If your starters get crushed in a head-to-head match-up against the other team’s bench, with the season on the line, you probably don’t deserve to win the game.
So it went for the Washington Wizards, whose season came to a merciful end Friday night with a 102-92 loss to Kyle Lowry and the one-seed Toronto Raptors.
Lowry was the best player on the floor in the win, scoring 24 points on efficient shooting and providing absolutely stellar defense on the other end. Bradley Beal finished with 32 points and a few huge threes, but it simply wasn’t enough.