queridiculo wrote:It's really quite remarkable that the Wizards already have 5 wins at this point because you kind of get the sense that they are doing it with smoke and mirrors watching these games.
Then, when you start digging into team stats some more you can tell that Washington has undergone quite the transformation in how they approach the game.
The Wizards rebound well, play with good ball security on offense and get back to defend on the break.
They are doing so well in those key areas that they're top 10 in DRTG despite allowing a league worst 55 points per game in the paint.
They're also winning these games despite not really being plugged in on offense.
The 3-pt shooting is well below league average, there's not a whole lot of ball movement, but they get into the paint and draw fouls.
Who knows how any of this will hold up over the course of the season, but if there is one take away, the Wizards are playing winning basketball for the first time in forever by not beating themselves.
Atlanta will be itching to get this losing stream over with, so this will be a good early season test to see how far this team has come.
I said this all over the trade board in the offseason:
Spencer Dinwiddie impacts winning in a positive way much more then Westbrook. and its not close, i dont care what anyones sample of metrics say.
-Dinwiddie was responsible for the Nets turnaround, despite levert getting all the credit (nets had a losing record in games levert played, a better record when levert sat) and the nets went on their big runs with dinwddie playing like a 22/8 stud for a couple months.
-Dinwiddie is the leagues most underrated defender. He defends the pick and roll as well as any guard. he can defend 3s/small 4s. He is super smart and defends without fouling
-Dinwiddie isnt the turnover machine westbrook is
-Dinwiddie is as good as anyone at beating his man 1-on-1 off the dribble
-Dinwiddie willing takes a back seat to other stars
It was an elite swap from day 1. i had no doubt the wiz would be better
