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Jan 29, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Wizards forward Kyshawn George (18) looks on during the second half against the Milwaukee Bucks at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

Wizards' Quiet Depth Prompting Power Rankings Jump

Originally posted on Washington Wizards on SI
By Henry Brown | Last updated Feb 12, 2026 5:00 PM ET

"Tank losses" have become a hot topic amongst the Washington Wizards' fan base; whenever they're faced up against another team near the bottom of the NBA's league-wide standings, dropping such a matchup is usually wise in worsening their own record and promoting their odds of landing a pick within the upper-most echelon in the draft.

But as the Wizards have made clear over the last few months, this team may be a little too hungry to roll over whenever the outside viewers find it convenient. Their strangely-deep roster of shot-creating and defending prospect can't dependably lose with second- and third-stringers playing how they have as of recent, and that's a credit to the intense culture that they've constructed as the season's gone by.

Their 14-39 record is among the association's worst marks, but those who've monitored how the Wizards havs accumulated their wins and loss came away impressed by their rare assortment of talent and upside. Against their best wishes, they took another small leap in ESPN's power rankings by jumping from No. 29 to 28 thanks to their quiet resilience.

"Last Thursday, the Wizards rested four of their five starters for the entire fourth quarter against the East-leading Pistons -- and won anyway, with big games from reserves Will Riley and Sharife Cooper," Zach Kram wrote. "But that was a fluke rather than a habit: In their other three games since Feb. 1, the Wizards were outscored by a combined 76 points, dropping their season point differential to an NBA-worst minus-10.7 per game."

Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images

Spotting Positives Between the Final Scores

That was ahead of the Wizards' 138-113 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, which surely won't aid those lopsided impact metrics. But that outing, too, encapsulated Kram's point; down any real centers amidst Alex Sarr's injury management and Marvin Bagley III having been dealt to the Dallas Mavericks for the similarly-injured Anthony Davis, the deep-cut Wizards made this a closer competition than the final box score will reveal.

The team asked 6'6 wing Jamir Watkins to start as the small-ball center in Sarr's place, essentially a death sentence in matching up against the James Harden-Jarrett Allen pick-and-roll game. The -22 that represents his place on the night looks bad, but he did as well as he could have considering his assignment, standing as tall as he could on defense while scoring 16 points on seven buckets on the floor's opposite end.

When he couldn't secure the necessary rebounds to prevent the Cavaliers from rolling over them, in came the unlikely hustling pair of Justin Champagnie and Anthony Gill. Here were two players who've each dealt with inconsistent minute loads at varying points over the season and for their respective careers, and their energetic effort on the glass and creating and finishing second-chance opportunities helped cut the lead to single digits multiple times during the second and third quarters.

David Reginek-Imagn Images

That hustle and longer-than-expected rotation constantly offers fresh energy to support the starters, just some of the reasons why these Wizards are as good as they are at avoiding blowouts despite the regular losses. Despite still missing out on two All-Stars who've yet to make their respective debuts in Davis and Trae Young, the effort they've ingrained in their star prospects and harnessed out of the reserves is helping them slowly escape that league-worst label.

This article first appeared on Washington Wizards on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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