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After falling apart in the fourth quarter in their last home game against the Trail Blazers, Washington has to keep pressing forward and not dwell on the past. Now back on the road facing Minnesota, Washington has no choice but to prevail and as Markieff Morris said, they’ve got to be tough.
“We’re Death Row. That’s how we feel about it. We can’t be Death Row and come out and play soft.”
Game Info
When: Tuesday, November 28 at 8 p.m. ET
Where: Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota
TV: NBC Sports Washington
Win Probabilities: Washington has a 33 percent chance of winning, according to FiveThirtyEight.
Injury Report
Wizards: Sheldon Mac (Out, Achilles), John Wall (Out, Knee Inflammation)
Timberwolves: Jeff Teague (Day-to-Day, Achilles), Nemanja Bjelica (Day-to-Day, Foot)
Things to Watch For
How will the Wizards maintain their efficiency without John Wall?
Losing Wall for the next couple of weeks is a tough pill for Washington to swallow. Their offensive rating with him on the floor is 110.6, without him, it drops to 100.5.
In the first half, they did a great job generating points despite his absence, but we all know what happened late in the game. With or without John Wall in the lineup, the Wizards have had a huge flaw in disappearing in the second half facing teams. Looking at their last two opponents (Charlotte Hornets and the Trail Blazers), Washington has had ample opportunities to secure wins if they only finished things in the second half.
It’ll be a tough two weeks if they continue to give games up and a tough season overall if they can’t figure out a way to fix their late-game woes. Although it’s still early in the season, keep an eye on the fact Washington has dropped to a tie for seventh in the conference and are now tied with the Miami Heat at the top of the Southeast Division.
Life is harder without John Wall, but the Wizards need to figure out how to stay competitive without him while he’s out.
A random moment in Wizards - Timberwolves history: John Wall’s alley-oop to Jan Vesely
You know, the good ol’ days.