Nolan Traore had 23 points and five three-pointers to help the Brooklyn Nets defeat the Washington Wizards 121-115 on Sunday.
Jalen Wilson added 19 points, while E.J. Liddell and Josh Minott each scored 15 for the Nets, who have won for just the second time in their past 14 games.
Washington (17-61) has a two-game on Brooklyn (19-59) for the best lottery odds. Indiana is 18-58 entering Sunday’s game at Cleveland.
The Wizards have lost six in a row and 22 of their past 23. The Wizards had given up 305 combined points in back-to-back losses to Philadelphia (153-131) and Miami (152-136).
Will Riley led the Wizards with 30 points, Jamir Watkins added 20 points, and Julian Reese had 17 points and 16 rebounds. Anthony Gill also scored 17 points, and Bub Carrington had 13 points.
Watkins dropped a triple that gave the Wizards a four-point lead with 3:50 left in the game.
The Nets answered with an 8-0 run that culminated when Traore made a layup that made it 109-105 with two minutes remaining, and Brooklyn led the rest of the way.
Both teams will play on Tuesday: the Wizards host the Bulls, while the Nets host the Bucks.
