FanPost

Predicting the unpredictable Wizards season

There are many predictable things about the NBA season.

1. Pretty sure Golden State will be good, probably in the Finals.

2. Pretty sure Cleveland will be good, probably in the Finals.

So oh well, everybody else in the NBA is playing for 2nd place or 3rd or whatever. Still doesn't make the NBA season that much less exciting. Just less predictable.

With the Wizards, I am hoping for the unpredictable. The predictables are pretty easy.

1. John Wall (if healthy) will be close to All-Star caliber.

2. Marcin Gortat will be a solid center averaging close to 10 RPG.

After that? Well there are unpredictables. Here is what needs to be better if the Wizards will improve on last season and make it back to the playoffs

1. Defense must be better. Last year, they gave up 104 PPG (3rd worst in the East). This MUST improve. Scott Brooks is known as this good defensive coach. But it seemed like OKC when he coached was more of an offensive juggernaut.

The additions of Markieff and Mahinmi will have to be the improvement. Wall, Gortat and Beal are all solid defenders as is Porter. Brooks should get this defense to be better.

2. Offense must improve slightly. This pace and space of last year was a horrible idea. Wittman was not equipped to coach this. Many of the older players like Nene and Humphries were too creaky to play this. Glad this is over.

But do not see much improvement based on the players they picked up. Markieff is decent offensively but not great. Beal (if healthy) should average around 20 PPG. Porter may take a step up offensively. But these are big IFs. There is just a lot of hoping and praying they can score more.

3. Health. Never understand why some players never get hurt (like Gortat) and others (like Beal) constantly get hurt. If there ever was such a thing as injury prone (not sure if that exists), then Beal is it. He just can't seem to keep away from the leg injuries.

But the only players who NEED to stay healthy are Wall and Beal. The Wizards can afford it if Porter or Markieff go down for a stretch. Losing Gortat would hurt but Mahinmi could fill in. But nobody can replace Wall or Beal.

Book this. If Beal and Wall each play 75 or more games, then the Wizards easily win 45+ games.

4. Bench improves. Ah, this is where it can get interesting. Feel the bench can be a strength. Last season, the bench was OK with Sessions and others. But this bench could be pretty good.

I like the lineup of PG Burke or Sato, SG Thornton, SF Oubre, PF Smith or Nicholson and C Mahnmi. My only major question mark is Burke. He seems like a gunner without the defensive intensity of Sessions. But if this group can leave Wall and Beal on the bench for 4-minute stretches to close out the 1st and start the 2nd quarter then this can be good.

So I am banking on 1 (defense), 3 (health), and 4 (bench) improving. The offense I just don't see it getting much better. In fact, shooting will be worse without Dudley. But you can win a lot of regular season games with great defense and good-enough offense.

So Vegas has the Wizards around 43 wins. I would go with the over.

I will predict the unpredictable. The Wizards will go 45-37 good enough for the 6th seed.

Let's go! Game Time!

This represents the view of the user who wrote the FanPost, and not the entire Bullets Forever community. We're a place of many opinions, not just one.