The Washington Wizards haven't been able to escape hovering around .500 this season despite having one of the better defenses in the NBA. Their offense has struggled this season, ranking 21st in the league. Dybantsa has been a bright spot on offense, but everyone wants more.
Coming off a sprained ankle that sidelined him for the first few games of the season, it made sense that Dybantsa was on a minutes restriction and likely not pushed too hard, considering he's the future of the franchise. However, the minutes restriction has been lifted; the training wheels are off, and if the Wizards want their offense to improve, the easiest solution is to get Dybantsa more shots.
AJ Dybantsa needs to be treated like a priority on offense at all times
He's in a lucky situation, one that not a lot of No. 1 overall picks get to experience. He's coming into the league not as the first or even second option on his team right away. He still needs to be treated as the future of the franchise on that end, though, even with less pressure on him.
The rookie walked into the league as a natural at getting to the free throw line, and so far, through four games, he's only averaging 4.8 attempts per game. There have been too many times when he's waited for the offense to come to him, even though that's not what he's best at.
Him being more assertive, attacking the rim and looking for his shot in the mid-range, will unlock the offense a ton. Right now, most of the offense has been Anthony Davis face-up game or Trae Young's pick-and-roll. It works, but clearly that can't be your only methods to generate easy looks.
Dybantsa might be the best off-the-dribble shot creator on the team as a rookie, and if the Wizards want to be playing for a championship in April, having the 21st-ranked offense in the league isn't going to cut it.
He's still had a good start to his season regardless
It's not like Dybantsa has been bad by any stretch of the imagination. Over four games, he's averaged 16.5 points, five rebounds, and two assists. He's fifth in scoring amongst rookies, only behind Darius Acuff, Yaxel Lendeborg, Caleb Wilson, and Cam Boozer.
He's been as advertised so far, and the flashes of superstardom have shown up in an encouraging amount. He just needs to take more shots. Right now, he's taking around as many shots as Kyshawn George, averaging 13 per game (George is at 12.9). For him to level up, getting that number around 16-17 would be very helpful for this offense, especially given all of the bench's offensive woes.
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