The Washington Wizards closed the 2025-26 regular season on Sunday with a 130-117 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Arena. The result gave the Wiz kids their 26th loss over the team’s final 27 games — mission accomplished in their race to the bottom of the standings.
Sunday’s game was shaping up to be a blowout only minutes past the opening tip, as the Cavs raced out to a 25-point lead in the first quarter. Jamir Watkins and Anthony Gill were the lone bright spots early, with each scoring
7 points as the Wizards trailed 43-21 to end the opening period.
Bub Carrington started to sizzle late in the first half. The second-year guard scored 12 straight points to end the second quarter, trimming the lead down to 65-55 at the break.
Washington kept the momentum going after halftime with a shooting clinic in the third quarter. A contested Sharife Cooper three-pointer allowed the road dogs to get within two at the 1:26 mark. The Wizards trailed 99-95 entering the final period of the season.
The fact that the Wizards made things interesting late was a marvel considering the team was outrebounded 63-37. The second-chance points Washington gave up stymied any momentum to complete a comeback in the fourth quarter, ending the team’s year with a 13-point loss.
Jamir Watkins had an encouraging final game of his rookie campaign. He shot an efficient 7-of-13 with 5 triples to score a career-high 24 points. Bub Carrington and Sharife Cooper posted 20 points apiece, while Will Riley struggled to score with 6 points on 2-of-11 shooting.
The Wizards’ attention now shifts to the NBA draft lottery on May 10. Washington has a 52.1 percent chance to nab one of the top-4 spots in the draft and can finish no lower than 5th in the order.
