At this point, the phrase "Washington Wizards" is pretty much synonymous with "injuries." One year after seeing their season ended because of injuries to all their top guns, the Wizards are seeing the same thing happening this season.
First, Antawn Jamison partially separated his shoulder and missed the first 11 games of the season. Now, it appears new acquisition Mike Miller might miss 4-5 weeks after suffering a calf injury against the Spurs.
Miller is scheduled to be reevaluated today, according to Jones. He had been playing with lingering effects of a shoulder injury he suffered earlier in the season that caused him to miss a week of action.
How big a loss is this for the Wizards? Bullets Forever, SB Nation's Wizards blog, says it could be devastating.
Right now, the Wizards' offense is struggling with a lack of ball movement. There's no flow to anything that's going on. Guys are shooting too many contested two-point jumpers. Over 70% of the Wizards' shots this year are jumpers, which isn't astronomical, but only 51% of those jumpers are assisted, which is pitifully low. It's no surprise that the Wizards are posting just a 40.9 eFG% on those jumpers. In other words, to put it fairly bluntly, too many guys are displaying on-court selfishness out there.
The one guy who has not displayed such on-court selfishness is Mike Miller. Miller's usage rate is a criminally-low 12.7%. He's taking only good shots and hitting them -- his true shooting percentage is an insane 73.3%. He's moving the ball, making plays for others and passing up looks to give his teammates shots. In short, he's been the antithesis of what's ailing the Wizards offense right now.
Bullets Forever goes on to cite some staggering statistics to support their case. The Wizards' offense scores over 30 more points per 100 possessions with Miller on the court, shoots a significantly higher percentage from the field and has 16% more of its baskets end in an assist.
In light of the current problems in the Wizards' locker room, it's clear Miller's injury is coming at a really, really bad time.
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