The Washington Wizards have plenty of eyes on them as the NBA season looms, especially following the abudnance of moves made by general manager Will Dawkins this offseason.
With more eyes comes more opinions and with several debuts to judge, those opinions come with tough criticism.
Alex Sarr had to deal with it during his rookie season and now another first round pick is having his fair share of tough criticism to deal with.
Fortunately, after a strong performance in the Wizards second preseason game, critics will be forced to take a day off.
Will Riley shines in Wizards win over Knicks
Will Riley was selected with the No. 21 overall pick in the first round of the NBA Draft this offseason.
Overshadowed by the selection of Tre Johnson, who was picked with the No. 6 overall pick, Riley hasn't be talked about nearly enough entering the season; at least not in terms of players who could be poised for a breakout rookie season.
In the Wizards first preseason matchup, Riley struggled a bit to find his rhythm finishing with only four points, two rebounds and two assists in 15 minutes of play.
For a debut, there's no doubt that nerves could have been the reason for his struggles, but it's also to important to note when players aren't aggressive, it proves difficult for them to find any type of rhythm offensively.
However, in the team's second preseason matchup on the road, Riley made it a point to be more aggressive and because of that, he looked like a completely different player.
In 26 minutes against the Knicks, Riley totaled 17 points, two rebounds and two assists, while shooting 7/11 from field goal range and put together multiple highlight plays that caught the eyes of multiple people in the arena.
Will Riley has definitely been a standout so far in the Wizards’ preseason. He's showed a great motor, passing feel (especially in traffic), good instincts for cutting, the mobility to guard quick players on-ball.
— Chase Hughes (@chasedcsports) October 14, 2025
And now this move off the dribble 👀pic.twitter.com/1ef5v5Eq8o
Riley has the talent and work ethic to be a major steal for the Wizards when it's all said and done.
Whether he emerges as an immediate impact player for Washington this season or head coach Brian Keefe decides to work the young wing into the rotation slowly over time, it's clear why the Wizards front office was very high on him when selecting the freshman standout from Illinois this offseason.
Obviously, Riley still has a long ways to go before he can emerge as a star in this league, but following his standout performance in Madison Square Garden on Monday, his doubters will be forced to eat crow thanks to the rookies bounce back game.