{"id":97094,"date":"2024-09-23T02:05:17","date_gmt":"2024-09-23T06:05:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=97094"},"modified":"2024-09-23T02:05:32","modified_gmt":"2024-09-23T06:05:32","slug":"wizards-top-pick-alex-sarr-defended-will-dawkins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2024\/09\/23\/wizards-top-pick-alex-sarr-defended-will-dawkins\/","title":{"rendered":"Wizards\u2019 Top Pick Defended By High-Ranking Official"},"content":{"rendered":"

From Day 1, Washington Wizards rookie big man Alex Sarr<\/a> will have a lot of doubters.<\/p>\n

Some people are simply trolls, getting their kicks off of making jokes about others. Others will question whether he\u2019s right to see himself as more of a power forward than center. However, most will think back his play in Summer League, the first chance many American basketball fans saw him play live.<\/p>\n

To some degree, there\u2019s merit to the concerns. Yet, it hasn\u2019t been known whether the Wizards front office shares them. At least, not until Wizards general manager Will Dawkins, who is entering his second year on the job, readily fielded questions<\/a> about the Frenchman in a recent appearance on Sports Junkies.<\/em><\/p>\n

Wizards\u2019 Top Pick Alex Sarr Defended By Will Dawkins<\/h2>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s (7-foot-1). He\u2019s a defensive player first, and I think we saw that,\u201d Dawkins says bluntly, albeit a little defensively.<\/p>\n

\u201cWould he like to have some of those games back in Summer League, yeah. It was five months since he played 5-on-5 last, in February, so we\u2019re not going to be too wrapped up into four games in Summer League. Especially when you saw and you actually break down the tape, the good things he did: how he got to his spots, how he moved the ball, (and) found people.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

We\u2019re not too worried about that,\u201d he reiterates, downplaying potential concerns. \u201cThe offense is going to come. I\u2019m excited for what he\u2019s going to be 3-4 years down the line, we\u2019re not too worried about those 3-4 games in Summer League.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe professional habits he has, we\u2019re going to improve upon those. But someone who wants to take the chance to leave home at 14\u2026 he\u2019s got a lot of different experiences and a lot of confidence\u2026 He just knows how to prepare for his body. He knows what goes into winning, like he\u2019s a vocal defensive player.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

“I wouldn’t put limitations on (Sarr\u2019s rookie season), to be honest with you,\u201d Dawkins adds summarily. \u201cI think he’s someone that by the end of the season you’ll be like \u2018OK, that was different.\u2019 He’ll have his moments throughout the beginning of the year, both negative and positive. But the stuff he can do on the floor long-term, I think you guys will be pretty excited about.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Forest or The Trees<\/h3>\n

Sarr\u2019s Summer League performance has been poured over<\/a> by myriad fans, analysts, and media members. By all accounts, his play in Las Vegas was a letdown. It\u2019s not often that a top-three draft pick \u2014one that might\u2019ve been drafted No. 1 had he been willing to audition<\/a> for the Atlanta Hawks \u2014has an 0-15 shooting night. He surely never went to a casino, but he proved that he was a gamble nonetheless.<\/p>\n