The Wizards – down 3-2 to the Raptors in their first-round series entering tonight’s Game 6 – were already in a hole.
It just got deeper with Otto Porter sidelined.
Candace Buckner of The Washington Post:
BREAKING: Otto Porter Jr. is undergoing a small procedure on his left leg today to address a build up of blood flow in the area of his contusion, the Washington Post has learned.
— Candace Buckner (@CandaceDBuckner) April 27, 2018
He is OUT for Game 6, as well as the rest of the series if it continues.
Story coming
Porter has been just so-so in this series, but at his best, he’s an ideal complementary player – a knockdown spot-up 3-point shooter and plus defender. There’s no chance of him regaining that form against Toronto now.
This vaults Kelly Oubre into a larger role. He’s already talking the talk. Now, it’s even more important he walks the walk. Oubre hasn’t been great in this series, either, but he has potential.
How Washington fills in the rest of its rotation will be trickier. Not only did Porter start at small forward, he unlocked more versatile lineups as a small-ball power forward. This will mean more Markieff Morris and Mike Scott at power forward, which means more Marcin Gortat and Ian Mahinmi at center. The Wizards’ bigs will look more traditional. Washington also might use more three-guard lineups with three of John Wall, Bradley Beal, Ty Lawson and Tomas Satoransky.