During his weekly Wednesday appearance on The Sports Junkies, Washington Wizards coach Brian Keefe lightened his stance of Cam Whitmore’s benching.
“We were looking at different rotations. We hadn’t played well in the games before that. We wanted to try something new,” Keefe said. “[Whitmore] didn’t do anything wrong himself, but he’s learning our system … We wanted to give some other guys a chance.”
Whitmore was the lone Wizard to not play in last Friday’s 131-116 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. The 21-year-old forward was listed as questionable pregame with an illness before being upgraded to available.
Advertisement
Keefe took a different, harsher stance last Friday when asked why Whitmore didn’t play.
“We have certain standards that we have for our team,” Keefe said. “[Whitmore] has to live up to those on the better. And he’ll have a chance here, but that’s gonna be up to him when that time comes.”
Keefe’s answers suggest differing reasons for why Whitmore was benched. Keefe’s response on Friday insinuates he took issue with something regarding Whitmore’s recent performance — Whitmore shot 4-22 FG and was a -38 over the prior two games — while his comments on Wednesday explicitly state Whitmore “didn’t do anything wrong himself.”
Advertisement
It is an interesting change in tone from Keefe, who is trying to establish some sort of culture in Washington despite a 3-19 record this season and a 29-114 overall record as head coach of the Wizards.