AJ Dybantsa gave Washington its first real jolt of the night in Detroit, and he did it with a finish that left him hanging on the rim.
The Wizards rookie, who entered Monday’s matchup against the Pistons ranked fourth in the NBA Rookie Power Rankings, turned in his first major highlight of November 2026 with a hard drive through the lane and a vicious dunk. Dybantsa caught John Collins in the paint, used a stutter step to create space, then blew past him when Collins stayed planted. The BYU product rose and threw it down, then stayed up long enough that his feet didn’t touch the floor for nearly three seconds.
Dybantsa had eight points by halftime and got there in 19 minutes, but Washington still went into the break trailing 68-58. The Wizards opened at Little Caesars Arena with a 4-6 record and actually led 32-31 after the first quarter before Detroit flipped the game with a 37-26 second quarter.
Anthony Davis carried the biggest scoring load for Washington with 30 points, even though he was listed questionable before tipoff. Trae Young added 13, and those two were the only other Wizards to reach double figures. That left Dybantsa as Washington’s third-leading scorer in the first half.
The Wizards shot 51.2% from the field but only 28.6% from beyond the arc.
Detroit had three players in double figures of its own. Collins led the Pistons with 15 points despite being on the receiving end of Dybantsa’s poster-worthy finish. Duncan Robinson added 14, and Cade Cunningham scored 11 before the teams headed to the locker room.
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Anthony Davis put together a huge night against Detroit, piling up 44 points and 13 rebounds, but the Wizards still walked away with a loss that said as much about their own issues as it did about the opponent. Washington had enough individual firepower to keep the game interesting at times, yet the overall flow never really tilted in its favor as the Pistons moved the ball more cleanly and played with far better rhythm.
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