Just a season ago, the Wizards were first in transition points per game at 24.9 with Russell Westbrook and Ish Smith leading the attack.
With both of them no longer in the fold, the Wizards have plummeted all the way to last in that category.
While Spencer Dinwiddie and Raul Neto don’t play with the same pace as those two, coach Wes Unseld Jr. still believes that there are ways the Wizards can improve their transition offense.
“Those transition opportunities I think are very important,” Unseld Jr. said. “Collectively, we haven’t seen the benefit of those opportunities and part of it is we’ve gotta get stops. We’ve gotta finish possessions with a rebound to get out and run. When we do turn teams over, and that’s not at a high rate… we have to find a way to get the payoff. Whether it’s our spacing, our passing, our finishing; that’s got to be better.”
Not only do the Wizards struggle to get stops, but they also struggle to force turnovers, as they’re 28th in that category.
Neto believes that it’s important that the Wizards also learn how to play fast, but with control.
“I think there is a way, there is a way to run when it’s time to run, call a play and play a little slower when you’ve got a couple of turnovers or you miss a couple shots, finding the right shot at the right moment,” Neto said. “I think that there is a way. It’s not easy because I think if it was easy then everybody would prefer to play that way, but we’re trying to get there.”
The bottom line right now seems to be that the Wizards’ inability to get stops and grab rebounds is hindering their ability to create opportunities on offense.
