Inside The Wizards

Wizards Star Proving Dominant in Yet Another Category

The Washington Wizards' ascending center is leading the field in an intriguing statistic.
Henry Brown|
Nov 3, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Washington center Alex Sarr (20) dribbles during the second half against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Lucas Boland-Imagn Images
Nov 3, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Washington center Alex Sarr (20) dribbles during the second half against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Lucas Boland-Imagn Images | Lucas Boland-Imagn Images

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Alex Sarr's sophomore leap has overwhelmed so many of the other on-court negatives that the Washington Wizards have already produced before playing a dozen games, and deservedly so.

He's taken massive jumps in nearly every category in which fans had concerns. Sarr's points per game have skyrocketed from 13 per game to 18.9 behind a massive true shooting turn, as he transitioned from a dreadful 48.2% all the way up slightly-above league average at 58.9%. He's finishing stronger and more frequently at the cup, and allowing the jump shot to function more as icing on the cake as opposed to the foundation of his scoring game.

The former No. 2 overall draft pick meant every word when he told preseason media that he was dead-set on improving his shot diet, but he's starting to demonstrate strides in other ancillary departments, too.

In addition to the shooting boost, he also comfortably sits atop the NBA in screen assists through the season's start, having totaled 46 through three weeks of action.

Unleashing the Passing

His decision-making with the ball in his hands factored into his pre-draft hype, even if he was never expected to function as some kind of seven-foot point guard. Sarr's grown into a more willing and sturdy screener, providing him with opportunities to find his teammates out of the pick-and-roll and occasionally fling the ball to a distant shooter.

This is yet another area in which he's turned several pages since entering the league as a physically-overwhelmed rookie, when he relied heavily on veteran center Jonas Valančiūnas to do the dirty work with his body. Now, it's Sarr who's leveraging his monstrous length and advanced instincts to keep the otherwise-sluggish Washington offense moving.

His four assists per game to start the 2025-26 campaign have put Sarr right there alongside the Wizards' leading passers, leading everyone not named Bub Carrington in the category. That includes up-and-coming point-forward Kyshawn George, who trails his fellow sophomore by 0.1 assists per contest, as well as productive ball-handling veterans in CJ McCollum and Khris Middleton.

Washington Wizards Guard CJ McCollum
Oct 30, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Washington Wizards guard CJ McCollum (3) drives past Oklahoma City Thunder guard Cason Wallace (22) during the second quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Sarr's sudden growth has been credited to his IQ, having already picked up the ways in which opposing defenses were funneling him into falling into their game plans. But this stronger, more confident center has more ways to score than ever before, and that's opened up his ball-movement chops; no longer can other bigs just brace for an off-kilter jumper or an ill-advised drive. Even more ways to fluster teams who aren't properly prepared for the most well-rounded prospect of the bunch.

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Henry Brown
HENRY BROWN

Henry covers the Washington Wizards and Baltimore Ravens with prior experience as a sports reporter with The Baltimore Sun, the Capital Gazette and The Lead. A Bowie, MD native, he earned his Journalism degree at the University of Maryland.

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