<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/ncaa-basketball/projected-no-1-pick-darryn-peterson-no-issues-after-first-game-back');   ga('set', 'title', 'Projected No. 1 pick Darryn Peterson has ‘no issues’ after first game back from hamstring injury');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Darryn-Peterson.jpg"><figcaption>Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Projected No. 1 pick Darryn Peterson has ‘no issues’ after first game back from hamstring injury</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-12T11:22:54-08:00">December 12th, 11:22am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-12T11:24:48-08:00">December 12th, 11:24am</time><address><a>Erik Slater</a>Erik Slater is the credentialed Brooklyn Nets beat reporter for ClutchPoints. He's a graduate of Lehigh University and the Newhouse School of Communications at Syracuse University, as well as a Lehigh Football and Syracuse Football alum.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Hawks</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Kansas star <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/brooklyn-nets/nets-news-brooklyn-projected-to-select-darry-peterson-in-mock-draft">Darryn Peterson could be the top target of several NBA teams</a> during next June’s draft. However, the projected No. 1 pick hit a speed bump early this season. After appearing in Kansas’ first two games, Peterson missed seven games due to a hamstring strain.</p><p>However, the Freshman phenom returned from a month-long absence during Sunday’s 80-60 win over Missouri and made it through unscathed. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/ncaa-basketball/kansas-basketball-news-darryn-peterson-minutes-restriction-vs-missouri-not-hamstring-injury">Peterson played 23 minutes</a> during the blowout victory, posting 17 points, three rebounds and an assist on 6-of-14 shooting from the field and 3-of-9 from three.</p><p>Kansas head coach Bill Self <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fy5J5Q6ccL4" rel="noopener">told 247 Sports</a> that Peterson has practiced with “no issues” following the win and is on track to play on Saturday vs. NC State.</p><h2>Darryn Peterson returns from hamstring injury amid competition for No. 1 draft spot</h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/D-Peterson.jpg"><figcaption>Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Peterson’s play over the next several months will be among the top storylines surrounding college basketball and the NBA. The 18-year-old has averaged 20.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists on 53.8 percent shooting from the field and 42.9 percent from three across his three appearances.</p><p>While Peterson is currently <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/46968510/2026-nba-mock-draft-projecting-all-30-first-round-picks-teams" rel="noopener">the consensus No. 1 pick in mock drafts</a>, BYU’s AJ Dybansta and Duke’s Cameron Boozer are not far behind.</p><p>“Peterson’s dynamic three-level scoring, impressive physical tools, defensive tenacity and competitive intangibles place him among the most complete and impactful freshman guards in recent memory,” ESPN’s Jeremy Woo wrote in his latest mock draft. “There’s room for debate around the No. 1 spot as the season unfolds, but Peterson would likely be the choice if the draft took place today. The prospect of an extended absence, however, would leave the door open for Dybantsa and Boozer to gain ground.”</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/brooklyn-nets/nets-news-aj-dybantsa-dominates-at-msg-in-front-of-egor-demin">Dybansta turned in an electrifying performance</a> on Tuesday at Madison Square Garden. The BYU star posted 28 points, nine rebounds and six assists to lead his team back from a 22-point second-half deficit during a win over Clemson.</p><p>Meanwhile, Boozer has averaged 23.0 points, 9.9 rebounds and 3.8 assists on 56/37/77 shooting splits across 10 appearances with Duke.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Projected No. 1 pick Darryn Peterson has ‘no issues’ after first game back from hamstring injury

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/washington-wizards/why-zion-williamson-wizards-trade-makes-sense');   ga('set', 'title', 'Why a Zion Williamson Wizards trade makes too much sense');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Why-a-Zion-Williamson-Wizards-trade-makes-too-much-sense.jpg"></figure><h1>Why a Zion Williamson Wizards trade makes too much sense</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-11T18:04:33-08:00">December 11th, 6:04pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-11T18:24:17-08:00">December 11th, 6:24pm</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>It’s only a matter of time before <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/new-orleans-pelicans/sources-zion-williamson-situation-beyond-repair-pelicans-open-trade-offers">New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson</a> plays for another team, and the Washington Wizards should use him to advance their rebuild.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/cj-mccollum-wizards-culture-standard-young-core">Wizards are developing their young core</a> as they lose enough games to make sure they keep their top-eight protected 2026 first-round draft pick, but this season has shown that they desperately need a point guard. They’ve utilized <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-cj-mccollum-bub-carrington-hawks">second-year guard Bub Carrington</a> in that role, but he has yet to show enough consistency to nail down the job long-term.</p><p>The bright side is that the 20-year-old, who entered the NBA as a combo guard, still has plenty of time to adjust and improve. However, Washington ranks last in basketball with a <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/teams/advanced?dir=A&amp;sort=OFF_RATING" rel="noopener">108.3 offensive rating</a> (per NBA Advanced Stats), which is one of the main reasons why it has already lost nine games by 20-plus points and two by 19 despite playing just 22 contests thus far. It’s one thing to secure next summer’s lottery pick, and it’s another to waste valuable game minutes for emerging talents like second-year center Alex Sarr, second-year wing Kyshawn George, and rookie guard Tre Johnson by constantly getting blown out.</p><p>The Wizards must thread the needle better between accomplishing their draft capital goal and also using competitive losses to help their young talent develop in the meantime. Getting a veteran point guard by the Feb. 5 NBA Trade Deadline would help accomplish that, as their offense would improve with better facilitation.</p><p>Williamson isn’t a point guard, but they could get one from the Pelicans as payment for absorbing his contract.</p><h2><b>Option 1: Trade for Zion Williamson in-season</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Zion-Williamson-1-reacts-to-a-play-against-the-San-Antonio-Spurs.jpg"><figcaption>© Stephen Lew-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The conservative option would be to wait until after the 2026 NBA Draft, when Washington would possibly have players like Kansas point guard Darryn Peterson or Louisville point guard Mikel Brown Jr.. But that would subject Sarr and company to a full season without a consistent facilitator to get them open looks, as previously stated.</p><p>Enter Dejounte Murray. The 29-year-old is rehabbing from an Achilles tear and is expected <a href="https://twitter.com/ProPelsTalk/status/1970942625252508034" rel="noopener">back around New Year’s</a>, per ESPN’s Shams Charania.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Shams with an update on Dejounte Murray stating a likely return at the end of 2025. </p><p> <a href="https://t.co/mc3BU0sZKT">pic.twitter.com/mc3BU0sZKT</a></p><p>— Justin (@ProPelsTalk) <a href="https://twitter.com/ProPelsTalk/status/1970942625252508034?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 24, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>The Pelicans no longer need Murray after drafting Jeremiah Fears No. 7 overall this past summer, right after the Wizards snagged Johnson at No. 6. Fears is an on-ball player while Johnson is best off-ball, which is why Washington still needs a consistent on-ball threat.</p><p>Here’s a trade that would work for both sides:</p><p><b>Wizards get:</b></p><ul><li>F Zion Williamson</li><li>G Dejounte Murray</li><li>C Yves Missi</li><li>2030 second-round pick</li></ul><p><b>Pelicans get:</b></p><ul><li>G Bilal Coulibaly</li><li>F Khris Middleton</li><li>G Corey Kispert</li><li>C Marvin Bagley III (can’t get traded until Dec. 15)</li><li>2026 first-round pick (least favorable of OKC, HOU, or LAC)</li><li>2026 second-round pick (via PHX)</li><li>2027 second-round pick</li></ul><p>This deal would not only put a band-aid on the Wizards’ point guard issue, but it would also net them Missi as a long-term backup to Sarr. The 21-year-old finished with 9.1 points per game on 54.7 percent shooting with 8.2 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.3 blocks across 26.8 minutes as a rookie last season, but his counting stats are down this year due to decreased playing time.</p><p>Meanwhile, Washington would move off of the oft-injured Coulibaly, who is extension-eligible this offseason. The 21-year-old is the team’s best perimeter defender, but he’s on the <a href="https://x.com/WashWizards/status/1999257245553430842" rel="noopener">injury report again</a> with an oblique strain after not reaching 65 games played in either of his first two seasons, per the team’s social media. His shooting efficiency is also worrisome, as he’s down to a 37.4 percent field goal clip (26.8 percent 3-point) after shooting 43.5 percent (34.6 percent 3-point) and 42.1 percent (28.1 percent 3-point) in each of the last two campaigns, respectively.</p><p>Additionally, the Wizards would take a low-risk bet on Williamson, who averages 24.6 points on 58.5 percent shooting (31.7 percent 3-point) with 6.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists over his career. The 25-year-old has played 65-plus games in a season just once since he entered the NBA in 2019 and is currently out with an adductor ailment, but that’s why the remaining <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/4913537/2023/12/21/zion-williamson-contract-guarantees/" rel="noopener">two-and-a-half years of his contract</a> are non-guaranteed, per The Athletic’s Mike Vorkunov. He must hit certain games played and weight benchmarks to receive all of the money he’s owed, so it wouldn’t hurt Washington’s pockets if his health doesn’t improve. If it did, he would add star power to an organization that needs it.</p><p>As for Murray, he averaged 17.5 points on 39.3 percent shooting (29.9 percent 3-point) with 6.5 rebounds and 7.4 assists over 31 games for New Orleans before going down last season. The former Washington Huskie has a combined $63.5 million cap hit over the next two seasons before a $30.7 million player option in the 2027 offseason, but the Wizards could trade him after the upcoming draft if they land one of the point guards.</p><p>The Pelicans would get a first-round pick back after giving an unprotected 2026 first to the Atlanta Hawks for rookie center Derik Queen this past summer, although it will likely be at the end of the round at the pace the Oklahoma City Thunder (24-1) are on. Adding Coulibaly to their young core would be risky, but his defense gives him enough upside to gamble on.</p><p>Finally, Washington shedding Middleton and Bagley’s expiring contracts as well as Kispert would <a href="https://fanspo.com/nba/trade-machine" rel="noopener">make the money work</a> in this deal, per Fanspo’s NBA Trade Machine.</p><h2><b>Option 2: Trade for Zion Williamson after drafting point guard</b></h2><p>If the Wizards refrain from big trades this season and draft a point guard, they could still get Williamson to add to the frontcourt. In that case, the Pelicans could keep Murray, and Washington could send a package for Williamson and Missi centering around Coulibaly.</p><p>On the other hand, a Williamson deal would be redundant for the Wizards if they draft a premier forward like Duke’s Cameron Boozer, BYU’s AJ Dybantsa, or North Carolina’s Caleb Love. If they land one of those prospects after doing Option 1, they could try to trade Williamson before his contract expires.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Why a Zion Williamson Wizards trade makes too much sense

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-rumors-cam-whitmores-day-to-day-work-causing-concerns-washington');   ga('set', 'title', 'Wizards rumors: Cam Whitmore’s ‘day-to-day work’ causing concerns in Washington');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Whitmore-shoots.jpg"><figcaption>Kyle Ross-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Wizards rumors: Cam Whitmore’s ‘day-to-day work’ causing concerns in Washington</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-08T09:26:29-08:00">December 8th, 9:26am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-08T09:26:29-08:00">December 8th, 9:26am</time><address><a>Jackson Stone</a>Jackson Stone is a Mercer University alum from Atlanta who graduated with a BA in communications. A lifelong sports lover, Jackson is a die-hard fan of all Atlanta teams. He joined ClutchPoints in 2023.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-will-riley-sends-message-washington-justin-champagnie" rel="noopener">Washington Wizards have been</a> on the struggle bus so far this season, currently sitting at 3-19 after a recent home loss at the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/atlanta-hawks/hawks-news-jalen-johnson-triple-double-streak-monster-game-wizards">hands of the Atlanta Hawks.</a> The Wizards were not expected to be good by any means this year, but fans were likely still hoping for something a tad bit more encouraging than what they’ve seen so far.</p><p>Over the offseason, the Wizards brought in Cam Whitmore from the Houston Rockets, hoping that the gifted wing would be able to fully blossom with a much larger role. So far, that hasn’t been the case, and recently, <a href="https://rg.org/news/basketball/practice-habits-center-cam-whitmore-shrinking-role-wizards" rel="noopener">one report shed light</a> on some potential friction between Whitmore and the Washington organization at this early juncture of the season.</p><p>“Inside the organization, the concern has been the day-to-day work. Amid a 3-19 start to the season, Washington has emphasized establishing firm practice habits and a consistent approach across its young roster, and Whitmore has not consistently met those expectations,” reported Grant Afseth of RG.org.</p><p>“If you’re trying to establish yourself in the NBA, you need to show up to practice,” said one source, per Afseth.</p><p>Whitmore has all the tools to be a solid rotational player in the NBA, including elite athleticism as well as a competent perimeter jumpshot. However, the fact that character issues, which were a concern for Whitmore as far back as the 2023 NBA Draft, are still showing up is not a great sign for his future prospects at the NBA level.</p><p>Meanwhile, the Wizards have been floundering away this season. CJ McCollum has tried his best to get his trade value up in recent weeks, but it remains to be seen whether any team would take the bait on that front.</p><p>In any case, the Wizards will next take the court on Friday evening at home against the Cleveland Cavaliers.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Wizards rumors: Cam Whitmore’s ‘day-to-day work’ causing concerns in Washington

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-will-riley-sends-message-washington-justin-champagnie');   ga('set', 'title', 'Will Riley sends ‘uplift’ message as he forces Wizards’ hand');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Wizards-news-Will-Riley-sends-%E2%80%98uplift-message-as-he-forces-Washingtons-hand.jpg"></figure><h1>Will Riley sends ‘uplift’ message as he forces Wizards’ hand</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-07T19:05:11-08:00">December 7th, 7:05pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-08T00:24:15-08:00">December 8th, 12:24am</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Washington <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-cj-mccollum-khris-middleton-finding-nemo-washington-kyshawn-george">Wizards have resorted to “Finding Nemo”</a> references to keep themselves sane amid a 3-19 start, but Saturday’s 131-116 loss to the Atlanta Hawks was a step forward after a 45-point loss to the Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown-less Boston Celtics on Thursday. Nothing was more encouraging for the organization’s future than <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-will-riley-reveals-dominate-tre-johnson">rookie wing Will Riley’s</a> career-best performance.</p><p>The No. 21 overall pick explained to ClutchPoints postgame how the Wizards <a href="https://x.com/joshvaldez100/status/1997689809524199901" rel="noopener">have helped him develop</a>, even when he wasn’t in the rotation.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">I asked Will Riley how the Wizards helped him develop when he wasn’t playing:</p><p>“All the coaching staff is really close to me. They always talk to me, always uplift me. Keefe is always telling me ‘Good job’…He wants to win, and as a player who wants to win, you feed off that…” <a href="https://t.co/5M1raeZRlO">pic.twitter.com/5M1raeZRlO</a></p><p>— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1997689809524199901?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 7, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“All the coaching staff is really close to me. They always talk to me, always uplift me,” he said. “Coach [Brian] Keefe is always telling me ‘Good job’…I feel like he helps a lot of ways. Boosts my confidence up, even when I come off the floor…He wants to win, and as a player who also wants to win, you feed off a coach who wants to win. So I’ve been feeding off him and his energy, and that’s been helping me a lot too.”</p><p>Riley notched a career-high 15 points (6-12 FG, 1-5 3-point) with one rebound and three turnovers across 19 minutes off the bench on Saturday. The 19-year-old is now averaging 24 minutes across three games in December after averaging 6.8 minutes over his 13 previous appearances.</p><p>That’s partially because of Washington’s growing injury list. Third-year guard Bilal Coulibaly (oblique), rookie guard Tre Johnson (hip flexor), second-year center Alex Sarr (adductor), veteran forward Khris Middleton (knee), and veteran guard Corey Kispert (thumb) <a href="https://x.com/WashWizards/status/1997422468290482630" rel="noopener">were all out</a> against the Hawks, per the team’s injury report.</p><p>All of them were ahead of Riley on the depth chart before December, but he’s making the case for being a full-time rotation player. The 6-foot-9, 180-pounder is averaging 11.7 points on 54.2 percent shooting (40 percent 3-point) with three rebounds and one assist this month, which would put him fourth on the team in scoring and tied for eighth in rebounding if those were his season averages. It’s a small sample size, but he deserves to keep getting extended minutes.</p><p>Although Riley is proving his worth, he understands that he’s far from a finished product. The native Canadian spoke about that postgame on Saturday.</p><p>“Honestly, my communication on defense and moving my feet,” he said when asked what he’s improved on the most so far. “I still have a long way to go on the defensive end, so I’ve been working on that.”</p><p>That assessment aligns with Rotowire’s <a href="https://www.nba.com/draft/2025/prospects/will-riley" rel="noopener">pre-draft profile</a> of Riley, which said “He may have to earn his stripes as a wing defender before being given more offensive responsibilities at the NBA level” despite having “solid defensive skills.” The former Illinois Fighting Illini primarily <a href="https://twitter.com/rileyricharrds/status/1997500326023421978" rel="noopener">shines as a shot creator</a> at this point, as he showed on Saturday.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Will Riley 15 points on 6/12 FG <a href="https://t.co/LXUIrbEOus">https://t.co/LXUIrbEOus</a> <a href="https://t.co/nZz6E9k50I">pic.twitter.com/nZz6E9k50I</a></p><p>— riley ｼ (@rileyricharrds) <a href="https://twitter.com/rileyricharrds/status/1997500326023421978?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 7, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Riley also admitted that he’s adjusting to the NBA’s physicality, as every rookie does. The 2024-25 Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year will benefit from adding strength over the coming years, but the fact that he’s already playing efficiently on offense bodes well.</p><p>Most importantly, Riley’s ascension is challenging Washington’s mantra of minutes being “earned and not given” this season.</p><h2><b>Will Wizards honor their stated philosophy?</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Wizards-Justin-Champagnie.jpg"><figcaption>© Kyle Ross-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Washington general manager Will Dawkins <a href="https://www.monumentalsportsnetwork.com/article/wizards-gm-competition-for-roles-to-define-season" rel="noopener">claimed in his preseason presser</a> that the rotation would be a meritocracy this year, via Monumental Sports Network’s Chase Hughes.</p><p>“With that comes a lot of competition and I told them last year a lot of stuff was given more than earned. This year that can’t be the case and everybody in here has to feel that. That’s what’s going to sharpen iron. Iron sharpens iron,” he said. “I literally was like ‘hey, these rookies got a lot of minutes [last] year, who’s taking their spots?’ That’s the mentality we’ve gotta have.”</p><p>The execution of that idea has been inconsistent thus far. For example, second-year guard Bub Carrington is sixth on the team with 25.7 minutes per game despite having the worst net rating (-24.5) and field goal percentage (34.9) of all the regular rotation players. Additionally, 2025 second-round pick Jamir Watkins started in the 146-101 loss to the Celtics despite logging just 33 minutes over four appearances beforehand.</p><p>However, the Wizards are rewarding veteran forward Justin Champagnie for his effectiveness. The 24-year-old is averaging 22.8 minutes across four games in December after averaging 10.6 over 16 before that. He continues to produce after converting from a two-way to a standard contract last season, as he’s third on the squad with 1.6 offensive rebounds a night despite being just 6-foot-6. He’s also tied for first (minimum 10 games played) with a 2.6 assist-to-turnover ratio.</p><p>Champagnie spoke about what he <a href="https://x.com/joshvaldez100/status/1997506965807968357" rel="noopener">brings to the table</a> after the Hawks loss.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">After Keefe told us that Justin Champagnie has earned more mins, I asked JC what unique traits he brings:</p><p>“Obviously my hustle. I try to keep things real simple…Shoot threes, play defense, rebound, block shots, intangibles, do the dirty work that most people don’t want to do…” <a href="https://t.co/1AggWcQGKD">pic.twitter.com/1AggWcQGKD</a></p><p>— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1997506965807968357?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 7, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“Obviously my hustle. I try to keep things real simple on the court,” the former Pittsburgh Panther admitted. “Shoot threes, play defense, rebound, block shots, do the intangibles, do the dirty work that most people don’t want to do. I think that’s my biggest attribute…And my energy. I try to let people feed off my energy. I try to come in the gym every day with a smile on my face, try to uplift people, try to get the energy flowing like that.”</p><p>Champagnie’s minutes increase has gotten him into a rhythm, which is helping his efficiency. On top of the New York native’s aforementioned traits, he’s shooting 53.1 percent from the field (40 percent 3-point) on eight attempts per game in December after shooting 42.4 percent (15.4 percent 3-point) on 2.8 attempts in November.</p><p>Both Riley and Champagnie deserve to stay in the rotation, even when the injured players return. The onus is on Keefe and the coaching staff to keep them in the fold when that time comes.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Will Riley sends ‘uplift’ message as he forces Wizards’ hand

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/washington-wizards/is-khris-middleton-playing-tonight-wizards-vs-hawks-injury-report');   ga('set', 'title', 'Is Khris Middleton playing tonight? Wizards vs. Hawks injury report');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Wizards-forward-Khris-Middleton-vs-Pacers.jpg"><figcaption>Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Is Khris Middleton playing tonight? Wizards vs. Hawks injury report</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-06T09:40:12-08:00">December 6th, 9:40am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-06T09:43:15-08:00">December 6th, 9:43am</time><address><a>Yasmin Edañol</a>Yasmin D.G. Edañol is a PhD candidate in Chemistry at the University of the Philippines Diliman, with a background in scientific research and publishing. He brings a data-driven perspective to sports storytelling as an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints, with a focus on the NBA. Whether it's breaking down a clutch play or a stat line, he believes every great moment has a deeper layer waiting to be uncovered.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Atlanta Hawks</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-cj-mccollum-khris-middleton-finding-nemo-washington-kyshawn-george">Washington Wizards face the Atlanta Hawks on Friday night</a>. Khris Middleton appears on the injury report once again, with the veteran listed as questionable. Middleton is dealing with right knee soreness, while <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-washington-snapped-14-game-skid-injury-spoiled">the Wizards continue to navigate multiple absences across a 3–18 start</a>. Here’s everything we know about Khris Middleton’s injury and his <a href="https://ak-static.cms.nba.com/referee/injury/Injury-Report_2025-12-06_08AM.pdf" rel="noopener">playing status</a> vs. the Hawks.</p><p>Middleton’s injury status has surfaced often enough this season to become a familiar storyline, even as his play stays efficient when he suits up. He enters tonight averaging 10.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 3.5 assists on strong efficiency, shooting 49.3 percent from the field and 35.0 percent from deep across 16 games. He has been effective in controlled minutes, offering enough playmaking and spacing to steady Washington’s offense whenever he’s active. His knee soreness has lingered, yet his rhythm continues to sharpen with every outing he gets through clean.</p><p><i><b>*Watch NBA games LIVE with fuboTV <a href="https://www.fubo.tv/lp/nba/?irad=356361&amp;irmp=492408" rel="noopener sponsored">(free trial)</a>*</b></i></p><h2>Khris Middleton injury status vs. Hawks</h2><p>The Wizards’ injury report paints a harsher picture. Corey Kispert is out with a right thumb fracture. Bilal Coulibaly remains out due to a right oblique strain, and <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/how-wizards-blowout-hawks-gives-blueprint-tre-johnson">Tre Johnson is sidelined by a left hip flexor issue</a>. Washington has dropped eight of its last ten games, and the lack of continuity shows. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-doc-rivers-washington-secret-sauce-upset-win-bucks">Their 3–18 record reflects a roster still searching for chemistry</a>, identity, and any relief from a wave of injuries that never seems to slow.</p><p>Against an Atlanta team built on pace, movement, and confident shot-making, the Wizards must lean on whatever depth they have left. The crowd will hope for a spark. A run. A moment that breaks the pattern.</p><p>And if Middleton suits up tonight, how much could his presence tilt a matchup already stacked with questions?</p><p>So, when it comes to the question of is Khris Middleton playing tonight vs. the Hawks, the answer leans toward yes.</p><h2>Wizards injury report</h2><p><b>Sharife Cooper: OUT</b> (right calf strain)</p><p><b>Bilal Coulibaly: OUT</b> (right oblique strain)</p><p><b>Tre Johnson: OUT</b> (left hip flexor strain)</p><p><b>Corey Kispert: OUT</b> (right thumb, distal phalanx fracture)</p><p><b>Khris Middleton: QUESTIONABLE</b> (right knee soreness)</p><p><b>Alex Sarr: OUT</b> (right adductor strain)</p><p><b>Tristan Vukcevic: QUESTIONABLE</b> (right knee contusion)</p><p><b>Cam Whitmore: QUESTIONABLE</b> (illness)</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Is Khris Middleton playing tonight? Wizards vs. Hawks injury report

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-cj-mccollum-khris-middleton-finding-nemo-washington-kyshawn-george');   ga('set', 'title', 'CJ McCollum, Khris Middleton channeling ‘Finding Nemo’ in Wizards leadership');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/CJ-McCollum-Khris-Middleton-channeling-Finding-Nemo-in-Washington-leadership.jpg"></figure><h1>CJ McCollum, Khris Middleton channeling ‘Finding Nemo’ in Wizards leadership</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-05T20:04:30-08:00">December 5th, 8:04pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-05T20:45:57-08:00">December 5th, 8:45pm</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Washington Wizards lost by a combined 64 points to the Philadelphia 76ers and Boston Celtics over the last two games, and Thursday’s 141-101 <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/boston-celtics/celtics-news-derrick-white-drops-eye-popping-stat-line-under-30-minutes-wizards">home defeat to the Celtics</a> was soul-crushing. However, veterans <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/cj-mccollum-wizards-culture-standard-young-core">CJ McCollum and Khris Middleton won’t let the young group</a> lose its way.</p><p>Second-year wing Kyshawn George explained after Friday’s <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1997013581036917023" rel="noopener">practice how their</a> “Finding Nemo”-style approach helps the squad.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Kyshawn George on what he’s learned from McCollum and Middleton:</p><p>“Their consistency in their emotions. Super steady, super calm…Regardless of what happens, just keep swimming…You learn from it on the court…They’ve had longer careers than most of us in this building…” <a href="https://t.co/MBzDh78YDr">pic.twitter.com/MBzDh78YDr</a></p><p>— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1997013581036917023?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 5, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“Their consistency in their emotions, I’d say. It’s super steady, super calming,” the former Miami Hurricane said. “Regardless of what happens, you just keep going, keep swimming. They know what it takes. They come back the next day with the same focus level and precision of being a pro and being able to execute what we have to do.”</p><p>“Keep swimming” is a <a href="https://youtu.be/0Hkn-LSh7es?si=1F_uq0PnPJITI9JA" rel="noopener">phrase popularized by a scene</a> in “Nemo,” in which a cheerful Dory tries to cheer up a cranky Marlin. The full saying is “When life gets you down, just keep swimming!”</p><p>McCollum and Middleton do that naturally at this point in their careers, but it’s not easy for young players to stay enthusiastic after losing nine of their first 21 games by 20-plus points in addition to three 19-point defeats. Getting blown out doesn’t help them develop, as it robs them of experience in clutch-time situations and subjects them to non-competitive minutes in the fourth quarter.</p><p>However, George said that the veteran duo’s even-keeled attitude keeps them inspired.</p><p>“You learn from it on the court. You take example,” the 21-year-old continued. “Obviously, they’ve had longer careers and have accomplished more than most of us in this building. Learning from that, wanting to be ambitious and wanting to do something with your career. You’re not trying to mimic, but pick up what you can pick up from those types of people.”</p><p>George’s statement is accurate, as McCollum and Middleton’s resumes are on a different stratosphere compared to everyone else on the roster. McCollum won the NBA Most Improved Player Award in 2016, has averaged at least 20 points for 10 straight years, and was the second option behind Damian Lillard when the Portland Trail Blazers made the Western Conference Finals in 2019. Meanwhile, Middleton is a three-time NBA All-Star and was the second option behind <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-washington-changed-nba-trade-landscape-giannis-antetokounmpo">Giannis Antetokounmpo when the Milwaukee Bucks</a> won the 2021 NBA Finals.</p><p>On the other hand, second-year Washington center <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-alex-sarr-bub-carrington-franchise-history-all-rookie">Alex Sarr and second-year guard Bub Carrington both earned All-Rookie</a> placements last season, and third-year guard Bilal Coulibaly is a two-time Rising Star. That shows promise, but they haven’t learned how to win yet, as the Wizards went 15-67 in Coulibaly’s first season and 18-64 last year. Now, they’re 3-18 before hosting the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday night.</p><p>The overload of losing is due to Washington’s priority of rebuilding through the draft. Finishing with the worst or second-worst record in the NBA ensures that it won’t finish below the fifth or sixth picks in the lottery, respectively, and ties it for having the highest odds of getting the top spot. That hasn’t happened since it picked <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/why-wizards-must-honor-john-wall-bulls-derrick-rose">franchise legend John Wall</a> No. 1 overall in 2010, but it did select Sarr No. 2 in 2024. It then fell to No. 6 this past summer, but it still landed <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-tre-johnson-washington-rebuilding-puzzle">sharpshooting guard Tre Johnson</a>.</p><p>The Wizards will probably end with a similar record this season as they keep try to land their franchise cornerstone. But until then, they must have more competitive showings to help their young core grow.</p><p>Although McCollum and Middleton aid that effort with their leadership, they won’t be in Washington much longer. They’re both on expiring contracts and are top <a href="https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/nba-buyout-candidates-khris-middleton-nikola-vucevic-among-five-names-who-could-hit-free-agency-this-season/" rel="noopener">trade/buyout candidates</a> ahead of February’s NBA Trade Deadline, per CBS Sports. Luckily, the team’s young players have noticed their “keep swimming” way of life, and they can imitate it even after the elder statesmen go to other squads.</p><h2><b>CJ McCollum describes Will Riley’s skill set </b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Wizards-Will-Riley-2.jpg"><figcaption>© Kyle Ross-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>One of the few positives over the last two games is rookie wing Will Riley playing more than 12 minutes a night for the first time in his career. The 19-year-old played 26 minutes in Tuesday’s 121-102 loss to the 76ers and 27 against the Celtics, combining for 19 points (7-12 FG, 3-5 3-point) with eight rebounds, three assists and one steal. Before that, he logged 36 points (14-24 FG, 4-6 3-point) with five rebounds, seven assists, and one steal over 39 minutes in the G League on Nov. 30.</p><p>McCollum spoke about Riley’s <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1996983409088884983" rel="noopener">game after the</a> Boston loss.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">CJ McCollum last night on the growth he’s seen from Will Riley:</p><p>“Will can hoop…He’s aggressive, he can get downhill, he’s got great pivots, good feet, good bball IQ. Obviously you guys have seen what he did in the G League and college. His game translates to the NBA…” <a href="https://t.co/Ajpz63x3wT">pic.twitter.com/Ajpz63x3wT</a></p><p>— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1996983409088884983?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 5, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“Will can hoop. We said it right away when we seen him in camp,” the 34-year-old said. “He’s aggressive, he can get downhill, he’s got great pivots, good feet, good basketball IQ. Obviously you guys have seen what he did in the G League and college. His game definitely translates to the NBA. As he gets more comfortable and experienced, a lot of people will get to see him develop and grow too.”</p><p>Riley was an off-ball shot creator as a freshman for the Illinois Fighting Illini last season, and he’s practiced his point guard skills in his three G League appearances this year. However, the 6-foot-9, 180-pounder is making it hard to justify the Wizards not playing him every game, especially with Coulibaly (oblique), Johnson (hip flexor), Sarr (thigh), and veteran guard Corey Kispert <a href="https://x.com/WashWizards/status/1997073787985015289" rel="noopener">(thumb) all sidelined</a>, per the team’s injury report. He didn’t play in their 129-126 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday, but that was before Coulibaly went down.</p><p>Riley’s development is one of Washington’s most important storylines moving forward, as he could establish himself as a main pillar of its rebuild alongside Sarr, George, and Johnson. More losses are inevitable, but the No. 21 overall pick is one of the players who makes the struggle more exciting.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

CJ McCollum, Khris Middleton channeling ‘Finding Nemo’ in Wizards leadership

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-washington-changed-nba-trade-landscape-giannis-antetokounmpo');   ga('set', 'title', 'Wizards may have changed NBA trade landscape by breaking Giannis Antetokounmpo');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Washington-may-have-changed-NBA-trade-landscape-by-breaking-Giannis-Antetokounmpo1.jpg"></figure><h1>Wizards may have changed NBA trade landscape by breaking Giannis Antetokounmpo</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-03T16:22:13-08:00">December 3rd, 4:22pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-03T19:18:35-08:00">December 3rd, 7:18pm</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Washington Wizards weren’t supposed to cause a seismic shift in the NBA this season, but their home <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-doc-rivers-washington-secret-sauce-upset-win-bucks">win over Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks</a> on Monday might have sparked one.</p><p>The Wizards were 2-16 entering the game and were without second-year center Alex Sarr (adductor), <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/how-wizards-blowout-hawks-gives-blueprint-tre-johnson">No. 6 overall draft pick Tre Johnson</a> (hip), and veteran guard Corey Kispert (thumb), who are averaging a combined 39.5 points this season. Additionally, Sarr is Washington’s leading scorer (19.6 points per game), rebounder (8.6 per game), and shot-blocker (two per game), but the Bucks still lost 129-126 despite having all of their main rotation players.</p><p>Milwaukee fell to 9-13 after the defeat, and Antetokounmpo wasn’t happy. The two-time NBA MVP walked into the Bucks’ locker room at least half an hour after veteran guard Kevin Porter Jr., who scored a game-high 30 points (12-15 FG, 5-6 3-point), spoke to the media. Although a superstar taking his time before postgame interviews is commonplace, what happened afterward was anything but.</p><p>Antetokounmpo was the presumable pick to be Milwaukee’s second interviewee, as he was second on the team with 26 points (10-17 FG, 0-1 3-point) and led with seven rebounds. However, the former NBA champion wagged his finger at Bucks public relations staffers after getting out of the shower, signaling he wasn’t up for a conversation. He then sat down with a towel on his head, looking at the floor before getting dressed and leaving, all with a dejected look on his face.</p><p>Only Antetokounmpo knows what went through his head in that moment, but he <a href="https://x.com/ComplexSports/status/1995891680881619051" rel="noopener">cleared his social media accounts</a> of all Bucks-related content the following morning, per Complex Sports. Then, a <a href="https://x.com/ShamsCharania/status/1996307231982117105" rel="noopener">breaking news report arrived</a> on Wednesday afternoon, via ESPN’s Shams Charania.</p><p>“Just in: Giannis Antetokounmpo and his agent Alex Saratsis have started conversations with the Milwaukee Bucks about the two-time NBA MVP’s future – and discussing whether his best fit is staying or elsewhere, sources tell ESPN,” he said. “A resolution is expected in the coming weeks.”</p><p>Antetokounmpo <a href="https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/47191857/sources-giannis-antetokounmpo-bucks-discussing-future" rel="noopener">already thought about leaving</a> Milwaukee before, but it’s different this time, per Charania.</p><p>“Over the offseason, Antetokounmpo explored external options and was open to playing for one team outside of Milwaukee — the New York Knicks — as a potential trade home,” he reported. “Sources described it as an exclusive negotiating window for the Knicks over a multiweek period in August, but that will not be the case moving forward.”</p><p>“Multiple other teams would be expected to emerge as suitors for the nine-time All-Star if trades are explored,” he continued.</p><p>Charania <a href="https://x.com/ohnohedidnt24/status/1996309989607067765" rel="noopener">also mentioned the</a> Wizards game on “NBA Today.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Shams:</p><p>"I'm told Giannis has been frustrated over the recent losing…and also a sense of tension around the locker room about what this means for Giannis. I had one source even tell me and describe the situation as the writing on the wall" <a href="https://t.co/DnbVMIFQ8g">pic.twitter.com/DnbVMIFQ8g</a></p><p>— Oh No He Didn't (@ohnohedidnt24) <a href="https://twitter.com/ohnohedidnt24/status/1996309989607067765?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 3, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“The Bucks are 9-13 overall, and they just lost a 16-point lead to the Washington Wizards on Monday,” he said. “I’m told that Giannis Antetokounmpo has been frustrated over the recent losing…I had one source even tell me and describe the situation as the writing on the wall for what’s to come with Giannis…”</p><p>ESPN’s Brian Windhorst <a href="https://x.com/MrBuckBuckNBA/status/1996354704851484687" rel="noopener">then followed up</a>, also on “NBA Today.”</p><p>“It’ll be Giannis instructing the Bucks where he wants to be traded, and then the Bucks trying to make the best possible deal with that team,” he clarified. “And this already happened, Shams reported this a couple of months ago. You can put out whatever verbiage you want around it, about whether he ‘requested it’ or ‘asked for it’ or ‘hinted at it,’ but he basically said ‘I want to be a Knick. Can you make me a Knick?’ And they had discussions for some period of days. Those talks didn’t progress, so they dropped it and he reported to [Bucks] camp.”</p><p>While Monday’s loss in Washington wasn’t the start of this saga, that game might have been Antetokounmpo’s breaking point.</p><h2><b>Wizards gave Giannis Antetokounmpo reality check</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Giannis-Antetokounmpo-Myles-Turner-keep-comments-clean-after-loss-to-Kings.jpg"><figcaption>Benny Sieu-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The sequence of events suggests that Antetokounmpo grappled with a sobering reality: if Milwaukee can’t beat one of the NBA’s worst teams despite having the injury advantage, there’s little chance it’ll challenge for a championship anytime soon.</p><p>Anything is possible on a given night, but this wasn’t a fluke occurrence. The Bucks had lost seven of their previous eight games, and they’re 1-5 without Antetokounmpo this year. Furthermore, the nine-time All-Star didn’t have his best outing, as he had a game-high five turnovers and fouled out on Bilal Coulibaly’s and-one dunk with 5.4 seconds left. Milwaukee still should’ve beaten Washington anyway, but it couldn’t get the job done without the future Hall of Famer having a flawless performance.</p><p>It might have been extra painful to witness <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/milwaukee-bucks/bucks-news-khris-middleton-sends-powerful-milwaukee-message-unforgettable-return">Wizards forward Khris Middleton</a>, who was the Robin to Antetokounmpo’s Batman on the 2020-21 championship Bucks team, score eight points in the final four minutes. That included a go-ahead three-pointer with 52.9 seconds remaining, which gave Washington a lead it never relinquished.</p><p>Regardless, Antetokounmpo’s days in Milwaukee appear to be numbered. If the 30-year-old gets dealt ahead of February’s NBA Trade Deadline, it will be the league’s most consequential trade since the Dallas <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/los-angeles-lakers/lakers-news-mavericks-luka-doncic-anthony-davis-trade">Mavericks sent Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers</a> for a package highlighted by Anthony Davis last February.</p><p>Antetokounmpo is as prolific as ever, ranking fourth in basketball with 30.6 points per game, seventh with a 63.9 field goal percentage, fifth with 10.7 rebounds, and 17th with 6.4 assists before the Bucks’ home date with the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night. A contending team acquiring him in the coming weeks would be the biggest story of the season, as it would change the league’s power balance and send the Bucks into a full-scale rebuild.</p><p>Additionally, Antetokounmpo is under contract until his <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/player/_/id/13328/giannis-antetokounmpo" rel="noopener">$62.7 million player option</a> in 2027 (per Spotrac), so whichever organization gets him by the deadline would have at least two chances to win a title with him.</p><p>Meanwhile, the Wizards remain focused on their rebuild as they look to maintain their top-eight protected lottery pick next summer, and their upset win over the Bucks is a reminder of what they’re capable of. This time, their positive night had unexpected fallout that could define the entire NBA season.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Wizards may have changed NBA trade landscape by breaking Giannis Antetokounmpo

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/nba-stories/nba-news-michael-jordan-claim-players-wanting-own-logos');   ga('set', 'title', 'Michael Jordan drops eye-opening claim on NBA players wanting own logos');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Michael-Jordan.jpg"><figcaption>Paul Childs-Reuters via Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Michael Jordan drops eye-opening claim on NBA players wanting own logos</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-03T05:00:21-08:00">December 3rd, 5:00am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-02T23:02:58-08:00">December 2nd, 11:02pm</time><address><a>Paolo Mariano</a>Paolo Mariano is a freelance writer, editor, and producer based in Manila, Philippines. He is a journalism graduate from the University of Santo Tomas and the father of a young girl whose personality swings from Simone Biles to Dillon Brooks. A beacon of objectivity, he believes Penny Hardaway is the true NBA GOAT.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Chicago Bulls</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>There is no debate about the lasting impact of NBA legend Michael Jordan. Even though he’s been retired for 22 years, his larger-than-life greatness continues to be felt by many in various fields.</p><p>Commercially, the Jordan Brand remains very popular. But even years before that, he made Nike a cultural phenomenon with his Air Jordans, highlighted by his Jumpman logo and cool advertisements.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/nba-news-michael-jordan-makes-stance-load-management-100-clear">Jordan paved the way for the next wave of NBA stars</a> in marketing themselves. But at that point, only a few were given the honor of having their own logo. Now, many players are starting to create their own, as individual empowerment continues to grow.</p><p>The 62-year-old Jordan recognized the role he played in the rising trend, although he pointed out that the path he took <a href="https://twitter.com/awfulannouncing/status/1996067690050715830" rel="noopener">was starkly different</a>.</p><p>“I’m pretty sure I’m part of the reason why everybody tries to get a logo or brand. But the thing is, that brand was established based on what I did on the basketball court. I didn’t put the brand before I put the work,” said Jordan on “MJ: Insights To Excellence.”</p><p>“I like to think that if I was playing today, no matter what, my game is gonna validate whatever I try to participate in away from the game.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">"I'm pretty sure I'm part of the reason why everybody tries to get a logo. But the thing is, that brand was established based on what I did on the basketball court. I didn't put the brand before I put the work." – Michael Jordan <a href="https://t.co/YLdt42UGNM">pic.twitter.com/YLdt42UGNM</a></p><p>— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) <a href="https://twitter.com/awfulannouncing/status/1996067690050715830?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 3, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>When His Airness speaks, everybody should listen.</p><p>The Hall of Famer, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/nba-stories/nba-news-michael-jordan-basketball-hiatus-hilarious-ryder-cup-story">who led the Chicago Bulls to six titles</a>, acknowledged that it could simply be a product “generationally,” adding that even other athletes are doing it. Still, he reminded that the work needs to speak for the brand.</p><p>The Jordan Brand, which started in 1997, has developed into a multi-billion company, with the six-time Finals MVP earning over $1 billion in his lifetime, <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/kurtbadenhausen/2020/05/03/michael-jordans-1-billion-nike-endorsement-is-the-biggest-bargain-in-sports" rel="noopener">according to a report</a> from Forbes in 2020.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Michael Jordan drops eye-opening claim on NBA players wanting own logos

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-doc-rivers-washington-secret-sauce-upset-win-bucks');   ga('set', 'title', 'Doc Rivers reveals Wizards’ ‘secret sauce’ after upset win vs. Bucks');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Bucks-Doc-Rivers.jpg"><figcaption>© Benny Sieu-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Doc Rivers reveals Wizards’ ‘secret sauce’ after upset win vs. Bucks</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-12-02T12:04:35-08:00">December 2nd, 12:04pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-12-02T12:09:35-08:00">December 2nd, 12:09pm</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Mini-Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Washington Wizards have won two of their last three games after starting the season 1-15, and Monday’s <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/milwaukee-bucks/bucks-news-giannis-antetokounmpos-social-media-cleanse-fans-crashing-out">129-126 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks</a> was the type of performance that inspires hope for the future. Bucks head coach Doc Rivers opened up to ClutchPoints about the Wizards’ <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1995690885649174670" rel="noopener">young core postgame</a>.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Doc Rivers told me postgame that Bilal Coulibaly’s effort, length, and strength helps him be a top-tier defender. Also called the Wizards’ young core “fantastic” and said that Middleton and McCollum are the “secret sauce” that help them keep games close. <a href="https://t.co/nJhD9qf6ny">pic.twitter.com/nJhD9qf6ny</a></p><p>— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1995690885649174670?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 2, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“Well today, they were fantastic. They just play hard,” he said. “They’re a young team that has no fear. There’s no pressure on them with their record, so they just come out and play. You let a team like that get close, they’ll beat you. You know, one thing about them, [when] it gets to a four-minute game, they have two players in Khris Middleton and CJ McCollum that know how to play. That’s their secret sauce. Try to keep a game close, and let the veterans take over. That’s what happened tonight.”</p><p>To Rivers’ point, Middleton scored eight of his 15 points in the final four minutes, and McCollum hit a contested step-back three to give Washington a four-point lead with 15 seconds left. McCollum led the team with 28 points (11-21 FG, 4-11 3-point), while Middleton led with six assists.</p><p>Neither of them are a part of the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/which-wizards-rotation-will-dawkins-declaration">Wizards’ long-term plans</a>, as they’re both on expiring contracts and the team wants to build around its young core. However, having them until February’s NBA Trade Deadline gives <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/cj-mccollum-wizards-culture-standard-young-core">Washington reliable veterans</a> who provide leadership on and off the court, which helps the young players develop.</p><p>Outside of the elder statesmen, third-year guard Bilal Coulibaly was a game-changer defensively. The 21-year-old notched three steals as well as one block and was a nuisance to Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, who finished with five turnovers and six fouls (two offensive). The latter player did have 26 points (10-17 FG, 0-1 3-point), but that’s below his season average of 30.6.</p><p>Rivers explained what makes Coulibaly, who sealed the win by stealing the ball from Antetokounmpo and completing an and-one dunk over him in the final seconds, such a tough defender.</p><p>“He just plays hard. Physical, long arms, athletic, strong,” he said.</p><p>Wizards head coach Brian Keefe also credited Coulibaly <a href="https://x.com/WashWizards/status/1995851380498514068" rel="noopener">postgame for being</a> the “head” of the defense, via the team’s social media.</p><h2><b>Bilal Coulibaly must do 1 thing to reach upper echelon</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Bilal-Coulibaly-of-the-Washington-Wizards.jpg"><figcaption>Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Washington couldn’t have asked for a better defensive outing from Coulibaly, but he only scored seven points (3-9 FG, 1-4 3-point) with two assists and three turnovers in 33 minutes. It was a quintessential performance from the 6-foot-7, 195-pounder, as he’s shooting just 42.4 percent (30.9 percent 3-point) in his career.</p><p>Coulibaly’s efficiency has been even worse this year, as he’s shooting 38.4 percent (28.9 percent 3-point) over 11 games played. Meanwhile, NBA guards are <a href="https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/nba-league-average-field-goal-percentage-by-position" rel="noopener">shooting 44.5 percent</a> (36.5 percent 3-point) as a whole this season, per StatMuse.</p><p>If Coulibaly at least gets close to the latter averages, he has All-Star potential. But it will be hard for the Wizards to give the two-time Rising Star 30-plus minutes a game when they’re competitive if he continues his current shooting pace.</p><p>Regardless, the fact that Coulibaly can disrupt all-time greats like Antetokounmpo defensively gives him a path to being a long-term contributor. The question is whether the French international will be a role player, an All-Star, or something in between.</p><p>Coulibaly’s next chance to improve his offensive output is Washington’s road matchup with the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. ET. After that, the team will return home to play the Boston Celtics on Thursday night.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Doc Rivers reveals Wizards’ ‘secret sauce’ after upset win vs. Bucks

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-washington-snapped-14-game-skid-injury-spoiled');   ga('set', 'title', 'Wizards snapped a 14-game losing streak. Too bad they still lost with brutal injury update');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Wizards-guard-CJ-McCollum-drives-against-Hawks-Asa-Newell.jpg"><figcaption>Geoff Burke-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><h1>Wizards snapped a 14-game losing streak. Too bad they still lost with brutal injury update</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-27T09:28:44-08:00">November 27th, 9:28am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-27T09:31:59-08:00">November 27th, 9:31am</time><address><a>Yasmin Edañol</a>Yasmin D.G. Edañol is a PhD candidate in Chemistry at the University of the Philippines Diliman, with a background in scientific research and publishing. He brings a data-driven perspective to sports storytelling as an Associate Editor at ClutchPoints, with a focus on the NBA. Whether it's breaking down a clutch play or a stat line, he believes every great moment has a deeper layer waiting to be uncovered.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/how-wizards-blowout-hawks-gives-blueprint-tre-johnson">Washington Wizards finally broke through as they snapped a brutal 14-game losing streak</a> with <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-cj-mccollums-immediate-reaction-to-wild-40-point-night-vs-hawks">a 132–113 win over the Atlanta Hawks in an NBA Cup game that meant nothing in the standings</a> but everything for morale. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-cj-mccollum-46-point-masterclass-breaks-washingtons-losing-streak">Wizards shot a scorching 57 percent from the field and 50 percent from deep</a>, a burst of life fans hadn’t seen since their second game of the season against the Mavericks. But even in the victory, the Wizards absorbed a hard blow as Corey Kispert’s injury, a fractured thumb <a href="https://x.com/BrettSiegelNBA/status/1994075698940518467" rel="noopener">reported</a> by ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel, turned a long-awaited win into a sobering moment.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-erupt-historic-3-point-shooting-1st-quarter-hawks">Corey Kispert played 24 strong minutes before the injury setback</a>. He poured in 19 points on 6-for-11 shooting and drilled half of his threes. Moreover, he was sharp, aggressive, and was exactly what the Wizards needed after weeks of frustration. Then the news hit. A fracture to the tip of his right thumb. No timetable. Out indefinitely. Under the arena lights, the momentum of the night turned quiet.</p><h2>A win that still feels heavy for the Wizards</h2><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-nba-cup-drought-reaches-new-low">Wizards entered this game already eliminated from the NBA Cup</a>. Beating the Hawks didn’t change their path, but it ended Atlanta’s hopes and gave Washington its cleanest performance since early October. The energy shifted the moment shots started falling. The ball moved. The crowd responded. For one night, the Wizards looked like a team that believed in itself again.</p><p>But Kispert’s injury brings the emotional swing back down. Washington’s losing streak began with a 139–113 beating from the Hornets, and every night since has felt like another layer of struggle. Kispert was one of the few reliable sparks in that stretch. Now he’s gone from the lineup at the exact moment things finally clicked.</p><p>So the Wizards celebrate the win. They take the breath. Then they ask the question everyone else is asking too: can they hold this energy without one of their best shooters?</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Wizards snapped a 14-game losing streak. Too bad they still lost with brutal injury update

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/washington-wizards/how-wizards-blowout-hawks-gives-blueprint-tre-johnson');   ga('set', 'title', 'How Wizards’ blowout win vs. Hawks gives blueprint sans Tre Johnson');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/How-Wizards-blowout-win-vs.-Hawks-gives-blueprint-sans-Tre-Johnson.jpg"></figure><h1>How Wizards’ blowout win vs. Hawks gives blueprint sans Tre Johnson</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-26T19:29:02-08:00">November 26th, 7:29pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-27T09:18:45-08:00">November 27th, 9:18am</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Washington Wizards didn’t just win without two of their core pieces <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-cj-mccollums-immediate-reaction-to-wild-40-point-night-vs-hawks">against the Atlanta Hawks</a> on Tuesday night, but they had their most dominant performance in almost two years. Their 132-113 win was their highest margin of victory (+19) since Jan. 13, 2024, when they beat the Hawks 127-99 on the road.</p><p>Both No. 6 overall pick Tre Johnson (hip) and second-year wing Kyshawn George (illness) missed the contest, which makes the Wizards’ performance even more impressive. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-washington-kyshawn-george-historic-outing-bulls">George is third on the team</a> with 16.5 points per game this season while leading in assists (4.9) and steals (1.1), and Johnson is fourth with 11.5 points.</p><p>Washington thrived thanks not only to quality individual performances, but team-oriented basketball. The squad totaled 30 assists, and five different players had two-plus dimes. Veteran forward Khris Middleton led with 12, while <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-cj-mccollum-bub-carrington-hawks">second-year guard Bub Carrington</a> had six off the bench. Veteran guard CJ McCollum and third-year guard Bilal Coulibaly each added four as well, and head coach Brian Keefe <a href="https://x.com/joshvaldez100/status/1993532425876746683" rel="noopener">shouted out the latter player</a> in his postgame presser.</p><p>“Yeah, you obviously see some explosiveness,” he told ClutchPoints when asked about the 21-year-old’s offensive impact. “I thought early in the game, he was the one who got downhill and got into the paint that led to some of the spray outs. You know, he’s still getting used to playing with that starting lineup. He’s only played four or five games with that group. But we’re starting to see him be able to initiate, play with pace, because he can cause havoc with his speed. I thought we saw that really early in the game, and that’s how we got a lot of our threes early was that penetration.”</p><h2><b>Wizards’ young core can shine if utilized properly</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Wizards-Bub-Carrington_0d312b.jpg"><figcaption>© Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Coulibaly has balanced his dunking prowess with passing acumen in the nine games he’s played this season. The 6-foot-7, 195-pounder has <a href="https://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/NBA_2026_shooting.html" rel="noopener">12 dunks (1.3 per game),</a> and 23.5 percent of his field-goal attempts are dunks thus far, per Basketball Reference. It’s easy to see why when <a href="https://twitter.com/WashWizards/status/1993478201763410420" rel="noopener">he produces highlights</a> like this:</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="tl">🗣️ BILAL! 🗣️ COULIBALY! <a href="https://t.co/xrjtvZOCMC">pic.twitter.com/xrjtvZOCMC</a></p><p>— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) <a href="https://twitter.com/WashWizards/status/1993478201763410420?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 26, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Meanwhile, Coulibaly has also notched four assists in five different contests this season, which is a product of him getting downhill and kicking out to open shooters. For example, the French international assisted on three three-point shots made in the first quarter on Tuesday, as Keefe alluded to.</p><p>On the other hand, Coulibaly’s still a weak three-point shooter, as he’s shooting 27.6 percent from deep this season and 30.8 percent in his career. The two-time Rising Star is also a limited dribbler, relying on his crossover and quick first step to blow by defenders. Luckily, he doesn’t need handles like Allen Iverson to be effective for Washington. For now, he can focus on defense and rim penetration while gradually improving those other areas.</p><p>That same logic applies to the Wizards’ other young players. For example, Carrington had one of his best games of the season by shooting and passing out of the midrange and perimeter, which are his biggest strengths. Additionally, second-year center Alex Sarr continued his new habit of using his seven-foot, 205-pound frame to dominate in the paint offensively. The 20-year-old notched 27 points (11-15 FG, 1-2 3-point) with 11 rebounds, two blocks, and two steals over 38 minutes. He now has seven 20-plus point games in 15 outings this season after having 10 in 67 appearances last year.</p><p>Meanwhile, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/why-alex-sarr-wizards-fans-excitement-kyshawn-george-2">George can contribute</a> in every facet of the game, so he’ll be another asset when he returns. That could be as soon as Friday night’s road date with the Indiana Pacers, who have the NBA’s worst record at 2-16. The Wizards are a half-game ahead at 2-15.</p><p>Conversely, Johnson will be out for a <a href="https://x.com/chasedcsports/status/1993016569195380869" rel="noopener">minimum of two weeks</a>, per Monumental Sports Network’s Chase Hughes. However, if Washington’s coaching staff keeps utilizing its other young players’ strengths while relying on steady production from veterans like McCollum (46 points on Tuesday), Middleton, and guard Corey Kispert (39 points over the last two games), the squad has a chance to be competitive on most nights.</p><p><b>UPDATE: </b>Kispert is out indefinitely <a href="https://x.com/brettsiegelnba/status/1994075698940518467?s=46" rel="noopener">with a fractured thumb</a>, per ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel.</p><p>The Wizards, who need to finish within the bottom four slots of the NBA standings to guarantee they’ll keep their top-eight protected lottery pick next summer, aren’t focused on winning yet. But their young core will develop faster by not getting blown out constantly, as being in closer games will keep it more engaged.</p><p>Washington has already lost by 15-plus points nine times, and it’s clear that Tuesday’s result won’t be the norm. The goal should be to have more games like its 121-120 defeat to the Chicago Bulls on Saturday, and winning a handful of those would help the group’s confidence.</p><p>After their NBA Cup contest agains the Pacers on Friday, the Wizards will host the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday before playing the Philadelphia 76ers on the road on Tuesday.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

How Wizards’ blowout win vs. Hawks gives blueprint sans Tre Johnson

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-cj-mccollum-bub-carrington-hawks');   ga('set', 'title', 'Wizards’ CJ McCollum reveals key to success for Bub Carrington after win vs. Hawks');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Wizards-news-CJ-McCollum-reveals-key-to-success-for-Bub-Carrington-after-win-vs.jpg"></figure><h1>Wizards’ CJ McCollum reveals key to success for Bub Carrington after win vs. Hawks</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2025-11-26T11:30:58-08:00">November 26th, 11:30am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2025-11-26T14:54:16-08:00">November 26th, 2:54pm</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>WASHINGTON, D.C. — Three days after falling 121-120 to the Chicago Bulls in a road heartbreaker, the Washington <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-cj-mccollum-46-point-masterclass-breaks-washingtons-losing-streak">Wizards ended their 14-game losing streak</a> with their first-ever NBA Cup win and first home victory this season. They beat the Atlanta Hawks 132-113 behind veteran guard <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/washington-wizards/wizards-news-cj-mccollums-immediate-reaction-to-wild-40-point-night-vs-hawks">CJ McCollum’s 46 points</a> (17-25 FG, 10-13 3-point) across 37 minutes, but second-year guard Bub Carrington’s productive performance was more meaningful for the organization’s future.</p><p>McCollum told ClutchPoints postgame what helped Carrington, who led the bench with 10 points (4-6 FG, 2-3 3-point) and six assists against three turnovers in 22 minutes, play well and <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1993529774594211870" rel="noopener">how he can build</a> on the performance.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">CJ McCollum on what helped Bub Carrington play well tonight and how he can build on that:</p><p>“I think he wasn’t hesitant tonight…He’s continuing to figure out his balance between making plays, getting in the paint, and taking his own shots…” <a href="https://t.co/i8hrMFWtDQ">pic.twitter.com/i8hrMFWtDQ</a></p><p>— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1993529774594211870?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 26, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“I think he wasn’t hesitant tonight. Besides the three he turned down when he traveled, I told him ‘You just gotta shoot the ball,'” the 34-year-old said. “I think he’s continuing to figure out his balance between making plays, getting in the paint, and taking his own shots. He’s been in the gym at night, he’s really paying attention. He’s watching film, learning his own game and learning the NBA game all at the same time in Year 2.”</p><p>Carrington struggled to start the season, as he shot just 32.4 percent from the field in October and only had three double-digit scoring games before Tuesday. However, the 20-year-old is slowly getting back to his rookie form, as his 37.8 percent field goal clip in November is only 2.3 percent below his mark from last season.</p><p>“I think he’s going to continue to make strides,” McCollum continued. “We’re not even a quarter through the season, what is this, Game 16? There’s a lot of growth that’s going to take place, and by the time we get to Christmas I think he’ll be much more comfortable.”</p><p>Carrington didn’t have earth-shattering numbers on Tuesday, but they were miles better than several of his outings this season. For example, the former Second Team All-Rookie honoree had five turnovers and no points (0-2 FG) across 25 minutes in a 119-102 loss to the New York Knicks on Nov. 3, and he had three points (1-5 FG) with three turnovers over 22 minutes in a 127-108 defeat to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Oct. 30. He also shot 2-12 in a 148-115 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Nov. 7, although he did add 11 assists against two turnovers.</p><p>What helped Carrington return to form against the Hawks was getting back to his comfort zone, which is being a combo guard that <a href="https://twitter.com/WashWizards/status/1993497045991063577" rel="noopener">does damage from the midrange</a>.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Bub in the mid-range 🔥 <a href="https://t.co/D7VAFN4S3b">pic.twitter.com/D7VAFN4S3b</a></p><p>— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) <a href="https://twitter.com/WashWizards/status/1993497045991063577?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 26, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>The Wizards deployed Carrington as a pure point guard to start the season, but that didn’t work out. It’s hard for a 20-year-old to run an NBA offense, and he’s shown that he’s not ready for that. Now, he’s getting his mojo back by playing his natural style.</p><p>On one hand, Carrington is learning that he’s at his best when he’s playing loose and not dealing with facilitation responsibilities. That helps the former Pittsburgh Panther not hesitate, as McCollum said.</p><p>On the other hand, it also shows the coaching staff and organization that it’s best to let young players build themselves up in the NBA within their comfort zone before playing them in a position they’re not used to. Carrington might be ready to play point guard in a couple of years, but there’s no need to force him to do so now simply because the team doesn’t have a true “one.”</p><p>While McCollum’s red-hot shooting night was a treat for the Washington faithful at Capital One Arena, he won’t be around for long due to his expiring contract. Carrington is a different story, as he’s a part of the young core that the team is developing.</p><p>For now, McCollum’s veteran leadership can help players like Carrington, who will get every chance to show they can be in the fold when the Wizards are a winning squad again.</p><h2><b>Alex Sarr reveals how Wizards excelled sans Tre Johnson, Kyshawn George</b></h2><p>Both Atlanta and Washington were shorthanded, as star <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba/atlanta-hawks/trae-young-to-be-re-evaluated-in-4-weeks-with-mcl-injury">Hawks guard Trae Young (knee)</a> as well as Wizards guard Tre Johnson (hip) and wing Kyshawn George (illness) were all out. But the fact that the latter team won convincingly without two of its best young players shows that the rebuild is working.</p><p>Second-year center Alex Sarr, who notched 27 points (11-15 FG, 1-2 3-point) with 11 rebounds, two blocks, and two steals over 38 minutes, explained how Washington <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1993527807583162693" rel="noopener">pulled it off</a>.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Alex Sarr on how the Wizards had their best night of the season without Kyshawn George or Tre Johnson:</p><p>“Yeah, we definitely miss those guys out there…It’s just next man up…We’re sharing the ball a lot, I feel like. First half, second half too. That worked for us.” <a href="https://t.co/3Gm6ohtJu1">pic.twitter.com/3Gm6ohtJu1</a></p><p>— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1993527807583162693?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 26, 2025</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“Yeah, we definitely miss those guys out there. They’re big-time shotmakers and playmakers for us,” the 2024 No. 2 overall draft pick said. “It’s just next man up, guys trying to make the right plays. We’re sharing the ball a lot, I feel like. First half, second half too. That worked for us.”</p><p>Indeed, the Wizards tallied 30 assists, giving them 30-plus dimes in back-to-back games and five total such outings on the season. Sharing the ball and having Sarr dominate inside on both ends gives them a formula for competitive basketball moving forward, even though they’re not focused on winning yet.</p><p>If Washington at least plays closer games consistently, the young core will learn from being in more clutch-time situations. Losing by 20-plus points, which it’s done six times this season, is less helpful. However, the last two games are signs that the team is figuring itself out.</p><p>Up next is another NBA Cup matchup, this time on the road against the Indiana Pacers at 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday night.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

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