The NBA began its preseason slate over the weekend, with the Toronto Raptors facing off against the Miami Heat on Saturday, and the weekend culminated in two Western Conference matchups: the Utah Jazz vs. the Denver Nuggets and the Golden State Warriors vs. the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday night.
While future Hall of Famers like Nikola Jokic and Stephen Curry played a bit, much of the focus went to two top-five picks from Wizards rookie AJ Dybantsa's class making their first marks in the league: Darryn Peterson and Keaton Wagler.
Wagler continued the struggles we saw in the Las Vegas Summer League, shooting just 3-15 from the floor and 1-11 from 3-point range. Surprisingly, someone who flashed immediately in summer league in Utah’s Peterson looked even more overwhelmed in his team's win against the Nuggets.
The number two overall pick had a Utah Summer League to remember, scoring 28 points on 11-for-21 shooting in 27 minutes, justifying why Peterson went as high as he did and why many thought he should have been the Wizards' selection at number one overall.
However, for as great as his summer league start was, his preseason debut was equal parts horrible, as the Kansas guard scored just three points in 22 minutes of action on 1-for-5 shooting, with six rebounds, two assists, and two turnovers, showing that despite the superstar potential, there will be growing pains for Peterson…and the same should be expected for AJ Dybantsa.
Struggles are normal for even the most celebrated rookies
This outing for Peterson doesn’t take away from the fantastic prospect he was and the almost sure amazing player he’ll be in the Association, but given the hype that guys of the caliber of Peterson and AJ have, there are sure to be detractors making the case that they’re overrated based on a couple of poor performances, and this couldn’t be more short-sighted and unfair to these guys.
Ideally, we’d love it if AJ was a 20-point-per-game guy from opening tip, but composure and patience from a fanbase that has been asked to show so much of it must be exercised here.
In the same way, averaging 25 points per game in the summer league didn’t mean that Dybantsa would immediately be Tracy McGrady; a bad performance here and there for him in the preseason and even into the regular season doesn’t mean he’s on his way to being a disappointment either.
AJ’s Dybantsa's drive will make him highly effective
Wizards coaches, players, and fans should rest easy in knowing that even when AJ’s not scoring at an efficient clip, he’ll make an immediate impact on both sides of the ball that will still excite fans until his offensive package is fully formed.
With his defensive upside, ability to get into the paint to draw defenders that frees up his teammates, and his skill as a ball handler, along with how vocal a leader the number one overall pick already looks to be, the Wiz could relax in knowing AJ will be just fine even if he isn’t an all-around superstar from game 1.
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