Wizards top Raptors for third straight win without John Wall

Before star guard John Wall underwent knee surgery Wednesday, the story of the Washington Wizards’ season was defined by the fact that they “got up” for the league’s best teams while struggling against teams below .500.

Wall’s surgery, however, changed that. For the next 6-8 weeks, the main story for the Wizards will be if they can withstand their schedule without their five-time All-Star.

Even without Wall, the Wizards showed Thursday they are still capable of competing against the league’s best teams — earning a 122-119 win against the Toronto Raptors. It was the Wizards’ third straight win without Wall in the lineup.

The Wizards almost blew it, too. They turned the ball over up just two with three seconds left and fouled Raptors star Kyle Lowry on the turnover. Lowry headed to the line, but made just one of his attempts.

Wizards guard Bradley Beal saved the game — sinking two free throws to seal the win. The pair capped off a night in which Beal had 27 points, six rebounds and six assists.

“It’s a game of will,” Wizards coach Scott Brooks said. “We have to show our will every time on the court, and I think we have these past few games.”

The Raptors entered Thursday’s game a game-and-a-half back for the best record in the Eastern Conference. Toronto soared to a 34-15 record under coach Dwane Casey, defined by their willingness to adapt to the modern NBA.

This season, Toronto has been determined to shoot more 3-pointers after a second round playoff exit last season. Lowry and fellow Raptors star DeMar DeRozan, normally two ball dominant guards, bought in and the Raptors are tied for fifth in 3-point attempts.

The change in mindset for the Raptors worked, and the Wizards are in the middle of having to become used to playing without Wall.

In some ways, this isn’t new for the Wizards.

The Wizards have had an ample sample size of playing without Wall, which coach Scott Brooks said has helped ease the transition. Without Wall, the Wizards no longer have a player who can burst to the rim and explode on the fastbreak.

Brooks and the Wizards have preached better ball movement and action away from the ball.

In the first two games since Wall’s latest absence, Washington took to that approach. They recorded a season-high 40 assists in Atlanta and had 27 on 34 makes Tuesday against the Thunder. Both resulted in wins.

Against the Raptors, the Wizards again demonstrated their willingness to pass. They finished with 30 assists while shooting 51.8 percent.

Individual Wizards have had to make adjustments, too. Brooks said he needed forward Otto Porter to be more aggressive, complimenting his recent stretch. On Tuesday, Porter’s 25 points were his high for the month of January.

Beal, meanwhile, had to assume more ball handling duties.

Brooks liked the improvement in both.

“I actually think (Beal’s) less aggressive,” Brooks said before the game. “He’s not attacking every time. I think he maybe has a comfort with John being out for [12] games without him prior to this. I think he’s taking less shots.”

Beal had a quiet beginning to the Thursday’s game, not scoring until 5:44 left in the second quarter. Beal was perhaps too passive and the Wizards’ leading scorer at halftime was Mike Scott with 10 points. It was no coincidence, then, that the Wizards trailed 62-55.

But Beal was much better in the second half, demonstrating for another game why he was named an All-Star last week for the first time in his career. Beal had 17 points in the third quarter — and the Wizards stormed back to take a slight 88-87 lead.

“The first half, I was just trying to get a feel on how they were going to play me,” Beal said. “They were doubling me a lot. … In the second half, I knew I had to be aggressive as much as possible to give my teammates the confidence to give us a chance to go on a run and pull out a win.”

Beal’s aggressiveness continued in the fourth and the Wizards’ ball movement was even better. A pair of back-to-back 3-pointers for guard Jodie Meeks forced Toronto to take a timeout when the Wizards took a 94-87 lead with 10:54 remaining.

Toronto went on to close the gap, but the the Wizards never got away from staying patient. They retook the lead, 112-110, on a pair of Markieff Morris free throws with just under three minutes left. Late game drama aside, it was an impressive win for the Wizards.

In a Wall-less world, the Wizards are finding moving the ball can help offset the problems without their star point guard.

“We need everybody to win,” Morris said. “”Without [Wall] here, that’s basically it. We need everybody to contribute and that’s what we’ve got the last couple of games.”