WASHINGTON — Will Riley didn’t play more than 20 minutes in a game until December of his rookie season. Then he played 32 minutes per contest across the final three months.
And he thrived.
Riley averaged 15.6 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.8 assists during that stretch. He scored in a myriad of ways — slithering to the bucket for contested layups, draining mid-range pull-ups and sinking a few triples.
He carried that momentum into an offseason of growth.
“[I feel] super comfortable,” Riley said. “Just coming
in with confidence, knowing where my spots are, knowing how to get my shots off. Just being super physical and determined on defense.”
The 6-foot-10 wing experimented with some point guard reps toward the end of his rookie campaign and into Summer League. His size allows him to see over defenders and make reads most 20-year-olds wouldn’t process.
Despite a slender build — Riley said he put on 15 pounds this offseason — he drove 5.8 times per game, which ranked in the top 30% of qualified players last season, according to Sportive World. His 19.6% usage rate ranked in the top 38%. For reference, Kyshawn George tallied a 22.8% usage rate, so similar figures for two wings trusted with offensive initiation.
Riley averaged 25 points and 2.5 assists at point guard during two 2026 Summer League games. Now, he gets to learn from Trae Young, one of the league’s best point guards.
“The way [Young] is able to read the floor, he always has eyes in every corner,” Riley said. “He just spaces the floor so well. He’s able to read the game. And just the way he talks off the court, you can tell he watches the game, he studies film. He’s just a super talented player.”
Champagnie talks winning basketball
The term “winning player” is defined as an athlete who prioritizes collective team success, efficiency, and high basketball IQ over empty individual statistics.
Justin Champagnie is a winning player. The 25-year-old forward’s 3.1 win shares led the Wizards last season. His next closest teammate, Marvin Bagley III, had only 2.1.
He’s everything you want in a winning player. Now that the Wizards are focused on winning, Champagnie’s excited to make those winning plays in meaningful games.
“I think y’all all know I love to win,” Champagnie said. “It’ll be dope to put that competitiveness and that dawg energy toward something [where] we can actually win.”
Pound-for-pound, Champagnie is arguably the team’s best rebounder.
He defends one-through-four. He hustles for loose balls. He knocks down threes. He’s everything a coach wants on a competitive team.
“Justin does winning things,” Keefe said. “We’ve seen that from the moment he came in our organization a few years ago. His ability to rebound on both ends, his ability to crash the offensive glass, off the ball cutting. Those are the valuable things he brings.”
An intense scrimmage
The Wizards scrimmaged on the Mystics’ court during Saturday’s practice at CareFirst Arena. They brought in NBA referees and announced scorers on the PA system to simulate real NBA action.
Keefe told The Athletic’s Josh Robbins that Alex Sarr (foot), Tristan Vukcevic (hip impingement) and Khris Middleton (general ramp up) didn’t participate in the scrimmage.
“The scrimmage was amazing,” Riley said. “We simulated a game-like scenario, brought refs in, did our warm-ups. It was good to get back into the groove and get up and down with the guys.”
The scrimmage was closed to the media, but I could overhear the PA announcer from the media work room. The call I heard the most: “D.C. three! Traeeee Young!” A close second: “Kyshawnnnnn George!”
Keefe praised the effort and energy during 5-on-5 action as his team readies for its preseason opener Thursday against the New York Knicks.
“Loved the energy, the competitiveness,” Keefe said. “Got to see us working on things we’ve done the first four days of practice and see if we got carry-over, which he did … I was just pleased with the collective effort and the teammate work they had.”
