10 Keys for the Washington Wizards Down the Stretch

It's safe to say the 2011-12 season has been a disappointment for the Washington Wizards. After finishing last season with a 23-59 record (.280 winning percentage), the Wizards were looking to progress with their young role players. Instead, they are now sitting at 12-44 (.214 winning percentage) and have failed to take a step forward.

2010 No. 1 overall pick John Wall has made strides as a player, but he still can't consistently knock down a mid-range jump shot. This year's rookies have showed promise at times, but the Wizards need them to show some more consistency down the stretch.

There's still enough time in the season for the Wizards to take some positive steps for their 2012-13 campaign. Here are 10 keys for the Wizards down the stretch.

Figure out the Coaching Situation Long-Term

Following a 2-15 start to the season, the Washington Wizards fired head coach Flip Saunders on Jan. 24. Randy Wittman was promoted to interim head coach for the remainder of the season.

The Wizards are 10-29 (.256 winning percentage) since Wittman took over for Saunders. While that's a better winning percentage than the horrendous .117 the Wiz posted under Saunders, it's probably not enough for the Wizards to be convinced that Wittman is the man for the job long-term.

The Wizards need to take this time to evaluate Wittman, evaluate their options and figure out a long-term solution for their head coaching position.

Secure Draft Lottery Positioning

As you probably know, the NBA isn't like the NFL or MLB in determining its draft order. Instead of automatically assigning draft slots based on team records, the NBA has a draft lottery system in which a team's record correlates to their chances of winning the top selections in the draft. So the worse a team finishes, the greater its chances of being awarded the top pick in the draft.

The Wizards are currently 12-44, good enough (or bad enough) for the second-worst record in the NBA. With the Charlotte Bobcats all but guaranteed to finish the season with the worst record, the Wizards need to finish the season with enough losses to make sure that the New Orleans Hornets (15-41) don't pass them in the draft lottery standings.

Capitalize on This Year's Deep Draft

Along with securing a high pick in this year's draft, the Wizards need to make sure and capitalize on their selection. This year's draft is one of the deepest in recent memory, and with the Wizards likely selecting in the top five, they need to make sure to get an impact player with their selection.

With their only real established player being point guard John Wall, the Wizards could use an upgrade at almost every spot on their roster. An argument could be made that they're set at the 4 due to last year's selection of Jan Vesely, but Vesely isn't nearly as established as Wall, and if the Wizards get a chance to nab a player like Anthony Davis, then they need to take it.

More Playing Time and Improved Play from Jan Vesely

Jan Vesely was the sixth-overall selection in the 2011 draft. Like most rookies, he's had his ups and downs, but he's started to come on as of late.

Up until April 1, Vesely spent most of the season getting sporadic playing time and giving sporadic performances when he did play. Since April 1, he's been elevated to the starting lineup and his production has increased.

Vesely needs to keep improving during the stretch run to show the Wizards what he's capable of doing. A good showing would give the front office confidence in Vesely going forward, and it would give him confidence heading into next season.

He can also use this time to figure out his strengths and weaknesses so he can address those areas of his game in the offseason.

Improvement on Offense for Chris Singleton

Singleton was the Wizards' other first-round pick (No. 18 overall) in the 2011 draft. Coming out of Florida State, Singleton had a reputation as a lockdown wing defender. He's done nothing to dissuade that perception, but it's his offensive game that needs the most improvement.

While Singleton is a good shooter, he needs to improve his ability to create his own shot. With increased ball-handling skills, Singleton can go from a defensive-minded starting wing with the ability to knock down the long-range shot to an all-around player with the potential to be an above-average starter.

More Consistent Jump Shot for John Wall

John Wall is already an above-average point guard in the NBA. He averages 16.9 points and 7.7 assists per game.

But based on skill set and athleticism, Wall has a chance to be elite. He's blazing fast, incredibly quick, is bigger than a lot of point guards, has good ball-handling skills and solid court vision. But the one thing Wall cannot do is shoot the ball with any consistency from long range.

Wall is only 3-of-39 from three-point range this season (8.3 percent) and has only a .331 effective field-goal percentage on jump shots.

Wall needs to spend the last part of this season and the whole offseason establishing a consistent jump shot. If he does that, he'll immediately go from a top-12 point guard to a top-five point guard.

Luckily for Wall, he already has all of the God-given attributes to become an elite player. Now all he needs to do is put in the work to become a skilled shooter.

Become a Better Defensive Team

The Wizards have a long way to go to become a good defensive team. They're currently ranked 27th out of 30 teams in points allowed at 100.32 points allowed per game.

Points allowed can be a deceptive indicator of team defensive performance. Teams with a slow offensive tempo tend to allow less points because the opposition will get less possessions per game. Teams with a fast tempo will generally allow more points because the opposition will get more possessions per game. For this reason, opponent field-goal percentage is a more reliable indicator of defensive performance.

In opponent field-goal percentage, the Wizards rank 25th in the NBA, allowing their opponents to shoot 46 percent from the field.

So in the Wizards' case, not only do they allow a lot of points, but they allow a high field-goal percentage to their opposition.

Improve Team Rebounding

The Wizards are ranked 22nd in rebounds per game at 41.36. Conversely, their opposition averages 44.0 rebounds per game, which is 25th-worst in the NBA. The difference between the two is minus-2.64. That's bad enough for 27th in the NBA.

The Wizards need to spend the the final stretch of the season working to improve in this area. Whether that's working to improve technique or evaluating their players' ability to become effective rebounders, something needs to be done.

Increase Ball Movement

John Wall is a good passing point guard. The Washington Wizards are a bad passing team.

Washington averages only 18.61 assists per game. That's 28th-worst in the NBA. Their opponents average 22.29 assists per game. The difference of minus-3.68 is ranked 28th in the NBA.

In terms of their assist percentage, the Wizards average an assist on 51.3 percent of their baskets. The best passing team—the Milwaukee Bucks—have an assist on 60.2 percent of their baskets.

With the exception of Wall, the Wizards currently don't have anybody that can create their own shot. For this reason, it's imperative that they improve their ball movement. They need to build more cohesion in the final stretch, so they can carry it into next season.

Figure out What to Do with Rashard Lewis

Rashard Lewis has one year remaining on his albatross of a contract. Lewis is due $22.7 million in the final year of the six-year, $112.75 million deal he signed with the Magic. Fortunately, the contract has a $13.7 million buyout.

The contract is guaranteed, so Lewis will get his money regardless. What the Wizards need to decide over the next few weeks is how they will handle the situation. Will they use their amnesty clause on Lewis, taking his contract off the salary cap? Will they not amnesty him, but buy him out, keeping his money on the cap but removing him from the roster? Or will they allow him to finish out the contract?

The third option seems unlikely, given Lewis' underwhelming performance. While it's unknown what Washington will decide, in all likelihood, the Wizards will just buy him out rather than use the amnesty clause.

They're not close to contending, so they're not in dire need of cap space to acquire a player that will put them over the top. They already made it through this year without using the clause on Lewis, so they might as well just wait it out.