Brooklyn Nets guard Cam Thomas (24) shoots next to Washington Wizards forward Deni Avdija (8) during the second half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, March 27, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
WASHINGTON— Cam Thomas scored 38 points, including a pair of jumpers in overtime, and the Brooklyn Nets held off Washington 122-119 on Wednesday night, snapping the Wizards’ modest three-game winning streak.
Jordan Poole scored a season-high 38 points for Washington, but he missed a 3-pointer that could have tied the game late in overtime. Dorian Finney-Smith had a chance to ice the game for Brooklyn with 4.3 seconds left, but he missed two free throws. The Wizards, however, were out of timeouts, and after securing the rebound, Washington’s Deni Avdija lost control of the ball when he tried to dribble quickly up court.
“We took a good shot every time we went down in overtime, make or miss,” Thomas said. “So we’ll just live with that, and at the end of the day, we just got stops.”
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The game began moments after Wizards owner Ted Leonsis spoke at a news conference touting the new agreement keeping his NBA team and the NHL’s Capitals in the District of Columbia. A plan to move them to Virginia had fallen part.
"It's nice just watching him grow… He's making the game easier for everybody."
Clax with some love for CT pic.twitter.com/LXzcqymnie
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) March 28, 2024
That bit of news came at something of a high point for the Wizards, who needed until late January to produce their first two-game winning streak and didn’t manage a longer one until now. The Nets, who probably won’t make the playoffs, and the Wizards, who definitely won’t, played an entertaining game that was tight after Washington rallied from a 10-point, second-quarter deficit.
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Both teams had chances to win in regulation. With the score tied at 112, Avdija had his shot blocked by Nic Claxton. Brooklyn then came the other way without calling a timeout, and Dennis Schroder missed a last-second 3-pointer.
A pair of perimeter shots by Thomas gave the Nets a 118-112 advantage before Washington made one last push. Corey Kispert had a chance to tie it when he went to the line with 13.5 seconds left, but he missed the second of two free throws and Schroder made two at the other end to put the Nets up by three.
Schroder scored 21 points, and Claxton had 17 and 13 rebounds. Thomas had seven assists.
“I’m playing him at the point some, I love him at the point, and he gets everybody involved,” Nets interim coach Kevin Ollie said. “He’s doing a great job, to just give us another added dimension out there, if I can get him some minutes at the point.”
Kyle Kuzma had 24 points and 10 assists for Washington. Avdija finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds.
Poole had eight assists and seven rebounds in addition to all his scoring.
“I feel like he’s been just more calm, hasn’t really been overdribbling,” Kuzma said. “I think he’s done a really good job of also playmaking.”
NEXT NBA SCHEDULE
Nets: Host Chicago on Friday night.
Wizards: Host Detroit on Friday night.