The Washington Wizards clinched a spot in the Eastern Conference’s play-in tournament by virtue of their 120-105 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers Friday night.
Who Washington plays is to be determined based on the final two days of the regular season. However, they know when their first of hopefully two play-in games will be.
The NBA released the schedule for the slate of play-in games. The Wizards will play either the Boston Celtics, Charlotte Hornets or Indiana Pacers on Tuesday.
Washington could place anywhere between seeds 8 through 10.
The Wizards would need help but depending on how Saturday plays out, they could have an opportunity to be the eight seed with a win over the Hornets.
Where they slot is all important. By moving up to eighth they would play the Celtics in the 7-8 game and be afforded one loss without being eliminated from the tournament. Washington would only need one win whether in the 7-8 game at Boston or against the winner of the 9-10 game.
Falling to 9-10 game, Washington would need two consecutive wins. Being a ninth, that game would be at Capital One Arena. Placing 10th the Wizards would be on the road for that first game.
Westbrook struggled through a quad injury and didn’t look his prime self. But, Westbrook and the Wizards got healthier and ripped through their schedule, winning 16 of their last 22 games.
Still, their late push was jeopardized as the team’s leading scorer Bradley Beal was forced to miss the last three games with a left hamstring strain. Washington needed a win to clinch a spot in the play-in tournament to hold off the surging Chicago Bulls.
After back-to-back losses without Beal against the Atlanta Hawks their stance seemed shaky until Friday’s clinching win against the Cavaliers. Westbrook collected his NBA-record 183rd triple-double with 21 points, 17 assists and 12 rebounds to lead the way.
While they focus on positioning in the play-in tournament, eyes will also be on the health of Beal and his strained hamstring. It remains to be seen if he will be available Sunday against the Hornets. But more importantly the Wizards will certainly need his 31.4 points per game on Tuesday. Washington is 2-10 this season with Beal sidelined.
