The Washington Wizards play the Denver Nuggets at 9 p.m. ET tonight. Watch the game on Monumental Sports Network.
The Washington Wizards play the Denver Nuggets at 7 p.m. today at Capital One Arena. Watch the game on Monumental Sports Network.
In a classic dog days of the NBA season kind of game, the Wizards lost to the Denver Nuggets, 107-97. It was Washington’s eighth straight loss, and it was a slog to watch.
Both teams seemed tired and low energy. The Nuggets had something of an excuse — they played Tuesday in Los Angeles and flew across the country. Washington’s last game was at home on Monday afternoon. Maybe they had some hard practices?
Despite both teams missing loads of shots, they combined for 17 total transition points — nine for the Wizards, and eight for the the Nuggets. The Nuggets walked the ball up the floor on many possessions. They exhibited relatively disciplined shot selection and won just enough possessions to get the win.
The Wizards, who usually push the ball up the floor quickly after opponent makes or misses, were content to walk it up themselves. Unlike the Nuggets, they were far more likely to take a quick shot. If there was a theme in this game, it was Washington working hard individually to get a difficult shot, and the Nuggets working as a team to get better ones.
This was certainly not a rule. Jamal Murray had a “Murray Flurry” (as dubbed by the Nuggets broadcast) in the third quarter that was heavy on isos. Peyton Watson had a few terrific one-on-one play. In general, though, the Nuggets would run actions and move ball and players until they got an advantage, and then attack.
Watson played great for the Nuggets — a career-high 35 points along with 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 4 blocks. He took a hard fall when he got clotheslined trying to dunk on Khris Middleton after earlier turning his ankle landing after scoring a highlight-reel bucked on Alex Sarr. His emergence as a quality offensive option is a great development for Denver — made possible by Nikola Jokic’s knee injury.
Thoughts & Observations
- While transition defense wasn’t much of an issue last night (the Nuggets were apparently too tired to run), one play early in the game exemplified the team’s struggles defending in transition. Denver came up with a steal and Murray started up the floor. Tre Johnson was the only defender back — two Nuggets players were ahead of the ball. Johnson had to choose — match up with his man on the wing or pick up Aaron Gordon in the center of the floor. Correct prioritization would have sent him to Gordon. Johnson went to the wing. That left Gordon alone under the rim for an easy dunk.
- I could be wrong on this one, but…there was an offensive fast break I think the Wizards got wrong. They had a three-on-two. Kyshawn George had the ball and was dribbling to the offensive end right-of-center of the court. To his left was Sarr in the middle and Will Riley on the wing. To me, the right play would have been for George to go to the middle and for Sarr to cross over to get on his right — ball in the middle flanked by offensive players. Another option could have been for George to move further right to open more of a lane for Sarr to come down the middle of the lane and force a Denver defender to guard two guys. Instead, George dribbled straight up the floor, Sarr and Riley ran their lanes, and Denver defenders never had to make a real decision. The tight spacing gave George only two real options — drive into two defenders or kick it out to Riley on the wing. The tight spacing meant there was a relatively short closeout. Riley missed the three-point attempt, and the Wizards didn’t score on a three-on-two break.
- George was this close to having an impressive game, despite shooting just 6-17 from the floor. He had 12 rebounds, 7 assists, and a steal. The three turnovers were acceptable given the assists and his overall offensive load. He’s gotta stop fouling so much — especially the pointless tantrumy ones.
- The spate of “injuries” meant that Anthony Gill got rotation minutes, and he wasn’t bad.
- One good thing: unlike their last matchup with the Nuggets, I didn’t see the Wizards helping off Murray. He had to work harder to generate offense.
Four Factors
Below are the four factors that decide wins and losses in basketball — shooting (efg), rebounding (offensive rebounds), ball handling (turnovers), fouling (free throws made).
The four factors are measured by:
- eFG% (effective field goal percentage, which accounts for the three-point shot)
- OREB% (offensive rebound percentage)
- TOV% (turnover percentage — turnovers divided by possessions)
- FTM/FGA (free throws made divided by field goal attempts)
FOUR FACTORS NUGGETS WIZARDS LGAVG eFG% 50.0% 45.8% 54.4% OREB% 28.2% 28.6% 26.1% TOV% 11.8% 15.1% 12.8% FTM/FGA 0.289 0.238 0.211 PACE 93 99.6 ORTG 115 104 115.7 Stats & Metrics
PPA is my overall production metric, which credits players for things they do that help a team win (scoring, rebounding, playmaking, defending) and dings them for things that hurt (missed shots, turnovers, bad defense, fouls).
PPA is a per possession metric designed for larger data sets. In small sample sizes, the numbers can get weird. In PPA, 100 is average, higher is better and replacement level is 45. For a single game, replacement level isn’t much use, and I reiterate the caution about small samples sometimes producing weird results.
POSS is the number of possessions each player was on the floor in this game.
ORTG = offensive rating, which is points produced per individual possessions x 100. League average so far this season is 115.1. Points produced is not the same as points scored. It includes the value of assists and offensive rebounds, as well as sharing credit when receiving an assist.
USG = offensive usage rate. Average is 20%.
ORTG and USG are versions of stats created by former Wizards assistant coach Dean Oliver and modified by me. ORTG is an efficiency measure that accounts for the value of shooting, offensive rebounds, assists and turnovers. USG includes shooting from the floor and free throw line, offensive rebounds, assists and turnovers.
+PTS = “Plus Points” is a measure of the points gained or lost by each player based on their efficiency in this game compared to league average efficiency on the same number of possessions. A player with an offensive rating (points produced per possession x 100) of 100 who uses 20 possessions would produce 20 points. If the league average efficiency is 114, the league — on average — would produced 22.8 points in the same 20 possessions. So, the player in this hypothetical would have a +PTS score of -2.8.
Players are sorted by total production in the game.
WIZARDS MIN POSS ORTG USG +PTS PPA +/- Tre Johnson 34 66 124 21.4% 1.1 125 -11 Kyshawn George 34 66 110 30.5% -1.1 118 -4 Alex Sarr 36 71 118 19.0% 0.4 106 -9 Justin Champagnie 18 35 191 6.9% 1.8 131 2 Anthony Gill 12 23 213 4.3% 0.9 117 1 Will Riley 21 40 96 27.5% -2.2 63 5 Jamir Watkins 18 36 106 11.3% -0.4 72 2 Bub Carrington 38 74 72 22.5% -7.3 10 -18 Khris Middleton 28 54 77 18.5% -3.9 -43 -18
NUGGETS MIN POSS ORTG USG +PTS PPA +/- Peyton Watson 40 78 170 23.8% 9.9 375 13 Jamal Murray 36 70 109 29.0% -1.3 172 18 Aaron Gordon 33 65 132 19.2% 2.0 136 23 Jonas Valanciunas 22 43 129 30.6% 1.7 152 -3 Bruce Brown 18 35 96 24.2% -1.7 150 -7 Spencer Jones 28 54 121 3.2% 0.1 45 0 Zeke Nnaji 10 20 133 11.5% 0.4 90 -2 Jalen Pickett 33 63 68 13.3% -4.0 -15 16 Tim Hardaway Jr. 20 38 19 21.0% -7.8 -172 -8
Welcome to the second installment of “Wizards and Whatnot,” where I take you through the happenings around the NBA and check in on the Wizards when necessary. We’re officially in the midseason pre-All Star lull, where games and results start to blend together, so I’m here to guide you through what’s going on.
Who want me?
The trade deadline is looming, and the names being floated on the trade market would make casual NBA fans who get their fix on Instagram Reels squeal. We real game watchers, though… we know some of these names carry more weight than the players themselves do.
The Memphis Grizzlies are open for business, and expect the return they get back for Ja Morant to be pitiful. The one-time “face of the league” candidate is so averse to playing in NBA basketball games and so disinterested when he finally suits up that his value has crashed to an all-time low and the Grizzlies just sound happy to move on.
Anthony Davis is out for at least six weeks, meaning there is a real shot he has played his last game as a Dallas Maverick. Every time I look at the Mavs roster I have no choice but to cross my arms, hit a scowl, lightly shake my head and softly scoff. The strategy of stockpiling pretty good frontcourt players and punting on both guard spots has burned the Mavs, and they’re probably going to pitifully flip Davis (and, by the transitive property, LUKA DONCIC) for a collection of spare parts and a draft pick.
I predict LaMelo Ball and Zach Lavine, the co-chairmen of the “no impact on the outcome of the game” committee, will stay put, Lavine because I can’t fathom another team is willing to pay $50 million for his services and Ball because those jerseys just keep flying off the shelves with the 16-and-under demographic
Paid vaTraetion
The Wizards made the first big splash of trade season by dealing for Trae Young, who has yet to suit up in a Wizards jersey. Young is due to be re-evaluated following the All-Star break in a little under a month, though I’m not totally convinced he will make his Wizards debut until the start of the 2026-27 season.
The 10-33 Wizards are embroiled in a fresh 8-game free-fall, so there is really no rush to get Young back on the court.
The mother of all pretenders
I grew up in Los Angeles as a major Clippers fan. All of my friends were, of course, arrogant Lakers fans, so this part of the column is going to feel really great to write.
This year’s Lakers are a mess. They’re 26-17 but sport a negative net rating, meaning end-of-game execution (or luck) is the only thing buoying their record above .500. Their three best players are Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and 41-year-old LeBron James, three individuals who would prefer not to play defense.
DeAndre Ayton and Rui Hachimura, who both famously are not particularly interested in getting better at the sport of basketball, round out the starting five. The Lakers have the 25th-ranked defense in the NBA, the worst of any team even in contention for the play-in tournament.
This team is staring down a dismantling in the first round of the playoffs, and I honestly doubt that they are going to make a major in-season splash. My group chat of my high school friends remains abuzz with delusions of Giannis Antetokounmpo in the purple and gold, but they’re going to have to be content with a player like Josh Okogie instead.
That being said, they traded for Luka Doncic last year, so what do I know?
The Washington Wizards play the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday. Here is the preview.
Game info
When: Saturday, Jan. 24 at 12 p.m. ET
Where: Spectrum Center, Charlotte, NC
How to watch: Monumental Sports Network, League Pass
Injuries: For the Wizards, Bilal Coulibaly (back) and Tristan Vukcevic (rest) are questionable, while Trae Young (knee, quad) and Cam Whitmore (shoulder) are out.
For the Hornets, Mason Plumlee (groin) is out. Grant Williams, KJ Simpson and Tre Mann are questionable because they missed yesterday’s game against the Orlando Magic.
What to watch for
The Wizards will look to do two things tomorrow afternoon. First, they need to snap this eight-game losing streak. And the Hornets are a team Washington could defeat. They are coming off a 124-97 win against the Magic yesterday. And the Hornets also had some impressive road wins against the Los Angeles Lakers and Denver Nuggets!
Charlotte is now on a two-game homestand and may be looking to feel a bit comfortable at home before an ice storm hits Saturday evening. But for the Wizards, they may be a bit excited about winter weather, because the same storm will dump at least 6 inches of snow locally. The less …. distracted team will win this one in my opinion. Hopefully, Washington comes out on top.
The Washington Wizards play the Charlotte Hornets at noon today. The game was originally scheduled for 6 p.m. but was moved up due to impending weather. Watch the game on Monumental Sports Network.
The Wizards lost again, this time to the Charlotte Hornets. It was their ninth straight defeat, and they’re back in last place.
The Wizards starting lineup was the youngest in NBA history — Will Riley and Tre Johnson are both 19. Alex Sarr and Bub Carrington are 20. Kyshawn George was the old guy at 22. Yes, they should have started Justin Champagnie (age 24), but I like using the opportunity to get Riley his first NBA start and taking advantage to set the record.
The game was replete with some of the same-old-same-old. They had plenty of defensive breakdowns. They got dominated on the glass. And yet, I saw some things in this one that I think are positive signs for the future.
- Throughout the night, Sarr’s combination of length, agility, and skills were way too much for the Hornets to handle — at least on the offensive end. He was too strong and long for Moussa Diabate and Miles Bridges. He was much too quick for Ryan Kalkbrenner. He shot over defenders whether big or small.
- Jamir Watkins was a defensive menace. He tallied five steals and two blocks, including an open-court strip of Collin Sexton (which resulted in a breakaway dunk) and alert plays in passing lanes.
- Repeatedly in my notes are entries about the team’s well-designed offensive system. Some examples:
- At 9:11 of the second quarter, the Wizards ran a high screen action to get an open look out top. If you’ve watched any game this season, you’ve seen this action. In this example, Sarr screen for Johnson, who immediately went into a three-point shot upon receiving the pass from George. He got fouled and ended up at the free throw line. This is an example of Washington’s offensive design — it’s a difficult action to defend and comes with a set of options if the primary action is covered. Brian Keefe’s challenge: getting his exuberant youngsters to consistently execute the system.
- Probably my favorite observation in this one was noticing something new: Tre Johnson producing gravity. In transition during the third quarter, the threat of Johnson at the three-point line drew a hyper-aggressive closeout. He attacked the closeout and drove middle. Charlotte’s defense collapsed on him, he kicked to George, who got a wide open three, which he missed. He drew defensive attention beyond the three-point line throughout the second half, which helped give his teammates more space to operate.
- In the fourth quarter, the Wizards defense was actually good. The results (108 defensive rating) weren’t all-time great, but their communication was excellent, their switches were seamless, and they worked together as a unit to keep Hornets players from driving. They forced Charlotte deeper into the shot clock and forced them to take difficult shots. Charlotte made enough of those shots to secure the win, but the defensive process was mostly what it needed to be.
- Sturdier perimeter defense — meaning preventing or cutting off drives — is important to Washington’s defense. Even in that fourth quarter, Charlotte paint touches led to open threes. They shot just 1-8 from deep in the period.
- Champagnie and Sarr both had terrific fourth quarters.
- I don’t know the numbers, but my eye tells me Sarr is superb when switching onto smaller players on the perimeter. His ability to get low and move was key to Washington’s fourth quarter defense.
- Another great example of Johnson’s gravity came with about 4:10 left in the game. The Wizards set stagger screens to bring Johnson up from the corner. Charlotte covered the initial action well, so Johnson cleared to the weak side, and Carrington dribbled to the right. Sarr immediately re-screened for Johnson to come back to the middle, who caught the pass on the move and drove into the lane. Four (4!) defenders reacted to him. He kicked to Champagnie in the corner, who swung it to Carrington out top for a wide open three.
- One more example of Keefe’s good play design — with 2:30 left in the game, the Wizards ran a devilish baseline out of bounds play. Washington gets a surprisingly high number of layups and dunks on BLOB plays, and this was one of them. In this version, Champagnie ran a fake screen action — it looked to the defense like he was going to set a back screen for a teammate to cut to the basket. At the last second, he slipped the screen and made the cut himself. He came open for a dunk. Superb design.
The Wizards have a long ways to go with players executing the scheme, getting stronger, and getting smarter. They really need George to become a consistently better decision-maker…if he’s going to retain a significant on-ball roll. Still, I think there’s reason to be encouraged. They’re showing improvement and there’s room for plenty more.
Four Factors
Below are the four factors that decide wins and losses in basketball — shooting (efg), rebounding (offensive rebounds), ball handling (turnovers), fouling (free throws made).
The four factors are measured by:
- eFG% (effective field goal percentage, which accounts for the three-point shot)
- OREB% (offensive rebound percentage)
- TOV% (turnover percentage — turnovers divided by possessions)
- FTM/FGA (free throws made divided by field goal attempts)
FOUR FACTORS WIZARDS HORNETS LGAVG eFG% 55.7% 60.8% 54.4% OREB% 22.7% 33.3% 26.1% TOV% 12.9% 20.9% 12.8% FTM/FGA 0.083 0.291 0.210 PACE 100 99.6 ORTG 114 118 115.6 Stats & Metrics
PPA is my overall production metric, which credits players for things they do that help a team win (scoring, rebounding, playmaking, defending) and dings them for things that hurt (missed shots, turnovers, bad defense, fouls).
PPA is a per possession metric designed for larger data sets. In small sample sizes, the numbers can get weird. In PPA, 100 is average, higher is better and replacement level is 45. For a single game, replacement level isn’t much use, and I reiterate the caution about small samples sometimes producing weird results.
POSS is the number of possessions each player was on the floor in this game.
ORTG = offensive rating, which is points produced per individual possessions x 100. League average so far this season is 115.1. Points produced is not the same as points scored. It includes the value of assists and offensive rebounds, as well as sharing credit when receiving an assist.
USG = offensive usage rate. Average is 20%.
ORTG and USG are versions of stats created by former Wizards assistant coach Dean Oliver and modified by me. ORTG is an efficiency measure that accounts for the value of shooting, offensive rebounds, assists and turnovers. USG includes shooting from the floor and free throw line, offensive rebounds, assists and turnovers.
+PTS = “Plus Points” is a measure of the points gained or lost by each player based on their efficiency in this game compared to league average efficiency on the same number of possessions. A player with an offensive rating (points produced per possession x 100) of 100 who uses 20 possessions would produce 20 points. If the league average efficiency is 114, the league — on average — would produced 22.8 points in the same 20 possessions. So, the player in this hypothetical would have a +PTS score of -2.8.
Players are sorted by total production in the game.
WIZARDS MIN POSS ORTG USG +PTS PPA +/- Justin Champagnie 32 67 147 14.8% 3.1 216 4 Jamir Watkins 29 60 135 14.2% 1.7 199 12 Bub Carrington 32 68 136 17.9% 2.5 160 -12 Alex Sarr 37 78 118 21.9% 0.4 99 -16 Tre Johnson 37 76 111 28.1% -1.0 82 -2 Will Riley 23 49 131 9.8% 0.8 79 -22 Kyshawn George 25 53 87 28.7% -4.4 66 -10 Sharife Cooper 9 20 145 9.8% 0.6 123 6 Malaki Branham 8 16 94 23.1% -0.8 42 8 Anthony Gill 7 15 55 14.4% -1.3 -116 12
HORNETS MIN POSS ORTG USG +PTS PPA +/- Brandon Miller 33 70 124 26.9% 1.6 204 15 Moussa Diabate 32 67 146 13.5% 2.8 146 13 Kon Knueppel 32 67 127 18.0% 1.4 130 -9 LaMelo Ball 32 66 108 30.9% -1.6 122 6 Miles Bridges 29 60 124 25.2% 1.3 132 3 Collin Sexton 16 33 108 24.1% -0.6 195 -8 Ryan Kalkbrenner 16 33 159 12.4% 1.8 134 -9 Josh Green 15 32 180 7.9% 1.6 78 10 Grant Williams 19 40 60 11.3% -2.5 1 1 Sion James 16 34 65 28.0% -4.8 -70 -2
The Washington Wizards lost to the Charlotte Hornets, 119-115 on Saturday afternoon. The game was moved to earlier in the day due to an imminent ice storm that will hit Charlotte and the Carolinas. That same storm is expected to hit the Washington area as well with a combination of snow that could hit up to 12 inches or more in some areas.
Washington did not get off to the right start with a 66-58 deficit. They let the Hornets shoot 57.9 percent from the field, 60 percent from the three point line and three Hornets scored in double figures alone. If the Hornets weren’t so turnover prone, this game could have been a blowout at Washington’s expense early on.
Charlotte was able to maintain a double digit lead for the third quarter and expanded their lead to as many as 18 points early in the fourth quarter. But Washington made a big run throughout the fourth quarter to get the game within one possession when Jamir Watkins made a basket with less than two minutes left. Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough for the Wizards to escape with a win. In the fourth quarter, the Wizards shot 53.8 percent from the field and shot 5-of-9 from the three point line while the Hornets short 44.4 percent and just 1-of-8 from the three point line themselves. This game was right there considering the comeback.
Tre Johnson was a bright spot for the Wizards, scoring 26 points and getting the start. Alex Sarr added 24 points and Justin Champagnie added 15 points and 11 points off the bench.
For the Hornets, Brandon Miller led with 21 points.
The Wizards’ next game is on Tuesday when they host the Portland Trail Blazers. Tip off is at 7 p.m. ET. See you then and stay safe from the snow and ice.
Monumental Sports Network reporter Meghan McPeak will be leaving for Versant to serve as a play-by-play announcer for the WNBA for its expanded coverage for the 2026 season. McPeak serves Monumental Sports Network as the Washington Mystics’ play-by-play announcer and the Washington Wizards’ sideline reporter. McPeak came to the network seven years ago as the Capital City Go-Go’s announcer, but her role ultimately expanded to her current roles with the Mystics and Wizards.
You can watch her announce the move below with Wizards and Mystics studio analyst Wes Hall on Thursday evening.
"I'm not saying goodbye.. I'm just saying see you later."
After 7 years with Monumental Sports Network, @meghanmcpeak is taking the next step in her journey!@realweshall | @MSE pic.twitter.com/3zGz44sWeA
— Monumental Sports Network (@MonSportsNet) January 22, 2026
The WNBA will kick off its new media rights deal in 2026 with Amazon and Versant, the successor to Comcast’s cable networks like USA, CNBC and MS NOW (formerly MSNBC). You can see McPeak’s initial post on X below.
Beyond excited to be joining this group of women and the @USANetwork Sports family for their WNBA coverage!
Fun Loadingpic.twitter.com/jj07C0gzAK
— ᴍᴇɢʜᴀɴ ᴍᴄᴘᴇᴀᴋ (@meghanmcpeak) January 23, 2026
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
On Thursday, the NBA announced that the Washington Wizards’ game against the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday, Jan. 24 will be moved up to 12 p.m. ET from its original time of 6 p.m. ET. This is due to an imminent winter storm that will hit Charlotte this weekend.
The Charlotte area will be under freezing temperatures between Saturday night and Sunday, but will see mostly sleet and ice. The same ice storm in Charlotte will hit the Washington area Saturday night into Monday morning, mostly as snow in the first half, but sleet in the second half.
The immediate Washington area will receive about 5-10 inches of snow before sleet kicks in. Western suburbs will see closer to 12 inches of snow before sleet. So in the end, this delay is likely because of the Wizards’ need to get back home before the weather becomes treacherous.
Washington’s next game is on Tuesday when they host the Portland Trail Blazers. The winter storm will be gone by then, and it’s unlikely the game will be cancelled because of that given that it’s rare for NBA games to be postponed due to weather unless it’s on the same day and time as a storm.
The Washington Wizards signed Skal Labissiere to a 10-day contract, according to Shams Charania of ESPN.
Labissiere comes to the Wizards from the Capital City Go-Go, Washington’s G-League affiliate, where he is playing this season. He is averaging 19.0 points and 7.4 rebounds per game this season with Capital City. Labissiere was the No. 28 pick in the 2016 NBA Draft by the Phoenix Suns, though he ultimately began his NBA career with the Sacramento Kings. He has mostly bounced in and out of the NBA and G League since beginning his professional career.
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
The Washington Wizards defeated the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday night, 115-111 at Capital One Arena. Washington didn’t just get a win tonight. They pushed the Blazers down to a sub .500 record as well.
This game featured 19 lead changes, six ties and a long stretch in the middle of the game where the Wizards led by as many as 11 points. The Blazers on the other hand never led by more than 11.
In the fourth quarter, the Blazers started with the lead and still held it midway. Shaedon Sharpe scored 12 of his team-high 31 points and kept Washington on their toes. But Kyshawn George scored 11 of his 19 points in the fourth. George even made a three off a Bilal Coulibaly assist with just under three minutes left that gave Washington the lead for good.
And it gets better. George made that three over Blazers superstar (and former Wizard) Deni Avdija.
Avdija, who is poised to make the NBA All-Star team for the first time, scored 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. But he also committed 6 turnovers for Portland. As for Washington, George had the biggest clutch play of the night, but Alex Sarr led Washington’s scorers with 29 points and added grabbed 12 rebounds.
The Wizards’ next game is on Thursday when they host the Milwaukee Bucks. Tip off is at 7 p.m. ET. See you then.
The Washington Wizards play the Portland Trail Blazers at 7 p.m. today at Capital One Arena. Watch the game on Monumental Sports Network.
The Washington Wizards have a decent shot at another winning streak Thursday against the Milwaukee Bucks at Capital One Arena.
Game info
When: Thursday, Jan, 29 at 7:00 p.m. ET
Where: Capital One Arena, Washington, D.C.
How to watch: Prime Video, Monumental Sports Network, League Pass
Injuries: For the Wizards, Marvin Bagley III (back) and Tristan Vukcevic (hamstring) are questionable, while Trae Young (knee, quad) and Cam Whitmore (shoulder) are out.
For the Bucks, Kyle Kuzma (quad) is questionable, while Giannis Antetokounmpo (calf), Kevin Porter Jr. (oblique), and Taurean Prince (neck) are out.
What to watch for
The Wizards snapped their nine-game losing streak Tuesday against the Portland Trail Blazers and have a golden opportunity to make it two in a row against a sputtering Bucks squad.
Milwaukee has gone 1-6 over its last seven games, and there’s no light at the end of the tunnel with Giannis Antetokounmpo remaining out for the foreseeable future. Thursday’s clash should be a rare opportunity to see our Wizards take the floor as the clearly superior team.
Two of the Wizards’ 11 wins this season have come against the Bucks, with both of those contests being decided by a single possession. AJ Johnson, whom the Bucks drafted in the first round last season, got some extended burn the last time these two teams faced off. We may be in for another AJJ sighting for the first time in two weeks.
Last week, the WNBA released its 2026 regular season schedule, including the Washington Mystics’. The regular season is supposed to begin in early May. But for now, I haven’t written about it because … technically … there is no 2026 WNBA season until there’s a Collective Bargaining Agreement in place.
The WNBA and the WNBPA players union remain apart on revenue sharing agreements and housing. And the WNBA has reportedly not responded to a WNBPA proposal because … it was effectively the same proposal from the owners’ side. According to ESPN’s Alexa Philippou, the league is waiting on another proposal from the WNBA that would be more “realistic.” The article states that housing, revenue sharing split, celebrating the wins the WNBA has made in the 2020s and re-establishing trust are the keys to getting a CBA done faster.
So what are the most recent proposals, at least for salaries?
According to another ESPN article earlier this month, the players want a salary cap of $10.5 million (it was $12.5 million) per team and the league wants it closer to $5 million per team with room for growth as revenue grows. Again, players, still want maximum salaries over $1 million each.
But here’s the salary cap right now with no CBA: Zero. And no 2026 WNBA season If that happens, the WNBA AND the players stand to lose because media partners probably have some clauses to cut back their investments. To be clear, few people anticipate the cancellation of the 2026 WNBA season. However, if that happened, it would harm both sides who stand to gain.
So yeah, things are still… at a standstill with the upcoming WNBA CBA. What do you think should happen with these negotiations, or do you believe that a work stoppage (lockout by the league OR players’ strike) should happen? Let us know in the comments below.
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 29: Kyshawn George #18 of the Washington Wizards dribbles the ball during the game against the Milwaukee Bucks on January 29, 2026 at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Sabina Shysh/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Washington Wizards scored a second straight victory on Thursday in a 109-99 win over the Milwaukee Bucks at Capital One Arena.
The Wiz Kids did their thing with John Wall in attendance for his celebration night. But it wasn’t always pretty.
The first quarter was a brickfest for both teams. The Bucks missed seven of their first eight shots as the Wizards held them to 2 points for nearly the first 5 minutes of the contest. Milwaukee battled back to take a lead late in the period, but a four-point play from Bub Carrington and three free throws from Will Riley in the closing seconds helped Washington secure a 25-23 lead to close the first.
Tre Johnson suffered an injury in the opening minute of the second quarter. The sharpshooting rookie drained a contested baseline jumper plus the foul, but Ryan Rollins’ dangerous closeout led to Johnson rolling his ankle. Rollins was assessed a flagrant 1.
Johnson tried to battle through the injury. He played a few more minutes and even sank a floater before being ruled out for the rest of the game.
The Wizards took control of the contest before halftime, outscoring the Bucks 32-20 in the second to take a 14-point lead at the half. Kyshawn George had 13 points, while Justin Champagnie hustled his way to 10 points at the break.
Bilal Coulibaly punctuated the third period with a pair of powerful poster-worthy jams. The lead hovered at around a dozen throughout the quarter, with the Wizards entering the fourth up 82-72.
COULIBALYYYYYYY!!!!! pic.twitter.com/nffofibQki
— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) January 30, 2026
A few familiar faces made things interesting down the stretch. Former Wizards Kyle Kuzma and Ryan Rollins combined for 18 points in the final period, trimming the lead to 2 with 90 seconds left. Washington’s defense held firm to close the game, outscoring the visitors 8-0 the rest of the way.
The victory was the Wizards’ third this season over the Bucks, meaning 25 percent of the team’s wins so far this season have come against Milwaukee.
George led the way with 23 points, five rebounds, five assists, and a pair of steals. Sarr posted a 16-point, 17-rebound double-double with two blocks. Carrington had 13 points and six assists off the bench.
The Wizards get right back into the action Friday on the second night of a back-to-back against the Los Angeles Lakers.
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 29: Kyle Kuzma #18 of the Milwaukee Bucks drives to the basket as Bilal Coulibaly #0 of the Washington Wizards plays defense during the game on January 29, 2026 at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Stephen Gosling/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
With a 109-99 victory over the spiraling Milwaukee Bucks, the Washington Wizards have their third two-game winning streak of the season.
This one was an offensive struggle. Not in the sense that either team played well on offense — more like what the bricklaying did to my basketball sensibilities. The teams combined to miss 55 three-point shots, shooting a combined 18-73 — “good” for 24.7%. Bilal Coulibaly missed one so badly, I rewinded several times convinced it had to have been blocked or tipped. If it was, I couldn’t find the evidence.
With their all-world star Giannis Antetokounmpo sidelined with a calf injury, the Bucks continued their drop in the standings. Giannis trade rumors are the number one topic around the NBA — so ubiquitous that the guys on Thinking Basketball briefly touched on it.
Just before tipoff, I had a classic, “There’s your problem!” moment when I realized the Bucks were starting three former Wizards — Ryan Rollins (who’s playing well this season), Bobby Portis (who’s been okay), and Kyle Kuzma (who’s been not much good).
The Wizards won with an atrocious 43.8% effective field goal percentage because they dominated rebounding battle (61-43 overall; 18-7 on the offensive glass) and got to the free throw line. The Wizards owned the boards despite playing a smaller lineup most of the night. In the 16 minutes Alex Sarr (17 rebounds; 7 offensive) rested, head coach Brian Keefe used a center-less lineup.
Give some credit to the opponent — Doc Rivers teams eschew pursuit of offensive rebounds in favor of getting back on defense. This approach may have had more merit in the past. Nowadays, teams In recent years, coaches (led by former Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau) have figured out a way “tag up” to pursue offensive boards without getting killed by fast breaks. Rivers has stuck to what worked for him in the past.
“Tagging up” is a system whereby offensive players immediately make physical contact with a defensive player as soon as a shot goes up. The strategy — developed by Aaron Fearnes in the Australian National Basketball League (he’s currently coaching the NCAA Charlotte 49ers) — increases the offense’s chance of getting the rebound while simultaneously matching up and creating pressure points to stymie transition opportunities. The concept has entered the NBA in recent years with the influx of international assistant (and head) coaches.
There was a lot to like from the Wizards in this one. Even accounting for a talent-deficient Bucks roster, the Wizards made life difficult for Milwaukee on the offensive end. On many possessions, the Bucks had to run multiple actions to get a shot. At times, you could see Milwaukee players rush a meh look early in the shot clock because they had a sliver of an opening.
One of the cool things in this one was that it was the youngsters making plays late to secure the win.
Thoughts & Observations
- One of my favorite defensive plays came in the second half. Coulibaly was pressuring Rollins full court and got called for a foul. Before the inbounds, Coulibaly and Rollins had some friendly-looking former teammate kind of interaction. Then when the play started, Coulibaly stepped around and in front of him and top locked — denying Rollins the ball and wrecking Milwaukee’s play and then the possession. It was excellent defense made more impressive by how casual it looked.
- A game after struggling against the massive Donovan Clingan, Sarr bounced back to control the action inside against Myles Turner and Portis. Sarr finished with career highs in offensive rebounds (7) and total rebounds (17). His previous high was 15, which he did twice — both this season.
- Kyshawn George shot poorly but played a strong overall game — 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, a block, and just 1 turnover and 1 foul. George improving his decision-making is one of the big X factors for the team’s future.
- Jamir Watkins has a very long ways to go on the offensive end (he shot 1-7 last night), but he’s already a plus defender. He had another open court strip when pressuring the ball at midcourt.
- In the not good news category: Tre Johnson rolled his ankle when Rollins did a Bruce Bowen closeout. No word yet on how much time Johnson will miss. On the “quick return” side: he’s 19-years-old, which should dramatically accelerate his healing time. On the “it might take a while” side: the team is happy to lose games and has given guys plenty of time to recover from injuries so far. My guess is he’ll miss at least a game or two.
Four Factors
Below are the four factors that decide wins and losses in basketball — shooting (efg), rebounding (offensive rebounds), ball handling (turnovers), fouling (free throws made).
The four factors are measured by:
- eFG% (effective field goal percentage, which accounts for the three-point shot)
- OREB% (offensive rebound percentage)
- TOV% (turnover percentage — turnovers divided by possessions)
- FTM/FGA (free throws made divided by field goal attempts)
FOUR FACTORS BUCKS WIZARDS LGAVG eFG% 46.9% 43.8% 54.3% OREB% 14.0% 33.3% 26.1% TOV% 8.8% 12.7% 12.8% FTM/FGA 0.071 0.260 0.209 PACE 102 99.5 ORTG 97 107 115.5 Stats & Metrics
PPA is my overall production metric, which credits players for things they do that help a team win (scoring, rebounding, playmaking, defending) and dings them for things that hurt (missed shots, turnovers, bad defense, fouls).
PPA is a per possession metric designed for larger data sets. In small sample sizes, the numbers can get weird. In PPA, 100 is average, higher is better and replacement level is 45. For a single game, replacement level isn’t much use, and I reiterate the caution about small samples sometimes producing weird results.
POSS is the number of possessions each player was on the floor in this game.
ORTG = offensive rating, which is points produced per individual possessions x 100. League average so far this season is 115.5. Points produced is not the same as points scored. It includes the value of assists and offensive rebounds, as well as sharing credit when receiving an assist.
USG = offensive usage rate. Average is 20%.
ORTG and USG are versions of stats created by former Wizards assistant coach Dean Oliver and modified by me. ORTG is an efficiency measure that accounts for the value of shooting, offensive rebounds, assists and turnovers. USG includes shooting from the floor and free throw line, offensive rebounds, assists and turnovers.
+PTS = “Plus Points” is a measure of the points gained or lost by each player based on their efficiency in this game compared to league average efficiency on the same number of possessions. A player with an offensive rating (points produced per possession x 100) of 100 who uses 20 possessions would produce 20 points. If the league average efficiency is 114, the league — on average — would produced 22.8 points in the same 20 possessions. So, the player in this hypothetical would have a +PTS score of -2.8.
Players are sorted by total production in the game.
WIZARDS MIN POSS ORTG USG +PTS PPA +/- Alex Sarr 32 67 118 22.4% 0.4 196 3 Kyshawn George 36 76 105 26.7% -2.2 151 2 Bilal Coulibaly 28 59 124 11.9% 0.6 166 14 Bub Carrington 29 61 118 20.2% 0.3 156 -2 Justin Champagnie 26 55 120 15.3% 0.4 125 9 Khris Middleton 26 55 93 25.1% -3.1 49 6 Tre Johnson 11 24 113 29.4% -0.2 80 10 Malaki Branham 14 30 109 18.7% -0.4 64 -2 Will Riley 18 39 105 14.0% -0.6 29 3 Jamir Watkins 21 44 57 16.0% -4.1 -4 7
BUCKS MIN POSS ORTG USG +PTS PPA +/- Ryan Rollins 26 56 133 24.5% 2.4 285 -3 Myles Turner 39 84 112 21.0% -0.7 137 2 Bobby Portis 36 77 111 20.4% -0.7 108 -21 Pete Nance 20 43 134 20.8% 1.7 192 -1 Kyle Kuzma 35 74 94 28.7% -4.5 54 -8 Gary Trent Jr. 25 53 56 12.3% -3.9 -5 -1 Andre Jackson Jr. 3 7 0 11.0% -0.9 -228 1 AJ Green 37 79 48 9.2% -4.9 -53 -10 Cole Anthony 18 37 44 27.4% -7.3 -149 -9
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 30: Luka Doncic #77 of the Los Angeles Lakers drives to the basket as Bilal Coulibaly #0 of the Washington Wizards plays defense during the game on January 30, 2026 at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Stephen Gosling/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Washington Wizards lost to the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night, 142-111 at Capital One Arena.
One night after defeating the Milwaukee Bucks, there was certainly optimism about what Washington could do tonight against LA. However, the talent disparity showed.
Luka Doncic led the Lakers with a triple double, scoring 37 points, dishing 13 assists and grabbing 11 rebounds. DeAndre Ayton added 28 points and 13 rebounds. LeBron James scored 20 points and dished 6 assists. The Lakers shot 61.2 percent from the field while the Wizards shot 44.4 percent themselves. The game was effectively decided when the Lakers shot 70.8 percent from the field with Doncic scoring 16 points. LA never took their foot off the gas from there. That tells all you need to know about a game like this.
For Washington, Malaki Branham led scoring 17 points off the bench on 6-of-9 shooting. Alex Sarr led the Wizards’ starters with 16 points and 5 assists.
The Wizards’ next game is on Sunday when they host the Sacramento Kings. Tip off is at 6 p.m. ET. See you then.
Jan 30, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward/guard Luka Doncic (77) dribbles as Washington Wizards center Alex Sarr (20) defends during the second half at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-Imagn Images | Brad Mills-Imagn Images
The Wizards took on the Los Angeles in the hostile road environment of…well…Washington, DC, and got stomped, 142-111.
If you’re a Wizards fan — and you probably are if you’re reading this — fire this game into the sun. Shoot into a memory hole. Nothing to see.
There’s stuff from this one the Wizards youngsters could probably learn. Maybe something about being mentally and physically prepared on the second night of a back-to-back. Perhaps some lessons about maintaining top physical condition and all-around fitness to sustain a long career. There were lessons about building skills, developing counters for when the defense stymies you, and learning the game so you can think a step or two ahead of your opponent. Possibly, something about staying humble when things have gone well recently (like a two-game winning streak).
Maybe.
For me, the biggest takeaway: fugetaboutit. Young players, bad game against a veteran team coming in hot after a bad loss of their own — a team playing for something and with something to prove.
If you were a DC-based Lakers fan and could get a ticket, you were likely entertained by the nine alley-oop dunks Los Angeles successfully executed against Washington defenders who kept getting so mesmerized by The Ball that they forgot to defend the big guy standing near the basket. (The Lakers had a 10th lob attempt that Deandre Ayton couldn’t convert. He ended up getting the offensive rebound and drawing a foul. He made the free throws.
Or they forgot to rotate when Alex Sarr went to help, which was a lot because no one in a Wizards uniform could keep a Lakers player in front of him.
Or they kinda pointed vaguely where a teammate should go while the teammate’s back was turned instead of verbally communicating, as players are taught to do.
If you’re keeping score at home, that’s 20 Lakers points on 10 lob attempts. Yikes,
This one was over quickly. The Lakers kicked the Wizards in the teeth in the first quarter, and continued kicking in the second. Washington trailed by 29 at the half, and the Lakers coasted in from there.
The only real drama was whether Luka Doncic would get a triple-double by halftime (he did) and whether the Lakers would ever stop dunking on Washington (they did, but only because time expired).
Thoughts & Observations
- LeBron James is still pretty dang good. Last night, he converted a left-handed catch and dunk on a lob pass that I thought was too high for nearly anyone, much less a 41-year-old. He also threw down a driving dunk on Sarr after drawing him on a switch and clearing the court so he could attack.
- Luka Doncic was outright clowning the Wizards, who were incapable of slowing him. He finished with 37 points, 11 rebounds, and 13 assists. His point total would likely have been higher if the refs had called the 5-6 clear fouls Washington committed that didn’t draw a whistle.
- The Wizards had a positive scoring differential with only one player: Anthony Gill. Gill basically had the game of his career — 9 points on 4-5 shooting and 10 rebounds in just 17 minutes of action.
- Washington’s poor defense made Ayton look like an all-time great. He finished with 28 points on 14 field goal attempts along with 13 rebounds, and 3 blocks.
- Washington did the same favor for backup big man Jaxson Hayes, who scored 10 points on 5 field goal attempts.
- At least The Puppy Race at halftime was entertaining. Bark Carrington came through with the come-from-behind win when the race’s early leader succumbed to an apparent case of ADHD inches from the finish line.
Four Factors
Below are the four factors that decide wins and losses in basketball — shooting (efg), rebounding (offensive rebounds), ball handling (turnovers), fouling (free throws made).
The four factors are measured by:
- eFG% (effective field goal percentage, which accounts for the three-point shot)
- OREB% (offensive rebound percentage)
- TOV% (turnover percentage — turnovers divided by possessions)
- FTM/FGA (free throws made divided by field goal attempts)
FOUR FACTORS LAKERS WIZARDS LGAVG eFG% 69.4% 52.5% 54.3% OREB% 33.3% 32.7% 26.1% TOV% 24.2% 16.7% 12.8% FTM/FGA 0.282 0.071 0.209 PACE 107 99.5 ORTG 132 103 115.5 Stats & Metrics
PPA is my overall production metric, which credits players for things they do that help a team win (scoring, rebounding, playmaking, defending) and dings them for things that hurt (missed shots, turnovers, bad defense, fouls).
PPA is a per possession metric designed for larger data sets. In small sample sizes, the numbers can get weird. In PPA, 100 is average, higher is better and replacement level is 45. For a single game, replacement level isn’t much use, and I reiterate the caution about small samples sometimes producing weird results.
POSS is the number of possessions each player was on the floor in this game.
ORTG = offensive rating, which is points produced per individual possessions x 100. League average so far this season is 115.5. Points produced is not the same as points scored. It includes the value of assists and offensive rebounds, as well as sharing credit when receiving an assist.
USG = offensive usage rate. Average is 20%.
ORTG and USG are versions of stats created by former Wizards assistant coach Dean Oliver and modified by me. ORTG is an efficiency measure that accounts for the value of shooting, offensive rebounds, assists and turnovers. USG includes shooting from the floor and free throw line, offensive rebounds, assists and turnovers.
+PTS = “Plus Points” is a measure of the points gained or lost by each player based on their efficiency in this game compared to league average efficiency on the same number of possessions. A player with an offensive rating (points produced per possession x 100) of 100 who uses 20 possessions would produce 20 points. If the league average efficiency is 114, the league — on average — would produced 22.8 points in the same 20 possessions. So, the player in this hypothetical would have a +PTS score of -2.8.
Players are sorted by total production in the game.
WIZARDS MIN POSS ORTG USG +PTS PPA +/- Alex Sarr 28 63 124 21.1% 1.1 130 -30 Anthony Gill 17 38 155 16.7% 2.5 185 2 Will Riley 25 56 93 26.6% -3.3 116 -5 Bub Carrington 25 57 102 26.9% -2.1 102 -28 Malaki Branham 22 49 134 19.6% 1.8 113 -3 Justin Champagnie 24 53 138 10.7% 1.3 67 -27 Kyshawn George 27 61 96 26.7% -3.1 46 -17 Jamir Watkins 35 78 78 14.6% -4.2 15 -15 Bilal Coulibaly 24 54 74 18.1% -4.1 -18 -22 Sharife Cooper 13 29 60 15.6% -2.5 -65 -10
LAKERS MIN POSS ORTG USG +PTS PPA +/- Luka Doncic 31 68 135 40.0% 5.3 450 21 Deandre Ayton 29 65 174 23.7% 9.0 383 30 Jarred Vanderbilt 16 36 149 14.9% 1.8 265 7 LeBron James 30 66 109 26.4% -1.2 134 25 Jaxson Hayes 14 30 178 17.0% 3.2 269 -3 Jake LaRavia 25 56 102 6.5% -0.5 98 24 Gabe Vincent 18 41 134 10.4% 0.8 130 3 Rui Hachimura 18 40 129 20.1% 1.0 108 -2 Drew Timme 17 38 128 10.9% 0.5 31 17 Marcus Smart 27 59 71 11.1% -2.9 1 21 Maxi Kleber 5 12 211 18.5% 2.2 416 4 Dalton Knecht 5 12 103 27.8% -0.4 168 4 Bronny James 5 12 107 31.4% -0.3 58 4
