The Washington Wizards are gelling. Armed with All-Stars Anthony Davis and Trae Young — alongside No. 1 pick A.J. Dybantsa — the hungry squad is eagerly counting down the final days before the regular-season opener.
Only one preseason tune-up remains: an exhibition in New Orleans against the Pelicans on Friday evening. Then, the revamped roster plans to show off the fruits of a busy offseason.
The Wizards have been open about their efforts to instill a sense of camaraderie throughout the offseason. The entire roster traveled to Las Vegas for Summer League to watch Dybantsa make his Wizards debut. They reconvened in Southern California later in the season for more team-building. They began to report to the facility in Washington around Labor Day, weeks before training camp officially began.
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They’ll learn quickly whether those efforts pay immediate dividends. Early returns have been promising.
“Some [of it] is time, but you have to put some purpose behind that and some intention,” coach Brian Keefe said of the club’s budding chemistry. “I think we did a great job in the offseason of putting a lot of time and intention, spending time together working on the court and keeping the stuff off the court is important too. Some of that stuff will work out over time.”
Keefe, at the start of his third full season at the helm, has faced a fresh puzzle. How do you ingratiate established veterans — including Davis, Young and Khris Middleton — in a locker room that has emphasized playing time and development for young players, such as Alex Sarr, Bilal Coulibaly, Bub Carrington and Will Riley?
The players have made it easy. The elder statesmen have described players like Dybantsa as sponges, eagerly hoping to siphon off the decades of experience offered by veterans like Davis and Middleton. The older players are willing to oblige.
Davis jumped out as a natural leader to Keefe and forward Justin Champagnie.
“Really high-character person. How much he’s embraced our team, embraced being here, guy who likes to work, serious about his craft,” the coach said. “And then he’s really knowledgeable and wants to share his knowledge. Those things have been really impressive.”
“He makes everybody buy in. It’s hard not to buy in when you’ve got the big dog buying in,” Champagnie noted. “It helps everybody see what we’ve got going on and lock into it. He’s a leader. … He spews confidence into everybody he speaks to in this gym.”
The blend of youthful potential and veteran savvy has flashed in the preseason.
Keefe’s emphasis on defense translated into five steals for Dybantsa in his first two preseason matchups. The intentionality behind communication has opened up several lob opportunities for Young — even though some became turnovers.
“It’s a learning process, obviously,” Davis said of his connection with Young. The pair joined the Wizards via midseason trades but did not suit up together due to injuries. “Both of us are coming off stretches of not playing. We’re trying to get time in the bank.”
But having Young and Davis on the court takes weight off Dybantsa. Davis was a No. 1 pick himself. But he was expected to change the fortune of the New Orleans Pelicans as a 19-year-old in 2012.
Dybantsa doesn’t need to shoulder those expectations.
“He has guidance from other players who are still at the top of their game,” Davis said. “That’s a big difference.”
Dybantsa, a 19-year-old who played at BYU, has time to grow. After Wednesday’s practice, he clanked 10 three-pointers in a row off different points of the rim. After a quick adjustment, he drained the next six. His informal shootaround ended with a rim-rattling dunk.
“That’s what preseason is for,” Davis said. “Try to knock some of those kinks out early on so by the time the first game comes, we’re ready to go.”
The Wizards open the season at home on Oct. 21 against the Milwaukee Bucks.
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