Bullets Forever - Wizards vs. Blazers: Washington loses on MLK Day, 108-98"Ain't No Luck"https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48097/BulletsForever-fv.png2016-01-19T09:56:46-05:00http://www.bulletsforever.com/rss/stream/105486192016-01-19T09:56:46-05:002016-01-19T09:56:46-05:00Wizards vs. Blazers postgame links & video
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<figcaption>Rob Carr/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>The Wizards dropped their second-straight game at home, <a href="http://www.bulletsforever.com/2016/1/17/10784578/wizards-vs-blazers-january-18-2016">falling to the Blazers 108-98</a>. The Wizards started the first and second half flat and were unable to make up the difference, despite some more spirited effort in second and fourth quarters.</p>
<h4>Videos</h4>
<p><span>Randy Wittman's</span> presser is above, but other players' videos are below:</p>
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<strong>More</strong>: <a href="http://www.monumentalnetwork.com/videos/ramon-sessions-postgame-1-18-16" target="new">Ramon Sessions</a> <a href="http://www.monumentalnetwork.com/videos/bradley-beal-postgame-1-18-16" target="new">Bradley Beal</a> <a href="http://www.monumentalnetwork.com/videos/john-wall-postgame-1-18-16" target="new">John Wall</a>
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<h4><b>Links</b></h4>
<p>Here's the recap roll for the night:</p>
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<strong>More</strong>: <a href="http://www.blazersedge.com/2016/1/18/10786968/portland-trail-blazers-vs-washington-wizards-damian-lillard-cj-mccollum" target="new">Blazers Edge</a> <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/home-is-not-the-haven-struggling-wizards-were-expecting/2016/01/18/7526a634-be2a-11e5-9443-7074c3645405_story.html?postshare=5521453164272918&tid=ss_tw">The Washington Post</a> <a href="http://wizofawes.com/2016/01/18/washington-wizards-squashed-trail-blazers-mlk-day/">Wiz of Awes</a>
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<h4><b>Notable Comments</b></h4>
<p>So I misplaced the algorithm Albert uses to compile the exact comment counts from Monday's game (sorry!), so instead I'll pull two notable comments from the game. First, let's revisit this discussion from late in the second half.</p>
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<p>What's interesting about the 23-1 run in question was that the Blazers kept the same five players on the court, while Wittman tried four different lineups in that span, including some doses of <span>Marcin Gortat</span> and Nene playing together, which we haven't seen much of this season, just to see if <i>something</i> could get them going. In hindsight, it's easy to say Wittman should have called a timeout sooner to change things up, but he wasn't a standing idle during the run that put the game away either.</p>
<p>There's a lot of stuff you can put the blame on Randy Wittman for, but when your team gives up a 19-6 run to start the game and a 23-1 run to start the second half, a good portion of the blame for that has to go on the starters for just not being ready to play.</p>
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<p>To some extent, every team looks great when they're doing well and bad when they're not themselves, but the Wizards exemplify this because everything flows through one player. Even when the team is healthy, most of the roster depends on John Wall to put them in positions to score. When the opposing team keeps him from doing that, they don't have a counterattack.</p>
<p>It's like watching a football team with a great quarterback and no running game. If you can find the right blitz package to keep the QB out of a rhythm, you've stopped the whole offense, and that's what we've seen from the Wizards most of the season because they don't have another guy who can take the pressure off Wall to make something happen.</p>
<h4><b>Monday Food Specials</b></h4>
<p>The Wizards did not lead after the first quarter, did not win, did not get to 100 points, and did not get a Blazer to miss two free throws in the fourth quarter.</p>
<p><iframe frameborder="0" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/M5QGkOGZubQ" height="315" width="420"></iframe></p>
<p><b><i>Enjoy your Tuesday everyone!<i></i></i></b></p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2016/1/19/10789404/washington-wizards-portland-trail-blazers-links-roll-callJake Whitacre2016-01-18T16:46:20-05:002016-01-18T16:46:20-05:00Recap: Wiz fail to defend the three vs. Blazers
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<figcaption>Rob Carr/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>The Wizards couldn't defend the three-point line against the Trail Blazers in Monday's 108-98 loss.</p> <p>The <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.blazersedge.com/">Portland Trail Blazers</a> got embarrassed by the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.libertyballers.com/">Philadelphia 76ers</a> on Saturday, Jan. 16, losing by 25 to one of the worst teams in the league.</p>
<p>On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Blazers headed down the East Coast from Philly for a Monday afternoon matinee meeting with the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/">Washington Wizards</a>, who were looking to rebound after a frustrating loss to the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.celticsblog.com/">Boston Celtics</a>.</p>
<p>One team was going to take their dissatisfaction's out on the other one and on Jan. 18, that happened to be the Trail Blazers who topped the Wizards 108-98.</p>
<p>Five Blazers scored in double-digits and <span>C.J. McCollum</span> led the way with 25 points, two rebounds, two assists and six made three-pointers. <span>Mason Plumlee</span> added 10 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists for the winning side.</p>
<p>For the Wizards, <span>Garrett Temple</span> had 18 points while <span>Marcin Gortat</span> scored 16 points and corralled 13 rebounds.</p>
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<span>John Wall</span> did not have a good game</h3>
<p>No Wizard player really played well. All of the starters, plus Nene and <span>Bradley Beal</span>, finished with negative plus/minus marks.</p>
<p>But after a game against the Celtics where he had his season-high in 36 points - plus seven rebounds, seven steals and 13 assists - Wall had an off game against the Blazers. In 36 minutes of action he scored just nine points, missed 13 shots and turned the ball over three times. He did however record 10 assists.</p>
<p>The problem isn't necessarily that Wall played poorly. He has been carrying the Wizards this season and is allowed a mulligan on a poor performance every now and then.</p>
<p>The issue is that no other Wizard stepped up to replace his production, on offense or defense.</p>
<p>Beal played 24 minutes off the bench and recorded 16 points and five assists, but finished with a plus/minus of -3. Kelly Oubre Jr. scored zero points in 12 minutes of action.</p>
<h3>The Trail Blazers were unstoppable from behind the arc</h3>
<p>The Blazers hit 17 of their 31 attempted three-pointers and it killed the Wizards. At one point in the third quarter, they were shooting above 62 percent from outside.</p>
<p>Coming into this game the Wizards were one of the worst teams in defending three-pointers - allowing opponents to hit 37.5 percent of their shots from outside. McCollum and other players took advantage of that poor defense and exposed the Wizards.</p>
<p>Part of this was because the Wizards were trapping - a lot - and couldn't get back to defend the outside in time.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Just awful from the Wizards. POR's guards are way too unselfish to trap. Wall + everyone acted like there were killer sharks in the paint.</p>
— Mike Prada (@MikePradaSBN) <a href="https://twitter.com/MikePradaSBN/status/689195451724230657">January 18, 2016</a>
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<p>The Blazers used three-point shooting to go on a 17-0 run in the third quarter. As more Blazers' trey's fell, more nails went into the Wizards' coffin.</p>
<p>Another area that proved to be problematic for the Wizards was rebounding. The Blazers grabbed 48 boards while the Wizards had 35. Gortat was the only Wizards player to grab more than five rebounds.</p>
<h3>Wizards highlights:</h3>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">The Dudley dish! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WizBlazers?src=hash">#WizBlazers</a> <a href="https://t.co/jmLm7doYId">pic.twitter.com/jmLm7doYId</a></p>
— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) <a href="https://twitter.com/WashWizards/status/689180492499795969">January 18, 2016</a>
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<p>After four straight wins, the Wizards have begun a home stand with back to back losses.</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2016/1/18/10786874/wizards-blazers-final-score-threesMitchell Northam2016-01-18T16:18:03-05:002016-01-18T16:18:03-05:00Wizards vs. Trail Blazers postgame thread
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<figcaption>Patrick Smith/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>It's over. That second half certainly left a lot to be desired.</p>
<p>Recap's coming shortly.</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2016/1/18/10784674/wizards-vs-trail-blazers-postgame-reaction-threadAlbert Lee2016-01-18T15:11:20-05:002016-01-18T15:11:20-05:00Wizards vs. Trail Blazers second half GameThread
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<figcaption>Steve Dykes-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>Keep talkin' here.</p> <p>Wizards down 59-57 at halftime, but this game's still well within reach.</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2016/1/18/10784670/wizards-vs-trail-blazers-second-half-gamethreadAlbert Lee2016-01-17T21:57:12-05:002016-01-17T21:57:12-05:00Preview: Portland comes to town for MLK matinee
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<figcaption>Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>The Wizards battle a formidable Blazers offense in an MLK Day matinee at the Verizon Center</p> <p>The Portland Trailblazers at 18-25 are legitimately in the playoff hunt for the 8th seed in the West around the halfway point of the season. Both the fact that the Trailblazers are still in playofff contention and the fact that they could be so with such an unimpressive record, are two things that seemed unlikely at the beginning of the season.</p>
<p>Portland has lost four of the starters that helped lead them to consecutive 50 win seasons over the summer. The most conspicuous absence is the Blazers former franchise cornerstone Lamarcus Aldridge. who fled the Pacific Northwest for a chance to compete for a title with the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.poundingtherock.com/">Spurs</a>. Wes Matthews and <span>Robin Lopez</span> left in free agency, and <span>Nicolas Batum</span> was traded east to Charlotte for <span>Noah Vonleh</span> and <span>Gerald Henderson</span>.</p>
<p>The Blazers filled out their roster by signing solid players like <span>Ed Davis</span> and <span>Al-Farouq Aminu</span> and trading for Mo Harkless from Orlando while leaving themselves enough cap space to sign <span>Enes Kanter</span> to a big offer sheet that was later matched by the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.welcometoloudcity.com/">Thunder</a>. This left Portland well under the salary cap floor, which should make them an interesting team to watch at the trade deadline.</p>
<p>On the court this season, the Blazers defense has fallen off while their offense has remained among the top ten in the NBA. Damian Lillard is obviously a key here. The fourth year player remains among the best scoring point guard in the NBA averaging a career high 24.7 points a game. A bit more surprising is the play of 3rd year combo guard <span>C.J. McCollum</span>, who is in the running for the Most Improved Player award (<a href="http://espn.go.com/espnradio/play?id=14577201">for a bit more on McCollum, listen to his excellent interview with Zach Lowe on this week's Lowe Post podcast</a>). He's averaging 20.4 points per game, up almost 14 points from last year. Statistically, McCollum's numbers read a lot like <span>Bradley Beal's</span> as he is a good scorer and three point shooter who rarely gets to the foul line but has the ability to distribute and handle the ball at the 2 guard position.</p>
<h3>Game Info</h3>
<p id="paragraph2" class="pgh-paragraph"><b>When: </b>Monday, January 18, 2016 at 2:00 p.m. ET<br><b>Where: </b>The Verizon Center<br><b>Watch: </b>CSN Washington<br><b>Listen:</b> WNEW 99.1 in the DMV</p>
<h3>Injury Report</h3>
<p class="pgh-paragraph">¯\_(ツ)_/¯</p>
<p class="pgh-paragraph">Bradley Beal should be back, but <span>Drew Gooden</span>, <span>Kris Humphries</span> and Drew Gooden remain questionable and <span>Alan Anderson</span> is not expected back.</p>
<h3>Most likely Wizard Killer</h3>
<p class="pgh-paragraph">Allen Crabbe. The third year wing from Cal is having his best season and has the ability to shoot from beyond the arc. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wPtCPaTWu4">Crabs are known to do quite well in this area</a>, and sure, the name is spelled differently but nobody claimed this was a scientific process.</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2016/1/17/10784154/washington-wizards-portland-trail-blazers-nba-how-to-watch-prevewNick Bilka