Comparing Wizards' Rookie Award Contender to ROTY Winner

The frenchman's distant fourth place finish wouldn't show that he hung with Castle all season long in most standard statistics.

The pair of standout rooks were thrust into similar situations; the Spurs had more expectations with their season than the Wizards ever did, but when blood clots prematurely ended Victor Wembanyama's season San Antonio gave Castle plenty of opportunity to dominate the ball and see what works against NBA defenses.

This luxury was one that Risacher and Wells couldn't match, as they were expected to play more standard 3&D roles on their respective teams. Sarr, on the other hand, had about just as long of a leash to find his way as a fellow defense-first prospect with a shaky shooting profile. He had more of a guaranteed starting spot than Castle ever did, given that he had to share lead guard responsibilities with Chris Paul and, later, De'Aaron Fox, which ended up supporting Castle's numbers as he managed a 26% usage rate to Sarr's 23.5%.

Castle held the edge over the center in points per game, averaging 14.7 per game to Sarr's 13. He also notched a few more assists while Sarr grabbed more rebounds, although neither prospect blew the windows off in either of those categories.

Their stocks, where their games really shined, told an interesting story. While Castle barely edged Sarr in the steals column, managing 0.9 per night to the center's 0.7, Sarr dominated as a shot blocker in 1.5 swats a night, over a full block ahead of Castle.

Their shooting splits all leaned in Castle's direction, save for Sarr's barely-superior 3-point success rate. This lack of a huge advantage for a player like Sarr, who's half a foot taller than Castle at 7'0, hurt the Wizard's case, as he flubbed numerous layups and floaters all season long in avoiding physicality and attempting to finish with finesse. A sub-50% true shooting percentage for a center is particularly damning.

He'll likely receive a bit of justice with an appearance on the All-Rookie First Team, with teammates Bub Carrington and Kyshawn George having made good cases at Second Team appearances. It's been an all-around successful season for the players and the rebuilding franchise, even if that representation hasn't been as evident during award season.