All is not well with the Washington professional basketball team, and head coach Scott Brooks appears to have an idea of what they need to fix.
Speaking with the media over the weekend amid the Wizards’ 1-4 start to the season, Brooks pinpointed the team’s transition defense as a major area for improvement. Fred Katz of The Athletic notes that Washington is the worst team in the league by that metric to begin the year.
Scott Brooks said last night that the Wizards need to improve their transition defense. He wasn't kidding. They've given up the most points per game in transition in the NBA, per Synergy.
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) October 27, 2018
Of course, Wizards stars John Wall and Bradley Beal had a rather different explanation for the team’s troubles, saying on Friday that some of their teammates had their own agendas.
Bradley Beal and John Wall both said there are guys complaining about their own shots and not defending. Both spoke about it extensively. Quotes coming soon.
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) October 27, 2018
When asked the next day about the comments by his backcourt duo, Brooks again steered the conversation towards the transition defense issue.
Scott Brooks angled most questions about last night's postgame comments from Wall & Beal toward the issue of the team's transition defense when he spoke with reporters after today's practice at UCLA. Quotes coming shortly.
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) October 27, 2018
Washington has been a perennial underachiever in the Eastern Conference, never once advancing past the second round in the Wall-Beal era. Chemistry issues dogged the team last year as well, but Brooks seems to think that there is a much simpler basketball fix to their woes.
