The Washington Wizards are winless in their last nine games against the Boston Celtics, and they will attempt to end that streak when the teams meet in Washington on Thursday night.
Washington hasn’t beaten Boston since the Wizards earned a 130-111 home decision on March 28, 2023. The nine-game losing streak includes Boston’s 136-107 home victory earlier this season.
Jaylen Brown led the Celtics with a team-high 35 points in that Nov. 5 win, and his scoring touch has been on display lately as well. However, he was listed as doubtful due to illness on the team’s injury report late Wednesday afternoon.
Brown has scored 30 or more points in four of his last five games, leading the Celtics to a 4-1 record in that stretch. He tossed in a season-high 42 points during Boston’s 123-117 home victory over New York on Tuesday.
“Some days you just feel like when the ball hits your hands, the ball just feels different,” Brown said following Tuesday’s win and before his game status for Thursday was in doubt.
“Today was one of those days,” he continued. “And it didn’t start off that way because I had some turnovers and I probably was playing a little bit too fast. So I just told myself I’m going to just slow it down just a little bit, and then it was off to the races after that.”
Brown, who is averaging 29.0 points per game this season, scored 33 of his 42 points in the middle two quarters.
“He never waivers in the poise or the mindset that he has,” Boston coach Joe Mazzulla said. “I thought he did a great job of taking what the defense gave him, but then also making plays for others. He played against three different coverages (Tuesday) and he was really good against multiple coverages. I kind of just let him do his thing. Just kind of talk to him about what the spacing is like, what the matchups are like, what the coverages are like. What to expect, and he does the rest.”
The Wizards lost 15 of their first 16 games this season, but they have a 2-2 record in their last four outings. They enter Thursday’s matchup at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings.
Washington fell 121-102 to host Philadelphia on Tuesday night. The Wizards were within five after scoring the first seven points in the second half, but the 76ers pulled away by outscoring the Wizards 35-23 in the third quarter.
“I thought the start (to the third) was pretty good — cut the lead pretty quick — then the live-ball turnovers kind of got us,” Washington coach Brian Keefe said. “We’re always going to play the full 48. You can always get better. The coaching staff and the players are all in this together.”
Keefe said he continues to see growth in rookie guard Will Riley, who came off the bench and contributed 13 points, four rebounds, one assist and one steal in a season-high 26 minutes on Tuesday.
“I’m just trying to put my teammates in the best position to succeed,” Riley said.
Washington center Alex Sarr hasn’t played in the last two games (left adductor strain), but a report in the Washington Post said he could return for Thursday’s game. Sarr, the second overall pick of the 2024 NBA Draft, leads the team with averages of 19.1 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. The 7-footer had 31 points, eight rebounds and three blocks when Boston beat Washington earlier this season.
