Wizards @ Hawks
5/14/2015 8:00PM EST (TNT/99.1 FM)
Let's get pumped for game 5 of the tightly contested Round 2 series between YOUR Washington Bullets and the Atlanta Hawks! It's all tied up at 2 games apiece as the teams travel back to Atlanta for Wednesday night's match up.
After suffering 5 fractures in his left hand and wrist, John Wall returned to Game 1 to lead his team to a convincing victory. Sidelined for the past 3 games, during which the Wizards posted a 1-2 record, he's a wild card for the remainder of the playoffs. The fan base is split to some degree between wishing John a timely return to chase the ECF vs. calling for him to sit out until the injury is fully healed, likely for the remainder of the series.
Starting PG or Best Dressed Wizard on Wenesday? John Wall
Ever since John Wall's injury, Ramon Sessions has been forced into a spotlight role. He's responded as well as anyone could expect, scoring frequently on aggressive drives and dishing out a respectable number of assists. Despite his sometimes porous defense against Atlanta's quick guards, Ramon's contributions in John's absence has helped keep each game competitive. His play over the entire NBA postseason has quieted any disagreement over whether the mid season deal that brought him to Washington was a win for the Wizards.
Starting PG Ramon Sessions
In perhaps his best NBA game ever, Bradley Beal scored 34 points on 58.7 TS%, dropped 7 dimes, snagged 6 rebounds, nabbed 3 steals, and blocked a shot in Monday's close Game 4 loss. Shouldering a heavier offensive load, Beal will need to continue to be an efficient volume scorer for Washington to be successful in the remainder of the series. On the defensive side of the ball, Bradley has successfully hounded Kyle Korver in the previous 4 games, holding Atlanta's sharpshooter to a limited number of mostly contested shots.
Starting SG Bradley Beal
With his compelling trash talk, amply supported by on-court heroics, Paul Pierce has been a force in the 2015 NBA playoffs. He's the ever-present storyline, dropping 54.5% of his playoff 3 pt attempts while willing the team to victory. Despite missing a game-tying 3 late in Game 4, don't expect Paul Pierce to be shy about taking the next big shot. The Raptor hunter wants to return to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Starting SF Paul Pierce
Struggling during these playoffs, Nene has been a question mark in every game. He's shown a few signs of life in the past two games. The short-handed Wizards squad will need Nene to use his physicality and offensive talents to make a more consistent showing in the next 2-3 matches.
Starting PF Nene
Marcin Gorat's stellar playoff performance this year took a turn for the worse on Monday night in DC. Picking up untimely loose ball fouls and clearly missing the bunny baskets fed to him by John Wall, the Polish Machine will look to bounce back on Wednesday.
Starting C Marcin Gortat
A pleasant post season surprise, Otto Porter's all-around play has been a key driver for the Wizards' playoff success. With bothersome length and natural basketball instincts, Otto has been effective on both sides of the quart.
6th man SF Otto Porter
Modernizing Washington's offense during key stretches, Drew Gooden has spaced the floor and helped contribute to a stunning reversal in the team's offensive efficiency when compared to its pedestrian regular season performance. Defensively, he's got a tough match up against Atlanta's quick, skilled big men.
Bench stretch-4 Drew Gooden
Expect to see significant minutes from PG Will Bynum. Spot playing time may open up for SG Garrett Temple, PF Kevin Seraphin.
Randy "Playoff" Wittman may dig a bit deeper into his bench in Game 5. His team's strong playoff run has silenced the majority of the calls for his job.
Head Coach Randy Wittman
Barring any injuries or illnesses leading to a line up change, Atlanta is expected to start Jeff Teague, Kyle Korver, Demarre Carroll, Paul Millsap, and Al Horford.
Artwork credit to new Wizards fan Jenny Pearl.
