Field Level Media - Professional sports content solutions | FLM

The Washington Wizards hit their nadir with a 162-109 home loss to the Indiana Pacers on Thursday — the most lopsided defeat in franchise history.

Washington (16-57) now will look to regroup for a matchup against the visiting Brooklyn Nets (23-51) on Saturday night.

In a game rife with NBA draft lottery implications, both teams stumble into the contest following ugly losses.

The Nets lost their sixth straight game on Friday, when they trailed by as many as 41 in a 132-100 home setback to the Los Angeles Clippers.

Washington would prefer to forget the records set in Thursday’s loss to Indiana. The Wizards allowed the most points in franchise history, while the Pacers made a franchise-record 27 3-pointers and scored their most points ever.

“You should be upset. You shouldn’t be happy, but it’s always about what you do going forward,” Washington coach Brian Keefe said. “Unfortunately, losses like this happen. You don’t want them to. No one’s happy about it. It’s how you go forward. It’s always how you respond.”

One bright spot in the defeat was the continued development of rookie center Alex Sarr, who scored 22 points and is averaging 17.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.5 blocks this month.

The 7-foot Sarr, 19, has emerged as a top contender for the Rookie of the Year award, but he prefers to focus on the Wizards’ potential.

“I think it’s a nice accomplishment. But at the same time I think there’s way more than just getting an individual award,” Sarr said. “I’m going to be part of this team hopefully for a lot of years to come. And what we’re building right now is more important than (individual awards).”

The Wizards enter the game at far less than full strength. Khris Middleton (right knee) and Anthony Gill (left hip) exited Thursday’s loss with injuries and have been ruled out for Saturday. Kyshawn George has missed the past two games with a left ankle sprain and also is listed as out.

Washington is aiming for a season sweep of Brooklyn after winning its first two meetings — 119-102 on Feb. 5 and 107-99 on Feb. 24.

Brooklyn lost for the 16th time in its last 18 games on Friday, when the Clippers led 105-69 after three quarters.

“Who do you want to be?” Nets coach Jordi Fernandez said. “It goes down to, you know, we have high expectations on how we want to do things, and how we want to compete. I have to find a way to engage our players better, to play the right way, and that’s what we’ve done so far. Whether you win or lose, you play the right way with the right intentions.”

Keon Johnson had 13 points in the loss for Brooklyn, which signed forward Drew Timme to a multiyear deal before the game.

The 24-year-old Timme stood out in his NBA debut with 11 points and 10 rebounds in 25 minutes.

“I mean, I was nervous as crap out there, but it was awesome, you know?” Timme said. “It was a dream come true. And I like this feeling. I don’t want it to end, so I gotta keep working hard.”

Timme was averaging 23.9 points, 10.3 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 29 games (28 starts) this season for Brooklyn’s NBA G League affiliate, the Long Island Nets. He was undrafted in 2023 after four seasons at Gonzaga, where he was a second-team All-American three times.

–Field Level Media