Top Stories of the Week: The Wizards start slumping ... again?

Happy St. Patrick’s Day everyone! I hope you’re now over the snow, watching the NCAA Tournament, and getting ready for the weekend! Let’s get to this week’s top stories.

The Wizards win four straight on the road, follow that up with two straight losses

Last Friday and Saturday, the Wizards won two straight road games as they beat the Kings and Trail Blazers respectively on back to back nights. Furthermore, the Wizards came back to win those games after falling behind by double digits and saved the day in overtime. At this point, Washington was 4-0 during a five game road trip.

Unfortunately, the Wizards lost handily to the Timberwolves last Monday to close out their road trip and lost again to the Mavericks, 112-107 after blowing a fourth quarter lead in their first game back home.

Tonight, the Wizards will host the Chicago Bulls, who will now be without Dwyane Wade for the season after he suffered a sprained and fractured right elbow. He suffered the injury on Wednesday in a loss to the Memphis Grizzlies. This is certainly a game that Washington must capitalize on now that Chicago lost one of its key players.

The Wizards haven’t been in form lately

Yes, the Wizards won four of five road games. But their defense also took a dive even though they weren’t losing most of the time. The poor defense ultimately persisted into the losses against the Wolves and most recently against the Mavs. Mike Sykes has more from the locker room after Wednesday’s loss.

Still, let’s celebrate the recent string of winning

It’s easy to have our emotions on our sleeves and say that hell’s breaking loose again. However, there’s still plenty to cheer about:

• John Wall was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week after an impressive four game run on the road.
• The Wizards were consistently ranking in the top 5 in NBA power rankings across multiple outlets. CBS ranked them number one!
• Larry King even made light of it while name dropping Kevin Durant in the process.

UConn commit Megan Walker was at Wednesday’s Game

The Richmond area basketball star from Monacan High School in Chesterfield County, Virginia was named Gatorade’s 2016-17 national girls basketball player of the year on Wednesday. Next year, she’ll take her talents to UConn in Storrs, Connecticut, a/k/a the Mecca of women’s basketball. She’s a versatile guard, and I wonder how her crossover is...

Walker was in attendance for the Wizards’ game against the Mavericks. During a commercial break, Elena Delle Donne handed her the trophy. You can watch some of her highlights above, and the moment when Delle Donne handed her the trophy.

Walker isn’t the only Mid-Atlantic basketball player who won this award. Bradley Beal won the boys basketball award in the 2010-11 school year! Unlike Walker, Beal had to get his award in class, not during a basketball game. In Beal’s case, Alonzo Mourning — who went to Georgetown — gave him the award. A lot of Mid-Atlantic connections here!

So ... let’s take a trip back in time to that moment when Beal was a popular (yet awkward) high school senior, like many of us once upon a time. :P

And more links

• Emma Meesseman and Kristi Toliver have led UMMC Ekaterinburg to the EuroLeague Final Four. Elle Ward examines how their chemistry could help the Mystics this summer.
• The new arena is St. Elizabeth’s won’t just be for the Mystics and a D-League team. It will also be wired for an eSports franchise as well.
• Scott Brooks may not lead the Wizards to a 20 win increase from last year. But nevertheless, the Wizards’ resurgence this year is a solid case why he should be considered for the NBA’s coach of the year.
• Wall gave an interview to Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. Along the way, he said that then-Kings center DeMarcus Cousins “would come to D.C.,” but ... he got traded to the Pelicans. In my opinion, I’m just glad that Marcin Gortat and Ian Mahinmi are doing a okay! Also With the Wizards playing as well as they are — even with those two recent losses — you do have to wonder what it would be like to see them win the NBA championship, hold the parade down Pennsylvania Avenue, and meet the President of the United States in the White House for those annual rituals. Wall talked about how surreal that would be as well.
• Adam Rubin of Truth About It writes that the Wizards’ communication needs to improve with better communication.
• The Wizards are behind the Celtics one again in the Eastern Conference standings after their two game slide. But before that slide, Jay Crowder said that Isaiah Thomas was “pissed” to see Washington surpass them last weekend, according to Jay King of MassLive. I hope the Wizards are just as pissed to see that they’ve allowed to slip back into third place.

So that’s all I have. If you have another link you’d like to share, feel free to do so in the comments or as a FanPost! Stay safe on St. Patty’s Day and let’s hope for a win tonight!