addByline("Jeremy Hyman", "WashingtonWizards.com", "JeremyHyman");
The Wizards head to Miami for their first road preseason test tonight at AmericanAirlines Arena.
Game Info
AmericanAirlines Arena | 7:30pm | WATCH: Monumental Sports Network
Probable Starters
Wizards: G - Wall, G - Beal, F - Porter, F - Smith, C - Gortat
Heat: G - Richardson, G - Waiters, F - McGruder, F - Olynyk, C - Whiteside
Wizards: Markieff Morris (Sports Hernia - Out), Tim Frazier (Groin - TBD), Devin Robinson (Foot -TBD), Sheldon Mac (Achilles - Out)
Heat: Goran Dragic (Rest - Questionable)
What to Watch For
Dress Rehearsal?
The regular season begins one week from tonight and with just two preseason games left, it's time for the Wizards to start preparing for the real thing. They could start playing the starters closer to their normal minutes and using rotations they would in next week's opener. They still want to see which lineups play best together and determine who should take Markieff Morris' minutes while he's out for the first month of the season with a sports hernia.
Tonight will also be the team's first road game of the preseason, which may not seem like a big deal, but it's good for the group to get back in the routine of taking the team flight, staying in the hotel, going to shootaround in the morning, and then to the game at night. They'll head to New York to wrap up the preseason on Friday night.
Tim Frazier Debut
Tim Frazier (groin) returned to practice on Monday and is expected to make his Wizards preseason debut tonight. The team traded for him this summer and had hopes of him being John Wall's backup point guard, so these next two preseason games should be big for Frazier as he gets his confidence with this new group. Head coach Scott Brooks may play Frazier with different lineups over these next two games to try and get an idea of what he can expect from his backup point guard.
Fighting for Roster Spot
With Sheldon Mac going down with an injury and Daniel Ochefu getting waived, the Wizards may now elect between Donald Sloan and Carrick Felix for their final roster spot. Both were invited to camp on a non-guaranteed deal, but based on these recent developments, there's certainly a chance one may make the team. The Wizards could also elect to keep 14 players and leave the 15th spot open to begin the season, or they could look outside the organization to fill that last spot. In any case, we'll see if either Felix or Sloan get a chance to log minutes in these last two games to make a final impression on the coaching staff.