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The Washington Wizards beat the Portland Trail Blazers 125-124 in overtime on Monday night. Here are five observations of the game …
Wild game, huge victory: Although it was only the third game of the regular season, it seemed that the Wizards needed this one. They had just lost their first two games against teams missing key players and at the second consecutive nights. And next are the Warriors, defending champions.
If that loss was lost, the Wizards could have put themselves in a very difficult hole early in the season, but they rallied to overcome a slow offensive start in the second half to ensure their first win of the season. the season.
Considering the alternative, it was about as important that a victory could be won so early in the year.
Oubre showed a little life: The shots finally began to collapse for Kelly Oubre Jr. After scoring only 5 against 16 on the field and 1 against 7 for three in his first two games, Oubre stood out with 22 points on 9 shots out of 13 and 3-for-3 out of three in this one. He also added six rebounds, a steal and a block.
To his credit, Oubre has nothing forced to be frustrated after the start of the season. He started the night by calmly hitting a three of the slot, then attacking the rim for a shot later. Oubre was aggressive as he entered the hallway and scored with both hands.
This was without a doubt the best performance of Oubre so far in 2018-2019, including the pre-season. He was active deflecting the ball in defense and played controlled and intelligent basketball in attack.
He made many pieces that do not appear in the chart that allowed the Wizards to win. deviations, a huge load taken in the last minutes of overtime. He was absolutely locked up.
Now there were some lowlights. Oubre has left several players to fend too easily, including Evan Turner and Jake Layman. Oubre has the tools to stay in front of these guys. But overall, Oubre made a big difference in this game and it was good to see.
Morris escaped: While Oubre had his best game in recent weeks, Markieff Morris may have had his best performance in Wizards uniform. The Wizards forward exploded for 28 points in 25 minutes with nine rebounds, one block and one robbery. He set a career high with six trios out of 10 attempts.
Two of Morris' three trios came in overtime, including one with 38.5 seconds left to restart the Wizards. His role in closing the victory in Portland recalled memories of his winner in the same building in March 2017.
Morris is one of the biggest jokers on the Wizards because it is not always clear which version of him they are going to get. When he is at his best, he hits out and plays the physical defense. He did that and more on Monday night.
With Dwight Howard absent, the Wizards need Morris to intervene. Although he did not do exactly that in their first two games, Morris came to play in this one.
Beal is off early: The match was billed as Bradley Beal's return to the Moda Center, where he lost 51 points, his highest career score, last December. It took him a while to get there, but once he did, Beal caught fire and scored at a pace that for a moment made him think of that incredible night.
Beal had 19 points in the first period on 8 of 12 and 3 against 4 of three. But then he cooled a bit in the second half and finished with 25 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and one block. He had no turnaround.
Beal has now scored at least 25 points in five straight games against the Blazers. Obviously, he likes to play in Portland, but one of the reasons for his success against them could be the treatment of C.J. McCollum.
Beyond the fact that dealing with one of the NBA's best sniper guards can bring him the best, Beal is a tough cover for McCollum as he is more athletic. He is a faster tick and can go higher on his jump.
McCollum is an underrated defender, but Beal kept him out of action with fake pumps at the right time and has regularly opened off the screens. Beal points were mainly in the rhythm of the offensive. He was constantly moving without a balloon and using the smallest possible separation to get shot.
Beal also deserves credits for his defense against McCollum. The star of the Blazers was limited to 13 points out of 5 for 25 among the players and 1 for 9 out of three.
Damian Lillard also had a hard night shooting. He had 29 points, but 7 out of 21 from the field and 2 out of 10 from three. Many of his points came to the free throw line where he scored 13 attempts in 15, 13 of his first-half attempts.
Two centers are now injured: The day began with head coach Scott Brooks sharing bad news about Howard, who not only did not make the trip with the Wizards but will probably miss at least several other games. Not too long ago in this game, they also lost their backup center.
Ian Mahinmi was replaced after two quick mistakes and never came back. He went to the locker room for spasm on the back, leaving the wizards dangerously lean in the center position. They had to rely on Jason Smith and use forwards Markieff Morris and Jeff Green in the small ball alignments. Thomas Bryant still has not received the sign of the head.
Spasms on the back do not seem serious, but whenever Mahinmi is unavailable, the Wizards are put to the test. This highlights the fact that wizards do not have one, but two currently vacant alignment positions.
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