Jeff Dowtin helped the Sixers snap a 12-game losing streak, scoring 30 points in a comfortable 122-103 victory over the Washington Wizards. It’s a win that more than likely locks the Sixers into the fifth-best odds heading into the draft lottery, assuming they lose one of their final two games against the Hawks and Bulls.

Here’s what I saw.

The Good

— In one of the strangest situations you’ll see, Jeff Dowtin Jr. has been one of the Sixers’ best players on an undermanned team and has simply not been able to play. He was cooking teams throughout March, but because of how contracts for two-way players work, he has been a DNP quite often lately, with Philly holding onto his final games to use at the end of the season.

Despite jumping back into the rotation with no rhythm, Dowtin was solid on Wednesday night. The veteran guard does what you expect out of him at this point — he probed the Wizards up to about the midrange, hit the occasional three, and served as one of a few credible shot creators on a Sixers team marching toward the end of their season. Dowtin had a heinous missed layup toward the end of the second half, smoking an open layup in transition, but that mistake only took place because he made a good play on the other end, freeing himself for a fast break with a well-timed theft.

The real fireworks began in the third quarter, when Dowtin checked in with the Sixers nursing a narrow lead late in the period. He scored 11 straight points for the Sixers, going absolutely crazy on jumpers and eventually just sort of shrugging in the direction of Philadelphia’s bench as he caught fire from beyond. Nobody will put it up there with His Airness turning toward Marv Albert in the 1992 Finals, but for Dowtin, it had to feel validating after spending two weeks in exile because of contract limitations.

After the dust had settled, Dowtin emerged with a new career-best night, wearing a big smile on his face as his teammates showered him with love. Having that sort of moment after two weeks of unwanted rest is hard for even the best, most talented players in the world. Hell, as good as Joel Embiid has been over the years, he is notoriously slow to get rolling after layoffs, needing multiple games to find his footing and get back to his best self. So credit to Dowtin for coming out firing and offering a final memory for teams around the league to look at ahead of free agency.

Dowtin should not be back next season, with the Sixers looking crowded in the backcourt and not needing to use a two-way spot on a guy who feels like a AAAA baseball player, too good for the developmental league and not good enough for the show. That said, he has closed the year strong and made the best of a weird situation.

— Lonnie Walker IV is running out of time to make his case to stick around next season, but he has shown more flashes as a bench scorer as the year comes to an end. The Sixers have asked less and less of him as a creator for others as time wears on, basically betting on the idea that he will get hot and stay hot if he’s only thinking about his own offense. By playing Walker next to multiple ball handlers, his gifts as a bucket getter have come to the forefront. He had an excellent first half down in D.C. on Wednesday, knocking down a pair of threes that he supplemented with additional scoring in and around the paint.

If Walker has an issue right now (other than his dropoff after halftime), it’s that he may be competing directly with Jared Butler for a spot on next year’s roster, with both reserve guards on team options for next year. Butler has looked every bit like a steady fourth guard when they have the Maxey, Grimes, and McCain trio all available to play. He has found good pick-and-roll chemistry with Adem Bona, played with nice patience as the lead guard, and is doing a stellar job of balancing scoring and setup play on a team that otherwise lacks an organizer. Butler played well against the Wizards in Philly’s final road game of the year,

Frankly, both guys are probably on the roster bubble regardless, because the 2025 draft class features a lot of guards the Sixers will have to consider from a pure talent/value perspective. If they stay in the top 5-6 picks after the lottery concludes, the odds go way up that another guard is added to the roster, which would basically remove the need to carry players like Butler or Walker on the roster.

If they draft a wing or a big instead, one of these two could survive roster cuts, and I’d currently put my money on Butler for his superior passing and pace control. But with Walker’s physicality and foul-drawing ability — he marched to the line eight times on Wednesday — it’ll be interesting to see how the team values their respective skill sets.

— This is your obligatory Adem Bona mention for tonight’s recap.

Another hyper-efficient night on offense, a good rebounding game, and some highlight reel blocks to add to the collection. Ho hum.

— As invested as we have been in the tanking race down the stretch of this year, I feel good for these guys that they were able to get a win under their belts before the year ended. Trudging through 15 straight losses to end the year would have been a brutal blow to their spirits, and these guys have been competing hard despite their talent limitations. Just make sure you lose at least one of the last two games and lock in that lottery spot in the top five.

— The game ended.

The Bad

— Quentin Grimes was 0/10 from the field in the first half. That’s tough to do.

— The game started.

The Ugly

— I know this is not about this specific basketball game, but best believe that we were tuned into the Luka Doncic introductions during his first return game in Dallas. And watching that scene, with Doncic wiping away tears as he watched the years of his life with the Mavericks go by, is one of the most surreal sports moments I can remember.

It is still unfathomable to me that the Mavericks would trade Doncic at all, and that visual really drove the point home. In a league where stars hold so much power and force moves anytime and anywhere they want, Doncic looked like a man content to play his entire career for one team. Every report, every inside detail, every public quote suggests Doncic was only ever focused on playing and winning with the Mavericks. And yet, Nico Harrison ended up trading this 25-year-old MVP candidate, and did so without creating any sort of bidding war for his services. Rob Pelinka is probably going to win Executive of the Year for simply picking up a phone call from an old colleague.

Doncic, of course, lit the Mavericks on fire in the return game, dumping 31 points on their head in the first half. It’s one of the many inexplicable things about trading Doncic, a cold-blooded killer who you now have to deal with in your conference for the foreseeable future. Not only did you trade away one of the league’s top talents, you put a bullseye on your head for him to aim at. Nice work!