The Washington Wizards’ young core has been on fire since the start of the season. While it hasn’t translated to wins, currently sitting at 1-3, that doesn’t mean they aren’t playing well. Rookie sensation Tre Johnson has already put himself in some record books, and Kyshawn George looks to have the potential to be the next big Wizard star. In game four against the Sixers, however, it was all about the Wizards’ sophomore Alex Sarr.
Alex Sarr Joins Elite Company With Career Game Against 76ers
Sarr’s recent rise warrants further study. While not having the best rookie showing and getting injured after showing good offseason progress, Sarr looks like a completely different player through Washington’s first four games.
Notable Improvements
Sarr finished his debut season as a member of the All-Rookie First Team, but that doesn’t mean his season was a great one. Through his 67 games last season, Sarr averaged 13 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.5 blocks. While his stat line is decent for a rookie, Sarr’s issue was consistency, shooting 39.4% from the field and 30.8% from three. However, the start of the 2025-26 season has shown just how much that first NBA offseason can do for a player.
Sarr, through four games, is averaging 19.5 points, 8.8 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and two blocks with just under a steal per game. Not only has every major stat taken impressive leaps, but his shooting has also notably improved. He’s shooting 55.2% from the field and 36.4% from three, while looking much more comfortable in the paint on offense. This improvement was on display during Tuesday night’s loss against the Philadelphia 76ers in overtime, which put him in the company of some of the best in the league.
Career Night Puts Him In Elite Company
Sarr dropped 31 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, with four total stocks (steals and blocks) in the close loss to the 76ers. Sarr is not only officially the youngest player in Wizards history with a 30+ point, 10+ rebound game, but joined some real elite company with this breakout performance.
He is now one of just three players ever to record 30+ points, 10+ rebounds, 5+ assists, 2+ steals, and 2+ blocks in a game before turning 21 since 1980. The other two players to accomplish this feat? The first was LeBron James, who will soon make his 23rd season debut, and is still a top 10 player in the NBA. The second is another French big man who has a chance to nearly sweep the NBA award races this season, Victor Wembanyama.
All the noise certainly distracted Sarr last season; this year has shown a completely different story. He went into the offseason with a lot of work to do, and came out looking like the Wizards’ big man for the future, which is exactly why the front office took a chance on him with their second pick in the 2024 draft.
The Last Word
While this doesn’t mean Sarr is on pace to become a top-10 player in the league this season like Wembanyama and James, it does show that he has the potential to be one of the best Wizards in recent memory. Remember, this is the same player who, in his rookie season, outdueled MVP runner-up Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets at home. Now adding Joel Embiid, Sarr certainly can rival some of the best bigs in the league, and could put himself in contention for one of the best risers this season.
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