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Wizards’ Kyshawn George continues second-year leap with historic outing in loss vs. Bulls
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- Wizards’ Kyshawn George continues second-year leap with historic outing in loss vs. Bulls
The post Wizards' Kyshawn George continues second-year leap with historic outing in loss vs. Bulls appeared first on ClutchPoints .
Whether the Washington Wizards (1-15) get crushed or fall in a heartbreaker, they keep finding ways to lose this season. However, second-year wing Kyshawn George once again showed why he's one of the most important pieces of their rebuild in Saturday's 121-120 loss to the Chicago Bulls (9-7), per Wizards PR.
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"Kyshawn George is the youngest of six players across the league this season, and just the second Wizard since 2012 to record 15+ points, 10+ rebounds, 5+ assists, and 4+ steals in a game ( Russell Westbrook , Apr. 14, 2021)," the team reported.
George finished with 17 points (5-14 FG, 1-3 3-point), 12 rebounds, seven assists, and four steals over 36 minutes. The 21-year-old led Washington in rebounds, assists, and steals, but also led with four turnovers.
George's outing ended with a missed shot and a turnover when the Wizards were down by one point over the final 30 seconds, but his two-way effectiveness helped them have a chance to win at the end in the first place. While the former Miami Hurricane almost quadruped his season average in steals (1.1) during the game, the rest of his numbers were in line with his usual output.
George is second on the team this year with 16.5 points per game on 48.4 percent shooting (44 percent 3-point) and 6.3 rebounds while leading in assists (4.9), steals, and turnovers (3.5). The high turnover rate is a product of his on-ball reps, as Washington has been running sets with the Swiss-Canadian international at point guard due to the roster not having a soldified player in that role.
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The organization wanted second-year guard Bub Carrington to become the lead guard this season, but that hasn't gone well. The 20-year-old is averaging 6.3 points on just 34.3 percent shooting (44.7 percent 3-point) with 3.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists against 2.3 turnovers over 25.4 minutes. He's scored double-digit points in only three of his 16 games and is third-to-last on the team with a -24.1 net rating , per NBA.com.
Carrington was better as a rookie last season when he played in his natural position as a combo guard. The former Pittsburgh Panther had a 5.8 percent higher field goal clip despite averaging 2.7 more attempts, and his assist-to-turnover ratio was higher by 0.81.
Carrington's struggles at point are partially why the Wizards are trying George in that role, but that also limits the latter player's catch-and-shoot opportunities. This will likely be a problem for the rest of the season unless Carrington improves, so they must live with George's high turnover rate considering his effectiveness in everything else.
George and second-year center Alex Sarr have been Washington's best players this season, which shows that the rebuild is on track despite the win-loss record. However, third-year forward Cam Whitmore's ascension cannot be ignored either.
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Whitmore, who Washington acquired from the Houston Rockets for two second-round picks over the summer, tied with veteran guard Corey Kispert for the team lead with 20 points (7-10 FG, 2-4 3-point) over just 18 minutes off the bench. The 6-foot-6, 230-pounder added seven rebounds and two assists while tying with Carrington for second on the team in plus/minus (plus-four).
Whitmore has now shot at least 50 percent from the field in six of his last seven games and scored 19-plus points in three of them. The former Villanova Wildcat's explosiveness as a scorer on all three levels is second-to-none on the Wizards, as shown in Saturday night's film.
If Whitmore keeps playing like he has recently, he'll establish himself as another key piece in Washington's young core. Losing 14 straight games isn't anyone's dream, but the squad's long-term development moves forward regardless.
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Up next for the Wizards is a home NBA Cup matchup with the Atlanta Hawks (10-7) on Tuesday night at 7:00 p.m. ET.
Related: Wizards' Corey Kispert leaves announcers stunned after 2-handed poster vs. Bulls
