Wizards explain what went wrong in final moments of Clippers loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
With half their rotation missing due to injuries and playing on the second night of a back-to-back, the Wizards had a small margin for error as they hosted the L.A. Clippers on Saturday night. So, it was frustrating for them how things transpired in the final minute, as they let a winnable game slip through their fingers, amounting to their sixth consecutive loss.
There were three moments in the last 30 seconds of the game which loomed large. Nic Batum hit a go-ahead three with 23.8 seconds to go, then Kristaps Porzingis missed an attempt to tie it before Deni Avdija committed a flagrant foul on Paul George, extinguishing any hopes they had of a final push.
After the game, more detail emerged of what the Wizards’ plans were on those plays and why they went awry. On the Batum shot, Corey Kispert ran over to help Deni Avdija who was defending Kawhi Leonard in the corner. Leonard quickly snapped a pass to Batum, who drained a three from the wing.
According to head coach Wes Unseld Jr., Kispert was following the coach’s orders on that play.
“He was supposed to go get the ball out of Kawhi’s hands. We just didn’t make the necessary rotation,” Unseld Jr. said.
That incorrect rotation was by Porzingis, so says Porzingis himself. He offered that up during his postgame press conference, taking ownership of his mistake.
“The one where Corey went to double Kawhi in the post against Deni, it’s on me because I didn’t expect us to go double on that one. I didn’t know we were doubling Kawhi against Deni. So, that one’s on me. I was late for the rotation there. It’s definitely my fault on that one,” Porzingis said.
It took little time for Batum to get the shot off. Porzingis is 7-foot-3 and can close in an instant due to his length. Clippers guard John Wall found that out earlier in the game when Porzingis lurched out to the perimeter to swat his pull-up jumper.
Batum’s basket left the Wizards with a choice of going for two and hoping for a stop on the other end or attempting a three to tie the game. They ended up opting for the latter, as Porzings caught an inbound pass from Jordan Goodwin and launched a 28-footer that fell short of the rim.
Porzingis received Goodwin’s pass, turned to his left and was met with the chest of Leonard, one of the most decorated wing defenders in NBA history. Porzingis tried to dribble right, only to tiptoe a wall before releasing the shot.
As Unseld Jr. described postgame, the play did not go as planned.
“The play was designed to get a catch in the paint,” he said.
Porzingis offered a reason for that. The Clippers’ defense forced an adjustment on the fly.
“The play was somebody to come out and receive the ball and that I’m posting up in the middle of the paint. But I saw we couldn’t get the ball in, so I just ran across to get the ball,” he said.
Porzingis got a shot off and felt it was a good look in the moment.
“As soon as I shot the three, it felt [good]. I was like, I mean, this was going in. And Kawhi got a little piece and blocked it a little bit,” Porzingis said. “Not many people would have blocked me in that situation, but Kawhi is one of them. He played excellent defense.”
Porzingis has an eight-inch height difference on Leonard. But what Leonard lacks in height (in this scenario), he makes up for with the length of his arms, boasting a 7-foot-3 wingspan. In other words, a Porzingis.
In hindsight, Unseld Jr. thought Porzingis could have gone with another option rather than take the three.
“He got pushed out and once he got pushed out, I was hoping he would put his head down and drive, maybe he could shoot some free throws or get an and-1. We had time for two possessions,” Unseld Jr. said.
As Porzingis’ shot fell softly into the hands of Clippers guard Terrence Mann, it certainly was not looking good for the Wizards. They were down three points with 18.2 seconds left and L.A. had the ball going the other way. Their probability of winning plummeted in an instant.
But then it took another nosedive as Avdija did the right thing by fouling, but the wrong thing by committing a flagrant foul. He ended up clipping George in the face, immediately drawing a reaction from the future Hall of Famer. George peered back at Avdija as Wizards guard Jordan Goodwin talked him out of retaliating, all as the referees rushed to the table for a review.
The officials determined it was a Flagrant 1. George made two free throws as the Clippers kept the ball, and that was it for the Wizards.
“I don’t think the flagrant was anything intentional. He just got wrapped up,” Unseld Jr. said of Avdija’s foul.
Avdija confirmed as much in the Wizards’ locker room.
“I foul like I used to foul in Europe sometimes. Sometimes they’re a little harsh, but I didn’t mean to flagrant foul. I told him that after that, too,” he said.
There was no harm meant by Avdija, but the Wizards were left with another loss to chew on as they work to dig themselves out of a deepening hole. They have now lost nine of their last 10 games.
Wins are hard to come by at the moment and on Saturday they made some mistakes they could ill afford.
