Wizards
For the Wizards, there’s nowhere to go but up. We think.
As it stands, they’re on pace to set to come close to the NBA record for futility. Amazingly, they haven’t reached 50 wins in a season since 1979. That was their last appearance in the NBA Finals, too.
But this all seems to be by design.
“It’s no surprise that Washington has the NBA’s worst record and a record-threatening minus-14.4 point differential,” wrote ESPN’s Kevin Pelton. “With three first-round picks seeing regular action, the Wizards boast the youngest roster in the NBA when weighted by minutes played. Washington is hoping the lumps the rookies are taking will translate into a brighter future. Meanwhile, Jordan Poole has rebuilt his value by shooting a career-high 40% from 3-point range.”
As for tanking … well, Washington probably couldn’t be worse if it tried.
“The Wizards have a large enough cushion at the bottom of the overall league standings (4½ games behind Utah) that they don’t have to worry about trying to lose,” Pelton added. “Instead, Washington should hope to comfortably reach double-digit wins and avoid the most losses in league history.”
Warriors
It’s been a forgettable half-season for the Warriors, who started like gangbusters and have been entirely mediocre since. What now?
“The Warriors hoped an offseason makeover, including the departure of Klay Thompson, would help them return to the playoffs,” Pelton wrote. “That looked nearly certain during a 12-3 start, but Golden State has slipped back to under .500 and would miss the play-in entirely if the season ended today.”
They haven’t been shooting 3-pointers as well this season, either. And that’s been their calling card for the past decade-plus.
“A Warriors team with the top two players in made 3-pointers since 2020-21 (career leader Stephen Curry and offseason addition Buddy Hield) is shooting barely better than league average from downtown,” Pelton wrote. “Making more 3s would also help Golden State paper over a leaky transition defense.”
Bucks
Is it just us or should the Bucks be better? Hint: It’s not just us.
“The NBA Cup is looking like the highlight of Milwaukee’s season,” Pelton wrote. “Aside from a 7-0 record in NBA Cup play, the Bucks have been a game over .500 with a middling plus-1.9 point differential. Milwaukee is still on track for home-court advantage, and avoiding the Celtics’ side of the bracket might not be the worst thing, but there’s little indication the NBA Cup victory will be followed by a title run.”
As Pelton added, rebounding has been an issue for a team that still looks very middle-of-road to slightly better than middle-of-the-road.
“The Bucks have been solid defensively, but a Giannis Antetokounmpo–Damian Lillard pairing resulting in the NBA’s 12th-best offense was not what anyone envisioned,” Pelton wrote. “One key culprit: Milwaukee is dead last in offensive rebounding after ranking in the top 10 two seasons ago.”
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