well received trade in the Michael Winger era to date, from sports journalists and fans alike. To recap here is an overview of how the trade played out.

I like how Chase Hughes broke down the trade here…

After scouring all our favorite Wizards Fan Group chat boards on Facebook and reading the most prominent Washington Wizards beat reporters from Bullets Forever, Wizard of Awes and others, the consensus is the following:

• Great to have a back up center to support Daniel Gafford coming off the bench.

• More rebounding is needed. The Wizards currently rank last in rebounding in the league so we need all the help we can get.

• Two young guys for two old guys is a great deal. Gallinari and Muscala were both expiring contracts at the end of the season so the mere fact of getting anything in return for those guys in a nice surprise.

Overall, I agree with all the points above. At his peak in in the 2021-22 season, Bagley was averaging over 14 points per game shooting over 55% and pulling in an average of 6.8 rebounds. If the Wizards development team can build on those stats we may have something to build on.

Upcoming Schedule

• Thursday, Jan. 18th @7:30pm EST: Wizards vs Knicks (Away)

• Saturday, Jan. 20th @7:00pm EST: Wizards vs Spurs (Home)

• Sunday, Jan. 21 @6:00pm EST: Wizards vs Nuggets (Home)

Have a great week!