Wizards know how to adjust

When Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas, suffering from a pinched nerve in his surgically repaired left knee, pulled the plug on his season before Wednesday’s Game 5 of the Eastern Conference playoff matchup with the Cleveland Cavaliers, there was no wave of panic inside the team’s locker room.

There was no mad dash on the part of the coaching staff to come up with a plan to compensate for the loss of the three-time All-Star, and there was no additional stage fright on the part of his teammates.

After all, despite playing 69 of the regular season’s 82 games without Arenas — who on Nov. 21 had a second knee surgery in the last year and made his return in a limited role April 2 — Washington posted its best record in three seasons and earned the fifth seed in the East.

Photos: Wizards hanging tough against Cavs

“We’re kind of used to it,” team captain Antawn Jamison said of having to compensate for Arenas’ absence. “The biggest thing is you have to adjust, and we’ve been doing that all year. I wasn’t worried about him not playing because we’ve been finding a way to get it done without him in the lineup. But of course you want him on the basketball court with you. Saying that, guys like Antonio [Daniels], guys like Roger [Mason Jr.] get the opportunity to come in, be more aggressive and show a little bit more. That’s what we have to do now.”

By now, the Wizards have the adjustment game down pat. And it showed Wednesday night when the Wizards avoided elimination and beat the Cavaliers 88-87 at Quicken Loans Arena — where they had lost eight straight times.

In that game, Daniels slid back into his role as starting point guard. Mason reclaimed his role as sixth man. Caron Butler reassumed the assertive catalyst mode that made him the Wizards’ leading scorer as they forced their way into the playoff mix with a strong January. And the confidence the team cultivated while defying the odds without their top scoring threat reappeared as the Wizards ruined what was supposed to be the Cavaliers’ series-clinching celebration.

“I don’t think we’ve ever [panicked without Arenas],” Wizards coach Eddie Jordan said. “I think everyone has raised their game to another level when Gil has been out. And it’s something we feel comfortable about. There’s a comfort level because of the long time that we played without him.

“We’ve prepared ourselves through the course of 69 games, and I think we’ve performed very well without Gilbert. We’re a different team with Gil. We’re very explosive. He adds another dimension to us. But we’re ready to go without him [since] he has to shut it down.”

After averaging just 15.5 points in the first four games of the playoffs, Butler provided 32 points, nine rebounds, five assists and the game-winning basket. Daniels scored 12 points, five rebounds and two assists and made two foul shots to pull Washington within a point and set up Butler’s winning shot.

“This has been the story of our season,” Mason said after chipping in with eight points and two rebounds off the bench. “Gilbert is out, and guys step up. Caron has been big all year. And tonight he stepped up and did what stars do.”

While he hoped to give his team an additional boost by returning, Arenas said he believed the opposite happened since he couldn’t get fully healthy or produce consistently.

“I did everything I could to keep this team intact and not interrupt,” said Arenas who averaged 10.8 points, 2.8 assists and 2.0 turnovers in the playoffs. “But at the end of the day when you’re playing five on 4½, you’re interrupting and you need to have five healthy people to win a series. So, it’s time to get the healthy bodies out there.”

Those healthy bodies got the job done, but the Wizards don’t consider playing without Arenas as the key to the game.

“I’m the captain. I’m telling you he’s the best player of this team,” Jamison said. “We are not better without him.”

The forward and his teammates maintain that they won because they executed better. After getting outrebounded 51-31 in Sunday’s defeat, Washington narrowed the deficit to 40-39 on the boards. And the Wizards exercised more offensive patience, working for quality scoring opportunities instead of settling for ill-advised shots.

“We have kept our poise, and we are trusting the defense, and we’re trusting the offense as opposed to trying to do too much,” Jordan said after yesterday’s practice. “We said before that we have to channel all the emotion and the anticipation and excitement and bravado into being organized and channel that into the team framework, and we’re doing that.”