It’s possible that the Washington Wizards and Charlotte Hornets are experimenting.
They both need to make some adjustments to their performance as they start a home-and-home series in Charlotte on Wednesday night.
With the Hornets at 2-4 and the Wizards at 1-5, neither team has exactly dominated the early going.
LaMelo Ball’s triple-double was squandered by the Hornets in their 124-118 loss to Dallas on Sunday night. The point guard scored 30 points to record just the second triple-double of the regular season with at least 30 points in franchise history, and the first in more than 23 years.
“Trying to do as much as I could,” Ball said.
The Hornets took Monday off after playing both weekend nights.
“That will give us a day to study things and prioritize what we need to work on,” Charlotte coach Steve Clifford said.
The Wizards, losers of four in a row, should have a long to-do list as well. Defense has been the obvious problem for Washington, which has given up more than 120 points in all five of its losses.
Monday night’s 146-128 setback at Philadelphia marked the second time the Wizards have given up more than 140 points in a game.
“Too many coverage mistakes,” Wizards coach Wes Unseld Jr. said.
With the exception of one game this season, forward Kyle Kuzma has been the team’s top scorer in every game. However, his strong offensive statistics have been somewhat offset by the defense’s holes. He scores 23.7 points a night on average.
The Wizards are also worried about rebounding. Only one of their games has seen a player record ten or more rebounds: Kuzma’s 13 and Daniel Gafford’s 11 in the Oct. 28 victory over Memphis.
19-year-old rookie Bilal Coulibaly scored 10 points on Monday, his highest total of the season for Washington.
“This experience has been amazing for him,” Unseld remarked.
Following his injury during Saturday’s victory over Indiana, Terry Rozier, a guard, may be out for Charlotte once more. It’s possible that his absence from the Dallas game told Ball to step up his output would be appreciated.
Still, Rozier and Ball have been a complementary backcourt when they’re together.
Rozier’s potential absence again means increased roles for Bryce McGowens and Ish Smith in the backcourt. P.J. Washington can be shifted as well.
“We also have the ability to move P.J. to the 3(-spot) more,” Clifford said.
McGowens began the season on the injury list, but his versatility could be a plus.
“He has worked hard on his shooting and I think he can play a really good all-around game,” Clifford said.
Both the Wizards and Hornets have had heavy road assignments.
This will be the final stop on Washington’s four-game road stretch. The Hornets and Wizards will have a rematch Friday night in Washington.
For Charlotte, Wednesday’s game will be the only home game during a five-game span. The Hornets opened the season with a three-game homestand, winning the first game before losing the next two.
Washington defeated Charlotte in three of the four meetings last season. The Hornets never scored more than 104 points in any of their defeats.
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