Weekly Wiz

Written by: Eric Meyer

Published: November 4, 2025

This Week’s Results (overall record):

October 28, 2025: 76ers 139, Wizards 134 OT (1-3)

October 30, 2025: Wizards 117, Bucks 107 (1-4)

November 1, 2025: Hornets 139, Wizards 113 (1-5)

November 3, 2025: Wizards 102, Knicks 119 (1-6)

The Wizards opened this week with a frustrating overtime loss to the 76ers, where they blew a 16 point 4th quarter lead. They followed that up with three straight blowout losses and now sit a 1-6 and are mired in a five game losing streak. It was a rough watch. Let's sift through the carnage.

Tank Commander CJ McCollum

I said in the season preview that CJ McCollum would help keep this team watchable while the  younger players were  learning on the job, and so far that's been way off the mark. McCollum has been one of the worst players in basketball through the first couple of weeks. The struggle was on full display late in the game last Tuesday, where CJ had a half-dozen empty possessions while running the Wizards' offense in the 4th quarter and overtime, ultimately costing Washington the game. You can peep the montage of anti-clutch play here. Viewer discretion is advised.

Even putting that Philly loss aside, McCollum's game has been an eyesore. He's shooting 37% from the field. He can't seem to find the range on his floater and has missed countless shots within 5 feet of the rim. What's worse, he has all but refused to play any team basketball. He looks off open shooters to play ISO ball, cranks ill-advised shots early in the clock, and plays traffic cone defense. The only positive is that his three point shooting has picked up, but that's not nearly enough to make up for his uninspired play.

I realize it's no fun being jettisoned to a rebuilding team. CJ likely wants to compete, and the Wizards do not have the talent nor inclination to do that. Washington likely will try to move McCollum before the trade deadline, but that becomes a tougher task if he continues to stink. His play will need to drastically improve if he has any hopes of finishing the season in another uniform, which is what all of us want.

Bilal Coulibaly Returns

Coulibaly made his season debut on Thursday against the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder. He was thrust into the starting lineup and immediately tasked with defending Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Talk about a baptism by fire. Bilal held up relatively well against the reigning MVP and had some other highlights on the defensive end, chewing up Aaron Wiggins (go Terps) on this impressive block. Bilal's defensive intensity was also on display against the Knicks, ripping OG Anunoby for an easy score and harassing Jalen Brunson into committing an offensive foul.

Offensively, it was a mixed bag for the third-year wing. Coulibaly had some success shooting the ball, knocking down a respectable 5 of 14 from beyond the arc. However, BIlal was also tasked with handling the ball quite a bit against Orlando and New York, and his deficiencies were glaring. Coulibaly made several poor passes and struggled to control his handle when operating out of the pick-n-roll. Unfortunately, the Wizards don't have many great options for ball-handling, so Coulibaly may be required to initiate the offense even if it's not his comfort zone. Still, he has a valuable skillset on this team and should see plenty of opportunities to improve his game.

Thunder Expose Wizards' Lack of Ball-handling

Piggy-backing off the previous point, the defending champs took full advantage in exposing the Wizards' lack of true point guards on the roster. The Thunder are notorious for their ability to get their hands on the ball, whether it's deflecting passes or ripping dribblers for turnovers. They had their way with each of Washington's guards and wings, taking advantage of every careless bounce or inaccurate pass. It was a valuable learning experience for the young Wiz, because Oklahoma City is the standard of the NBA. Not only do the Wizards need to tighten up their handle, but they could learn a lesson from the Thunder's aggressiveness and heady play on the defensive end.

Bub Carrington to the Bench

With Coulibaly's return to the starting lineup, one of the Wizards would have to head to the bench, and Bub Carrington was the odd man out. Carrington struggled last week but seemed to find a rhythm running pick-n-roll sets with Alex Sarr, hitting him on a couple of nice pocket passes like this.

The move to the bench has Bub paired with Marvin Bagley more often, but he was able to make some similar plays with the second unit. However, Carrington continued to struggle with self-creation. He was forced into tough shots because defenders were able to stay in front of him and keep him out of the paint, and his jumpshot wasn't there for him this week. Bub hasn't looked the same so far in the young season, and he needs to find a way to impact the game positively. Rebuild or not, 7 points per game on poor shooting and turnovers galore aren't going to fly in the NBA.

Alex Sarr Expands His Offense

Last week, I highlighted Sarr's aggressiveness in the paint and how he's shown an improved strength and confidence when squaring up with opposing centers. He had a career game on Tuesday attacking Joel Embiid and Andre Drummond, pouring in 31 points and knocking down several threes. His outside shooting helped create opportunities as a passer, pulling Hartenstein out of the paint and opening a cutting opportunity for Khris Middleton. Sarr also made several nice kickouts when on the short roll, and is averaging an impressive 4.1 assists per game from the center position.

Like most of the team, Sarr's week was not without some warts. Alex has shown a particular thirst for going after prominent players, and sometimes the results have been a tad embarrassing. Nevertheless, the 20-year-old is developing into an excellent player and should be viewed as a cornerstone for this rebuild.

Up Next

The Wizards will head to Boston Wednesday before returning home for a Friday-Saturday back-to-back against Cleveland and Dallas. They'll finish up the week in Detroit on Monday night. I'm hoping to see a W this week, but I won't hold my breath. 

See ya next Tuesday.