The Wizards’ November should be easier on paper, but their issues will likely remain

The Wizards are 1-6 and are coming back from a tough five-game road trip where they lost four of those games. If October was a month about getting treats for Halloween, the Wizards players and fans all got tricked and then some.

November, at least on the surface, should offer the Wizards a chance to turn things around.

Three of the next five games are on the road, but the Wizards still will have a two game home stand against the Thunder this Friday and Knicks this Sunday. Then they play against the Mavericks, Magic, and Heat in a three game road trip. Three of those five teams failed to make the playoffs last season and are unlikely to make it this season, at least on paper.

From there, seven of the Wizards remaining ten games will be at home. They will host the Magic, Cavaliers, and Nets in three consecutive games from November 12 to 16 where Washington SHOULD be favored. They’ll also host the Trail Blazers on November 18 before hosting the Clippers on November 20.

The remaining five games for Washington will be against tougher competition as they’ll head on the road to play the Raptors on November 23, host the Pelicans and Rockets, and then finish November with a two game road trip against the Pelicans and the 76ers.

The good news, at least from a wins and losses perspective is that the longer homestand in the middle of November along with Dwight Howard’s anticipated return on Friday against the Thunder should give us a better picture on what this team could be toward their best. That’s assuming Howard can cure most of the Wizards’ rebounding woes.

But if the Wizards do not go on an extended win streak (the franchise record is nine), or even worse, continues to lose like they did in their first seven games, then this season will continue to slip away.