Top Stories of the Week: The Wizards are on a roll!

The Wizards are now halfway through the 2016-17 season. It was a rocky start, but things have been trending up. After a 10-5 December, Washington has gone 7-3 in January so far. In fact, the Wizards won 7 of their last eight games!

Ultimately, it makes me feel like this viral video back in the early 2000’s.

So, let’s go through what’s been going on with the Wizards and Mystics this past week.

Wizards are fifth in the East, on a four game winning streak!

Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports

Things are going well in Washington. They played four games in the last seven days — and won every single time:

• Last Saturday, the Wizards beat the 76ers at home, 109-93 after falling into an early deficit in the first half.
• And last Monday on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Wizards won 120-101 over the Trail Blazers at home.
• Finally, last Wednesday, the Wizards beat the Grizzlies, 104-101 at home. Washington has now won 13 straight at the Verizon Center.
• Verizon Center has been a welcoming environment for John Wall and the gang. But they still need to get it done on the road. On Thursday night, they defeated the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, 113-110 on national TV. Wall closed out the game by going coast to coast for a fast break slam dunk:

When it’s all said and done, the Wizards are now 23-19 and on a four game winning streak. They are fifth in the Eastern Conference, one game behind the Atlanta Hawks who are still on a hot streak after trading Kyle Korver to the Cavaliers.

Sidney Lowe is in a rut with the Knicks for being on the court

The Wizards assistant coach appeared to step on the court in the closing seconds of Thursday’s win against the Knicks. Courtney Lee claimed that Lowe was in the way, in the video above from SNY.tv. Candace Buckner of The Washington Post also wrote an additional . We’ll see if there is anything that comes of it in the next few days.

Wizards team analysis

Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images

• Candace Buckner of The Washington Post wrote about Otto Porter’s efficiency, and team defenses are still not taking him into account. Buckner wasn’t alone writing about Porter’s improvement this week. Quentin Haynes of Hoops Habit has another column as well.
• Marcus wrote about some potential trade targets for the Wizards with the trade deadline coming up next month.
• Jake Weingarten wrote in depth on an issue many have asked aloud over the past couple years: Why isn’t John Wall getting respect that other NBA guards have? Kevin Parrish added to that by talking about Wall as the NBA’s misunderstood star.
• We also chatted over the weekend about how much better the Wizards would be if they had Al Horford.
• Kevin Broom sounded off a warning about the win streak though. They’ve played easier competition so don’t expect the good times to last. That said, a postseason berth is within reach.
• Tomas Satoransky has recently returned to the rotation. By doing so, he’s also improved the team’s bench play.

Podcasts

• We had two podcasts earlier this week. First, Ben Becker and Kevin Broom discussed the Wizards’ recent success has helped their prospects this season. Second, Jake Whitacre (remember we have THREE JAKES) and Mike Knapp (we have TWO MIKES) gave a midseason Wizards review.

Mystics news

Bria Hartley is officially a mom

Last week, the Mystics guard had her son. Given the timing of her giving birth, Hartley should be ready to go next season since training camp is still about three months away.

WNBA free agency begins

The WNBA started its free agency period last weekend as well. Tayler Hill and Tierra Ruffin-Pratt are restricted free agents, while Leilani Mitchell is an unrestricted free agent. We go over what to expect over the next month or two once free agent signings and trades can become official.

Miscellany

• No Wizards players made the starting lineup of the All-Star Game. However, both John Wall and Bradley Beal finished in the Top 10 of the standings once you include player and media votes.
• John Wall could have also used this Kirby Buckets appearance to boost his vote totals.

That’s all on my plate from this past week. Enjoy the rest of this weekend ladies and gentlemen!