Johnny Davis finally got a shot to show off his talents as the Wizards’ season was coming to a close, putting up some impressive stats.
Johnny Davis finally got a shot to show off his talents as the Wizards’ season was coming to a close, putting up some impressive stats in the last six games.
Over that stretch, Davis made three starts while averaging 14.7 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.0 blocks. The former Big Ten Player of the Year proved why he was a top-10 selection in the 2022 NBA Draft.
It took a while for Davis to click in the NBA, starting the year on and off of the court with a hip injury, but he now appears to be ready to flex his muscles as a professional athlete moving forward.
With the Wizards struggling to find any sort of consistent success on the court from season to season, Davis could end up stepping right into a significant role in his sophomore campaign next year. Outside of Bradley Beal and Kristaps Porzingis, Washington leaves much to be desired.
Last six games of the NBA regular season for @JohnnyDavis 📈
The Philadelphia 76ers praise PJ Tucker for his defense on Washington Wizards big man Kristaps Porzingis in a win at home.
PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers played host to the Washington Wizards on Sunday night just looking to keep the momentum going before heading out on the road for seven of their next eight games.
They did so rather easily with a wire-to-wire 112-93 win over the Wizards on a night when they led by as many as 25. The Sixers shot 51.2% from the floor compared to 40.5% for Washington.
The Sixers started the game having PJ Tucker defend Kristaps Porzingis despite a big height difference. Tucker stands 6 feet, 5 inches, and Porzingis is 7 feet, 3 inches. Obviously, Porzingis can just rise up and shoot over Tucker.
However, he had a tough night offensively. He shot just 4-for-15 from the floor to score nine points. That defensive work drew praise from his teammates.
“Just physical,” coach Doc Rivers said of Tucker’s defensive assignment on Porzingis. “He gets up into his body. You almost have to. He’s so long. The few times that he caught it when the guys are off him and drove, it’s too late. He just turns and shoots and that’s what PJ does and get up into you. He has great hands.”
Normally, the Sixers would throw Joel Embiid on Porzingis. However, they had him as more of a roamer in this matchup, and Tucker stepped up.
“It was good,” Embiid said of Tucker. “When you’re playing against someone like him, 7-foot-4 or whatever he is, you got to pressure him. You gotta be physical and you got to make him drive. He’s just gonna shoot over you and there’s nothing you can do about it. I thought he limited his catches and pushed him out when he needed to. When he got the ball, he was all over him and he really didn’t have any chance to try to get a shot off.”
The Sixers didn’t start the game great on offense, but they threw the Wizards out of whack and Tucker’s defense on Porzingis set the tone for them on the defensive end.
“I think he set the tone,” added Georges Niang. “I think that’s why we took a big lead going in. He wasn’t letting Porzingis get any touches, and then when he’d switch off on other guys, he wasn’t letting them get into a rhythm and kind of set the tone.”
Washington Wizards star Kristaps Porzingis discusses his success against the Joel Embiid-less Philadelphia 76ers in a win.
PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia 76ers had a very tall task when they hosted the Washington Wizards on Wednesday after a four-game road trip. Emphasis on the word tall.
The Sixers played the Wizards on Monday without Joel Embiid and they picked up a win. On Wednesday, the 7-foot-3 Kristaps Porzingis went to work.
Porzingis had 30 points on 9-for-13 shooting, nine rebounds and three blocks as the Wizards knocked off the Sixers, 121-111. Without Embiid in the paint, Porzingis just had a field day rising over the much smaller PJ Tucker and others who tried to defend him.
After the win, Porzingis discussed how he had success without Embiid.
“I don’t have to waste all that energy fighting a guy that’s 100 pounds heavier than me,” Porzingis laughed. “So it’s, of course, better for me, but I have to play against PJ Tucker or some guard that’s quick so I have to expend that energy in a different way. Trying to keep up with those smaller guys.”
Those smaller guys found little success defending Porzingis. They tried being physical with him and push him out of the paint, but when a guy has that much of a size advantage, there isn’t much a team can do.
“I mean, sometimes, he literally just put the ball over his head and shot it,” said Tyrese Maxey. “So just got to get the ball out of his hands, try not to let them catch the ball, and work extremely hard to do that. Easier said than done, but you have to be physical with him and try to push him away from the basket.”
For his part, Porzingis wants the big fella back out there. He misses competing against Embiid.
“Me and Joel, I like playing against him,” Porzingis added. “There’s some advantages on his side, of course, and there’s some advantages on my side and so that matchup is always interesting. I hope he gets back healthy soon.”
The Sixers look to get back on track on Friday when they host the New York Knicks.
The league recently announced plans to retire Russell’s No. 6 jersey across the league to honor the Celtics great, but some players are excepted.
The NBA and Boston Celtics plan to honor Hall of Fame big man Bill Russell for his unparalleled career in the league and his dedication to fighting for civil rights and social justice by retiring his No. 6 jersey league-wide.
The move — unprecedented in league history — honors the singular life Russell lived on and off the court. Russell was the NBA’s ultimate winner with a record 13 titles to his name as a player or player-coach. He also achieved or was a part of many milestones, including being a part of the first all-Black starting five and the first Black head coach in league history. Through it all, he used his platform to fight for others in a time when that put his career at great risk.
The players in the league wearing No. 6 jerseys in 2021-22 will be allowed to continue to do so until they either switch to a new number or retire from the game. Let’s take a look at the players who could wear that jersey number next season.
He meant so much to the NBA both on and off the court. He’s easily one of the best basketball players ever, but Russell was also a civil rights pillar and an icon who was larger than life. He meant so much and deserves
No player will ever be able to wear the number again. Well, after the current players who are wearing it hang it up, anyway.
There’s still a group of players around the league who have been wearing the number who are “grandfathered” in, meaning they don’t have to change because they were already wearing it. Everyone else is out of luck.
Who are those players? We’ve got them all listed here.
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When the Mavericks originally traded for Kristaps Porzingis, many people thought that pairing him with Luka Doncic would make them unstoppable.
Welcome to Layup Lines, our daily NBA newsletter where we’ll prep you for a tip-off of tonight’s action, from what to watch to bets to make. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox every afternoon.
When the Mavericks originally traded for Kristaps Porzingis, many people thought that pairing him with Luka Doncic would make them unstoppable.
That never happened. So when Dallas traded Porzingis to the Wizards, many assumed that it was mostly just a salary dump reset to get the big man off of their contract books. He had a lucrative deal, and maybe it was just time for the two sides to go their separate ways.
Few people saw the Mavs as a team that would go on to make the Western Conference Finals, and apparently, one of those Dallas doubters was ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith.
I couldn’t find anything particularly crazy that Smith said about the trade. However, it sounds as if the talking head wasn’t convinced that role players like Spencer Dinwiddie, Maxi Kleber, and Reggie Bullock would move the needle.
Dinwiddie has had an up-and-down tenure with the Mavericks thus far, but his highest high came in Game 7 against Phoenix. He finished with 30 points on an efficient 15 attempts from the field.
He was 5-of-7 from beyond the arc, and he did not record a single turnover in his 25 minutes of action.
Meanwhile, the combo guard also wanted the ESPN personality that he was forgiven for ever doubting him — or anyone else on Dallas.
The Tip-Off
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Many ugly things happened when the Mavericks eliminated the Suns. But the ugliest was probably whatever happened with DeAndre Ayton:
“Although nothing was captured on the television broadcast, some observers reported that Phoenix head coach Monty Williams asked Ayton if he wanted to play.
As to what was said, we can only speculate and assume. But if he never checked back in the game and other coaches had to get involved, the logical conclusions that can be drawn are not pretty.
Reporters have even used the word “altercation” to describe what happened.”
Phoenix had the best record in the NBA during the regular season, but as the postseason continued, Ayton’s role within the Suns’ offense dwindled.
As such, when he hits restricted free agency this offseason, I’m especially curious to see how the organization values the former No. 1 overall pick.
One to Watch
(Photo By Winslow Townson/Getty Images)
TUESDAY: Heat (-1.5, -125) vs. Celtics (+102), O/U 203.5, 8:30 PM ET
The road to the NBA Finals no longer goes through Milwaukee, as Boston officially took out the defending champions by eliminating the Bucks. The Celtics, especially Jayson Tatum, have looked outstanding of late.
But they are not favored in the opening game of the Eastern Conference Finals. The favorite is the Heat, who finished as the top seed in the East in 2021-22. Both these teams play a punishing defensive style, and I can’t wait to see how Miami will handle the hot-handed Tatum.
Who’s in and out?
Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports
— Celtics: Marcus Smart (foot) is questionable against Miami
— Heat: Kyle Lowry (hamstring) is questionable against Boston
— Warriors: Otto Porter (foot) is questionable against Dallas
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There might not be a better argument for the NBA season being too long than what’s about to happen in Washington, D.C. tonight when the Wizards play the Knicks.
You know how, toward the end of the year, there are always playoff teams jostling for position in the standings? Certain teams want to play other teams once the year starts, so they’ll either make a big push or care…slightly less about the game they’re about to play.
The same thing happens at the bottom of the standings, too. Except for literally never about winning. It’s a good ole fashioned tank-off. Everybody is trying to lose their way to the best draft lottery position possible.
That’s what the Wizards are doing tonight against the Knicks. Tanking. As hard as possible.
The team just announced that both Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Kristaps Porzingis are sitting out for rest.
Kristaps Porzingis and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope will both rest tonight vs. the Knicks, in addition to Beal and Kuzma being out.
Two starters, with one of them being their best player, are both sitting. Why? Because they’re currently tied with the Knicks as the 10th worse team in the NBA.
Big things happening tonight in DC.
Knicks and Wizards are both 35-45. Some may argue they’re fighting for that prestigious 11th-place slot in the East. Others would point out they’re tied for 10th-best lottery positioning and only one game above the 34-46 Spurs.
This means that whoever wins the game between these two tonight is probably locked in for the 11th best odds and probably has no chance of catching the Spurs at 9.
There is literally no incentive to play this game. If it weren’t completely out of bounds, one of the teams might actually forfeit. That’s how pointless a win here would be.
You’re going to see weird lineups, fringe players getting big minutes and lots of guys sitting out with injuries that came from out of nowhere. You absolutely love to see it.
This is what a tank-off looks like. The Wizards got things started by sitting their guys. The Knicks still have some time to respond. Julius Randle is already out with that same nagging quad injury, but can they do more?
We’ll find out soon, I’m sure. As a Wizards fan? I absolutely love to see this.
Thanks to a career night by Christian Wood (39 points), Houston turned a 23-point deficit into an 18-point win on Monday versus Washington. Here’s how the Rockets and their fans reacted.
Rockets big man Christian Wood scored a career-high 39 points on Monday, including 30 in the second-half alone, leading to a thrilling 115-97 win (box score) in Houston over the visiting Washington Wizards.
The Rockets trailed by 23 in the second quarter, but they dramatically flipped the script and led by as much as 20 in the fourth quarter. The biggest reason was Wood, who caught fire from behind the 3-point arc and made 8-of-9 (88.9%) in Monday’s second half at Toyota Center.
Wood also grabbed 10 rebounds and 2 steals in his 36 minutes, and the 26-year-old hit 14-of-18 shots (77.8%) for the game. The Wizards were led by big man Kristaps Porzingis (22 points, 13 rebounds, 5 blocks), who got the best of Wood in the first half. Ultimately, it did not last.
Rookie guard Jalen Green had an efficient and balanced game (17 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists) on his personal bobblehead night, shooting 7-of-14 overall (50.0%) versus the Wizards and 3-of-7 on 3-pointers (42.9%). Eric Gordon was also hot from 3-point range in his first game back after missing three due to illness, as evidenced by the veteran guard’s 15 points in 25 minutes on 5-of-7 from 3-point range (71.4%).
But the big story was Wood, who left to a standing ovation in the game’s final minute at Toyota Center. Scroll on for highlights and reaction from players, coaches, and Rockets fans across social media.
NBA Twitter reacts to Kristaps Porzingis being traded to the Wizards.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski, the Dallas Mavericks are trading Kristaps Porzingis to the Washington Wizards for a package centered around Spencer Dinwiddie.
Here’s how NBA Twitter reacted to the very unexpected news.
Kudos to Porzingis and the Mavericks for a cool act of kindness.
When the Mavericks took on the Kings late last year, there was more on the line than a simple game in the Western Conference standings.
Sure, Dallas could have used the victory to stay afloat in a gauntlet of a West. And yeah, the ever-flailing Kings could have least used a healthy morale boost as they, yet again, seek potential organizational changes.
But people had money on this game, especially on the performance of some of the select players.
One person thought highly enough of big man Kristaps Porzingis to where he would make the game’s first basket. Unfortunately, Porzingis would miss a layup instead. Oh well, life goes on. Players miss shots all the time.
But in even worse news: It was the only leg of a parlay that would’ve paid out the fan; oh, I don’t know, over $76,000.
Oh. Oh no.
Once Porzingis heard the news, he decided to make good on a situation that certainly had to leave the fan feeling terrible.
He sent him a signed jersey.
Porzingis sent a signed jersey to a bettor that missed out on $76K when KP missed a wide-open layup 👏
It probably won’t make up for losing out on almost three-quarters of six figures. To be fair, few things can. But it’s hard not to feel great for a guy that he at least got some benefit out of a lost parlay. (Unless the Mavericks aren’t his favorite team. Well, then, maybe Porzingis is his favorite player?!)
Props (pun not intended) to the Mavericks, and props to Porzingis for an impeccably kind gesture.
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