Nobody will be happier to find that the preseason end compared to the Washington Wizards; if it had gone on any longer, they would have run out of bodies completely.
Together with Martell Webster on the shelf after his third back operation in four seasons, the harms just kept coming.
Bradley Beal fractured his wrist, Glen Rice Jr. rolled his ankle, Kris Humphries ripped open his arm onto the rim (since when are these items sharp?) , requiring surgery to mend the gash. John Wall was restricted with knee tendinitis.
Somehow, the Wizards’ oldest player was able to survive the display slate unscathed. Paul Pierce, place to begin at small forward for the Wiz, offered some veteran outlook on the parade to the coach’s table, per Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post:”It has been tough. It has been challenging. We haven’t had a complete squad the majority of the preseason. The key is understanding it’s a long season. The key is to become healthier.”
If the collective swelling recedes and all the stitches hold, Washington can still make good on the lofty expectations it set last season. Forty-four wins got people thinking in D.C., and now the Wizards face a world where anything less than a top-four seed will constitute a disappointment.
Demands like that are as refreshing as they’re daunting, especially for a franchise with so little success in yesteryear. In 33-1, the Wiz are not totally out of the tournament film, but they are still a notch below the East’s elite.
Garry