Washington Wizards: Johnny Davis finally looks like an NBA player

During their dominant win over the Detroit Pistons, the Washington Wizards decided to roll the dice on rookie Johnny Davis who was coming off an injury. This was a gamble that worked well as the 21-year-old had the game of his career.

Davis has been one of the most disappointing players in the NBA this year. He was a top ten pick who could barely crack the rotation in the G-League. Now, he is proving that he deserved to be a lottery pick as he drops his first career double-digit scoring game.

He nearly doubled both his career points and his career rebounds in his effort against the Pistons, scoring 11 points and pulling in five rebounds as well. Before this game, he only ever got garbage time minutes and rarely shot the ball.

While Davis is primarily praised for his elite defense, he needs some sort of scoring ability in orders to make an impact at the NBA level. In recent months, he has had stretches of excellence with the Capital City Go-Go.

What could this mean for Johnny Davis going forward?

One thing is for certain after the game he had against the Pistons, Johnny Davis has earned some NBA minutes. He may not get starter level minutes like other players off the bench, but it would be surprising to see him put up DNPs for the rest of the season.

The biggest take away for Davis in that is the fact that minutes means reps. More reps means better progression. He may finally be starting to see the growth and potential that the Wizards saw in him on draft night.

Playing time for Davis could mean the Wizards defense might finally improve. They are one of the worse teams in the league when it comes to defense. Adding another elite defensive piece such as Johnny Davis is a huge step in the right direction for this team. Even if it doesn’t seem like it at first.

This game against the Detroit Pistons could have been the breakout game that the Washington Wizards have been waiting for from Johnny Davis. They now have no excuse to send him back to the G-League and should take a chance on him the rest of the season.