Trae Young Dazzles in Wizards Home Debut -

By Sam Bergstrom

Washington Wizards point guard Trae Young made his long- awaited debut on Thursday, March 4, against the Utah Jazz. The Wizards acquired Young on January 7 in a deal with the Atlanta Hawks, hoping to build a future centered around the three-time All-Star. Young had been sidelined with an MCL sprain and a quadriceps contusion since December 27, but was finally taken off the injury report ahead of Thursday evening’s home matchup with Utah.

The first 10,000 fans to attend the game received a throwback replica gold-and-black Wizards jersey. As they rocked their jerseys, Wizards fans certainly felt golden, as a new era was beginning. The arena collectively gave Young a nice hand when shown on the Jumbotron during warm-ups, and sequentially when announced during the pre-game lineups. Overall, Capital One Arena felt reawakened from the basketball nightmare they have been living all season.

Young scored his first points as a Wizard—and, the first points of the night for Washington—by sneaking around the Utah defense for a silky left-handed scoop off the glass. Young then showed off his selfless style, dishing out delightful dimes to Leaky Black and Bilal Coulibaliy for respective corner triples. In an attempt to fire up the Wizards faithful in the first quarter, Young launched three shots from 28+ feet out, all missing off the iron.

After Young checked out with 4:28 in the first quarter, Washington seemed knocked out of rhythm. The Wizards had multiple unforced errors, and they struggled mightily to create quality shots. This discomboulation was perfectly captured when guard Tre Johnson missed a wide-open fast-break dunk following a Washington steal. Shortly after this debacle, the Wizards committed a careless turnover, with Jazz guard Ace Bailey being the beneficiary on the other end for the one-handed jam.

After checking back in with 4:32 left in the second quarter, Young looked to re-energize the Wizards’ offense. He immediately jolted Johnson awake, finding him with a corner three to redeem himself from his missed dunk. Wizards fans should certainly keep an eye out for the deadly Trae-to-Tre connection on the perimeter.

On a fast-break play, Young tried to get fancy with a behind-the-back pass, but it sadly sailed into the seats instead of the open man in the corner. Young would make up for this cheeky miscue a few plays later with the highlight of the night. As he began his drive, Young faked his defenders—who may have been expecting a pass, considering his attempt on the last play—with a no-look behind-the-back pass fake to the corner. He then swooped inside and finished a contested left-handed finger roll. I know Rajon Rondo was somewhere out there smiling when he watched that highlight.

Young kicked off the second half with a bang, firing a filthy left-wing three and nailing it as his defender knocked him to the ground—his first three as a Wizard was a four-point play opportunity. Minutes later, Young converted a signature long-range floater from the right elbow, plus the contact. Looking to trim Utah’s 13-point lead, Young hit Johnson with a backwards bounce pass in transition for his third triple of the contest, prompting a Jazz timeout.

Young continued to wheel and deal, handing out another highlight assist midway through the third quarter. After receiving a screen from Anthony Gil, Young slipped a two-handed bounce pass between the legs of his defender, precisely landing into the hands of a rolling Gil for the deuce. I don’t think fans in the moment realized this pass went between the defenders’ legs, but you could hear ooh’s and ahh’s after the dime was replayed on the Jumbotron.

Toward the close of the third, Young drew a double on the fast break and hit guard Bub Carrington cross-court for a wide-open look in the corner. After a pump to discard his defender, Carrington cashed in his second triple of the contest. This assist would be the last Wizards fans saw of Young in this game, as he officially checked out with 2:57 to go in the third.

The Wizards fell 122-112, with Utah leading for almost the entirety of the contest. Washington continuously chipped away throughout the game, but it was not enough to mute the Jazz. Utah guard Ace Bailey netted a career-high 32 points, with guard Isaiah Collier stringing together 27 of his own. Wizards forward Julian Reese had a career night, scoring 18 points and snagging 20 rebounds, 10 of them offensive. The Jazz improved their record to 19-44, and Washington dropped down to 16-46.

In a limited 19 minutes, Young finished this game with 12 points, 2 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 3 turnovers. He shot 4-9 from the field, going 1-5 from three in the process. Despite the loss, Young delivered an energetic playmaking prowess that Washington has been missing all season. He effortlessly drew attention from the defense—especially on the fast break—and found his teammates for quality shots. To go further, Young was loosey-goosey in an unapologetic manner—he never shied away from delivering acrobatic shots. Although this season has been a sour one, Wizards fans can expect Young to keep bringing his boisterous brand of basketball to Capital One Arena.