Game Recap

none

wasatemperly

The Washington Wizards lost to the Boston Celtics 132-122 on Sunday afternoon in their season finale. Here are three things that stood out about the game...

The Wizards' 2023-24 season is officially over as they lost to the Celtics on the road in their regular season finale on Sunday afternoon.

Washington will be tied for the best odds to receive the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft lottery at 14%. The lottery is set for May 12 in Chicago, Ill.

Washington played this game with an extensive injury list that included rookie big man Tristan Vukcevic (right ankle sprain), who ended his season with five consecutive games of double-figure scoring. Jordan Poole (non-COVID illness) also missed his second straight game to end the year.

Poole still appeared in 78 games this season after playing in all 82 last year. The only Wizards player to log more games than him this season was Corey Kispert who got to No. 80 on Sunday.

Without Poole and usual starting point guard Tyus Jones, Jared Butler filled in admirably with 22 points, seven assists, a steal and a block. Patrick Baldwin Jr. also stepped up with 17 points, seven rebounds and three steals in one of the best games of his young career.

In addition to Butler and Baldwin Jr., Eugene Omoruyi was on an absolute tear in the final game of the season. He had seven points in the first quarter, 15 by halftime and ended the day with 26 point for a new career-high. Omoruyi shot 11-for-17 from the field, 4-for-6 from three and also had five assists. He did it all in 23 minutes of work.

What a way to end the season on a high note. Omoruyi joined the organization last July on a two-way contract and performed so well the Wizards converted him to an NBA deal in March. Omoruyi ended up playing in 43 games for the Wizards and saved his very best for the last game of the season.

Justin Champagnie also went out on a positive with nine points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals in 21 minutes. His seven rebounds were a reminder he is uniquely good at cleaning the glass. Champagnie, a 6-foot-6 wing, averaged 11.1 rebounds per game as a sophomore at Pittsburgh before making the NBA leap.

Champagnie also contributed a series of highlight reel passes in this one. He threaded the needle with a kick-ahead bounce pass to Butler for an open layup in transition. Very soon after that, he found Baldwin Jr. for an easy dunk on the fastbreak with a two-handed bounce pass he had to reach around a Celtics defender to make. It was perfectly placed and timed. Champagnie can impact the game in various ways and he showed that on Sunday.

recap-wizards-fall-in-season-finale-to-celtics

Recap: Wizards fall in season finale to Celtics

WASHINGTON -- The Washington Wizards lost to the Chicago Bulls 129-127 on Friday night at Capital One Arena. Here are three things that stood out about the game...

The Wizards closed out their 2023-24 home schedule with a narrow loss to the Chicago Bulls on Friday night, leaving one more game on their schedule before the year is officially over.

Washington had a good night offensively, as they shot 52.3% from the field and made 18 threes. The Bulls, though, outrebounded them 56-to-39 and had a large advantage in bench points; 51-to-28.

The Wizards had six players reach double-figures in this one. Corey Kispert had 23 points on a hot shooting night of 8-for-15 from the field and 6-for-11 from the perimeter. He also had seven rebounds and six assists in one of his more complete games of the season.

Deni Avdija also came through with a robust stat-line of 23 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists. It was Avdija's sixth double-double in his last 10 games.

The Wizards put up a 40-point first quarter for the second straight game and this time it was rookie Tristan Vukcevic who helped lead the way. He missed their last game against the Timberwolves on Tuesday due to left knee soreness, but returned with a bang to drop 11 points in the opening frame. That helped him very quickly extend his streak of double-figure scoring games to five, dating back to April 2 when the Wizards beat the Bucks.

Vukcevic finished the game with a new career-high of 19 points (5-11 FG), a steal and a block. He sank two threes and knocked down 7-of-9 from the free throw line. That has been a sneaky trend for him. Vukcevic has shown a knack for getting to the free throw line in his brief NBA tenure so far, as he doesn't seem to shy away from contact when he goes up for shots around the rim.

Johnny Davis had his best scoring game in months on Tuesday in Minnesota, then topped it one game later in this one. Davis had a season-high 15 points on 5-for-8 shooting, including 4-for-5 from long range. The four threes are a new career-high for him in a single game, a big positive as Davis has been working diligently to improve his outside shooting.

Patrick Baldwin Jr. also carried over a strong performance on Tuesday into this one. The 6-foot-9 forward had a career-high 19 points, shooting 7-for-12 overall and 3-for-7 from deep. Baldwin Jr. has done a great job shaking off a recent shooting slump with a pair of solid games in a row.

Up next:&nbsp;The Wizards ship up to Boston for their final game of the 2023-24 regular season in a 1 p.m. matinee.

recap-wizards-fall-in-final-home-game-to-chicago-bulls

Recap: Wizards fall in final home game to Chicago Bulls

The Washington Wizards lost to the Toronto Raptors 130-122 on Sunday night. Here are three things that stood out about the game...

The Wizards lost this game and trailed the Raptors for 47 of 48 minutes, yet they may be able to find a positive in how they nearly came back from a substantial deficit. The Raptors jumped out to a 29-point lead in the first quarter, at 42-13, but Washington then rallied to cut it all the way down to five with 25 seconds to go in the fourth quarter.

The Raptors were able to regain control and keep the Wizards at bay. But it was the type of effort that could have led to a different story if Washington didn't dig such a deep hole early on.

Jordan Poole was a major catalyst for keeping the Wizards in the game. He had 29 points and 12 assists, including eight dimes in the first half to key a 25-2 run. Poole shot 10-for-23 from the field and 4-for-10 from the perimeter. It was Poole's third straight game scoring 20-plus points and the sixth time in nine games he's recorded at least eight assists.

Patrick Baldwin Jr. was also a standout in this one. He had one of the best games of his career with a season-high 16 points, a career-high 11 rebounds, two blocks and two steals. It was his first double-double.

At this point we're used to seeing Deni Avdija score a lot of points and put up big numbers in the box score, but Sunday's game was some of his best work. After scoring a modest four points in the first quarter, he popped off for 13 points in the second to reach halftime with 17.

Avdija finished the game with 32 points (11-19 FG, 2-6 3PT) with 10 rebounds, five assists, three blocks and two steals. The only other player in franchise history to have at least those numbers in a game is the Hall of Famer Elvin Hayes, who did it twice in 1975. Joel Embiid is the only other player to do it this NBA season. Avdija fills up the box score like few others can.

As dynamic as Poole and Avdija were, nobody had the hot hand quite like Corey Kispert. The third-year wing was on fire, shooting 7-for-13 overall and 5-for-7 from long range en route to 21 points. Just like Avdija, he had a big second quarter with 10 points as the Wizards were trying to climb back.

Kispert has made a career-high 173 threes on the season and has three more games to go. He is on track to set new career-highs in nearly every statistical category. That includes games played, as he tied a personal best with 78 games on Sunday and has a chance to pass that very soon.

Up next:&nbsp;The Wizards move on to Minnesota to take on the Timberwolves. Tipoff is 8 p.m. on Tuesday night.

recap-wizards-fall-in-toronto

Recap: Wizards fall in Toronto

WASHINGTON -- The Washington Wizards lost to the Los Angeles Lakers 125-120 on Wednesday night at Capital One Arena. Here are three things that stood out about the game...

One&nbsp;night after their big upset win over the Bucks, the Wizards fell to the Lakers at home in a close game that once again featured an undermanned rotation due to injuries.

The Wizards got out to a scorching start to build a 19-8 lead, but the Lakers led by 10 to end the first quarter and by 17 midway through the third. Washington, though, rallied to make it a two-point game in the fourth quarter before the Lakers pulled away.

The Wizards were already missing Tyus Jones, Bilal Coulibaly, Richaun Holmes and Landry Shamet, plus Marvin Bagley III who got injured against Milwaukee. Deni Avdija also exited Wednesday's loss with a migraine.

Jordan Poole led the Wizards in scoring with 29 points on 10-for-19 shooting from the field. He shot 5-for-9 from three.

The Wizards now have five games left in the regular season and only two more at home. This was their final back-to-back of the year.

Though they remain banged up overall, the Wizards did get Kyle Kuzma back in the fold on Wednesday after a two-game absence due to a left heel contusion. That continued a trend for him this year. Five different times this season he has missed time due to an injury, but he has yet to miss more than two in a row.

Not only has Kuzma shown a tendency to recover quickly, he often plays well once he returns. Kuzma had 17 points, including 13 in the first half. He shot 7-for-16 from the field and 2-for-5 from three, adding 12 rebounds and three assists.

With Bagley III out, that meant another opportunity for rookie Tristan Vukcevic, this case his first NBA start. Fresh off his 14 points and seven rebounds against the Bucks, Vukcevic was relied on heavily once again in a matchup against one of the NBA's best big men in Anthony Davis.

Vukcevic fared well despite battling some early foul trouble. He ended up with a new career-high of 15 points (5-9 FG) with three rebounds and a block in 20 minutes. He played 31 minutes the night before, but with three fouls in his first eight minutes on the court, interim head coach Brian Keefe had to play it safe with both Bagley III and Holmes missing. Anthony Gill stepped in to take some center minutes, as did Eugene Omoruyi.

Up next:&nbsp;The Wizards stick around for one more game to close out their homestand as they host the Blazers on Friday night with 2 Chainz set to perform postgame.

recap-wizards-fall-to-lakers-125-120

Recap: Wizards fall to Lakers, 125-120

WASHINGTON – The Washington Wizards beat the Milwaukee Bucks 117-113 on Tuesday night at Capital One Arena. Here are three things that stood out from the game...

The Wizards only had nine players available on Tuesday night and lost another along the way, but they still had enough to earn an upset victory over Giannis&nbsp;Antetokounmpo&nbsp;and the Milwaukee Bucks.

Washington has secured several wins over playoff-bound teams this season like the Kings, Heat and Pacers. The Bucks, though, are the best team they have beaten so far based on record. Milwaukee entered the day with the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference and the fifth-best record in the league overall.

The Bucks didn't have Damian Lillard, but the Wizards were missing the majority of their rotation including Kyle Kuzma and Richaun Holmes. Tyus Jones, Bilal Coulibaly and Landry Shamet remain out as well and Marvin Bagley III exited in the first half with a right knee sprain. The Wizards' depth was also affected by the Capital City Go-Go playing a home playoff game at the same time in Ward 8.

Among those who did play, Corey Kispert and Deni Avdija were pivotal in the win. Kispert had 27 points, including 15 in the first half, on 10-for-18 shooting overall and 4-for-11 from three. Avdija poured in 23 points to go along with eight rebounds and five assists. His full-court assist to Anthony Gill with 8.3 seconds left polished off the win.&nbsp;

"Nobody believed that we could win this game tonight but we did... I'm happy for the group because we needed it," Avdija said. "It's definitely a confidence booster and it makes us believe we can do good stuff even though we were the underdog."

This was one of Jordan Poole's best games at the point guard position. He had a career-high 13 assists along with 16 points and afterwards drew high praise from interim head coach Brian Keefe.

"I told him this right after the game, he really just managed the game. He set the table, 13 assists. He kind of controlled the flow. This is kind of what we envisioned when we put the ball in his hands more. For his growth and his development, I liked the floor game he played tonight. Scored when he had to, but found his teammates," Keefe said.

Poole also delivered a crucial strip of Antetokounmpo with 45 seconds left to help seal the win. Given the timing, it might have been his best defensive play of the season so far.&nbsp;

Poole's backup, Jared Butler, was also a key contributor in the win. He dropped 17 points off the bench, shooting 7-for-10 from the field.

Tuesday was just the sixth career game for Tristan Vukcevic and it came against the vaunted Bucks frontcourt of Antetokounmpo, Brook Lopez and Bobby Portis, but it was the rookie's best performance so far. After scoring nine total points in his first five games, he had nine points by halftime against Milwaukee.&nbsp;

Vukcevic finished the game with 14 points and seven rebounds. He had some of his best moments on aggressive plays around the rim even when&nbsp;it meant colliding with Antetokounmpo mid-air. Vukcevic also sank a wide open three to put the Wizards up 10 in the third quarter.

Vukcevic ended up playing 31 minutes in the game, by far a career-high. That was due to necessity after Bagley III went down early on.

Up next:&nbsp;The Wizards have a quick turnaround as they host the L.A. Lakers on Wednesday night in the second leg of a back-to-back.

recap-wizards-outlast-bucks-to-secure-win

Recap: Wizards outlast Bucks to secure win

WASHINGTON -- The Washington Wizards lost to the Detroit Pistons 96-87 on Friday night at Capital One Arena. Here are three things that stood out about the game...

The Wizards overcame a sluggish start on the offensive end to erase a 19-point deficit against the Pistons, only to see Detroit lock back down defensively to pull out the victory.

It was the second consecutive loss for the Wizards to begin a six-game homestand. Washington won their previous three games before this stretch.

Deni Avdija had another big stat-line despite the loss. He pitched in with 18 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists.

The Wizards, though, shot just 40.9% from the field and 27.3% from three for the game. Combine that with 18 turnovers, a -12 deficit in free throw attempts and they just didn't have enough scoring to win. Their 87 points were a season-low.

"I feel like we did pick it up in the second half and I feel like if we did play the way we played in the second half the whole game, we would have won by 20," Avdija said. 

"But we woke up late, it came down to the wire, we missed a couple shots and the game ran away."

The Wizards scored 20 points in the first quarter of this game and Corey Kispert accounted for half of them. Kispert had 10 of his 23 points in his first nine minutes on the floor to set the stage for a big night. He shot 9-for-12 from the field and 5-for-7 from three, the latter highlighted by a stepback triple from long range in the first quarter.

Kispert's early contributions were much-needed as the rest of the team was slow to get going. The Wizards scored a season-low 40 points in the first half. Some of his teammates then found their groove after halftime, but without Kispert's hot shooting it could have been a different story.

"Corey kept us in the game with his offense for a while, but we let go. We didn't defend properly," interim head coach Brian Keefe.

After leaving Wednesday's game in the second quarter with a left toe contusion, Richaun Holmes was sidelined for this one. Fortunately for the Wizards, they recently got Marvin Bagley III back from his weekslong absence due to a back issue, so he was able to step into the starting lineup and give them a solid game of 15 points and 11 rebounds against his former team.

Holmes is considered day-to-day according to interim head coach Brian Keefe. That means he should be back soon. With him out, the Wizards turned to Anthony Gill to play some extra minutes at the five. Rookie center Tristan Vukcevic also saw the floor for two minutes as the Wizards continue to work him in slowly.

It wasn't easy for any of them going up against Jalen Duren and the Pistons frontcourt. Detroit enjoyed a 52-to-46 edge in paint points. It was 32-to-18 in the first half.

Up next:&nbsp;The Wizards stay home to host the Miami Heat at 6 p.m. on Sunday evening.&nbsp;

recap-wizards-fall-to-pistons

Recap: Wizards fall to Pistons

The Washington Wizards beat the Chicago Bulls 107-105 on Monday night. Here are three things that stood out about the game...

For the first time this season, the Wizards have won three games in a row. That is officially a winning streak, folks.

Washington had won two straight on two different occasions earlier this year, but that third win had proven elusive. That was until Monday in Chicago when the Wizards held on despite losing the second and third quarters by a combined 14 points. They rallied to outscore the Bulls 25-23 in the fourth and head to the airport with a victory.

Jordan Poole and Corey Kispert got the Wizards off to a hot start with 10 points apiece in the first quarter. Washington jumped out to a 15-0 lead and led by 14 by the end of the 1st.

Poole finished the game with a team-high 23 points, while Kispert had 19 points and a career-high 12 rebounds. It was the first double-double of Kispert's career.

The Richaun Holmes-Marvin Bagley III combination continues to impress. Holmes gave the Wizards 14 points and 15 rebounds as the starter, while Bagley added 16 points on 7-for-8 shooting as his backup. Holmes had one of the most important plays of the game, a block on DeMar DeRozan with 1:45 to go in the fourth.

It was certainly a collective effort and it was needed with Kyle Kuzma and Deni Avdija missing the game as late additions to the injury report. That was on top of Tyus Jones and Landry Shamet remaining out, plus Bilal Coulibaly being done for the year.

Chicago was without Lonzo Ball and Zach LaVine, as they have been for a while, but did have standout guard Coby White after he missed the last meeting between these teams on March 16.

With a long list of injuries, the Wizards' rotation remained a window of opportunity for a host of young prospects in their system and several of them took advantage. Let's start with rookie Tristan Vukcevic, the Wizards' 2023 second round pick, who was appearing in just his second NBA game. Vukcevic earned his first NBA points on a three from the top of the key early in the second quarter. He made another triple in the second half, ending up with six points and three rebounds.

The first three was assisted by Jared Butler, who played 27 minutes in part because Poole got into foul trouble early with three fouls in his first five minutes on the floor. Butler made a bunch of nice plays on drive-and-kicks en route to a career-high 13 assists to go along with eight points, four rebounds and two steals. He helped get the Wizards' offense going in the first quarter with four dimes, including lasers to find Kispert and Jules Bernard for open corner threes.

Justin Champagnie also made a series of standout plays to highlight a well-rounded stat-line of eight points, three assists, three rebounds and a block. He impacted the game on both ends of the floor with heady ball movement and stout defensive stands.&nbsp;

That included a smooth drive-and-kick assist to Bagley III for a midrange jumper in the first half. Champagnie later guarded DeRozan down the stretch and hit a clutch three with two minutes left in the game.

Both Avdija and Kuzma returned from brief injury absences last Thursday and played well through two games, but each of them were out on Monday in Chicago. Kuzma was ruled out early in the day due to left shoulder soreness. Avdija, meanwhile, was a late scratch due to a non-COVID illness.

The Wizards started Johnny Davis and Patrick Baldwin Jr. in their place against the Bulls. Davis pitched in eight points, three assists and two rebounds. Baldwin Jr., meanwhile, added two points,&nbsp;six rebounds, two assists and two steals. The two connected on a great sequence in the third quarter when Davis found Baldwin Jr. for a fastbreak slam on a beautiful kick-ahead bounce pass.

Kuzma's left shoulder soreness is the same injury he was dealing with previously. He has played 67 games this season, his most since joining the Wizards in a 2021 trade. Kuzma is two games away from playing his most in a season since 2018-19 (70 games) and can technically tie a career-high with 77 if he were to play in every game the rest of the way.

Up next:&nbsp;The Wizards return home to host the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday in the first of six straight games at home.

recap-wizards-win-thriller-in-chicago

Recap: Wizards win thriller in Chicago

The Washington Wizards beat the Sacramento Kings 109-102 on Thursday night at Capital One Arena. Here are three things that stood out from the game...

The Wizards (12-58) had beaten a few teams with winning records this season, but none quite as good as the Sacramento Kings (40-29), whom they held off on Thursday night to secure possibly their best win of the season so far.

It took a bit of a rollercoaster to get there. Washington built a 19-point lead midway through the second quarter, only to see the Kings climb all the way back to tie it before halftime. The Wizards then rode a 28-22 third quarter to set the stage for the victory.

Turnovers were key throughout. Playing without Tyus Jones, one of the best in the league at protecting the ball, the Wizards were able to overcome 19 turnovers, including seven in the second quarter alone. A strong night defensively helped their cause, as they held the Kings, the eighth-highest scoring team in the NBA, to 16.1 points below their average.

The win was No. 12 on the season for the Wizards and their fifth at home. They play seven of their next eight games at Capital One Arena.

The Wizards got two starters back from injury in Deni Avdija and Kyle Kuzma, though it did not exactly make them whole. They were still without Jones, Marvin Bagley III, Bilal Coulibaly, Landry Shamet, Eugene Omoruyi and Isaiah Livers. Still, both Avdija and Kuzma were welcomed additions and they made a significant impact in their return.

That started early as both players had nine points apiece by the end of the first quarter. Avdija ended up with 17 points, nine rebounds and five assists, shooting 7-for-14 from the field and 2-for-3 from three. Kuzma had 31 points, six rebounds and five assists on 13-for-22 shooting overall and 3-for-7 from long range. He found a lot of success in the paint, getting the Kings to bite on pumpfakes and deftly finishing through traffic.

"It's all about playing together, playing hard and playing smart. I think that was probably one of the smartest games we've played all year start to finish," Kuzma said.

The Wizards enjoyed a decisive advantage in the rebounding department despite several&nbsp;reasons to expect otherwise. Rebounding has not been a strength for the Wizards this year and they were missing Bagley III, their starting center. Meanwhile, rebounding has been a plus for the Kings, who boast the NBA's leader both in rebounds per game and total rebounds with Domantas Sabonis.

Yet, the Wizards came out on top, 44-35, in the rebounding margin. Much of the thanks goes to Richaun Holmes, who had an excellent game on the boards against his former team. Holmes grabbed 16 rebounds for the night, including eight in his first six minutes on the floor.

"Richaun was huge, he was huge for us all night," Kuzma said. "I'm sure he really wanted this win obviously playing in [Sacramento]. We really just played off his fierceness tonight."

Holmes' 16 rebounds were his most in a game since November of 2021 when he was playing for... the Kings. He also had six points, two assists and a block while he helped the Wizards hold Sabonis to 14 points with five turnovers.

Up next:&nbsp;The Wizards stay home to host the Toronto Raptors at 8 p.m. on Saturday night.