When Washington shuffled the cards last summer with the bombastic trade that sent Russell Westbrook to the Los Angeles Lakers, one thing was clear to everyone – in the 2021/22 season Danny Abdia will have to fight for his minutes in light of the proliferation of forwards on the roster. Injuries, Corona and personal reasons have caused Abdia to receive credit from Wes Ansled Jr. more than once this season, despite showing less good ability, but starting tonight (Sunday to Monday) the real competition for minutes played was over, and the Israeli learned it firsthand.
In the narrow (and unconvincing) 100: 102 victory over Orlando, Abdia recorded a negative season record of 12 minutes and finished with only 2 points on 33% from the field and the lowest plus-minus index in the team, 16-. One of the reasons for this figure: the return of Roy Hachimura. The Japanese forward made his debut this season (6 points in 14 minutes), in which virtually all the forwards facing loss on minutes played. This means that Abdia now has less room for error, and if he does not take chances with both hands he will find himself very quickly on the bench, just as happened tonight.
It was the first time in Hachimura’s career that he came off the bench and since he played little, the question arises “what will happen to Abdia once Hachimura plays more and shows good ability?”. Also, no Wizards bench player scored in double digits, and Abdia still sat off the floor 75% of the time, facing the Eastern lock. Since entering the NBA, the Israeli has played less than 12 minutes in just six other games (all as a rookie).
Assuming the regular five will be Spencer Dinwiddie, Bradley Bill, Kyle Kozma, Roy Hachimura and Daniel Gaford, on the bench will be waiting for Ansald Jr. too many players worthy of playing minutes: Abdia, Raul Neto, Cantavius Caldwell Pop, Corey Kisspert, Davis Brettance Holiday, Montreux Harrell and Thomas Bryant. What is the solution that will make sure that the locker room stays healthy? Perhaps the answer is a trade that will dilute the rotation.
The local media in Washington did not comment on Abdia’s appearance, because most of the focus was stolen by Kozma. The forward who came from the Lakers in the summer exploded on the Magic with 27 points and an impressive career high of 22 rebounds. He became the Wizards’ first player since Anton Jamieson in 2010 with 20/20 (and sixth overall).
It was also Kozma’s seventh straight streak with at least 20 points – an achievement recorded by only three Washington players in the last decade: John Wall, Bill and Westbrook, the club’s three biggest stars in that time period. The last Washington player to score at least 25 points and 20 rebounds per game was Chris Weber in 1997. At the end he said, “I’m just playing insanely strong.”
KUZMA TONIGHT ????
27 Points (Game-high)
22 Rebounds (Career-high)
10/19 Shooting
3 Threes pic.twitter.com/mwDiwglRAX— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) January 10, 2022
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