John Wall says the Wizards play down against lesser teams because players are ‘playing for stats’

The Wizards are currently 19-16 on the season but could be so much better. They’re 9-10 against teams below .500 and have blown many of those matchups after gaining solid leads at various points throughout the games.

The team went from it’s highest point this season in beating the Celtics on the road to being outpaced by the Atlanta Hawks — the worst team in the East.

So what gives? Here’s what John Wall had to say, according to a report from Candace Buckner of the Washington Post.

“We talk about it. We say when we play these teams that are not above .500 or not one of the great teams, we go out there playing for stats,” John Wall said. “It’s simple as that. We can see it. I think we all can see it when we play.”

Bradley Beal said he saw something similar.

“Sometimes we need to do that. Sometimes even myself included,” Beal said. “Sometimes we do one-pass shots, no-pass shots. Two or three passes on one side of the floor versus moving on both sides of the floor. Teams are going to load up on me and John. That’s something that we should know by now.

Those are interesting comments from the team’s two best players, the ones who handle the ball most for Washington.

If they’re going to figure this problem out, it’s going to be on them. They make the decisions with a combined usage rate of nearly 57 percent.

Passing is one of the Wizard’s problems, but they’ve never been a great passing team. The Wizards only pass the ball 282.8 times per game, which is good for 26th in the league and were even ranked in the bottom two in passes last season. They just need to create better opportunities.

But so far this season, Wall’s assist production has been down because of his health and minutes restrictions. Beal’s usage has increased by three percent, but he’s only dishing out 39 passes per game. He’s also spent more time as a primary ball handler, yet his assist rate is the same as it always has been.

If the Wizards are going to generate better offense in the clutch and give better responses to runs, their backcourt has to be better. Until it is, they’ll likely continue having these problems.