The Washington Wizards fell short of a comeback on Thursday in Trae Young’s debut against the Utah Jazz, losing 122-112 at Capital One Arena.
Young fittingly scored Washington’s first basket of the game. The 4-time All-Star switched to his off-hand for a finish at the rim.
Leaky Black led the team in scoring in the first quarter, posting a usage rate akin to prime Michael Jordan. The more recent North Carolina alum had eight
points on 3/7 shooting to open the period, but the Wizards trailed 37-23 as the Jazz scorched the nets from distance early.
Young had another fancy finish in the second quarter. Anyone had Young scoring his first two buckets lefty on their Trae debut bingo card? Washington, however, could not cool off Utah’s hot shooting. The home team trailed 67-49 at the half.
Young struggled with his three-point shot in the first half, missing all four of his attempts from beyond the arc. That changed to open the third quarter, when Young drained a side-step triple on the left wing plus the foul.
Trae also flashed some chemistry with Tre Johnson on a trail assist to the rookie sharpshooter — one of his two threes assisted by Young on the evening. Washington inched a little bit closer, trailing 93-84 at the end of three.
Juju Reese (yes, Juju Reese) took over in the fourth quarter. The Maryland product scored 12 points and grabbed six boards in the final period, but it wasn’t enough as the Wizards lost 122-112.
Reese stole some of the spotlight from Trae Young’s debut. The two-way big man tallied 18 points and 20 rebounds, half of them coming on the offensive glass. Young finished with 12 points, six assists, and a pair of steals in 19 minutes. Leaky Black had 16 points, while Tre Johnson hit five threes for 15 points.
Next up for the Wizards is a road battle against another tank rival in the New Orleans Pelicans, scheduled for Sunday night.
