John Wall gets the best of the Wizards in their first game on opposite sides
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John Wall’s vengeance came in front of a scattered, reduced-capacity crowd in Houston as he wore a cornflower blue uniform — one of the Rockets’ alternate jerseys — instead of classic red, white or black. But for the former Wizards point guard, it mattered not how Houston’s 107-88 win over Washington looked. What mattered was that it felt good.
“I just felt like the [Wizards] thought I was done, no matter how much hard work I put in over the summer; they came and watched me,” Wall said on court after the game, despite General Manager Tommy Sheppard and Coach Scott Brooks making many statements before the season about how fit Wall looked. “I thought they thought I was done. That’s why I came out here and did what I did.”
The Wizards’ first meeting with their former star was the story line that shrouded all else Tuesday night in Washington’s second game back after resuming its season following a coronavirus pause. There were few positive takeaways for the Wizards (3-10), who are still discombobulated and have just 11 players available. Point guard Russell Westbrook, for whom Wall was traded in December, had his highest-scoring game since Jan. 6 with 19 points on 7-for-17 shooting, but he is still slowed by a left quadriceps injury.
Bradley Beal scored a team-high 33 points, logging his 12th 25-point game for the longest streak to start a season since Michael Jordan rattled off 16 for the Chicago Bulls in 1988-89.
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The rest was less uplifting. Washington shot 39.3 percent from the field and made just five shots on 26 attempts from beyond the arc (19.2 percent). The Wizards committed 21 turnovers, handing 24 points to the Rockets in a game that was tinged with emotion from the start.
“I mean, we turned the ball over. One, we got to make some shots,” Brooks said on a video conference after the game. “We got a lot of looks from the three — we’ve got to make them, otherwise the paint is going to be crowded and turnovers are going to be there. We’ve got to step up and make some of these shots so it opens up things and the defense can play us honest.”
The former dynamic duo of Wall and Beal shared an elaborate handshake before tip-off — coronavirus protocols be dammed — but there was no mistaking that Tuesday night was about revenge for the Wizards’ old point guard. He said as much in an interview that aired on NBC Sports Washington before the game, stating his motivation to win was in part to make Washington look bad for trading him for Westbrook.
Wall led Houston with 24 points and played as if he wanted to make a fool out of his old teammates, whipping out some of his slickest moves. The highlight of the night came with about three minutes left in the first half. Wall brought the ball up and, with Raul Neto in his sights, took a stutter step, accelerated, moved the ball behind his back then laid it in with his left hand. When he jogged back downcourt, he did so open-mouthed — in mock awe of himself.
Victor Oladipo and Eric Gordon each scored 20 points to back him up.
Washington hung in, even through an abysmal third quarter in which both teams looked exhausted and played sloppily, until the Rockets reeled off a 14-4 run that carried into the start of the fourth.
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The Wizards lost control completely when trailing 85-79; Wall was called for a charge that was overturned after a coaches’ challenge, and he completed a three-point play.
“I thought that was a charge, but they said he was moving,” Brooks said. “I trust [the officials].”
A three-pointer from Oladipo completed an eight-point run that effectively sealed the win with more than five minutes to play. Seconds later, Westbrook and Wall were assessed double technicals after jawing at each other.
Despite the loss, Tuesday wasn’t all bad news for the Wizards. Deni Avdija, Davis Bertans, Troy Brown Jr., Rui Hachimura, Ish Smith and Moritz Wagner remain ineligible to play amid the NBA’s coronavirus protocols, but Brooks said before the game that four players have begun working out individually and “a couple” could be ready to return by Friday against Atlanta. But first, Washington visits New Orleans on Wednesday night.
