Wizards' Bub Carrington Emerging as a Playmaker

He has effectively rekindled hope among fans of him becoming a cornerstone piece, emerging as one of the better young players on a team loaded with youth. As the season continues to progress, fans have continued to expect further development from Carrington, which he has once again delivered.

His recent stretch of games may not be the most groundbreaking from a scoring perspective, as Carrington has once again hit a bit of a shooting slump, averaging a respectable 11 points per game on a not-so-respectable field goal percentage of 38.2%. However, during that same timeframe, he has emerged in a different way, showcasing a new level of playmaking development that he hadn’t previously displayed.

Carrington Stepping Up on Offense

Over his past six games, Carrington is averaging 6.2 assists per game, flashing the lead-guard ability that previously seemed dormant. It may be a coincidence that this recent leap happened to take place around the same time All-Star guard and passing extraordinaire Trae Young was traded to the Wizards, but at the very least, it appears Young has influenced Carrington down a better path.

By now, Washington has made its plans of bottoming out in hopes of acquiring a top pick fairly clear, which in turn gives the young talent in D.C. a chance to play, experiment, and learn through valuable in-game reps. Carrington still has a ways to go in multiple aspects of his game before he can make a positive impact on a night-to-night basis from the lead guard spot, but his recent success is instilling hope that he may be able to develop into that type of player.

Young will, of course, be the team’s lead guard for the foreseeable future—assuming he remains healthy—but having Carrington as a safety valve in case anything goes wrong is a luxury most teams can’t afford. There is still a long road ahead for the second-year guard, but all signs point to Carrington playing a major role in any future success the Wizards find.