Wizards
Anthony Davis was the best player on the floor in the Wizards’ opener. One of Washington’s most encouraging stretches came while he was watching from the bench.
The Wizards pulled ahead in the fourth quarter of Wednesday’s 128-116 win over the Bucks with Davis and Trae Young resting, getting important contributions from a group led by Kyshawn George, Justin Champagnie and Deandre Ayton.
Davis was enjoying it enough that he encouraged coach Brian Keefe to leave the lineup alone.
“They were playing great defensively. They were making shots. I was just like, ‘Let them go. Let ’em play,’” Davis said, via David Aldridge of The Athletic. “You don’t want to mess up their rhythm.”
Davis finished with 34 points, 11 rebounds and four assists, providing the kind of production Washington envisioned when it acquired him. Young shot 4-of-13 but handed out 13 assists against one turnover, including five assists in the fourth quarter.
“It’s not going to just be me and AD doing it,” Young said.
George helped demonstrate that. After foul trouble limited him through the first three quarters, he finished with 18 points and five assists, supplying several important baskets down the stretch.
Champagnie contributed a three-pointer, a transition finish through contact and a pass ahead to Ayton for a dunk. Ayton also helped finish defensive possessions, while Bilal Coulibaly, starting for the injured AJ Dybantsa, supplied a late putback dunk.
As Aldridge writes, the challenge for Washington is turning years of development into consistent, competitive basketball. Wednesday offered a glimpse of players responding to meaningful fourth-quarter opportunities.
“I was hyping them up. It was fun to see,” Davis said. “You get to see these guys play, and now (they) get to play for something meaningful, in big moments.”
Jazz
Darryn Peterson’s debut was quiet, but finding him more opportunities should be part of Utah’s response, Jared Koch of Jazz On SI writes.
The No. 2 overall pick finished with nine points, four rebounds and two assists in 31 minutes during Wednesday’s 123-103 loss to the Grizzlies. He attempted just seven shots, making three, as Keyonte George, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Lauri Markkanen handled larger offensive roles.
Koch argues that Peterson needs both more aggression and more favorable opportunities within the offense.
“I thought it was OK,” coach Will Hardy said of the debut. “But we’ve got to continue to improve execution.”
Nets
Julius Randle and Michael Porter Jr. supplied 59 points in their first regular-season game together, giving Brooklyn an encouraging partnership despite a 110-103 loss to the Hornets.
Randle finished with 33 points, eight rebounds and seven assists on 11-of-18 shooting, while Porter added 26 points, seven rebounds and three steals.
As Ivan White of Nets On SI notes, the production didn’t extend far enough through the roster, with the bench struggling and Egor Demin having a difficult night.
Coach Jordi Fernandez will need more support around his leading scorers, but Randle’s ability to create and Porter’s scoring gave Brooklyn something to build around immediately.
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