Although Ish Smith sprinted back to the locker room just ahead of tip-off, a luxury afforded to a bench player who does not have to be on high alert in the opening moments, he would soon have to play starter’s minutes at point guard because Isaiah Thomas was kicked out. Troy Brown Jr., who weighs no more than 215 pounds, moonlighted as a power forward and needed every ounce of muscle he could find while defending the stronger and savvier Carmelo Anthony.

At times, the Wizards can mask such shortcomings when everything clicks at both ends of the floor – when their shooting is on and defending with purpose. Against the Blazers, however, they could neither trust in their offense nor sustain a solid stretch of defense.

Washington’s bench scored 76 points, led by Jordan McRae’s career-high 35, and yet the team still lost in a blowout. But if that had been the only head-scratching moment Friday night, then this would not have been a Wizards game.

Less than two minutes into the contest, Thomas was ejected for making contact with official Marat Kogut.

On the team’s third offensive possession, Thomas got trapped near Washington’s sideline by Anthony and Damian Lillard. Kogut stood directly in front of where Thomas was bottled in, beyond the sideline while watching the play. Then, with Anthony crowding his left side and Lillard on his right, Thomas appeared to grow frustrated and extended his right hand into the chest of Kogut with 10:32 on the game clock.

Kogut stumbled into two court side Monumental Sports & Entertainment partners, but did not fall completely over. As Kogut gathered to his feet, he immediately gestured as though he was tossing Thomas out of the game.

Thomas followed Kogut on the court, raising his palms and pleading: “What did I do?!” However, after a review, the three referees confirmed the call and Thomas was ejected.

This is the second ejection of the season for Thomas. On Dec. 21 in Philadelphia, Thomas was ejected and later suspended two games for entering the stands to confront two fans.

Over the past three games since serving his suspension, Thomas has averaged 12.3 points on 26.2 percent shooting. Following Wednesday night’s loss to the Orlando Magic when he went 3 for 10, Thomas returned to the court to work on his jumper.

Although Thomas officially played only 1 minute and 28 seconds, he can expect a fine to follow Friday’s event. Recently, the NBA issued a $25,000 fine to Oklahoma City Thunder guard Dennis Schroeder for “intentionally making contact” with a game official.

With Thomas off the court, Smith played 33 minutes and finished with 16 points and five assists, but he also accounted for the bench’s production along with Garrison Mathews and McRae.

With the restructured starting lineup underperforming – only Brown scored in double figures – Washington relied on the offense from three reserves. Mathews zipped around screens, searching for shots and made 6 of 9 overall and five 3-pointers for 18 points. He did a fine Bradley Beal impression.

Beal did not play for the third time in four games while Rui Hachimura emerged from recovery isolation and joined the team publicly for the first time since injuring his groin on Dec. 16. After Hachimura greeted teammates at the start of the game, he took a seat at the end of the bench.

The return of Hachimura, who has missed nine straight games, meant the Wizards would have another player in street clothes on a sideline where the suits outnumber the jerseys.