Preview: San Antonio Spurs vs. Washington Wizards – Game #51

The San Antonio Spurs have lost five straight games. Tonight, they will attempt to end that losing streak when they host the Washington Wizards in the AT&T Center. The Spurs, who have a 14-36 record on the season, haven’t won since they defeated the Brooklyn Nets without Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. Overall, they’ve lost 13 of their last 15 games.

The Wizards, on the other hand, have won five straight games. In their five-game winning streak, they have impressive victories over the New York Knicks, Dallas Mavericks and New York Knicks. Washington has a record of 23-26. They are currently tied with the Chicago Bulls for the ninth seed in the Eastern Conference.

San Antonio Spurs Injury Update

Two players are out for the Spurs against the Wizards. Devin Vassell remains sidelined after undergoing a minor surgical procedure on his knee. He’s expected to be out until after the All-Star break.

The other player who will miss the game is Romeo Langford. Previously, Langford was starting in Vassell’s place but will now miss his fourth consecutive contest.

Josh Richardson has been dealing with right knee soreness lately but he’s probable to play versus Washington.

San Antonio Spurs Starting Lineup

With Devin Vassell and Romeo Langford out, expect the Spurs to continue to start Keita Bates-Diop. With Bates-Diop starting at power forward, that slides rookie Jeremy Sochan to a perimeter position. In San Antonio’s latest game against the Phoenix Suns, Sochan did an excellent job running the offense (see the Grades). The rookie finished with a career-high 30 points and also played solid defense.

San Antonio Spurs First Round Draft Pick Update

Spurs fans have kept a close eye on the standings this season. For a long time, San Antonio has had the second worst record in the Western Conference and the fourth worst record in the NBA. Recently, that finally changed. Due to the Charlotte Hornets winning two straight games, the Spurs have now dropped down to having the third worst record in the league.

That drop actually really helps when it comes to their 2023 NBA Draft odds. If the Spurs finish with the third worst record in the league, they’d have a 14% chance of landing the top pick, a 27.4% chance of landing a top two pick and a 66.9% chance of landing a top five pick.

If the Spurs rise back up and finishing with the fourth worst record in the league, they’d have a 55.3% chance of getting a top five pick.

If San Antonio keeps losing, they could drop even more. The Detroit Pistons are only 1.5 games ahead of the Spurs in the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes — and the Houston Rockets are only two games ahead.

Betting Guide: Spurs vs. Wizards

The Wizards are favored by 5.5 points and the over/under is at 241.5. Considering this is a battle of one of the hottest teams in the league and one of the coldest teams in the league, that 5.5-point spread isn’t much. For that reason, the smart money is on the Wizards to continue their strong play and cover.