In an exciting finish, Jordan Poole helped the Washington Wizards climb out of the NBA’s bottom spot.
Poole’s 3-pointer with 8.1 seconds left gave Washington the lead, and the Wizards went on to defeat the Charlotte Hornets 113-110 on Thursday night. This win, combined with a loss by New Orleans, means that Washington no longer holds the worst record in the league.
Even though the Wizards had a tough 16-game losing streak earlier this season, they now have a record of 5-23, ahead of the Pelicans (5-26). They are also not far behind teams like Toronto (7-24) and Charlotte (7-23). Since the long losing streak, the Wizards have gone 3-5, including two wins against the Hornets just 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.”
Poole, 25, is one of the veterans on a Washington team with three rookies — Alex Sarr, Bub Carrington, and Kyshawn George — who all play at least 25 minutes a game.
Sarr scored 15 points, including a crucial tip-in with 14.8 seconds left, and also blocked three shots 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 offense.”
The Wizards won despite scoring only 17 points in the fourth quarter.
“We got gritty defensively,” said coach Brian Keefe. “You can win sometimes when you don’t shoot the ball well. Great effort by our guys.”
