It was also the best playoff performance of Wall's career (27.6), eclipsing his 26-point, 17-assist performance against the Toronto Raptors in 2015. The Wizards finished the season with a 49-33 record, earning themselves the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference.
It turned out to be a very long day for the Atlanta Hawks. The victor of the series will face the victor of the Boston Celtics-Chicago Bulls first round matchup. Here's a look at their matchups in the 2016-2017 campaign.
Season series: Split, 2-2.
Kanter has had a successful season coming off the bench this year, averaging 14.3 points and 6.7 rebounds per game on 54.5 percent shooting from the field.
John Wall was energetic from the opening tip.
Marcin Gortat received a technical foul for taunting after dunking over Millsap, pushing him aside. Eventually, the Wizards were sent out of the playoffs in six. Only twice before had I witnessed a Washington team reach the 45-win mark, and those seasons were separated by a full decade. Kyle Korver missed a shot at the buzzer that would have tied the game up at the end of regulation.
Even though the Wizards have had nearly a week off and don't play again until Wednesday, Brooks didn't stagger Wall and Beal in the first half to ensure one was on the floor at all times. He made a lot of questionable lineup decisions with the Thunder, especially in the playoffs, and there were certainly a few interesting ones in his first game with the Wizards. Adam Eaton continued his hot start to the season, going 3 for 5 with a double and a pair of runs, and Anthony Rendon had his third good game in a row after an unimpressive start to the season, going 2 for 5 with a double, an RBI and a run. That's when the Wizards, who had two games against the Miami Heat and one against the Detroit Pistons left on the schedule, should have considered resting.
We can't forget about Bradley Beal, who came away with 22 points for Washington, compared to Atlanta's Paul Millsap's 19 and Dennis Schroder's 25. The second unit is now formidable and can match up with Atlanta and the rest of the Eastern Conference. Bazemore couldn't stay in front of him, so Tim Hardaway Jr. had to try to help. However, this matchup remains the most intriguing because of the history between LeBron James and Paul George and, of course, Lance Stephenson.
World leaders felicitate Erdogan on referendum win
However, this referendum is a decision on a new administrative system, a change and a transformation in the Republic of Turkey. The Washington Post's Fahim says Erdogan's victory in the referendum leaves Turkey's opposition in "a very weak state".
It was a real step forward for the Wizards this season under new head coach Scott Brooks. "They're a deep team and have a lot of guys they can use. He's one of the best players in the league". They traded Jeff Teague for a draft pick to give the reins to Dennis Schroder, but hung on to expensive veterans.
That's another deceiving thing about the Wizards. The Wizards were able to play great defense and still play well offensively.
Wall's career-year could easily be attributed to the fact that he's the healthiest he's been for the past several seasons.
Dwight Howard and other Atlanta players have a different perspective. I truly don't pay attention to what they say, I truly don't pay attention to what the media say, I truly don't pay attention to what my friends and my mom and my dad say, because they have no idea about basketball. Gortat scored 14 points, had 10 rebounds and two blocks.
In a seven-game series, Atlanta will look to exploit their rebounding advantage to generate second chance looks. Markieff Morris also isn't a particularly strong rebounder. This is the playoffs and the lack of urgency and the absence of any physical assertiveness on this play is worrisome and would become a problematic theme for the Hawks throughout the entire game.
John Wall and Bradley Beal are clearly one of the top five backcourts in the National Basketball Association. His role as a deadly perimeter option - and a solid defender will likely garner him some Most Improved Player votes. Let John Wall take over and stay out of the way.
Wall was on defense and tipped a pass. Millsap had no answer defensively for Morris.
Atlanta's offensive improvement has coincided with a reduction in Howard's minutes late in the season, and Budenholzer seems intent on sticking with an extended rotation during the playoffs. For much of the game, he had more assists than the Hawks.
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