NBA Tank Rankings: Trouble in the nation’s capital
By Brad Rowland
As the calendar flips beyond Dec. 15, the NBA season can really begin.
For the uninitiated, that date marks the time when recently signed players can be traded around the league, and for the teams openly seeking ugly records in exchange for additional ping-pong balls, it is quite important. It is probably a little bit too early to start discussing deals in which teams actually attempt to get worse on the floor this season, but that point is coming, and that is an interesting backdrop for this week’s tank rankings.
Last week’s list can be referenced for a bit of comparison, but each week is quite different as we evaluate the worst teams in the league. Let’s do this.
#5 – Washington Wizards
The Wizards have no business landing in the NBA’s “bottom five” with their overall talent level and the sheer presence of John Wall, but they have earned inclusion this week. Randy Wittman’s team sits at 10-14 on the year, but more than that, Washington’s net rating (-4.8 points per 100 possessions) falls within the bottom-10 of the league and things are even worse recently.
Washington has plummeted to a -8.1 net rating in their last fourteen games (4-10 record), and during that time, the Wizards have performed worse than any team not named the Sixers or Lakers. There are some injury concerns, especially that of Bradley Beal, but the overriding theme of this season is that Washington’s move to “small ball” hasn’t succeeded in any way, and the Wizards are playing catch-up in the Eastern Conference.
Next: Pelicans and Nets