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Two teams that recently traded with each other are going to face off for the third time this season. The Washington Wizards (7-37; 20-22-2 ATS) and Detroit Pistons (5-39; 21-23-0 ATS) split the first two meetings. Each time, the visitors ended the night victorious. At noon on Saturday, will Washington win for the second time in Little Caesars Arena? Not if Detroit has anything to say about it. Let's see which of these bottom feeders will earn a rare win.
The Wizards come into this game with six straight losses, a stretch that started with a loss to the Pistons at home. Their most recent defeat came by 15 at home despite 26 points from Kyle Kuzma on 50% shooting. His scoring wasn't enough to overcome a defensive rating that's 29th in the NBA. Washington's problems begin with the worst defensive rebounding in the league. The Wizards allow the fourth-highest percentage of shots to come at the rim (38.2%) and allow the fourth-highest shooting percentage at the rim (65.7%). Washington doesn't offer much resistance in the paint. Where they excel is allowing the 10th-fewest three-point attempts per game and forcing the sixth-most turnovers per contest. Yet, those strengths are not enough to prevent the Wizards from allowing the most points per game.
Washington's offense is asked to do a lot, and they don't, ranking 25th in offensive rating after Thursday's loss. They're also the worst offensive rebounding team in the NBA. Along with that, the Wizards struggle to get to the free throw line (24th in free throw rate) or knock down free throws (22nd in free throw percentage). Washington is a top-10 team at getting shots at the rim (7th) and finishing at the rim (3rd). However, their shooting success stops there as the Wizards are 28th in midrange efficiency and 27th in three-point efficiency. This team has decent ball security. Other teams have gotten more attention, but the Wizards have quietly been struggling all season. No wonder they moved on from Wes Unsled Jr. as head coach on Thursday morning.