Rising Stars Challenge Player Grades: Washington Wizards Rui Hachimura and Moritz Wagner shine

Moritz Wagner

Just like his Wizards teammate, Wagner wasted no time making his mark on the Rising Stars Challenge. Wagner, the second German to ever play in this All-Star Weekend event, didn’t start, so his impact didn’t come as early as Hachimura’s did. But once he got off the bench, he wasted no time getting started.

Right away Wagner was able to show that even though he’s 6’11”, you can’t afford to leave him open from outside. This season, Wagner is shooting 35.6 percent from behind the arc. Once Josh Okogie‘s pass found him open on the perimeter, Wagner had his first points of the game. Swish.

Too bad the first quarter didn’t end there for Wagner. Although he made a few more plays before the quarter was up, his most memorable play of the night may have been his missed dunk right before the buzzer.

Undeterred, Wagner came out in the second quarter and went back to attacking the basket. On a fast break dunk, he looked more like a tight end than a center.

Collin Sexton would get his revenge for that later in the game, though. Wagner was one of the few showing consistent efforts on the defensive end. It was impressive, especially in a showcase, and Wagner wound up with a couple of steals and a few deflections by the time the game was over. But he also got left on an island and paid the price.

It didn’t always end that way, though. Eric Paschall tried to take Wagner one-on-one but got Wagner put the straps on him and forced a jump ball.

Moe might have not been responsible for many highlights last night, but he was quietly and consistently putting in work throughout the game. Wagner led all Team World reserves in scoring (16 points), steals (2), and field goal percentage (66.7 percent). A solid showing for Washington’s big man.