Washington
Brooklyn Nets steamroll Washington Wizards in preseason game #2, 131-92
“I think we’re all excited. We’ve been working really hard. The whole month of September was just a grind for us, and I think everybody’s excited to kind of beat up on somebody else.”
That was first-year Brooklyn Net Shake Milton discussing the unofficial end to training camp, as Brooklyn’s preseason contest vs. the Washington Wizards on Monday night marked the beginning of real competition. Three preseason games this week, then the start to the regular season.
Ziaire Williams, are you also excited to beat up on somebody else?
“Yeah, one-thousand percent man. I’m tired of guarding Cam Thomas and Cam Johnson man, I’ve had plenty of reps against them.”
Preseason talk is to be taken with a grain of salt — as fans of the team that employs Ben Simmons well know — but every Net has emphasized how grueling Jordi Fernández’s inaugural training camp has been. Conditioning, hustle, effort, none of these drills too extreme, just more of them.
“You know, nowadays you go up and down two or three times, and they say your load is too high, right? So it’s not too much of that over here,” half-joked Williams.
So it’s no wonder Fernández — who spent much of the night windmilling his arm like a third-base coach to call for full-court pressure — called a timeout three minutes into Monday’s contest, following two possessions where Jordan Poole walked into buckets without any ball-pressure.
“We started okay, but we didn’t find a way to apply our ball-pressure like we’re supposed to, picking up full-court,” said Fernández.
However, his team responded strongly enough to finish the quarter with a 28-20 lead, while Nets fans likely noticed a development on the other end: Ben Simmons!
Simmons finished his 13-minute first half with a team-high 11 points, five boards, and two assists on 5-of-7 shooting. His last bucket, a hanging alley-oop tip-in from Dennis Schröder, didn’t break the backboard, but it did prompt YES Network’s Frank Isola to immediately say, “it looks like the surgery was successful.”
Simmons came out of the halftime break with the warm-up on; his night was done, but it was already a successful one.
Fernández admitted a clerical error on his part capped Simmons’ minutes at 13 (the plan was always a second-half break) while noting how his starting point guard did what he expected: pushing the pace, getting downhill, and finding the open man.
As for the rest of the game, the Nets ceded their lead to the Wizards midway through the second quarter. However, a Jaylen Martin/Jalen Wilson/Noah Clowney/Shake Milton/Ziaire Williams lineup may have been doomed from the start, and when the starters came back in, they immediately course-corrected.
Though Washington did miss many of their open looks, Brooklyn won the possession battle by only turning it over five times and allowing five offensive boards by the time main rotation players were subbed out toward the end of the third quarter.
“Well, this game, we put together a full game,” said Dorian Finney-Smith. “I feel like that first game we played in spurts; it was a full game, from the starters to the bench. Y’all got a glimpse of how coach wants to play, he wants to pick up full-court, wants to be disruptive and shoot a lot of threes.”
In that third quarter, Cam Thomas and Shake Milton, a couple of bucket-getting combo guards, reminded us that they do indeed get buckets. Thomas finished with a game-high 17 points, Milton with 16, and Jalen Wilson rounded out the trio with 14 points, with much of the trio’s collective damage coming in the third quarter…
As a whole, the Nets reminded us what having a handful of real NBA players looks like. No, Brooklyn will not be a good NBA team this season in part because, yes, they will trade some of those real NBA players to ensure a successful tank. But my god, the Washington Wizards are awful. Bub Carrington might be good though.
The Nets even ran up the score in the fourth quarter, entering the final dozen with an 89-70 lead and turning it into something much larger than that. Every player but Amari Bailey scored on the night, Noah Clowney dunked a couple times, and Tyrese Martin made some highlight plays.
As a nightcap, Cui Yongxi delighted the Barclays Center crowd (and his bench) with a couple buckets…
…and though he got a little ahead of himself by calling an iso that ended in an airball, it was a joyous end to the blowout.
“[He] plays with a joy man, and I love to see he’s always smiling,’ said Finney-Smith. “When you look at him play, you realize it’s just basketball because he always got a smile on his face.”
Cam Thomas, with an equally big smile, said of the moment: “Everybody got lit and then he called for the iso, so everybody just went went crazy. So it was good, definitely good. You know, everybody — we all like each other. I feel like that also helps us as a team. We all like each other.”
While Thomas’ reaction was nothing but genuine, it is easier to like each other when you’re winning. And the Nets won big on Monday night. It was even fun! Preseason, baby!
Final Score: Brooklyn Nets 131, Washington Wizards 92
Next Up
Brooklyn will play their second of three preseason games this week on Wednesday night against the Philadelphia 76ers. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. ET from the Wells Fargo Center.
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – SEPTEMBER 21: Voi Tunuufi #52 of the Washington Huskies gestures during the third quarter of the game against the Northwestern Wildcats at Husky Stadium on September 21, 2024 in Seattle, Washington. The Huskies defeated the Wild (Alika Jenner / Getty Images)
Former University of Washington defensive lineman Voi Tunuufi has died at the age of 23, the school announced on Monday night.
“Our hearts are with the Tunuufi family, his loved ones, and every brother who wore the W beside him. Forever in The Pack,” the school posted in an announcement on Twitter.
According to Andy Yamashita of The Seattle Times, Tunuufi’s sister, Sanita, said that he died in a car accident.
Tunuufi appeared in 52 games for the Huskies over four seasons from 2021-24, which included Washington’s run to the National Championship against Michigan in 2023. Tunuufi had 86 total tackles with 12.5 sacks, a forced fumble and two passes defended during his career.
The Source: Information in this story came from the University of Washington and The Seattle Times.
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YOU’RE INVITED! Exclusive Sneak Peek of the New Burn Building at the Washington County Public Safety Training – Washington County
Join us for a first look at this state-of-the-art training facility, designed to enhance firefighter and first responder preparedness through realistic, hands-on, live-fire training scenarios. This new addition will be placed in service by the end of June; and, it represents a major step forward in strengthening emergency response capabilities across Washington County and the region.
Training programs offered at the PSTC continue to emphasize the importance of joint training among fire, Emergency Medical Services (EMS), law enforcement, and emergency management partners. Facilities like the burn building allow multiple agencies to train together in realistic environments, improving coordination, communication, and overall response during critical incidents.
This event will also highlight the future vision of the training center, including plans for construction of a tactical village. The proposed tactical village will further expand multi-agency training opportunities and provide realistic environments for real-life, public safety scenario-based exercises.Guests will be treated to a sneak peek demonstration. The demonstration will showcase the capabilities and training value of the new burn building, as well provide a glimpse into future plans for the PSTC.
We hope you’ll join us as we showcase this exciting milestone. Come help us celebrate the continued growth of public safety training in Washington County.
Address: 18350 Public Safety Pl, Hagerstown, MD 21740
Date: May 19, 2026
Time: 2:00 p.m.
The East Potomac Golf Course could, starting Monday, undergo extensive renovations under the Trump administration’s guidance, and for some the fight to try to stop that from happening continues.
Renderings of East Potomac “reimagined” as a championship golf course and a formal memorial space were included in a document obtained by the Washington Post allegedly seeking donations that will support President Donald Trump’s plans to remake parts of D.C.’s waterfront, including East Potomac Golf Course.
The renderings depict new water features and a redesigned clubhouse. They also show the golf course occupying most of the space, with much of the park’s existing bike paths and open recreational space gone.
Mike McCartin, National Link Trust Co-Founder, says these spaces are part of why the course is so special.
“It’s a great symbiotic relationship, and it goes back to the history of why this place was made in the first place to provide active recreation not just golf but a bunch of different ways of recreational activities to the residents of D.C.,” he said.
The image also appears to include fewer than 18 holes compared to the current 36 total holes.
The news organization NOTUS reported Friday that deferred maintenance work at the course would begin Monday.
Not knowing specifics of the project, like in which capacity this space will be available for D.C. residents after the upcoming renovations, makes some regulars feel uneasy.
“Golf is a game that is played by people who have a lot of resources and access to private courses, and this was the place where anybody could play and see these incredible views and come and just really be part of D.C., so I think it’s a huge loss,” said Caroline Holt, who played at the course for over 15 years.
Features that are part of the current site, including the mini golf course and the nearby East Potomac Tennis Center, also are not visible in the image.
As part of an ongoing lawsuit against the U.S. Department of the Interior, the D.C. Preservation League filed for an emergency pause Sunday to prevent the golf course from closing. The document asks a federal judge in D.C. to set an emergency status conference and to prevent the administration from undertaking any steps towards the closure.
News4 reached out to the White House for comment about the specifics of the golf course project, when the park will reopen and comment on the petition for an emergency pause. We were deferred to the Department of the Interior and are still waiting on an answer from them.
Now, who will manage the course possibly starting tomorrow or once the administration officially takes over the project? Those are questions that as of now remain unanswered. The National Link Trust Team says for now, they will be there Monday with its usual opening time of 7 a.m.
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