AJ Dybantsa, the top overall pick in the 2026 draft, just had a seriously promising preseason debut, teaming up with veteran stars Anthony Davis and Trae Young to snatch a 111-109 win against the defending champion New York Knicks on Thursday night. Talk about a statement for the Washington Wizards, especially with AD making his first appearance in a Wizards uniform and the entire starting lineup dropping bombs.
The #1 Pick Was Smooth in His First Run
Yeah, the Wizards pulled off a W against the champs, but everyone’s eyes were on Dybantsa. He looked absolutely smooth out there in his 23 minutes on the court. The rookie put up 11 points on 5-of-11 shooting, grabbed 2 boards, dished out 2 assists, and, get this, snatched 4 steals! No blocks, but who cares when you are swiping the ball like that in your very first game? Washington D.C. is already buzzing with what they saw from their exciting young talent. This kid is gonna be fun to watch.
AD’s Big Return and Trae Young’s Deep Game
It wasn’t just the rookie making noise, though. Anthony Davis finally hit the court for the Wizards, and man, was that a sight for sore eyes! This was his first basketball since way back on January 8th, and he only played 20 games last year, none since getting traded. So to see him out there, healthy and putting up 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, plus 7 rebounds and 2 assists, that’s huge. And you know Trae Young was doing his thing, bombing away from deep as usual, dropping 15 points on 4-of-7 shooting with 4 assists and 2 steals. That trio showed out, and with exciting young talent like Alex Sarr, Kyshawn George, Bilal Coulibaly, Tre Johnson, and Bub Carrington around them, there is a lot of excitement surrounding this Wizards squad.
This team definitely has the look of one that could be a lot of fun this season. The big question, of course, is whether they can crack the postseason in the super loaded Eastern Conference. But if Dybantsa keeps showing this kind of promise and AD stays healthy, the rest of the league needs to take notice. We can’t wait to see what this crew does next.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Bleacher Report.
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