“We don’t know who we play, and we really don’t care who we play,” head Coach Scott Brooks said when asked about the Wizards’ preferences for the first round of the postseason. The premise of the query was sound. After all, they had lost four of their last five games heading into yesterday’s homestand against the Hornets. And were the playoffs to begin today, they would be facing the dysfunctional-but-always-dangerous Cavaliers starring All-World LeBron James. Still, the bench tactician wasn’t wrong to focus on the positives. As he argued, “we just want to play well.”
In this regard, Brooks was, no doubt, buoyed by the return to action of acknowledged leader John Wall. The Wizards floundered in his two-month absence due to injury, going 15 and 12 after looking all roses at the start. Clearly, they need him to right the ship through their last six regular-season matches and into the playoffs, especially if they do wind up drawing the Cavaliers at the outset. And if his sterling showing yesterday is any indication, he’ll be able to do so.
Certainly, Brooks was pleased, describing Wall as a “Ferrari” who “got a lot of open shots for a lot of players. That’s what he does at the highest level.” Which is to say the break did him wonders. Prior to going under the knife for viscosupplementation and debridement of his troublesome left knee, he spent much of his time on the court seemingly stationary and far from his normal whirling-dervish self. Yesterday, he looked like he got back his bounce, with his spring and vision generating myriad open looks for teammates.
In the immediate term, Wall will most definitely help. The Wizards had hitherto looked listless and lost, especially against supposedly overmatched opponents; losses to the likes of the Knicks and the Pistons last week reflected their rudderless plight. Now, they’re at full strength and poised to make a run at a higher seeding in the East. A tall order with just a couple of weeks on the calendar? Perhaps. Then again, what’s most important is the effort, which, at best, sustains momentum. Again, as Brooks contended, “we just want to play well.”
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994.
