{"id":876998,"date":"2026-11-05T22:12:18","date_gmt":"2026-11-05T22:12:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/876998\/"},"modified":"2026-11-05T22:12:18","modified_gmt":"2026-11-05T22:12:18","slug":"alex-sarr-discusses-optimized-fit-within-stacked-wizards-offense","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/876998\/","title":{"rendered":"Alex Sarr Discusses Optimized Fit within Stacked Wizards Offense"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Washington Wizards’ haven’t hidden from their early scoring woes. Despite trooping into the 2026-27 regular season with a near-full rotation’s worth of double-digit scorers, their attempts at locating early balance haven’t gone smoothly, something they themselves have openly admitted.<\/p>\n

The age-old “too many cooks in the kitchen” conundrum is a fortuitous one for a young corps to have as far as lineup logjams go. There are a half-dozen Wizards who can still make the case for their earning regular on-ball reps after a few weeks of action, offering fans more combined talent than anything they’ve seen in years while leaving “fit” concerns up to balance-searching coaches.<\/p>\n

\"Washington<\/p>\n

Oct 30, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Wizards forward AJ Dybantsa (4) celebrates with Wizards forward Kyshawn George (18) during a timeout against the Charlotte Hornets in the second half in an NBA Cup game at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

But as AJ Dybantsa<\/a> and Kyshawn George<\/a> continue ascending amidst Anthony Davis<\/a>‘ and Trae Young<\/a>‘s attempts at stacking their own numbers within a developmental context, it’ll only get tougher for other primary pieces to avoid getting shoehorned into a strictly-complimentary role. It’s a quandary that Alex Sarr<\/a> now finds himself faced with- does the skilled prospect have the room to scale up to the level he’s previously flashed?<\/p>\n

Sarr’s Complicated Road to November<\/p>\n

Despite the seven-footer’s clunky theoretical fit alongside another interior big in Davis, there was never any real doubt that Sarr would return to the season-opening starting lineup. He’d done good in bouncing back from a wildly-streaky rookie debut, shifting his shooting focus<\/a> closer to the basket in the interest of settling for fewer fading midrange heaves and creaky 3-pointers.<\/p>\n

Alex Sarr 31-8-2-3b (12\/20 FG) pic.twitter.com\/FzcFHYfYhu<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Brett Usher (@UsherNBA) November 6, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

Part of that on-ball creativity played a key role in Sarr’s initial hype, with his two-way upside ultimately winning the Wizards and their second pick out of the 2024 NBA Draft over. He exited last season as the squad’s premier pre-Dybantsa prospect<\/a>, someone with the versatile defense and rim-centric play-finishing package to unlock Young’s next offensive scheme.<\/p>\n

Now, though, he’s finding himself stuffed in the corner much more often than he was as a sophomore, leaning on his outside jumper as a means of playing off of the more dominant Davis. “Definitely still trying to do both,” he told On SI<\/a> in regards to balancing the arc-lingering and the post-touches. “My jumper allows our offense to be spread out, so just me picking the moments where I’m cutting or spacing to the corners, just trying to be efficient at those.”<\/p>\n

This is more or less what people want to see out of Sarr the scorer. Screens as both a lone roller and a staggering partner, scores straight-up when he\u2019s not directly dunking, shoots when he\u2019s wide open in the corner. Rebounding still a concern, but this is as good as he\u2019s looked pic.twitter.com\/KZWcEuUb1I<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 All Wizards Talk (@AllWizardsTalk) October 29, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

That off-ball scoring and playmaking has never been more necessary given how little the offense is revolving around Sarr compared to years past. <\/p>\n

He’s now one of three pick-and-roll options at center alongside Davis and Deandre Ayton, and Sarr’s the least-sturdy among that big man phylum at that. Sarr hasn’t exactly been lacing the ball on his few kicked-out scoring chances, either, posting a 22.2% clip from deep on a usage rate<\/a> that falls below all four other starters and reserve spark plug scorer Tre Johnson<\/a>.<\/p>\n

If nothing else, his comfortability emerging from a spot-up stance has reminded the masses of Sarr’s preternatural playmaking touch. “We got guys who can make decisions at all positions,” he said. “Whether it\u2019s me in the short roll, Trae, Kyshawn, AJ handling the ball, getting past their guy, we got a lot of different looks out there. That\u2019s when the chemistry comes in of all of us being on the same page. You can see people getting more and more comfortable as the games have gone on.”<\/p>\n

Coach Keefe’s Co-Sign<\/p>\n

The obvious counter to Sarr’s perimeter-oriented tendencies would be for him to take full-physical advantage of his reps as the lone big, a circumstance of which he’s enjoyed 36 minutes<\/a> of over seven appearances. He’s never been without the spoon-feeding Young over that limited sample, and while he’s held down the defense to the tune of a productive 105.1 defensive rating, Sarr’s still far from some back-to-the-basket thrasher.<\/p>\n

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Oct 16, 2026; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Washington Wizards center Alex Sarr (20) during warm ups before the game against New Orleans Pelicans at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

He’s been quietly-effective statistically within the arc, finishing on 21 of his 30 2-point tries with a variety of tip-ins and fast break finishes, yet he’s still far from asserting himself enough to command a collapsing defense. <\/p>\n

That’s where head coach Brian Keefe<\/a> is keen to remind fans that Sarr hasn’t enjoyed the same long ramp-up process as most of his teammates. “I think he’s been adjusted to [the offense] well. Obviously, he’s still getting his legs underneath him, like he didn’t get the chance to train like the rest of the team this summer.”<\/p>\n

A lot of material here out of Wizards HC Brian Keefe on managing the still-adjusting Alex Sarr within a spaced floor.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis playmaking ability\u2026with AD, playing the high-low game, playing big-to-big in the short pocket\u2026Alex can always find shooters and kick it out.\u201d pic.twitter.com\/cV5QCuqzqN<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 All Wizards Talk (@AllWizardsTalk) November 5, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

“The offensive stuff is growing, and that’s with our whole team. We’re still trying to figure out the identity of how we’re gonna play with our team. I thought that would take some time…What you can feel with Alex, his playmaking ability, you can see the combination he’s already built with AD, playing the high-low game, playing big-to-big, or when he’s in the short pocket, Alex can always find shooters and kick it out. I’ve been happy with his progress.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Washington<\/p>\n

Nov 4, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Wizards center Alex Sarr (20) shoots as Atlanta Hawks forward Asa Newell (14) looks on in the first half at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

Even with the occasional impact-less duds dotting his early-fall returns, Keefe does have a point regarding Sarr’s fit within the team’s growing needs. As Davis grows ever-more dominant as a scorer out of isolation, his center has found a way to notch 10+ points four times over his last five outings, as well as eight rebounds in both of this week’s games to help shore up the gang rebounding concerns.<\/p>\n

He’s still not the offensive board horse that the team’s been searching for since Justin Champagnie fractured his foot, nor is he the volume outside sniper to command respect from already-stretched defenses. This team still has pressing needs to assess at 4-4, and though Sarr can’t solve everything, he has plenty to bolster in adding another unique skillset to compliment the still-forming corps. <\/p>\n

Make sure you bookmark Washington Wizards on SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!<\/a><\/p>\n

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