Feb 19, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Washington Wizards guard Ramon Sessions (7), center Nene (42), forward Markieff Morris (5), guard John Wall (2), and guard Garrett Temple (17) stand on the court during a stoppage in play against the Detroit Pistons in the fourth quarter at Verizon Center. The Wizards won 98-86. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Washington Wizards Fall To The Miami Heat In Their Third Game In Three Nights

Washington Wizards Fall To The Miami Heat In Their Third Game In Three Nights by Ben Mehic

Washington Wizards Need To Figure Out Rotation…Again

The Washington Wizards‘ rotation has never been consistent this season.

At the start of the season, Kris Humphries surprisingly earned the starting spot at power forward after supposedly developing a 3-point shot. Since the Wizards wanted to play more up-tempo, Nene simply couldn’t be paired with Marcin Gortat in the front court anymore.

Once Jared Dudley returned following back surgery, he took Humphries’ starting spot.

The 6’7″ stretch four has been the starting power forward ever since — except for when Randy Wittman occasionally starts Nene against an imposing front court — and has been in the top five in 3-point percentage this entire season.

That could change soon, though.

Washington recently acquired Markieff Morris from the Phoenix Suns, who could move ahead of Dudley in the rotation.

After the deal became official, Dudley acknowledged that the younger forward would probably be a starter in D.C. But, as Dudley also pointed out, nothing is going to be handed to Morris.

In two games with the Washington Wizards, Morris has put up less than six points per game on a putrid 27 percent shooting from the field.

The struggles were expected.

It takes time to adjust to a new style and teammates.

It’s pretty clear that Morris is lost out there.

On Saturday night, in particular, Morris struggled to find his spots on the court and botched a pass from John Wall in transition.

While I think it’s important to note the change of scenery and the inevitable struggles Morris is going to go through while making adjustments, I’m not convinced that the shooting struggles are a result of that.

Prior to landing in D.C., Morris shot less than 40 percent from the field with the Phoenix Suns and made less than 29 percent of his threes.

Since he’s playing with one of the best passers in the world, I expect his overall percentage to increase from the field, but his inability to consistently knock shots down from deep is concerning.

Morris’ situation could become similar to Otto Porter‘s, who’s upped his field goal percentage to roughly 47 percent, but still shoots just 32 percent from three.

Morris is going to get clean looks inside while playing with Wall, Bradley Beal and Gortat, but he still needs to hit shots from three if he’s going to get consistent playing time. After all, Morris was billed as a stretch four and he needs to knock down shots from the perimeter.

So, with all of that said, Wittman is going to have to figure out the rotation again. There’s just over a week left in the month and the Washington Wizards still haven’t solidified their rotation.

Until Morris becomes more comfortable, we’ll continue to see Dudley start at the four.

Once Morris does eventually take over — if he ever does — Wittman will then have to figure out what to do with the rest of the players.

Porter has shown that he’s more productive at the four spot, and of course, Dudley has too.

Will Dudley get more time at the three? Can they slide Dudley to the starting three spot and slot Porter in as the primary backup four? When will Beal return to the starting lineup permanently? These are all questions that should be answered in the coming weeks.

There have only been a couple of players this season that have gotten consistent playing time from Wittman. Wall, Gortat, Porter and Temple seem to be the only players who get regular minutes. Everybody else is kind of an unknown. With less than 30 games remaining in the season, it’s on Wittman to finally figure it out.