Preview: Thunder travel to Washington for final matchup of season

Three keys to victory

1. Slowing down Washington’s backcourt

The combination of John Wall and Bradley Beal continues to be the engine which drives Washington’s offense. Together, they average 43.3 points per game as the team’s top two scorers. Unfortunately for OKC, losing Roberson for the remainder of the season gives them a new challenge to face. Without Dre in the lineup, Terrance Ferguson will likely be the one tasked to handle Beal, along with Paul George at times. So long as Oklahoma City avoids giving up easy points in transition by not turning the ball over, stopping the Wizards in the halfcourt should still be manageable.

2. Not sleeping on Washington’s role players

As mentioned before, Washington’s role players such as Oubre, Scott, Markieff Morris, Marcin Gortat and Otto Porter have the potential to score 20 or more on any given night. Although they’ve never gotten over the hump, the Wizards have done a good job of building around Wall and Beal. Oklahoma City will need to find ways to guard Washington’s All-Star selections when Raymond Felton and Alex Abrines are on the floor so the ball doesn’t swing to a wide open Oubre or Porter.  Respectively, they have averaged 13.3 and 8.8 points in the past 10 games.

3. Keeping Marcin Gortat in check

Playing his 11th season in the league, the 33-year-old veteran Gortat has been a healthy and reliable anchor in the post for Washington.

He may never be thought of as a high-caliber player, however, with 10.2 points and 7.9 rebounds per game throughout the month of January, he acts as a quality pick-and-role player. Word on the street is that Gortat is likely to be dealt near the trade deadline, but for now, he remains a solid member of the starting five for a team with a good roster.