Preseason rarely gives you the whole truth, but it does give you clues. For the Wizards, those clues matter more than usual. After years of tanking, Washington is trying to show it can actually move toward something bigger, and these exhibition games should help reveal how close - or how far - that is.
The first place to watch is the bench, because that group looks deeper than people might expect. If the starting five is Trae Young, Kyshawn George, AJ Dybantsa, Anthony Davis, and Alex Sarr, then Washington suddenly has real decisions to make behind them.
Tre Johnson looks like a nightly fixture after going sixth overall last season and flashing elite shooting potential. Deandre Ayton should be in the mix every night too, even with the ups and downs, because he gives the Wizards a reliable backup big and a safety net if Davis or Sarr miss time. Bilal Coulibaly also feels locked in as he enters his fourth season and continues to bring value on defense.
After that, things get crowded fast. Bub Carrington, Khris Middleton, Will Riley, Tre Mann, and Justin Champagnie are all chasing those last rotation minutes, and most teams only go nine or 10 deep.
Middleton may have the inside track after signing a three-year deal and still offering spacing and leadership. The other question is who wins the backup point guard job between Carrington and Mann.
Brian Keefe’s early rotation choices should tell us plenty.
The bigger swing, though, is what Washington gets from its headliners. No matter how much upside sits around them, the Wizards’ chances in a loaded Eastern Conference depend on Anthony Davis and Trae Young looking like themselves again. Both are coming off forgettable seasons and both have something to prove - to the Wizards, to the league, and to themselves.
If Davis starts looking like the two-way force he’s been in the past, and Young proves he can still run an offense almost on his own, the mood around this team changes fast. Davis also has the added pressure of playing for a contract, which makes this season even more important for him.
Defense is the other major checkpoint. Washington should be able to score.
Even in the tanking years, there were enough players around to pop off for big offensive nights. The question has always been whether they can stop anybody.
On paper, there’s real promise there. Davis and Sarr are both strong rim protectors.
George and Coulibaly can handle perimeter work. Dybantsa projects as at least a solid defender at the NBA level.
But the weak spots are obvious too: Young, Carrington, and Johnson all bring defensive limitations, and the challenge will be hiding those flaws well enough for the whole thing to work.
The talent is there. Preseason will help show whether the pieces actually fit.
In Other News...
Wizards Face A Tough Rotation Call On Justin Champagnie
Justin Champagnie has spent enough time with the Wizards to know how quickly the margins can tighten in camp, and this year feels different. After carving out a role with his energy, defense and rebounding, he again finds himself in the mix for reserve wing minutes, a spot that has never been guaranteed but has become harder to secure as Washington adds more options around him.
The challenge is that the Wizards are no longer approaching this season as a development exercise alone. With a clearer push to win games, every rotation spot carries more weight, and Champagnie is competing in a crowded group for those minutes. His value has been obvious in the past, but the question now is whether that profile still stands out enough when the team starts narrowing choices. [Read more 🡒]
Wizards Face A Costly Anthony Davis Decision They Cant Ignore
Anthony Davis remains one of the defining questions hanging over Washingtons future, not just because of what he can still do on the floor, but because of how much the Wizards have already had to account for him. Any long-term conversation around his future runs straight into the same two issues that have followed him for years: durability and cost. Washington can see the appeal of keeping a star of his caliber in place, but the team is also trying to protect enough cap room to support its younger core.
The financial part is only getting more complicated, especially with the Wizards already operating in a tight salary-cap lane. Daviss availability has been uneven since the trade that brought him out of Los Angeles, and his missed time in Washington has only sharpened the concern about whether a big extension would be too risky for a franchise still building. The front office has to weigh whether stability at the top is worth the strain on flexibility, and that decision is unlikely to get any easier as the offseason moves along. [Read more 🡒]
Wizards Enter A Rebuild Phase That Puts Pressure On Their Young Core
The Wizards are heading into another season with patience still at the center of the plan, even after three straight years at the bottom of the NBA standings. Under head coach Brian Keefe, the organization has stayed committed to development over shortcuts, and Monumental Sports & Entertainment CEO Ted Leonsis has continued to back a rebuild built around young players and future assets.
Now comes the part where the promise has to start showing up on the floor. Washingtons roster is still youthful, and the front office is clearly asking for growth as much as results, but the pressure is real because progress has to be visible eventually. For a team that has been living in reset mode, the new season is less about empty optimism than about whether this young core can begin turning a long-term plan into something more tangible. [Read more 🡒]