Spurs can snap losing streak tonight against Washington Wizards

The San Antonio Spurs can snap their losing streak and sweep the season series with a win against the Washington Wizards tonight.

It’s been a tough stretch of games for the San Antonio Spurs but that can all end tonight as they go up against the Washington Wizards. In the first matchup between the two teams, the Spurs were able to escape with a narrow 124-122 win.

San Antonio will be looking for a similar result tonight as they hope to snap their losing streak and sweep the season series in one go. It’s achievable but a few things have changed since they last saw the Wizards.

The biggest change has been the insertion of Isaiah Thomas into the Wizards starting lineup. After a tumultuous past two seasons, Thomas has had a career renaissance of sorts in Washington. He’s finally fully healthy again and looks like he’s having fun on his new team. He’s not quite back to the level that he was with the Boston Celtics but he’s still dangerous.

Combined with Bradley Beal the two form a backcourt that can give the Spurs problems. Dejounte Murray will hold his own against Beal but Bryn Forbes will have to step up his defensive contributions if San Antonio wants to snap their losing streak. The Spurs have a defensive rating of 116.8 when Forbes is on the court compared to 104.3 when he sits.

Forbes has never been the best defender but if something doesn’t change soon he may have to cede his starting spot to someone else. This contest with the Wizards will give Forbes another chance to prove that the Spurs can be successful with him in the starting lineup.

Forbes isn’t the only Spur who will play a major role in this matchup. DeMar DeRozan is coming off of his best game of the season and will be counted on again to lead San Antonio. Before the game against Dallas, we touched on how important it is for DeRozan to come out aggressive and look for his own shots. That remains true tonight.

Washington is the worst defensive team in the NBA. They give up the most points per game to opponents and are at the bottom of the list when it comes to defensive rating. DeRozan just had his highest-scoring game of the season on Monday and he might set a new season-best tonight.

DeRozan will likely be guarded by Troy Brown to start the game and LaMarcus Aldridge will begin the game against Rui Hachimura. Brown is in just his second year in the league and Hachimura is a rookie, these are very winnable matchups for the Spurs stars.

Gameday bets and prediction

Spread: Spurs -2

Over/Under: 237.5

Player prop bets: None available

All betting information is courtesy of The Action Network.

The Spurs should be able to win this one and snap their losing streak. After an ugly stretch of tough losses, a bounce-back win in Washington is just what this team needs to get back on track before they play the 76ers on Friday.

Taking the over on this game is the way to go. The last time these two teams met they combined for 246 points, a similarly high scoring game could be in the cards tonight. DeRozan and Aldridge both appealing matchups and Bryn Forbes could be in for a good game with Isaiah Thomas guarding him.

It’s not quite time to smash the panic button on the Spurs season yet. However, if they lose tonight the streak will likely continue as they face the Sixers on Friday. After that, they get the Knicks on Saturday night. A loss to the Knicks will be a reason to hit the panic button. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.