- The Wizards have slumped this month and they’re destined for an early playoff exit if they don’t pick up their play, guard Bradley Beal warned Chase Hughes of NBC Sports and other media members. Beal feels like the team isn’t trying hard enough as the regular season winds down. “It’s just the same thing over and over,” he said. “Until we do it individually and together collectively, we’re going to get our [butts] kicked in the playoffs. This isn’t even remotely acceptable, how we are playing right now.”
Kyle O’Quinn is the latest Knicks center to have a dispute with coach Jeff Hornacek, although the reason hasn’t been explained, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. The Knicks canceled Saturday’s practice, so reporters weren’t able to find out more about the incident, which happened when O’Quinn was removed from Friday’s game. Q’Quinn appeared to be making angry comments toward Hornacek on the bench, possibly related to a defensive mistake.
Veteran center Joakim Noah got into a heated exchange with Hornacek at a practice in February and has been on a leave of absence ever since. Berman notes that Q’Quinn should be grateful to Hornacek, who played a large role in New York’s decision to keep him and trade Willy Hernangomez to Charlotte. O’Quinn can opt out of his nearly $4.26MM contract for next season and test the free agent market this summer.
There’s more today out of New York:
- It’s time to insert rookie Frank Ntilikina into the starting lineup and see if he can handle the responsibilities that come with it, contends Al Iannazzone of Newsday. Hornacek may have been considering that move on Friday when he used Ntilikina and Trey Burke to start the third quarter in place of Emmanuel Mudiay and Courtney Lee, who started the game. “The coach knows that’s his job to do all that stuff,” Ntilikina said when asked about being a starter. “Us as players, our job is just to be ready when he calls our name.”
- Mudiay may be squandering his chance in New York, Iannazzone adds in the same story. The seventh player taken in the 2015 draft was considered a bust in Denver, but got a second chance with the Knicks after a deadline-day trade. He was handed the starting point guard job, but is falling out of favor and played less than five minutes Friday. Mudiay said Hornacek didn’t provide an explanation about his reduced role. “That’s on him,” Mudiay said. “Whatever he wants to do. That’s out of my control.”
- Burke credits the time he spent as a backup to John Wall in Washington last season with helping him revive his career, Iannazzone relays in a separate piece. Burke was able to watch one of the NBA’s top point guards up close and adopted much of Wall’s approach to the game. “His motor, the way he attacked each and every game, it was like he never gasped for air,” Burke said. “His approach night in and night out and just the way he took it to every guard. It didn’t matter if it was a lower-tier guard or if it was a superstar guard, he played the same way.”
John Wall passed an important test in his recovery from knee surgery as he was able to fully participate in today’s practice, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington.
This was the first full practice for Wall since he underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in late January. He went through five-on-five scrimmages with teammates and was able to handle contact. He is now cleared of all restrictions, but the Wizards want him to practice a few more times before setting a date for his return. They have 10 regular season games remaining.
“John did everything, he did an entire practice, which was great,” head coach Scott Brooks said. “I thought he did a great job offensively and defensively.”
Brooks added that Wall tested the knee by aggressively attacking the basket and was moving around well in general. He is slightly lighter after losing some weight during his absence.
Washington managed a 14-10 record without Wall, but most of those wins came early. They have dropped seven of their last 11 games and have fallen into sixth place in the East.
Wall, who is averaging 19.4 points and 9.3 assists in 37 games, should provide a huge boost in the race for playoff positioning. His coach said just having him back at practice raises the overall performance of the team.
“He gives us that edge,” Brooks explained. “When you have him on the floor, you get a lot of easy shots. John creates a lot of attention when he drives to the basket… I think [his teammates] have always appreciated it, but when you don’t have him around you definitely miss it.”
- It’s not “etched in stone,” but John Wall could participate in five-on-five practice by the end of this week, Wizards head coach Scott Brooks said today (Twitter link via Candace Buckner of The Washington Post). Wall, sidelined since January 25, remains on track to return from his knee injury in advance of the playoffs.
2:37pm: The Wizards have officially re-signed Sessions, according to the NBA’s transactions log.
11:11am: After his second 10-day contract with the Wizards expired this week, Ramon Sessions is set to sign a rest-of-season deal with the club, according to Candace Buckner of The Washington Post (Twitter link). The club will have one open roster spot even after re-signing Sessions, no corresponding move will be required.
Sessions, who will turn 32 next month, didn’t play during his first 10 days with the Wizards, but has worked his way into the team’s rotation since then. In five games for Washington, the veteran point guard has averaged 7.2 PPG and 3.4 APG with a .333/.400/.737 shooting line.
With John Wall still recovering from knee surgery, Tomas Satoransky has handled the brunt of the Wizards’ point guard minutes, with Tim Frazier and now Sessions acting as backups. It’s not clear if Sessions will continue to see regular minutes once Wall is healthy and ready to return to the lineup, or if he’ll simply provide some veteran insurance down the stretch and in the playoffs.
If the Wizards officially re-sign Sessions today, his new deal would count for $224,517 against the club’s 2017/18 cap. However, because Washington is over the tax line, the signing will cost the team an extra $337K or so in projected tax penalties.
- Chris McCullough, who had been playing for the Northern Arizona Suns, was recalled today by the Wizards and then re-assigned to the Erie BayHawks, according to the team. Washington doesn’t have a G League affiliate of its own this season, so McCullough is eligible to play for other G League squads via the flexible assignment rule.
- The Wizards will still owe Ian Mahinmi north of $31MM after this season, a troubling thought considering the way his usage has been trending over the course of the year. Mahimni’s playing time this season is down from last year and, as Candace Buckner of The Washington Post writes, he logged the first DNP-CD of the season over the weekend.
Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard will meet with coach Gregg Popovich on Tuesday to discuss his progress rehabbing from a quad injury, Michael C. Wright of ESPN reports. Leonard could return as early as Thursday if both parties feel he’s ready to play again. The team’s franchise player has been sidelined since January 13th with the lingering quad issue that has cost him all but nine games this season.
In other injury updates from around the league:
- Pelicans forward Solomon Hill could make his season debut as early as this weekend, William Guillory of the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports. Hill has been sidelined by a torn hamstring suffered in late August. “We’re so close to the finish line that we’re definitely not going to rush the situation now,” coach Alvin Gentry told Guillory. “I can see a situation where he might be able to play a few minutes here or there.” Hill is in the second year of a four-year, $48MM contract.
- Suns reserve center Alan Williams could make his season debut on Tuesday, according to Scott Bordow of the Arizona Republic. Williams underwent surgery in September to repair the meniscus in his right knee with a six-month timetable to return. He went through a full practice on Monday. Williams, whose three-year, $17MM contract is only guaranteed through this season, averaged 11.4 PPG and 9.1 RPG after the All-Star break last season.
- Magic swingman Terrence Ross is questionable to return this season, according to Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel. Ross has been sidelined since November 29th with a knee injury. A bone bruise has stalled Ross’ return, Robbins adds. “Some days it feels good, and then some days it kind of flares up,” Ross told Robbins. Ross has one season left on a contract that pays him $10.9MM annually.
- Wizards point guard John Wall went through some non-contract drills Monday as he works his way back from arthroscopic surgery on his left knee, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports relays. If medically cleared, Wall could practice in full for the first time on Friday, Hughes adds.
- The Wizards, who have lost four of their last six, need to finish strong in their last 15 games to gain home-court advantage in the opening playoff round. They could finish anywhere from third to eighth and shooting guard Bradley Beal told the Washington’s Post Candace Buckner that they can’t afford to take nights off. “It’s not a situation where we can just sit here and say, ‘Oh okay, we can just coast into the playoffs.’ That’s not it,” he said. “We’re not even playing our best basketball either. So that’s definitely not how we want to approach going into the playoffs.”