If the Washington Wizards are going to advance into the second round of the NBA playoffs, they need to play better on the road. They must win at least one game on the road against Toronto in order to advance into the second round.
They play well at home. The Wizards have won 7 straight playoff games at home. Only the Golden State Warriors have won as many consecutive games at home in the playoffs. However, good teams win on the road.
John Wall, after the Wizards' game four victory at home, said that the Wizards do not give up, and that they play tough when their backs are up against the wall. However, they do not play as tough as they need to on the road. Teams that are truly resilient and tough play well on the road. It is easier to play inspired basketball when the home crowd is cheering a team on. It is much tougher to play well when a team is facing a hostile crowd.
The Wizards played well in games 3 and 4 as they evened their series with the Toronto Raptors at 2 games a piece. In both games, they played better as the game went on.
In game 3, the Wizards shot 55% from the field including 43% from 3 point range. They outrebounded Toronto 39-34 and dished out 9 more assists than the Raptors. The Wizards had 10 steals and 8 blocked shots. Additionally, the Wizards got 21 points off of fast breaks. The Raptors had only 10 fast break points. The Wizards clearly out played Toronto as they won 122-103.
However, even though they outplayed Toronto in game 3, the Wizards gave up 28 points off of turnovers. The Wizards cannot allow that to happen in game 5 at Toronto. The Wizards must take care of the basketball. Turnovers prevent a team from scoring and give the opposition a scoring opportunity. Additionally, turnovers take away a team's momentum and give the opposition momentum. The Wizards must avoid turnovers the rest of the series.
In game 4, the Wizards trailed 54-40 early in the 3rd quarter. However, they were able to erase the deficit behind clutch shooting by Otto Porter jr. who hit a couple of threes early in the quarter. This gave the Wizards some momentum. Additionally, Wall played well down the stretch. After Bradley Beal fouled out, the Wizards outscored the Raptors 14-6 to close out the game. Wall finished with 27 points, 14 assists and 6 rebounds. Wall needs to have a similar performance against the Raptors in game 5.
In game 1, the Wizards lost to the Raptors 114-106. The Wizards actually led this game at the half. However, Washington was outscored 59-47 by Toronto in the second half. The Wizards shot only 38% from three point range and had only 10 fast break points. In contrast, the Raptors shot a blistering 53% from behind the arc and had 6 more fast break points. If the Wizards are going to advance, they need to shoot a high percentage from three point range and get more fast break points. Additionally, they cannot allow the Raptors to shoot over 50% from three point range.
In game 2, the Wizards were outrebounded by the Raptors 55-40. Toronto outscored Washington 44-27 in the first quarter. The Wizards could not overcome their slow start or the outstanding shooting by the Raptors at the start of the game. Washington cannot start slowly in game 5. Additionally, the Wizards cannot be outrebounded on the road. Washington has to get position in the paint and rebound the basketball better than Toronto if it wants to win game 5.
The Wizards must avoid the mistakes of the fist two games in order to advance. They need to play a complete game in game 5 in order to win. They need to outrebound the Raptors. They need to score fast break points. The Wizards need to limit turnovers, make a high percentage of their three point shots, score points in the paint and play strong defense. Additionally, the Wizards need to start strong so that they do not have to overcome a huge deficit on the road.
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