2. Moritz Wagner
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Moritz Wagner has INSANE per 36 numbers. They’ve only gotten better since last I checked. He’s now averaging 20.2 points per game and 10.2 rebounds per 36 minutes plus a block to his name.
Turns out that between injuries and Scott Brooks’ rotations, he’s averaging just a shade over 20 minutes per game. If the Washington Wizards start to fall out of contention, they’ll have every reason to let Thomas Bryant recoup for next season and give Moe Wagner all the run he can handle.
If he can carve out 28 minutes a game, which shouldn’t be a problem if TB remains out or gets shut down, he can really be looking at a revival of his career even beyond what he’s already accomplished. Ian Mahinmi should be on his way to a string of DNPs sometime soon as he finishes out his awful contract with the Wiz, which should open up plenty of time too.
TB managed to come back and play as I was writing this, but even if he takes some minutes, he might get a look at the four spot besides Moritz Wagner.
Currently Moe Wagner is averaging 11.3 points and 5.7 rebounds on 59.1 percent shooting.
What would a jump look like? If he plays as well as he’s been playing and carves out a larger role, he can be looking at 16 points and 8 rebounds on 55 percent or better on shooting.
Who else made the jump? Bam Adebayo pops up again, of course, and he’s probably more similar to Wagner than TBJ in terms of skill set and stat output. The other guy who made a big jump in his second season post all-star break was Larry Nance Sr. who saw an additional 5 minutes per game and put up an additional 6 points and 0.9 rebounds after the break.