Wizards, Nets Eliminated From Postseason Contention

The Wizards and Nets were both eliminated from postseason contention on Thursday night when each team lost, per Keith Smith of Spotrac (Twitter link).

Washington dropped to 16-49 after losing in overtime at Orlando on Thursday. The Wizards only have 17 games left and are 18 wins behind the No. 10 Hornets (34-33), so they have no way to make up the deficit.

The circumstances are very similar with Brooklyn, which dropped to 17-49 following Thursday’s loss at Atlanta. The Nets have 16 games left and are 17 wins (16.5 games) behind Charlotte.

The Wizards and Nets are the third and fourth teams who have been formally ruled out of postseason contention, joining the Pacers and Kings.

Washington’s 2026 first-round pick is top-eight protected and will convey to New York if it lands outside the top eight. If the season ended today, that selection would have zero chance of conveying, since the Wizards have the third-worst record in the NBA and could finish no worse than seventh in the draft lottery. In that scenario, the Wizards would convey two-second round picks (in 2026 and 2027) to the Knicks.

The Nets don’t have to worry about their 2026 first-rounder, which they control. They do not have control over their own 2027 first-round pick — the Rockets have the right to swap their selection with Brooklyn’s. The Nets would still control two 2027 first-rounders if they have a worse record than the Rockets next year — Houston’s and New York’s.

A previous of this post incorrectly stated that Washington was eliminated from postseason contention prior to Thursday’s game vs. Orlando. The Wizards technically weren’t eliminated until after they lost to the Magic.