The Sixers are 12-45. They just traded away one of their better players in Michael Carter-Williams. They are trying to integrate multiple players on the fly, and their defense is suffering because of it. They are also trying to get a good draft pick, so maybe this is all good? I believe it was the great Rosie Perez in "White Men Can't Jump" who said, "Sometimes when you win, you really lose. And sometimes when you lose, you really win. And sometimes when you win or lose, you actually tie. And sometimes when you tie, you actually win or lose." I think that sums up tonight game against the Wizards in a nut shell.
After a road victory against the Lakers on January 27th, the Wizards sat at 31-15, in the conversation for an Eastern Conference Finals appearance and headed towards a home court playoff series. Since then, the Wizards have gone 2-10 over their last 12, have slipped to 5th place in the Eastern Conference, and lost their 2nd best player Bradley Beal to what was ultimately revealed to be a stress fracture in his right fibula. As might be expected, the Wizards aren't quite as happy-go-lucky as they were earlier in the season.
7. I feel badly for John Wall, as injuries have sapped Wiz of wing talent. His spirit has ebbed away with that. He has MVP talent for sure.
— david b. thorpe (@coachthorpe) February 26, 2015
The Sixers themselves aren't looking too hot these days, struggling with defensive rotations and a plague of turnovers on their house. So perhaps tonight is a game to get back on track, but is that what we want? Many of us Sixers fans have started a new hobby since the trade deadline, and that is watching where our myriad of potential first round draft picks currently stand. It IS possible that we could have four first round picks if many things happen in our favor, and some of these picks could be pretty darn good.
And this brings us back to Rosie. If you are of the "Lose More for Okafor" camp, well then you would clearly like a loss tonight so that the Sixers can further cement their position as the 2nd worst team in the league. But if you are paying closer attention to the many nuances of the Sixers picks, you might want a win. The Wizards currently have the 19th worst record in the league. The OKC Thunder sit at 17th worst. The Thunder owe us their first round pick, but it is top-18 protected. So that means the Thunder need to pass the Wizards in the standings for us to get that pick. The Thunder are scorching hot right now, winners of 8 of their last 10 games, so this likely will happen. But the Sixers could help the cause with a win over the Wiz tonight.
Myself, I'm pulling for the W. We're going to lose plenty more games before this season is over, so lets pile up some victories when we can, especially if they might actually help us.
Game Notes:
- If you are really in to following all the implications of every game with respect to our potential draft picks, then Derek Bodner's draft tracker is a must follow. He's doing a great job summing up all the in's and out's every night.
- The Washington Post reports that Bradley Beal is trying to make his return from injury tonight against the Sixers.
- New Sixer JaVale McGee was actually originally drafted by the Washington Wizards with the 18th overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft. He had debatably his finest season with them in 2010, averaging 10pts, 8rebs, and 2.5 blocks. He also had these 5 absolutely terrible plays.
Projected Lineups:
Sixers
PG Isaiah Canaan
SG Jason Richardson
SF Robert Covington
PF Luc Mbah a Moute
C Nerlens Noel
Wizards
PG John Wall
SG Garrett Temple
SF Otto Porter
PF Nene Hilario
C Marcin Gortat
Injuries: Sixers: Joel Embiid (Out, Foot), Tony Wroten (Out, right knee).
Wizards: Bradley Beal (Questionable, leg). Paul Pierce (Questionable, Knee), Kris Humphries (Questionable, Hamstring).
Prediction: I said I'm pulling for the win, but I just don't see it happening with our rotations as out of whack as they are and Bradley Beal coming back from injury. Wiz take it 109-92.
