NBA Match Preview: Washington Wizards vs. Toronto Raptors
Washington Wizards meet Toronto Raptors for the second time this season as the Raptors host them at the Air Canada Centre. Previously the Wizards had hosted the Raptors on the 16th of last month.
In their last meeting at the Verizon Centre, Wizards had won the match 109-94. Although they were missing their rookie sensation John Wall due to a sprained left foot, the Wizards still managed to perform well with Gilbert Arenas
making his first appearance in the Wizards starting line up. Strong contributions were made by forward Andray Blatche and guards Nick Young and Arenas.
Although Wizards have stars in their line up, they will still be a few players short as they visit the Raptors tonight. Wall will miss his third consecutive game due to a bruised knee, while starter Al Thornton will miss his fourth
game due to an ankle. In addition, reserve Yi Jianlian will miss his ninth straight game on account of a bad knee. Although coach Flip Saunders has put Alonzo Gee instead of Wall, the fact remains that Wall’s 18.0 points with 9.1 assists per game cannot be
matched. Wizards sport a win-loss mark of 2-4 with Wall while they have 3-7 in his absence.
With Wizards short benched for the match, the Raptors are missing a few key players as well. Their star power forward Reggie Evans is out indefinitely due to a broken bone in his right foot. In addition, small forward Peja Stojakovic
is expected to miss tonight’s game on account of a sore knee. Ranking amongst the league leaders with 12.1 rebounds per game, Evans absence surely means trouble for the Raptors.
Talking about Evans’s absence, teammate Andrea Bargnani said, "He is a big part of our team and it's really too bad. He was playing great but that kind of stuff can happen. Everyone is really upset about that."
Currently, sporting a win-loss mark of 6-11 for the season, the Raptors are 4-4 at home. Their three-game winning streak at home was broken on Sunday when they hosted the Atlanta Hawks. This fateful match marked the beginning of
Evans’ indefinite absence, resulting in Toronto losing 78-96 to the Raptors. With just one win last week, the Raptors finished the week with a 1-2 win-loss mark. The only win they enjoyed was on Tuesday when they hosted the Philadelphia 76ers, thrashing them
with a 106-90 on the scoreboard. The Raptors are recently on a two-match losing streak after enjoying a four match winning streak earlier.
The Wizards, on the other hand, currently occupying the second last place in the conference standings, are at a 5-11 mark this season. They sport a shameful 0-8 mark on the road failing to win a single match. Their last match on
the road was earlier in the week when they met the Miami Heat. The Heat defeated the Wizards (105-94) bringing the latter to a three-game losing streak and a 0-1 mark for the week. Wall’s absence amongst others might up this number as the Wizards take on the
Raptors tonight. However, absences from the Raptors might even things out a bit, giving Wizards a chance for their road win of the season.
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