The Washington Wizards got run out of the gym Thursday in their preseason finale, losing 119-98 to the Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena.
The Pistons trotted out their projected starting lineup for this one, in a contest that felt like a dress rehearsal for both sides. The Wizards’ starting lineup of Bub Carrington, Alex Sarr, Kyshawn George, Khris Middleton, and CJ McCollum lasted all of four minutes.
An awkward fall forced Carrington out of the game, with teammates needing to help him to the locker room. The 20-year-old was ruled out for the rest of the game with a knee injury, but was later able to return to the bench in street clothes. Bub looked fine.
The Wizards fell behind by double digits early and trailed 39-23 midway through the second quarter. But the boys battled back to close the half with Sarr, George, and Kispert keying a 28-18 to cut the deficit to 57-51 at the break. The Sarr-George-Kispert trio combined for 21 of those 28 points. Washington came back despite shooting 1-of-13 from beyond the arc in the first and second quarters.
George stayed hot to start the third quarter. He scored seven of Washington’s first 16 points in the half to help tie the game at 67. The Miami product did it in impressive fashion as well. He shed Cade Cunningham with a nasty behind-the-back dribble for a top-of-the-key three.
George also challenged Jalen Duren at the rim and won that battle for an And-1, which impressed the Pistons’ broadcast team enough that announcer Greg Kesler had to say, “Look at this dude.”
George finished with 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting to go along with 6 rebounds, 2 assists, a steal, and a block.
The Wizards took a 70-69 lead at the 7:01 mark after a three by McCollum. But alas, the good times did not last.
The Pistons closed the quarter out on a 24-9 run to retake a double-digit lead and piled on even more in the fourth quarter. The Wizards fell behind by as many as 26 points late in the 119-98 defeat.
Rookies Tre Johnson and Will Riley did not look comfortable in this one, finishing a combined 2-of-12 from the field for six points. Sarr tallied 10 points, nine rebounds, and a couple of blocks in 23 minutes of work. Kispert added 12 points off the bench.
The games and stats will start to count from here on out.
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