{"id":176601,"date":"2026-02-07T07:00:56","date_gmt":"2026-02-07T12:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=176601"},"modified":"2026-02-06T23:35:52","modified_gmt":"2026-02-07T04:35:52","slug":"wizards-bub-carrington-with-everything-to-lose-after-washingtons-blockbusters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2026\/02\/07\/wizards-bub-carrington-with-everything-to-lose-after-washingtons-blockbusters\/","title":{"rendered":"1 Wizard With Everything To Lose After Washington’s Blockbusters"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Washington Wizards completed an entire roster flip<\/a> in just over a month, with trades for former All-Stars<\/a>\u00a0Anthony Davis<\/a> and Trae Young<\/a>. Now past the trade deadline<\/a>, a few of Washington’s young standouts will no doubt be feeling the pressure to perform well. In doing so, one can claim a position<\/a> in the next era of Washington basketball. On the flip side, playing poorly may grant you a one-way ticket out of D.C. In this dog-eat-dog world, none feels the pressure as much as the sophomore guard Bub Carrington<\/a>.<\/p>\n

1 Wizard With Everything To Lose After Washington’s Blockbusters<\/h2>\n

Carrington seems to be in a secure position for now. With that being said, he could be the odd man out going into the offseason and the 2026-27 campaign. The second-year guard may find himself falling into a bench role next season.<\/p>\n

In the Davis trade, Washington acquired D’Angelo Russell<\/a>, Dante Exum<\/a>, and Jaden Hardy<\/a>. While positive additions, it overcrowded the guard positions. Carrington may have the youth to his benefit, but in the world of competition, it could be best to go with experience.<\/p>\n

<\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n

Carrington’s Play<\/h3>\n

Carrington’s rookie year wasn’t overly impressive, but it did land him a spot on last year’s All-Rookie Second Team. He did show flashes of what a unique combo guard he could become. Carrington has great playmaking and scoring abilities, but he couldn’t keep his performances consistent.<\/p>\n

He finished the season averaging 9.8 points, 4.4 assists, and 4.2 rebounds while shooting 40.1% from the field and 33.9% from three. Like fellow draft mates Alex Sarr<\/a> and Kyshawn George<\/a>, Carrington needed to make a sizable jump in the offseason. In doing so, he could be looked at as a long-term piece for the Wizards. However, unlike the two mentioned, Carrington missed an opportunity they were granted. Sarr and George both participated in FIBA tournaments over the summer while Carrington remained stateside, missing out on crucial development time in competitive environments.<\/p>\n

With 50 games down in the 2025-26 season, Carrington’s play has improved. However, is it enough to keep sizable minutes next season? The guard has averaged 10.1 points, 4.6 assists, and 3.6 rebounds this season. He has improved his three-point percentage, shooting over 40% from behind the arc. This season, he’s been a very steady contributor to a team lacking a true primary guard after trading CJ McCollum<\/a> for a currently-injured Young<\/a>.<\/p>\n

While he’s made great strides in his game, is it enough to outplay Russell, Exum, and Hardy?<\/p>\n

\"Apr
Apr 8, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Washington Wizards guard Bub Carrington (8) shoots the ball in the second half against the Indiana Pacers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Russell, Exum, And Hardy’s Presence<\/h3>\n

The addition of the three Mavericks’ guards is certainly a welcome addition to the bench. However, with Carrington there as well, who will the Wizards lean on as the backup option at the guard positions?<\/p>\n

Between the three, Russell stands out as the most likely to gain favor. Exum and Hardy will both be mixed in, but Russell will almost surely be seen on the floor much more than the other two. While in a down year this season, make no mistake, Russell is a certified hooper.<\/p>\n

The one-time NBA All-Star has averaged 17 points over his career. He has not shot under 40% from the field until last season. In Dallas, his numbers have taken a sharp decline this season. \u00a0A change of scenery was exactly what the guard needed. His scoring ability no doubt garners minutes, but his playmaking makes him a formidable combo guard that will push Carrington in and out of the rotation. He’s not averaged under four assists since his rookie season, and averaged over five in eight of his ten seasons in the league.<\/p>\n

The Last Word<\/h3>\n

Russell stands as the most to gain, while Carrington stands as the most to lose. With the Washington Wizards moving into their next contention era after the trades, the Wizards will compete as long as Davis and Young remain in D.C. Carrington will stay involved, but how much?<\/p>\n

Featured Image: David Reginek-Imagn Images<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Washington Wizards completed an entire roster flip in just over a month, with trades for former All-Stars\u00a0Anthony Davis and Trae Young. Now past the trade deadline, a few of Washington’s young standouts will no doubt be feeling the pressure to perform well. In doing so, one can claim a position in the next era […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5480,"featured_media":176689,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1608,62,18],"tags":[49244,49333,307,402,4630],"class_list":["post-176601","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-nba","category-wizards","tag-alex-sarr","tag-bub-carrington","tag-dangelo-russell","tag-dante-exum","tag-jaden-hardy"],"modified_by":"Benjamin Yu","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176601","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5480"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=176601"}],"version-history":[{"count":46,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176601\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":176690,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176601\/revisions\/176690"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/176689"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=176601"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=176601"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=176601"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}