The Washington Wizards believe they have the perfect mixture of youth and veteran leadership to take the team deep into the playoffs this season. They broke their five-year drought last year thanks to young talent on the court, but with offseason additions like Paul Pierce, the Wizards are looking like one of the best teams in the East. Now they face division rivals the Atlanta Hawks in hopes of staying on top of the Southeast while earning their third straight win.
The trio of John Wall, Bradley Beal and Pierce is working out very well for the Wizards. The veteran put up a season-high 25 points and 10 rebounds in Saturday's win over the Milwaukee Bucks while Wall added 19 points leading a comeback win. Pierce was a big reason the Wizards were able to top the Cleveland Cavaliers over the weekend. The veteran shot 8 of 16 while knocking down 4 of 5 3-point shots. Over the past three games, he is averaging 17.0 points on 54.5 percent shooting. Pierce might not always be a starter for Washington, but it is clear he is a major asset coming off the bench while showing strong leadership for the younger players.
"He's the 'Truth' for a reason," Wall said, via ESPN.com. "It's great to have a guy like that to take the pressure off you at times. He's been in that situation multiple times, making big shots and big plays."
The Wizards have had the number of the Hawks in recent season. The team has taken the last four of five matches and three straight at home. Those numbers could easily continue as Atlanta is just 1-4 on the road while Washington is holding its oponents to just 42.2 percent shooting with the home court advantage.
The Hawks beat the Detroit Pistons after losing two straight. Jeff Teague put up 28 points while Paul millsap had 15 and 12 rebounds. The defense is struggling on the road, giving up an average of 107.4 points which could seriously hurt against the sharp-shooting of the Wizards. Wall is averaging 21.3 points against the Hawks.
Watch Wizards vs. Hawks live stream, click here.
