Opinion: Washington Wizards Need to be Playing Johnny Davis
It is clear the rebuild for the Washington Wizards is in full effect and this year they might win even fewer games than we thought.
This is why Wizards guard Johnny Davis needs to be playing way more than he is.
"He showed some bright spots through the preseason, (and) through some early minutes," Washington coach Wes Unseld Jr. said about Davis after the game against the Dallas Mavericks."(It's) more lack of opportunity at this point."
Davis has played in only six games averaging 10 minutes per game.
To make matters worse, even though he played for seven minutes in last night's game, the previous five he only logged a total of three minutes.
This included Davis not playing in three straight games.
"He doesn't have a ton of minutes," Unseld continued on Davis. "I had a conversation with him about kind of just staying the course and he understands, opportunities will come."
But when are the opportunities Unseld keeps mentioning about going to come? What does Davis have to do to get minutes?
"Right now, it's a bit of a logjam. It's not necessarily Johnny," Unseld said. "He'll get opportunities."
A 'logjam' when it comes to getting minutes on a team that is 2-9? Most would think with some of the embarrassing performances thus far those minutes would open up.
The injury to Washington guard Delon Wright had opened up some rotation minutes that could have been given to Davis.
Instead, Unseld has given the minutes to veterans like guard Landry Shamet.
Washington Wizards guard Johnny Davis (1) shoots the ball as Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) looks on in the fourth quarter at Capital One Arena.
Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Davis has to be given opportunities and it seems that Unseld would rather roll the dice with some veteran players that he feels may sneak out an extra win or two versus the development of younger players.
Which he isn't totally to blame for.
The NBA is about results and if the Wizards continue to get pummeled, Unseld may not be around to reap the benefits of the eventual success of the franchise.
For now, it is plain and simple, Washington is not good.
They probably won't be for the foreseeable future so they should be prioritizing getting Davis time.
They need to see if he is the future starting guard for this team because if he isn't then they need a contingency plan sooner rather than later to shorten the rebuild.
You can follow Gage Sheets on X @SheetsG23
Follow Inside The Wizards on Facebook
Follow Inside The Wizards on X
Keep up with all Washington Wizards news on the SI.com Washington Wizards team page
