WASHINGTON (AP) – In dramatic fashion, Jordan Poole lifted the Washington Wizards out of the NBA cellar.
Poole’s 3-pointer with 8.1 seconds remaining put Washington ahead, and the Wizards went on to beat the Charlotte Hornets 113-110 on Thursday night. The victory – and a loss by
New Orleans – means Washington no longer has the league’s worst record.
Despite a 16-game losing streak earlier this season, the Wizards (5-23) are ahead of the Pelicans (5-26), and they aren’t too far behind Toronto (7-24) and Charlotte (7-23). Since its lengthy skid, Washington has gone 3-5, including two wins over the Hornets a week apart.
“I’ve always felt like I’ve been the man for the moment, and I make big shots all the time,” said Poole, who scored 25 points. “Credit to the coaching staff for putting the ball in my hands, and shout-out to my teammates for finding me as well.”
The 25-year-old Poole is practically an elder statesman on a Washington team with three rookies – Alex Sarr, Bub Carrington and Kyshawn George – averaging at least 25 minutes a game.
Sarr had 15 points – including a key tip-in with 14.8 seconds remaining – and three blocks on Thursday.
“We’re learning, we’re trying to get up a lot of 3s, but I think something that coach harps on night in and night out is just relying on our defense,” Poole said.
“Because we’re such a young team right now that we’re still trying to find our identity on offence.”
The Wizards won despite scoring only 17 points in the fourth-quarter.
“We got gritty defensively,” coach Brian Keefe said.
“You can win sometimes when you don’t shoot the ball well. Great effort by our guys.”
