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Injury-riddled Wizards face Nets

Apr 7, 2007 - 3:44 PM Washington (39-36) at New Jersey (35-40) 7:30 pm EDT

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (Ticker) - Without two All-Stars for the rest of the season, the Washington Wizards continue to look for a new way to play when they take on the New Jersey Nets on Saturday.

Already without forward Caron Butler (broken hand), the Wizards lost guard Gilbert Arenas to a left knee injury in Wednesday's loss to Charlotte. Without Butler and Arenas, the Wizards are missing 47 points per game from their attack and will be forced to rely on ball and player movement rather than isolation sets.

On Friday, Washington fell to 2-9 without Butler this season as it suffered a 99-94 loss to Cleveland in its first game without Arenas. Antawn Jamison scored 27 points but could not pick up all of the slack.

Washington needs one win to clinch its third straight playoff berth. It is sixth in the Eastern Conference, four games ahead of New Jersey, which has won four of its last six games to claim seventh. The teams meet again Tuesday.

New Jersey did not look good in its last contest, a 105-74 loss at Chicago on Friday that snapped a two-game winning streak. The Nets shot 34 percent (26-of-76) from the field.

New Jersey is one game ahead of eighth-place Orlando (34-41) and two in front of Indiana (33-42). It has not missed the playoffs since 2001.