Wizards 2025-26 Player Grades: Bub Carrington

Bub Carrington has ascended into one of the faces of the mid-decade Washington Wizards. He, like most of his teammates, was brought into a situation that was more set on stacking developmental wins than packing the organization's end-of-season record, and he's already expressed enough comfortability to inch closer to his finalized scoring niche.

That's not to say he's without detractors. As impressive as his outside touch can be, his place in the Wizards' increasingly-crowded depth chart is worthy of analysis, especially following a year of extremes out of Carrington.

On SI writers Bryson Akins and Henry J. Brown each shared their opinions on how he balanced institutional opportunity with his process.

"Bub Carrington had a season that many fans thought was disappointing. The stats show that he actually improved in many aspects. Of course, there are some areas where he took a step back or stayed at the same level, but it was not as bad a season as some say.

"For example, Carrington was one of the NBA's best three-point shooters, knocking down over 40% of his long-range attempts. He was also one of the deadliest pull-up shooters in the league. He also seemed more confident when on the court, which is always a great sign. It really was a season of growth for the backup one guard, and he continued staying healthy, playing in every game this past season."

Washington Wizards Guard Bub Carrington — Mar 17, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Wizards guard Bub Carrington (7) takes a shot during the second half against the Detroit Pistons at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images | Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

"He did struggle finishing around the rim, however. This is not really a skill he needs to develop, but it would be nice for him to be an average finisher at least. His defense also has some room for improvement. Those were really the only negatives about his season, though, and those are areas he can easily focus on this summer.

"All in all, it was a solid sophomore season from the Baltimore product. His stats showed he is not far behind his fellow 2024 draft class guards, and it looks like he is getting comfortable in a backup role behind Trae Young." - Bryson Akins

Bryson's Grade: C+

"Carrington seemed to end the 2024-25 season firmly in control of his destiny. Scoring freely on the tanking Wizards, he canned enough tough threes and pull-up midrange jumpers to earn a spot on his draft class' All-Rookie Second Team, beating out teammate Kyshawn George as one of the premier talents of his cycle.

"And while Bryson is correct in highlighting his noticeable jump in success from beyond the 3-point line, Carrington fell deeper into the overall concerns surrounding the viability of his game just as often as he impressed by honing already-established perimeter skills."

"His already-unimpressive finishing numbers glared through his raw counting stats more than ever, and that lack of rim pressure sapped him from making his playmaking any more meaningful. Sure, he can zip a pass, but defenses already-aware of his increasingly-limited shot tendencies can play like they already have the answers to the test.

"In a young corps that'll be soon joined by the aforementioned Young to busy up Washington's backcourt, no recently-drafted first-rounder is approaching expendable status quite as quickly as the squad's Iron Man. He deserves to be commended for his availability and how he's bounced back from occasional stretches of rusty play and diminished opportunity, but his present prioritization within the Wizards' long-term master plan can't possibly match where it was following last spring's season-ending game-winner." - Henry J. Brown

Henry's Grade: C

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