Bullets Forever - Wizards vs. Pelicans: Pierce, Gortat, defensive stops key to win No. 10"Ain't No Luck"https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48097/BulletsForever-fv.png2014-12-01T10:26:48-05:00http://www.bulletsforever.com/rss/stream/70716122014-12-01T10:26:48-05:002014-12-01T10:26:48-05:00Gortat showed his worth against Anthony Davis
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<p>After a few rough games in , Marcin Gortat put together his best performance of the season against one of the NBA's best defenders on Saturday night.</p> <p>When the <a href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Wizards</a> signed <span>Marcin Gortat</span> to a 5 year, $60 million, many heads turned. Some in optimistic glee that the Wizards locked up their first good two way center in years, and some in disappointment that the Wizards had signed a 30 year old big man to such a long term contract. Last night, Gortat showed us why the Wizards believed in him enough to sign him to that deal.</p>
<p>Gortat scored 24 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and added 4 blocks. He was getting his points in a variety of ways tonight, as opposed to settling for fadeaways like he’s done in the past, as <span>Randy Wittman</span> alluded to after the game. "It was big for us considering we didn't really have a lot going on offensively tonight. It was good to see, he was much more aggressive in his moves, he wasn't just settling for fade away moves. He got a couple of left-handed looks in the first half and one in the middle. He was really good."</p>
<p>Early in the game, the Wizards seemingly made it a priority to get Gortat involved, and by that, I don’t mean giving the ball to him in the post and praying for something to happen. The Wizards ran a lot of pick and roll early and found Gortat rolling to the rim, a skill which helped him thrive last year in Washington and his years in Phoenix with Steve Nash. As Gortat thrived as a roll man, he gained confidence and was able to take it to <span>Anthony Davis</span> in the post as well. He scored on some pretty hook shots over the shotblocking freak of nature, and he enjoyed it too.</p>
<p>"It's fun when you keep scoring and scoring against the best defender in the league. It is a lot of fun."</p>
<p>He also alluded to the fact that he was not playing at the level he was capable of in recent games.</p>
<p>"At the end of the day I believe that I should do this everyday. I needed a game like that. The last two or three games I did not play well. I'm glad I played this game and helped the team to win."</p>
<p>Gortat was shooting 42 percent in the 4 games before tonight and the team had been struggling on the defensive end with him as the anchor. A game like this against a player with the defensive reputation of Anthony Davis is sure to boost confidence, and it shows with Gortat when talking about how he can do this every night.</p>
<p>Gortat has gotten flack from Wizards fans in the past regarding his finesse play relative to his size, along with his apparent tendency in the past to get overwhelmed by superior bigs. However, the Wizards have done a terrific job this season against opposing frontcourts, and Gortat has played a big role in that.</p>
<p>This might not be an every-night occurrence for Gortat, but a game like this reassures to us what he’s capable of. Consistency from him every night should take this team to newer heights. The Wizards are characterized by their young backcourt, and that often leaves room for people to overlook him. He does not seem to mind, however. A free spirit with a warm personality that lights up the locker room, you don’t expect him to. However, this game, and many others last year, especially in Nene’s absence, shows us all one thing: The barometer for the Wizards success is characterized by a man nicknamed "The Polish Hammer."</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2014/12/1/7308539/marcin-gortat-washington-wizards-new-orleans-pelicans-big-contractAkbar Naqvi2014-12-01T09:31:27-05:002014-12-01T09:31:27-05:00How the Wizards stopped the Pelicans attack
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<p>The Wizards struggled defensively without Nene against Cleveland and Atlanta, but found a way to turn the tide against Anthony Davis and New Orleans Pelicans.</p> <p><span>Randy Wittman</span> wasn't accepting Nene's absence as a reason for the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/">Wizards</a> recent defensive woes prior to playing New Orleans "You (the media) like giving excuses for these guys..That's got nothing to do with it. We've got guys who are capable of playing defense and not turning the ball over."</p>
<p>In the Wizards two losses against Atlanta and Cleveland, the Wizards defense had floundered, a recipe for defeat given the team's generally anemic offense. Coming into Saturday's game, the Wizards had yet to demonstrate in their 3 contests without Nene that their defense could overcome their offense's shortcomings. The <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.thebirdwrites.com/">Pelicans</a> offense and their MVP candidate power forward <span>Anthony Davis</span> would pose a tough challenge</p>
<p>It was a challenge the Wizards were up for Saturday night in Washington, as Washington's stout defense held the Pelicans to just 80 points on 37 percent shooting in snapping their first losing streak of the season.</p>
<p>In an ugly game unlikely to be featured on ESPN Classic any time soon, Washington's front court contained Davis as much as he can be contained, and the rest of his supporting cast failed to make the Wizards pay. The rest of the Pelicans only managed 19 of 63 on the night as the Pelicans were held to their lowest point output on the season.</p>
<p>Perhaps no sequence better exemplified the Wizards toughness on defense than a key play late in the 4th quarter. With the Wizards holding precariously to a 4 point lead with 2 minutes left, <span>Tyreke Evans</span> found Pelicans sharpshooter <span>Ryan Anderson</span> in the corner off a Davis screen on a play designed to get Anderson an open look. <span>Paul Pierce</span> recovered quickly from the Davis screen and closed out to block Anderson's shot out of bounds. Pierce then ably defended a Tyreke Evans drive that resulted in a miss off the backboard. By the time Anthony Davis recovered the basketball and turned around to shoot, the shot clock has expired.</p>
<p>What was the difference for the Wizards after giving up 106 and 113 against the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.peachtreehoops.com/" style="background-color: #ffffff;">Hawks</a> and <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.fearthesword.com/" style="background-color: #ffffff;">Cavaliers</a>? Stopping the Pelicans from scoring in the paint and better communications and less switches on defense were factors consistently mentioned by Wizards players and coaches.</p>
<p>"Defensively we got back to what we talked about. I thought, 48 minutes, that was good." Randy Wittman said following the victory, "That team by far leads the league in points in the paint. What'd they get, 28?"</p>
<p>Gortat echoed Wittman's praise of the team's defense on Davis and overall:</p>
<p><span>"We have to understand that he's going to get buckets from his position, athleticism and skill. I think we talked, we were more physical. We definitely had rebounds, we were battling, all 5 guys."</span></p>
<p>The Wizards improved communication on defense caught the notice of Wittman:</p>
<p>"It was better, we still had a couple of lapses. Our guys were mindful of it coming into tonight, which is a good thing. I've got to make sure to keep them mindful, because it's a conscious thing."</p>
<p>The Wizards players showed their mindfulness of communication, which each player after the game mentioning it as helping their defensive performance on the night. According to <span>John Wall</span>, "<span>We stuck to what our coach gave us against them. Other games, we were switching everything we weren't supposed to. It makes it tough, whenever a big gets on a guard, that's tough to contain. We just want to stick with our guards on guards and push it late in the shot clock, and I think we did a better job of communicating."</span></p>
<p>This was something that was noticeably different from their losses last week, where Wizards bigs were forced to defend smaller, quicker players on the perimeter.</p>
<p>On a night when the Wizards offense was once again underwhelming, it was this improved effort on defense that allowed Washington to avoid a three game losing streak.</p>
<p>"This was going to be a knock down, drag out game," Wittman stated. "They're not all going to be pretty from an offensive standpoint, but you got to be able to win some of those."</p>
<p>If there is one thing we have learned about the Wizards in the early going, it's that the wins aren't going to all be pretty.</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2014/12/1/7309183/washington-wizards-stopped-new-orleans-pelicans-attack-john-wall-anthony-davisNick Bilka2014-11-29T21:58:55-05:002014-11-29T21:58:55-05:003 things we learned from Washington's 83-80 win
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<p>Washington outlasted the New Orleans Pelicans in a gritty, hard-fought 83-80 victory. Here are a few key takeaways.</p> <p>It's doubtful that anyone is going to remember tonight's <a href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Washington Wizards</a> win over the <a href="https://www.thebirdwrites.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">New Orleans Pelicans</a> a year from now. The Wizards led for most of the game, a slow-paced affair that saw them come out on top, 83-80, as they snapped a two game losing streak despite the absence of Nene, who sat out due to plantar fasciitis.</p>
<p>That's not to say that the game didn't have some good moments. Washington played awesome defense, <span>John Wall</span> had a few unbelieveable plays and <span>Anthony Davis</span> continued to dominate like some unholy combination of a young <span>Kevin Garnett</span> and Tim Duncan. Wall and <span>Paul Pierce</span> were quiet for much of the first three quarters, largely content to play a complementary role to <span>Bradley Beal</span> and <span>Marcin Gortat</span>, but they took over down the stretch and helped Washington to overcome a late push by the Pelicans.</p>
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<p>A few things we learned:</p>
<p>1. Marcin Gortat can be one hell of a force in the paint.</p>
<p>With Nene out The Polish Hammer went Super Saiyan, finishing with 24 points and 12 boards in a game where his box score statistics don't even tell the half of what he did. Gortat repeatedly stymied New Orlean's attempts at scoring in the paint and forced awkward floater after awkward floater while anchoring what was an all-around strong defensive effort. Gortat's ability to prevent opponents from getting all the way to the basket is underrated and a large part of why his massive contract is justifiable. Centers who can play both ends of the court and own the glass are few and far between.</p>
<p>2. Bradley Beal is Washington's secret weapon in low-scoring games.</p>
<p>Beal's at his best in transition, running the floor and feasting on layups and corner threes. While it's wise for teams to avoid the mid-range, when high efficiency shots aren't available, having a player like Beal who can create a shot almost at will when coming off screens and paired with Wall's ability to penetrate can be crucial. Beal finished with 12 points off of 11 field goal attempts and continued to shine in his sixth game of the season.</p>
<p>3. <span>Drew Gooden</span> is continuing to struggle.</p>
<p>Gooden shot one of five from the floor and played poor defense. Gooden is largely useless when his jumper isn't falling. While he's shown flashes of passing ability, he tends to need to make a few jumpers before looking for his teammates on a regular basis. Anthony Davis finished with 30 points on the night but only really went off when being guarded by Gooden. Kris Humphries was more effective tonight and is at worst as good of a jump shooter as Gooden.</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2014/11/29/7308067/wizards-vs-pelicans-final-score-3-things-we-learned-from-washingtonsThomas Pruitt2014-11-29T14:48:14-05:002014-11-29T14:48:14-05:00Can the Wizards stop the Brow?
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<p>The Wizards are bringing their first losing streak of the season back home as they take on Anthony Davis and the Pelicans.</p> <p><b>TV & Radio:</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The game will be on CSN+ tonight as opposed to the main CSN channel. It will also be on NBA TV for any non-local <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bulletsforever.com/">Wizards</a> fans. Radio will as usual be WNEW 99.1 FM.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Injuries</b>:</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>Martell Webster</span> will be out again with his back injury. Nene’s status is officially unknown but according to CSN insider, J.Michael, he is unlikely to play tonight, still bothered by a foot injury.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Are They Good?</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b></b><span>It’s difficult to say. The <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.thebirdwrites.com/">Pelicans</a> play in an extremely tough Western Conference, and their record is currently 7-7. Their offense is dynamic, as they are currently ranked 5</span><sup style="text-indent: 0.5in;">th</sup><span> in efficiency on that end of the court. The most obvious cause of this is the absolutely ridiculous season <span>Anthony Davis</span> is having. He’s averaging 24.6 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.2 blocks and 1.2 steals, with a league leading PER of 33.5. He’s putting up legitimate MVP caliber numbers and might be the best player in the league so far this season.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span>Other players have stepped up as well for this team. <span>Jrue Holiday</span> is having a solid season averaging 15.4 points and 6.5 assists, while <span>Ryan Anderson</span> is averaging 15.6 points, having made 35 threes already this year, more than double the total of any Wizards player. <span>Tyreke Evans</span> is having a bounce-back season this year as well, stuffing the stat sheet with</span><span> </span><span>15.7 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 6.1 assists. This team has all the tools to be an offensive juggernaut with a dynamic big man, a stretch four and two ball-handlers who can create for others, and for the most part, they have been.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span></span><span>Defensively, the Pelicans have been incredibly disappointing. Despite having acquired defensive savant <span>Omer Asik</span> to pair with Anthony Davis in the frontcourt, the Pelicans are currently 22</span><sup style="text-indent: 0.5in;">nd</sup><span> in defensive efficiency. Some of this is due to a very jumbled defensive system and weak perimeter defenders (besides Holiday). Anthony Davis, despite being an incredible shot-blocker, is still learning the nuances of NBA defense and is not yet elite on that end. That said, a team with this frontcourt should not be a bottom 10 defense, and this is the primary reason for this team’s inconsistency so far this year.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b>Keys to the Game:</b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Turnovers. The Wizards have turned the ball over a combined 38 times over the last two games. It is imperative that they clean this problem up soon, as they likely won’t have Nene has an outlet in case plays break down. The offense will need to adjust to his absence by being less reliant on the bigs to create plays. While Gortat and Humphries, are adequate passers, neither have Nene's calming, commanding presence. <span>John Wall</span> needs to be especially careful with the ball, as he has been responsible for 12 turnovers in the past two games.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Defense. The Pelicans are a terrific offensive team, and the Wizards defense has been incredibly leaky the past 2 games, with putrid defensive ratings of 110.4 and 127.9 in the Atlanta and Cleveland games respectively. Nene has typically been the one to guard Anthony Davis, and he usually does a good job, as he is adept at both ball-denial and fighting through cross screens to stick to him. The Wizards likely will not have the luxury of Nene defending Davis, so it will take a team effort to contain him and the rest of the Pelicans offense. The Wizards also cannot afford to let other players go off. Wall has to be on his toes defending Jrue Holiday, a player who’s given him some trouble in the past. Ryan Anderson killed the Wizards when he was with the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.orlandopinstripedpost.com/">Magic</a>, and if he’s in rhythm, the Pelicans will be very difficult to defend. The Wizards must not let him get any open looks or establish confidence from deep. Overall, the Wizards are going to miss Nene, and need to make up for this loss with solid team defense, something <span>Randy Wittman</span> has excelled at implementing in the past.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Aggressiveness. It might cliché, but there’s no other good word to describe it. The Wizards must take advantage of the Pelicans bottom 10 defense and cannot be as tentative and lethargic as they have been lately. <span>Bradley Beal</span>’s return to the starting lineup should give the Wizards impetus to run a lot more pick and roll, with him and Wall initiating. The Wizards will miss Nene's strong post presence, so the Wizards must adjust accordingly and run their offense through their guards. In turn, Wall and Beal must be aggressive in finding their shots, and decisive in their passes.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The Wizards must also look to run more and get opportunities in transition, where they excel. More open threes, more layups, more free throws, and less contested long twos are the recipe for success for this team offensively, and it’s high time they start realizing it. The bench, in particular, has played well lately, especially with <span>Rasual Butler</span>’s emergence. More production from him along with Drew Gooden III, <span>Kevin Seraphin</span> and <span>Andre Miller</span> is important. The Wizards have lost their best defensive player, so in turn, they must not only hold it together defensively, but make up for it with consistency on the offensive end.</p>
<p><b>Prediction:</b></p>
<p>I have a bad feeling about this one tonight, folks. Nene's absence is going to hurt as he has helped contain Anthony Davis in the past, and the Pelicans offense might be too much for the Nene-less Wizards defense. I think the Wizards will have a great game offensively, but will fall just short in a high scoring affair.</p>
https://www.bulletsforever.com/2014/11/29/7306609/preview-washington-wizards-vs-new-orleans-pelicansAkbar Naqvi