The Washington Wizards' 111-109 preseason win over the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on October 8 came down to the final possessions, and the NBA's official highlights, embedded above, collect the closing sequence that decided it: Washington's steadier fourth quarter against a Knicks side that had surged in the second.
Our written report on this game covers the quarter-by-quarter shape from the box score, and the highlights make a useful companion — particularly the late-clock possessions both staffs will study. October games that stay within one possession give young guards a final play against a set defence, which no practice scrimmage can reproduce and no blowout ever asks for.
Watch the closing lineups with that in mind. The players on the floor at the end of a preseason game are auditioning for the right to be on the floor at the end of a regular-season one, and both coaching staffs know the Garden crowd, even in October, grades the audition honestly.
Video credit: NBA official channel. The highlights are embedded from the league's own player; Express News Bulletin has not downloaded or re-uploaded them. Preseason results do not predict regular-season meetings, and final scores in our written coverage come from the published box scores, not from highlight packages.
