WASHINGTON — Trae Young reportedly saved the Wizards coaching staff several hours of film review this week by identifying himself as the team’s defensive weak link before anyone else had the chance.
“I’m probably going to be the weak link defensively, but I can still give effort,” Young told reporters, while also pointing out that Washington now has plenty of size and rim protection behind him.
The organization appreciated the efficiency.
“We had three meetings scheduled,” one fictional Wizards assistant said. “He basically covered the agenda in one sentence.”
Young enters his first full season in Washington with a roster designed to make his defensive life considerably less terrifying. Anthony Davis, Alex Sarr and Deandre Ayton give the Wizards significant size around the basket, while Bilal Coulibaly and Kyshawn George provide additional length on the perimeter.
The plan is simple:
Trae tries.
Everyone else stands behind him.
Washington is not asking Young to suddenly become Gary Payton. It is asking him to compete hard enough that several very tall teammates can eventually finish the possession.
Offensively, little changes.
Young will still be expected to create shots, control the ball and generate most of Washington’s offense after signing a four-year, $212.8 million extension.
Defensively, the expectations are more modest.
Try hard.
Stay attached.
And if anything goes wrong, there are approximately seven feet of help waiting behind him.
The Wizards know what they have.
Conveniently, so does Trae.
