Inside The Wizards

What Wizards Rotation Should Look Like With Trae Young

Predicting the Washington Wizards' rotation after their acquisition of Trae Young via trade.
Owen Jury|
Dec 27, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) in action against the New York Knicks in the fourth quarter at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
Dec 27, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) in action against the New York Knicks in the fourth quarter at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

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Washington Wizards

After days upon days of constant rumors regarding the future of the Washington Wizards and whether a trade to acquire All-Star guard Trae Young would actually happen, the dust finally settled, as the Wizards sent off CJ McCollum and Corey Kispert while getting just Young in return.

This is easily the biggest trade in recent memory for Washington, as acquiring Young means getting their hands on a type of talent that they haven’t had in years.

He is a four-time All-Star, one-time All-NBA selection, and one-time assist champ who has proven capable of leading a team to success, reflected by the Atlanta Hawks’ conference finals berth just five years ago.

What all of this means is that adding Young and replacing McCollum and Kispert will throw a major wrench into the Wizards’ rotation. Washington will likely be very conservative with their usage of Young, as the goal of tanking and acquiring a top pick this season remains the same. However, the rest of the rotation might see some changes.

Starting Five

Despite the change, the Wizards’ starting five remains a fairly clear projection when everyone is healthy. Young will obviously slot in as the team’s point guard, likely sharing the backcourt with second-year Kyshawn George, who has emerged as a breakout star this season. Behind them will likely be Bilal Coulibaly, Khris Middleton, and Alex Sarr, as those three have started in every game they have played in this season.

Center Alex Sarr Wizards
Jan 7, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Washington Wizards center Alex Sarr (20) drives against Philadelphia 76ers forward Paul George (8) during the first quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

The only caveat with the group is rookie guard Tre Johnson, whose impressive play may be enough to earn him a starting job. However, his youth and lack of experience will likely be trumped by Washington’s more proven players, leaving him on the outside looking in until more deals are done.

Second Unit

As for the bench squad, things may look a bit different. Johnson will likely handle responsibilities as the team’s sixth man, while Bub Carrington, Justin Champagnie, and Marvin Bagley II each play a pivotal role in backing up the first group.

Head coach Brian Keefe has been known to go five or more deep off the bench at times this season, but doing so is typically heavily predicated on situation and matchup. Look for Tristan Vukčević, Will Riley, and AJ Johnson to be the 10th man on a fairly consistent basis — filling in when the team needs an offensive spark plug. While Jamir Watkins and Malaki Branham fill in when the time is right or injuries arise.

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Owen Jury
OWEN JURY

Owen Jury is currently a writer for Sports Illustrated. Jury is a student at the University of Missouri-Columbia studying journalism. At Missouri, he covers men’s golf and basketball for a student-run publication called The Maneater. Jury is still figuring out what his end goal is, but he is definitely excited about his future in journalism.

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