The Wizards Are The Hottest Team In The NBA. How Is This Possible!?
The Washington Wizards are the hottest team in the NBA right now and that is extremely shocking considering the start they had to the 2020-2021 NBA season. After acquiring Russell Westbrook from the Houston Rocket’s who had just finished playing in one of the worst postseasons of his career. But appeared to offer more than John Wall who had been sidelined for two straight years due to injury. The team was looking worse than they did the previous year which was mind boggling. It took them six games before they were able to get their first win of the season and by February 12th their record stood at 6-17, one of the worst in the league.
Things were not looking good for the Wizards as the Bradley Beal trade rumors started to fly and the Westbrook haters started to flock. But since then the Wizards have pieced together one of the best comeback stories in recent NBA history. They are 24-19 since February 12th stringing together multiple wins streaks and beating some of the better teams In the league. From an awful start to one of the hottest teams in the NBA leading into the playoffs and the reason can be contributed to the entire team pulling it together led by Russell Westbrook and Bradley Beal.
Russell Westbrook Is The Leader The Wizards Have Been Missing
There are plenty of negative things to be said and have been said about Russell Westbrook. Former teammates have said that they don’t like playing alongside him & commentators like Stephen A Smith have said that he puts up empty numbers that don’t contribute to winning. But this season at least things have been different for Westbrook in DC and he is leading the charge behind their hot streak. Since the team meeting, he called after the Wizards early season struggle’s he has turned this team into a winning one while filling the stat sheet.
Since the All-Star Break, the Wizards are boasting one of the best records in the league, winning 13 of their last 16 games also featuring an eight-game win streak. While Westbrook has been doing what he does best racking up 22 triple double’s since the second half of the season began on March 7th. He is averaging 21.8 PPG, a career-high 11.3 RPG, and a career-high 11.2 APG. You can say whatever you want about Westbrook but this season he has shown that the numbers he is putting up are leading to wins. While he may be inefficient, he is a leader in the Wizards locker room and is doing the unimaginable on a nightly basis. You can’t question Westbrook’s heart, he started the season playing on a torn quad and now has the Wizards dead set on upsetting the 7th or 8th seed in the Play-in Tournament.
Bradley Beal Never Gave Up On This Team
Bradley Beal could have chosen to leave the Wizards before the trade deadline or in multiple prior seasons. Since he has ascended to All-star status the team around him has gotten worse up until this point. For the past two seasons, the Wizards have missed the playoffs while Beal continued to improve as a scorer and a player. There were multiple teams like the Boston Celtics that were interested in acquiring one of the best shooting guards in the league but Beal remained loyal. Or as his agent, Mark Bartelstein put it “He doesn’t want to quit on something,” in a quote given to Ben Rohrbach at Yahoo Sports.
Now it is looking like Beal may have made the right move as the Wizards are trending in the right direction with many young players like Rui Hachimura, Deni Avdija who is sadly out due to an Ankle Injury, and recently acquired defensive-minded center, Daniel Gafford. While Beal has continued to be one of the best scorer’s in the league currently in a tight race for the scoring title with Stephen curry. He could have taken the easy way out but instead stuck with the Wizards and didn’t quit. The team record on the season is 30-35 but everyone knows now that’s not the full story. The Wizards are the hottest team in the NBA and I wouldn’t be surprised if they cause some trouble in the Play-in Tournament or the first round for whoever they are matched up against.
