Wizards Get Desperately Needed Blowout Win and Saturday NBA Takeaways

For the first time in over a week, the Washington Wizards (32-20) entered the win column, snapping a five-game losing streak with a 114-77 victory over the Brooklyn Nets Saturday night. 

In a wire-to-wire romp, Washington shot 50.6 percent from the field and 45 percent from three. Six Wizards players finished in double figures, led by 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting from John Wall. Otto Porter Jr. scored 12 points and pulled down four rebounds, starting in place of the injured Bradley Beal (toe), while Randy Wittman's squad outscored Brooklyn, 18-3, in transition. 

Washington also doubled up Brooklyn's point total in the paint, which made for some historic factoids, according to ESPN Stats & Info: 

While the win relieves Washington of a major burden, center Marcin Gortat isn't getting too excited about a win over one of the Eastern Conference's fringe playoff contenders, according to The Washington Post's Jorge Castillo: 

Nevertheless, the sky is no longer falling in the nation's capital following a 37-point win that was Washington's largest of the season against a Nets team that entered Saturday on a three-game winning streak.   

Although a five-game losing skid dampened hopes temporarily, the team's play over the past week-and-a-half did little damage to the team's long-term standing among Eastern Conference contenders. 

When the streak started on Jan. 28 with a 106-98 loss to the Phoenix Suns, Washington was one game back of the Toronto Raptors. But even after Toronto went 4-2 during the 11-day span that saw the Wizards drop five straight, Wall and Co. are still just 2.5 back of the second-place occupants. 

It also helps that the Chicago Bulls lost three consecutive games during the Wizards' downswing, putting any sort of drastic decline out of view. 

Now regaining their footing, the Wizards have a chance to make amends for a stretch that produced a meager 97 points per game on 43 percent shooting from the field. 

As an All-Star break appetizer, Washington gets a crack at the Orlando Magic (16-37) on Monday night before heading north of the border for a second clash with the Raptors in the span of 12 days. Capturing victories in those settings would qualify as a poised reply to turmoil, a quality Wittman touched on during the team's losing streak.

According to The Washington Times' Todd Dybas, Wittman said:

"

It’s how you react to tough times. Everybody goes through them. Doesn’t matter who it is in this league. You’re going to go through a rough patch. And, how you get out of it. Do you feel sorry for yourself and wallow in that mud a little bit longer than you should be in that mud? Or get yourself out of there? That’s what we’ve got to do.

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With the next two games offering a chance to flash some resiliency, Washington's staring at a golden opportunity to generate positive vibes with the Eastern Conference power structure still very malleable behind the first-place Atlanta Hawks. 

Around the Association

Brow Gets Banged-Up, Bulls Win 

Gerald Herbert/Associated Press

A night removed from playing hero while dropping 41 points against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Anthony Davis totaled just eight points and five rebounds before exiting in the second quarter with a right shoulder injury. 

After finishing an impressive alley-oop slam, Davis took an awkward fall to the floor, which resulted in a trip to the locker room.

Fortunately, no serious damage appeared to be done, according to Fox Sports New Orleans' Jennifer Hale: 

With Davis out for the entirety of the second half, the Chicago Bulls outscored the Pelicans, 59-33, over the game's final two quarters to snap a three-game losing streak and win, 107-72. The 72 points are the fewest Tom Thibodeau's squad has allowed all season. 

According to Bulls Radio's Jeff Mangurten, Saturday night's victory doubled as the team's largest in more than a year: 

Derrick Rose and Pau Gasol led the way with 20 points apiece, while Tony Snell dropped 19 points (shooting 5-of-6 from three) off the bench one game after receiving a DNP-Coach's Decision against the Houston Rockets. 

Dallas Stuns Portland with Late Charge

USA TODAY Sports

It took a 13-2 run at the end of regulation, but the Dallas Mavericks were able to mount a furious comeback and stun the Portland Trail Blazers in a 111-101 overtime victory at American Airlines Center.

Dirk Nowitzki (25 points on 11-of-19 shooting) forced the extra session by drilling a contested three from the top of the key with just over 20 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter: 

According to ESPN Stats & Info, Nowitzki had rarely tied games in similarly clutch fashion before: 

Chandler Parsons and Monta Ellis contributed 20 points each, while Devin Harris added 16 points and seven rebounds off the bench, as the Mavericks converted on 41 percent of their total attempts and 39 percent of their treys. 

Damian Lillard—who had a chance to win it with a deep three at the buzzer—stuffed the stat sheet with 26 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, four steals and two blocks, but Portland shot just a smidgen over 31 percent from three as a team.  

According to The Oregonian's Joe Freeman, the Blazers were utterly deflated after getting outscored, 26-13, in the fourth quarter and 15-5 in overtime:  

Golden State Owns the Garden  

Nathaniel S. Butler/Getty Images

The Golden State Warriors rarely lose—much less lose two straight—so there was no chance they were going to play down to the level of their competition at Madison Square Garden following a loss to the Atlanta Hawks Friday night. 

Squaring off against the New York Knicks, Golden State ran roughshod over the Eastern Conference punchlines, 106-92, shooting 48 percent from three while boasting six double-figure scorers. 

As Bleacher Report's Howard Beck put it, the Warriors could have gone full Gregg Popovich and rested their starters, if they had been so inclined:  

Stephen Curry was tops on the Dubs with 22 points and six rebounds, but he didn't record a single assist. According to Basketball-Reference.com, it was the first time in Curry's career that he played more than 20 minutes and failed to drop a dime. As a tandem, the Splash Brothers shot 13-of-40 from the field and 7-of-15 from beyond the arc.   

New York hit on just 40.2 percent of its attempts from the field with Carmelo Anthony sidelined to rest. Langston Galloway topped the Knicks' charts with 15 points, but he needed 19 shots to get there.  

George Karl Watches the Throne 

Former Denver Nuggets boss George Karl has been publicly pining for a return to the bench, and USA Today's Sam Amick reports one Western Conference team has serious interest in bringing him aboard: 

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The Sacramento Kings are seriously considering making another midseason coaching change and bringing in longtime head coach George Karl, according to three people with knowledge of the situation.

One person who is involved in the process described the situation as "not in the red zone just yet" but said it had recently advanced to the point where a hire could be made in the coming days.

"

However, Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski reports there is waning belief that Karl will become the Sacramento Kings' head coach, with a definitive answer coming by the end of the weekend: 

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Yahoo Sources: The resistance to George Karl hiring by Cousins' camp has stalled talks and given sides pause about pushing through on deal.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) February 8, 2015"

DeMarcus Cousins addressed his reported role in the hiring process following Saturday night's 102-90 loss to the Utah Jazz (h/t Carmichael Dave of KHTK Sports 1140 on Twitter):  

With the loss, the Kings are 6-19 since firing Mike Malone and have dropped 11 of their last 12 dating back to Jan. 13.  

Cousins was the lone bright spot for the Kings, finishing with 27 points (10-of-24 shooting) and 10 rebounds to record his 31st double-double of the season. Only Pau Gasol has tallied more.  

The Nets Have an Affinity for Spilling Drinks

Apparently spilling drinks on the sideline wasn't just Jason Kidd's forte during his brief tenure as the Brooklyn Nets' head coach. Late in the first quarter of Brooklyn's blowout loss, Mason Plumlee collided with a courtside vendor and spilled suds everywhere.   

Quote of the Night

Remember that challenge Kevin Durant proposed to detractors questioning his appointment to the Western Conference All-Star team? If not, The Oklahoman's Anthony Slater tweeted a reminder:

Well, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban would like to take the reigning MVP up on his offer, citing previous success against a certain German sharpshooter, according to Mavericks.com's Earl K. Sneed: