Defense Still Wizards' Concern

High-Scoring Offense Offset by Inability to Stop Opponents

Gilbert Arenas finally cooled off in the Wizards' loss to the Bucks on Saturday. (Toni L. Sandys/twp - Twp)

Milwaukee Bucks Coach Terry Stotts was sitting in his office before Saturday night's game against Washington in Milwaukee when he was asked about the Wizards' recent play, a run during which they averaged 118 points over 13 games.

"Their offense is really cranked up," Stotts said. "Gilbert [Arenas], Antawn [Jamison], Caron [Butler] -- all three of them have had it going and they've really established an identity as far as the type of team they are. They believe in what they're doing and they've had success."

The "identity" Stotts spoke of is geared around an offensive attack that has been just potent enough to overcome an injury-depleted playing rotation and a defense that is giving up nearly as many points as the Wizards are scoring.

The Wizards (17-13) rank second in points scored (107.7) and 30th in points allowed (106.6) and while Arenas, Jamison and Butler have formed the league's highest-scoring trio, several opponents have managed huge individual performances.

Whether it was Yao Ming scoring 38 points in a loss to Houston on Dec. 9, Earl Boykins coming off the bench to score 29 in a loss at Denver on Dec. 18 or Ruben Patterson scoring 10 of his 21 points during the fourth quarter of Saturday night's 119-102 loss at Milwaukee, the Wizards have periodically been unable to slow down a hot opponent.

On nights when Arenas and his teammates get going themselves, as was the case during wins over the Nuggets on Dec. 13, the Los Angeles Lakers on Dec. 17 and the Phoenix Suns on Dec. 22, the Wizards can overcome such explosions. When Arenas and crew aren't rolling, the lack of defense typically leads to a defeat.

That happened against Milwaukee when the Wizards looked like a team that was playing its fourth game in five nights. The Bucks used a zone defense to hold Arenas to 19 points on 7-of-22 shooting and outscored the Wizards 37-17 in the fourth quarter.

Not having center Brendan Haywood, who missed the game with a sprained right ankle, didn't help though Haywood expects to play tomorrow night against the Bucks at Verizon Center.

Before Saturday's loss at Milwaukee, the Wizards became the first team since the 1994-95 Phoenix Suns to score 106 or more points in 13 consecutive games, but they also have allowed eight consecutive opponents to score 100 or more.

Such a combination may make for entertaining basketball -- the wins over the Los Angeles Lakers and Suns were among the most exciting games played in the NBA this season -- but it could limit Washington's ability to take advantage of a wide-open Eastern Conference.

Still, Orlando Magic Coach Brian Hill said the Wizards are as hard to stop as the Suns, who lead the league in scoring (111.1 ppg), and Arenas seems to have embraced his team's run-and-gun reputation.

Coach Eddie Jordan "made a speech [before Friday's win over the Magic] about how we're scoring 107 a game but we're giving up 106 and I'm thinking to myself: 'That makes us a winner,' " Arenas said with a chuckle. "But I didn't want to say anything. Seriously though, the way the game is being played right now, it's hard to dominate defensively. It is really hard. We have to do what we have to do. We have scorers, we get to the free throw line and we're winning."

Washington's style was perfectly illustrated during a second-quarter stretch of last week's 116-101 win over the Memphis Grizzlies at Verizon Center. Butler finished a fast break with a spectacular dunk over Dahntay Jones, but the Grizzlies quickly inbounded the ball and scored themselves on a dunk by Jones. However, even as the crowd was still buzzing over those plays, Arenas pushed the ball and made a three-pointer in transition, giving the Wizards a 16-point lead.

Sensing that his team could not afford to get into an up-and-down game, then-Memphis coach Mike Fratello frantically called a timeout and told his team to slow down. It was too late and the Wizards rolled to another win.

Even with an offense that potent, however, Jordan and his staff continue to stress defense.

"We keep trying," Jordan said. "We have drills in practice and we're working to get better at the basic things, but I don't know. We just have to keep trying. Outside of changing personnel, you just have to work on the basic things: make sure your pick-and-roll defense is as good as it can get, make sure you defend the paint and make sure you keep people in front of you and always give help. Like I said, we're trying."