News Wizards Team Notes

Kispert Will Miss Several Weeks With Fractured Thumb

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The Washington Wizards announced that Corey Kispert suffered a fractured thumb during Tuesday’s blowout win over the Atlanta Hawks. This news was first reported by The Athletic’s Josh Robbins.

The team said Kispert will not need surgery, and that the injury typically takes three weeks to heal.

Kispert started the past two games as the team sat veteran Khris Middleton on the second night of a back-to-back, and then Kyshawn George missed a game with an illness.

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He’d been having something of a bounce back shooting season — his three point percentage is 40.3% this year. That’s his best mark since shooting 42.4% in 2022-23, his second season in the league. The thumb injury is to his shooting hand.

While his individual production has been relatively modest, the team has been better on both ends when he’s been on the floor this season. That’s not the same as “good” — they’ve been -6.0 per 100 possessions when he’s on the floor vs. -19.0 when he’s off.

Kispert joins rookie Tre Johnson and possibly Marvin Bagley III on the team’s injury report. Johnson is dealing with a strained hip flexor. The team has not set a timetable for his return. Bagley sustained a hip contusion, and initial reports indicated he would miss multiple games.
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Source: https://www.bulletsforever.com/wash...-will-miss-several-weeks-with-fractured-thumb
 
Wizards at Pacers Preview: Washington Goes to Indiana for Last NBA Cup Group Game

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Game Info

When: Friday, Nov. 28 at 7:30 p.m. ET

Where: Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN

How to watch: Monumental Sports Network, LeaguePass

Injury Report​


Wizards: Kyshawn George – Questionable (Illness), Marvin Bagley III – Questionable (Hip), Tre Johnson – Out (Hip), Corey Kispert – Out (Thumb)

Pacers: Johnny Furphy – Out (Ankle), Quenton Jackson – Out (Hamstring), Aaron Nesmith – Out (Knee), Obi Toppin – Out (Foot)

Pregame notes​


Wizards were able to break their 14-game losing streak on Tuesday as well as win their first-ever NBA Cup game. There is some momentum after a very convincing victory over division foe, Atlanta Hawks.

Up next is the Indiana Pacers, who are going through their own struggles. The Pacers are the only team in the NBA and the Eastern Conference with a worse record than the Washington Wizards. A lot of this is in part due to the lost of Tyrese Haliburton, due to injury, and Myles Turner, due to free agency.

With all of this in mind, it is rare that we can say the Wizards have a good chance to win this game, but even more so to start a winning streak. The victory over the Hawks was a solid foundation for building a winning formula: efficient shooting combined with solid defense that includes forcing turnovers. If the Wizards are able to combine these two elements, they have a chance to be in many games. The question will be with such a young team, can they be consistent? Friday night’s game will tell us if they are indeed trending that way or not.

The Wizards and Pacers have both been eliminated from qualifying for the NBA Cup tournament, so this game will not have any barring on helping either team in the NBA Cup.
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Source: https://www.bulletsforever.com/wash...n-goes-to-indiana-for-last-nba-cup-group-game
 
Alex Sarr is getting more love at the national level

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The Washington Wizards may be in the midst of another season in the tank, but the long-term rebuilding plan is finally starting to show signs of bearing fruit.

Alex Sarr began his NBA life as the maligned second overall pick in a weak draft class before putting together a solid, if unspectacular, rookie season. Now in his second year, Sarr has emerged as the Wizards’ best player and the team’s lone representative in league-wide conversations.

It is impossible to watch every game all the time, and I believe one of the best resources for keeping up with the NBA is The Ringer’s monthly ranking of the top 100 players in the league (I have not been paid by them to say this, though I am happy to send my resume over to the kind folks over at The Ringer…). Sarr finally entered the top 100 this month, debuting at number 86.

Sarr is the Wizards’ lone representative on the list, and his 86th-place ranking puts him in the neighborhood of players like Kristaps Porzingis, De’Andre Hunter and Lu Dort. That Sarr even cracked the list at all shows that people are paying attention to his rise and are not getting caught up in his early-career reputation.

His jump from his first to his second season tells me that Sarr’s development is real and that he will be a cornerstone piece for the Wizards going forward. He’s the team’s leading scorer at 18.7 points per game, and his outside shot has improved to 35.4%, meaning it has to be at least respected by defenders, if not quite feared.

Sarr leads the Wizards in rebounding at 8.5 per game, though I would still consider rebounding one of the weaknesses of his game. A seven-foot starting center needs to be a genuine glass cleaner, especially in the absence of any particularly compelling forwards, as is the Wizards’ case. To be fair to Sarr (kind of?), the Wizards’ league-worst defense means there are fewer boards to go around, since opposing players face little resistance making their shots.

In conclusion, while I don’t believe Sarr is a future “best player on a championship team” type of player, I think he is an important foundational piece for a team that one day aspires to play competitive basketball, and it is refreshing to see him finally getting his flowers in the national conversation.
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Source: https://www.bulletsforever.com/wash...x-sarr-washington-wizards-ringer-nba-rankings
 
Wizards at Pacers Recap: Wizards lose big in Indiana, 119-86

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Wizards drop an ugly one in Indiana.

Watching the NBA Playoffs last year, it was clear that Indiana Pacers’ offensive identity centers around playing with pace, and moving the ball to the open shooters. This allows them to get many players involve offensively, and tonight was no different.

For the night, the Pacers put six players in double figures, while racking up 27 assists.

This game really got ugly in the 3rd quarter. The Wizards struggled with their defensive rotations all night. The constant cutting and ball movement put the Wizards’ defense in rotation often. The Pacers also thrived on live ball turnovers which allows them to get in transition and start their offensive flow. For the night, Pacers got 21 points off of the Wizards’ 16 turnovers.

Wizards also were cold for much of the night, scoring under 90 points and shooting sub-40 percent. This is not a recipe for winning.

Pacers outscored the Wizards 30 -21 in the 3rd quarter to extend their 12-point halftime lead to 21-points.

On the bright side, Alex Sarr had a strong game. He had 24 points, 7 rebounds and 2 blocks. There were times where the team was looking to him for baskets, as he was the most consistent performer on that end.

Wizards drop this one 119-86 and lose the last NBA Cup Qualifier Game of the season. Washington will be back in action on Monday, at home, as they go to face the Milwaukee Bucks at home in Washington, DC.
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Source: https://www.bulletsforever.com/wash...cers-recap-wizards-lose-big-in-indiana-119-86
 
Wizards announce their additional regular season games

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On Saturday, the Washington Wizards announced that they will host the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday, Dec. 12 at 7 p.m. ET at Capital One Arena. Then on Sunday, Dec. 14, they will play the Indiana Pacers on the road at Gainbridge Fieldhouse at 3 p.m. ET.

The games fill in the schedule for the Wizards after their conclusion of games in the pool stage of the NBA Cup. Each team plays these games against other teams that did not advance in the competition.
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Source: https://www.bulletsforever.com/latest-news/66523/washington-wizards-additional-regular-season-games
 
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