Marcin Gortat is sorry—or at least that’s what he told his Washington Wizards teammates at the behest of head coach Scott Brooks.
From The Washington Post‘s Ava Wallace:
After Gortat proclaimed the team’s reserves “one of the worst benches in the league right now” following Washington’s seventh loss in nine games Saturday against Chicago, Brooks and Gortat stood together in front of the team before practice Monday. Gortat apologized, and Brooks preached unity to a team that can’t afford to waste energy pointing fingers.
“I look at things from a whole, because this is how — when I played, I was a backup, and I didn’t like to be divided,” Brooks said. “We don’t have two teams here, we have one basketball team, and right now we’re not happy and content on being 2-7.”
Both Brooks and Gortat are right here, though one is clearly more tactful than the other.
Gortat wasn’t lying about the Wizards having one of the worst benches in the NBA. They absolutely do. According to HoopsStats.com, their second unit ranks dead last in both offensive and defensive efficiency through the first part of this season.
But Brooks also has a point: You can’t go berating your own teammates or displacing the blame onto the bench’s shoulders. Sure, Gortat is having a pretty good season, working his ass off on the glass and finding ways to score around the rim. But Washington is struggling to generate points or play defense even when its starters are on the floor, according to NBA.com.
The Wizards’ 2-7 start to the season has been a team effort. Blame cannot fall on any one player. Gortat and the rest of the team can only hope that Bradley Beal’s and Ian Mahinmi’s eventual returns result in a deeper squad that has the ability to avoid a complete and utter implosion.
