In the 2004-05 season, the Wizards won their first ever Playoff series as the “Wizards” as they beat the Bulls in 6 games in the 1st round of the NBA Playoffs, but they were swept by the Miami Heat, the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference, 4-0 in the next round. For the next four years, they reached the postseason but never managed to get past the 1st round.
This year, guards John Wall and Bradley Beal were on fire this season. Last season, the No. 1 pick from 2010, Wall, would have began the season playing with rookie Beal, but he had stress in his knee which kept him out until January. Before January, Beal was pretty much by himself when he did not get enough help from the other players as they started the season 0-11. But when Wall came back they started to play well. However, they were not able to make the postseason as they finished 29-53.
The next year, Wall started the regular season and the Wizards played well even though they started the season 2-9, but then started winning more games. This season, Wall averaged 19.3 points per game and 8.8 assists per game and Beal averaged 17.1 points per game.
Another key player was center Marcin Gortat, who they acquired from the Phoenix Suns when they traded Emeka Okafor. Gortat proved that he was an All-Star caliber center. Another key player was forward Trevor Ariza. He proved that he was an elite defender and a lethal three-point shooter. Randy Whitman established himself as a formidable head coach.
In February, John Wall made the Eastern Conference roster and played in the All-Star Game in New Orleans. He also participated in the Slam Dunk Contest. However, the Dunk Contest was in a new format. Rather than individual vs. individual, it was 3 players from the East vs. 3 players from the West. Luckily, the East won and Wall was crowned "Dunker of the Night." It would have been better if Wall was considered "Slam Dunk Winner." But at the end of the day, Wall still won the Slam Dunk Contest.
On April 2nd, the Wizards clinched a Playoff birth for the first time since 2008 and later clinched the 5 seed in the Eastern Conference. They finished the regular season 44-38, 2nd in the Southeast division.
The Wizards faced the 4-seeded Chicago Bulls, the team they previously beat in the Playoffs in 2005, in the 1st round. They went on to win the series against them again 4-1. Next, they faced the 1-seeded Indiana Pacers, a team that had been struggling towards the end of the season but still got the 1 seed. It looked good for the Wizards as they took Game 1 in Indianapolis. However, Indiana went on to win the next 3 games, including Game 4 where the Wizards gave up a 19-point lead at home. The Wiz went on to win Game 5, but it wasn't enough as Indiana won Game 6, eliminated Washington and advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals to face the Miami Heat.
Even though the season had to end with another professional D.C. sports team failing to make the conference finals, it was still a good season for the Wizards. There are some offseason decisions that the front office must do. Marcin Gortat and Trevor Ariza will be free agents after this season and hopefully they'll be back. WIth $16-20 million cap space, the Wizards must use this money wisely to improve next year.
But when it's all said and done, the Wizards were still able to do things they hadn't done in a long time like getingt over the .500 record hump, having an All-Star on their roster, and being tied the best road record in the Eastern Conference. It was definitely a good time to be a Wizards fan again. The league is now on notice that this Wizards team is for real and is no longer the Wizards of old.
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