Wizards power forward Kyle Kuzma recently discussed his new role as Washington’s leading scorer (for now), per Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington.
“Never did it (with the Lakers),” Kuzma said of serving as a primary offensive option. “Obviously, we had great players so that wasn’t my calling. But I have that ability. I can get a rebound and push, I can orchestrate things. I have a high enough IQ to understand who needs the ball in situations and what we kind of need.”
Through his first three games this year, Kuzma is averaging a career-high 19.7 PPG, on .465/.400/.688 shooting splits. He is also pulling down 7.0 RPG, 2.3 APG and 1.3 BPG.
There’s more out of D.C.:
- Newly-anointed Wizards starting small forward Deni Avdija is reveling in his fresh opportunity among the club’s first five, per Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. “It just shows coach and the organization trust in me,” Avidja said. “They chose that they believe in me and they think that I deserve to be a starter and create and get some of the pressure off the other guys in the starting five. I feel like I’m kind of the glue guy in the starting five,” Avdija said. “I’m trying to make the right play. I’m playing defense, I’m rebounding. I’m trying to do everything I can to help the team and get pressure off from a couple of players that you could say are ball dominant more.”
- Wizards head coach Wes Unseld Jr. anticipates Washington will continually honor the best defensive player of each individual game throughout the regular season, per Josh Robbins of The Athletic. Unseld and his assistant coaches are hoping that incentivizing solid defense in this manner will help improve the club’s overall performance on that end of the hardwood. “I think a lot of times players in any sport are kind of assigned accolades with your offensive performances,” Unseld said. “In football, certain colleges do it. We just thought of it as a gimmick in nature but (also) something our guys can kind of buy into. They can lean into it, because it’s a real belt.”
- The 2022/23 Wizards are getting along swimmingly, which was not the case last season, according to Candace Buckner of The Washington Post. “I mean, we’re all just playing the right way,” Kuzma said of the team’s improved chemistry this year. “We have a veteran team, we have a team where we all like each other, and I mean that’s the biggest thing. We can tell we all like each other.” Center Daniel Gafford feels similarly. “The key point is the relationships and stuff are wanted more,” Gafford said. “Everybody’s not seeking individual goals; it’s a full-out team goal. We all want to win. We all want to play in the postseason, and that takes being together and playing as a unit. Being there for each other and taking constructive criticism. If somebody gets on your tail, you take that and use it to be able to progress in the game.”