John Wall, Bradley Beal lead recent Wizards run

John Wall and Bradley Beal called for more from the crowd the same night LeBron James used social media to reframe his grousing about Cleveland’s roster. A member of the Boston Celtics left a fist print in a Verizon Center wall that night, too. The Toronto Raptors were on the way to a fourth consecutive loss. Among the teams in front of the Washington Wizards, only the Atlanta Hawks had been stable of late.

When Wall and Beal had their hands in the air at the end of a tip-to-horn handling of the pseudo-rival Boston Celtics on Tuesday night, they were finishing up a 14th consecutive home win. That streak has coupled with the wobbling atop the conference to launch the Wizards into fifth place. By the end of Wednesday night, they could be a half game behind fourth-place Atlanta, which is Friday’s opponent, and one game behind careening Boston, which is third. Washington’s bandwagon is beginning to fill thanks to the home run and the top-end of the conference coming back to the pack. However, their main issues going forward remain the same.

At the end of December the Wizards had reached .500. That was of note after a 2-8 start. Suddenly, they are 25-20 and have the Eastern Conference’s best record, 23-12, since that bumbling start. Only Golden State, San Antonio and Houston have been better since that suboptimal beginning when the Wizards didn’t have direction.

“Just figuring out who we were,” Markieff Morris said. “Early on in this season, our identity was all over the place. We didn’t know whether we wanted to stop players or we wanted to outscore them. Now, we’re just kind of doing it on both ends.”

Some perspective on the 14-game home winning streak: It’s the longest current streak in the NBA. The Wizards have not won this many home games in a row since 1989, when they won 15 consecutive. When the streak started seven weeks ago, Washington was 7-13 after allowing 124 points to the scoring-challenged Orlando Magic (25th in the league). Wall scored 52 points, but, to Morris’ point, they did not stop anybody.

Morris has been involved in a crucial wrinkle. The lineup with him playing center was not often used in the first three months. In January, when the Wizards are 9-4, Scott Brooks has more often deployed the group that includes Wall, Beal, Otto Porter, Kelly Oubre and Morris. They try to switch all screens on defense and maximize pace on offense. That unit has been fouled often because of the offensive push spearheaded by Wall.

“That’s our fast unit,” Morris said. “We want to run when it’s that time. You know, guarding guards ain’t my forte, but got to do it if coach needs it.”

Winning is always a salve. But, the Wizards are still dealing with most of the same core questions they had once they righted themselves.

Can they count on Ian Mahinmi at any point this season? The return of the defensive-focused center would be a boon for a bench group that still needs help in all facets. He went through drills on the main floor Tuesday before stopping and signalling that something was wrong with his lower back. He sat in a courtside seat for a few minutes, then went to the locker room instead of going back onto the floor. Mahinmi is slated to be assessed again at the end of the month, when he hits the six-week mark since receiving platelet-rich plasma injections in both knees.

Can they grapple with the top of the Eastern Conference with the bench as constituted? The bench remains thin and the starters’ minutes heavy.

Now that they have an extended home winning streak and two months of quality basketball, how much do they want to pursue change, and what will it cost? Their distribution of the offseason bench money has strangled their options. Andrew Nicholson has played 15 minutes in January. Mahinmi has played none. Combined, those two are making roughly $22 million this season. They account for almost a quarter of the Wizards’ cap usage and don’t play.

Washington’s assets, or lack thereof, also have not changed since this charge began. The Wizards have little to offer beyond draft picks in order to fetch help before the Feb. 23 trade deadline.

Lastly, is the immeasurable issue of camaraderie. Brooks was fine with the Wizards wearing all-black attire to Tuesday’s game against the Celtics. He felt it showed unity, and he had been around this type of idea before. That time it resulted in a man and his hair being separated.

Brooks was 31 years old when was playing for the New York Knicks in 1997. The end of his unlikely NBA career was near when the Knicks decided a show of solidarity would come from shaving their heads for the playoffs. Most participated. Knicks guard John Starks abstained.

’’I’m like Samson,’’ Starks said.

Brooks reluctantly cut his well-nurtured locks. Not all the way to the skin, but short enough that he was a participant. He had reason to leave a layer of brown.

“I was a reckless little kid with many scars and dents in my head — it was not going to look good,” Brooks said.

But, he did it. Brooks thought the clip showed he was unified with his team. That’s why he didn’t swat aside the idea of his players wearing all black and throwing around terms like “funeral” prior to the game against the Celtics. He knows there is a value there, one that has to be considered when plotting a next move.

“From every meeting I have with with all of our guys over the summer, I told them how important it is to build team chemistry,” Brooks said Tuesday. “But it has to be authentic. I’ve seen it all year that it’s growing. I think it’s going to continue to get better…. Everybody on this team has to sacrifice for the team to work.”

Ahead is a marker. Washington goes to Atlanta on Friday, where it will possibly have a chance to leapfrog the Hawks with a win. Four games against sub-.500 teams follow, including three at home, before Cleveland comes to Verizon Center. The home winning streak could be 17 by the time James and co. shows up. That night has a chance to provide more clarity of what the Wizards are, as well as what they need to become.