Brian Keefe doesn’t have the luxury of ignoring the Wizards’ spacing issues much longer.
Washington’s 112-102 loss to the Toronto Raptors laid the problem bare. The shooting numbers were rough, and while some of that can be traced to Toronto’s reputation as one of the league’s best defensive teams, the bigger issue is harder to miss: the Wizards just didn’t have enough 3-point threats on the floor.
Trae Young did his part, knocking down four of 10 from deep. Tre Johnson was right behind him, hitting four of eight.
After that, the well dried up. No one else on the roster connected on more than one triple.
That’s not a one-night blip, either. In the first game, Washington got the win behind Anthony Davis’ monster performance, but the team still went just six-for-28 from 3-point range. Bub Carrington was the only Wizard to make more than one three in that one.
If Washington wants to become the playoff team it believes it can be, Keefe has to get more inventive with how he puts shooting around the floor. In an Eastern Conference this unforgiving, poor spacing isn’t a long-term answer.
The starting five is where the issue stands out most, especially with AJ Dybantsa sidelined. Dybantsa isn’t a great shooter from deep yet, but defenses still have to honor him more than they do Bilal Coulibaly, who has been starting in his place.
While Dybantsa is out, there’s a simple move Keefe should strongly consider: stop starting Coulibaly, slide Kyshawn George to the three, and put Johnson in the opening lineup.
Carrington is another piece Keefe needs to think harder about. He played only 11 minutes in the last game, even though he remains one of the better shooters on a roster that doesn’t have many.
Yes, he can struggle at times to create rim pressure and hold up defensively, but his shooting matters. He was a neutral plus-minus in a 10-point loss, and giving him around 20 minutes per night doesn’t sound unreasonable if he’s helping the team.
Khris Middleton is the other adjustment worth exploring more often. He hasn’t been productive so far this season, but that looks more like an early slump than anything permanent. Even with aging knees, Middleton still has one clear skill that can help this group: he can get buckets.
Dybantsa’s return should help Washington’s scoring gravity in a major way. Teams won’t be able to crowd the paint the same way once he’s back. But until that happens, the Wizards need smarter lineup choices if they want to squeeze more offense out of this roster.
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Wizards Loss To Toronto Exposed A Problem They Still Havent Solved
The Wizards 112-102 loss to Toronto was another reminder that their offense can still get bogged down when a defense takes away the first option and forces the rest of the roster to manufacture clean looks. The Raptors made life difficult throughout, and Washington also came up short on the glass, leaving too many possessions on the table in a game that never really found a rhythm on the Wizards side.
Bub Carrington brought energy and defensive effort off the bench, continuing to carve out a more stable reserve role, but the overall scoring burden was still hard to balance. Anthony Davis also had a tough night, finishing with 9 points on 3-of-12 shooting, and for a team trying to find more reliable answers, nights like this keep exposing the same issue without providing a clear fix. [Read more 🡒]
Wizards Have A Will Riley Problem They Can't Ignore
Will Riley entered his second season with some momentum after a promising rookie year and a strong showing in Summer League, the kind of early rsum that usually earns a young forward a bigger look. Instead, the 21st overall pick from 2025 has found himself on the outside of the rotation to start the season, a wrinkle that stands out even more because Washington is already without its top draft pick.
Head coach Brian Keefe was asked about Rileys limited role after a recent game, and the situation has become hard to ignore for a player the Wizards presumably want to keep developing. When a young forward with his profile is fighting just to find minutes, it raises questions not only about the current lineup decisions, but also about how Washington plans to balance short-term results with the long-term growth of one of its more intriguing recent additions. [Read more 🡒]
Bulls Miss Out On A Debut Fans Wanted To See
The wait for AJ Dybantsas NBA debut will have to continue a little longer. The Wizards announced the No. 1 overall pick will miss their upcoming game against the Bulls because of a left ankle sprain, a setback that has kept him sidelined since Washingtons final preseason game and pushed his absence to three straight games.
For a team that already had plenty of attention on its young centerpiece, the timing is frustrating even if the injury is being treated as day-to-day. Chicago will still have to wait on the debut fans have been circling, while Washington keeps monitoring a situation that remains fluid heading into the next stretch of the schedule. [Read more 🡒]