WASHINGTON — The word “playoffs” was uttered by several Wizards players at Monday’s annual Media Day.
It may seem insignificant to some. But for those who endured the previous three seasons in which the team went 50-196 and lottery positioning outweighed winning, it marked a sign of new times in Washington.
“We’re trying to win, [trying] to change the narrative around the Wizards,” Anthony Davis said. “We’re going into the season with the mentality that we don’t want our season to end in April.”
Wizards general manager Will Dawkins wants to continue a methodical rebuild. He doesn’t want big names or outside expectations to rush the team’s timeline.
But his actions — acquiring proven veterans like Davis, Trae Young, Khris Middleton and Deandre Ayton — showed a willingness to push this young core into more meaningful games. He hopes that experience will propel Washington toward “sustained success.”
Dawkins began this journey in June 2023 when he traded Bradley Beal and Kristaps Porzingis as part of a massive roster overhaul. Three days later, he selected Bilal Coulibaly at No. 7 in the 2023 NBA Draft.
Coulibaly has only known tanking, as his career .213 winning percentage suggests. The Wizards have always cared more about lottery positioning than wins during his three-year career.
But those limitations on the Wizards’ ceiling no longer exist. The team is finally free to ascend to whatever level it’s capable of reaching.
Coulibaly believes the team’s veterans will help them get there.
“We have a lot of guys with a lot of experience, guys that have been in the playoffs,” Coulibaly said. “Just having those guys now, we’re ready to win.”
Coulibaly has a point. The four veterans Washington has added since January have played a combined 222 playoff games. Davis and Middleton are NBA champions. Ayton was two games away from winning one with the Phoenix Suns. Young led the Atlanta Hawks to within two games of reaching the NBA Finals.
Dawkins hopes that experience rubs off on the team’s young core. He believes those guys can lead the Wizards into meaningful games, which will provide players like AJ Dybantsa and Tre Johnson valuable minutes in high-leverage spots where they’re forced to win or learn.
“We want to play competitive basketball this year,” Dybantsa said. “We're here to win games. [Wizards fans] have been looking for success for a long time. They've been loyal. I remember when I got drafted, they had a little event at a park. Everybody showed up, catching T-shirts, yelling my name. So they're ready, and they deserve it.”
Going from 17 wins to a playoff contender doesn’t happen overnight. It starts in the gym — a place Kyshawn George has virtually lived in since May 4, when he began his offseason training. George, who looks noticeably stronger, said he added eight pounds of lean muscle since last season.
Why? The NBA playoffs are physical. He wants his body to withstand that physicality when the Wizards make what he hopes is a deep playoff run.
“Just having the durability to withstand a playoff-length season, [being able to] guard multiple positions,” George said. “I haven’t accomplished anything in this league. That’s why I work for it, to be able to bring the Wizards organization to the next level.”
George is one of the team’s best defenders. He didn’t have much help last season, as displayed by Washington’s NBA-worst 121.5 defensive rating.
He finally has some help between Coulibaly’s perimeter defense, Davis and Sarr’s rim protection and a team fully bought into winning. It’s why Davis believes the Wizards will be a top-10 defense in 2026-27.
Even Bub Carrington, Johnson and Will Riley — who ranked among the league’s worst defenders last season — said improving as individual defenders topped their offseason goals.
That improved defense, plus an offense directed by Young that features Dybantsa’s scoring and impressive depth, has Washington eyeing the playoffs for the first time since 2021.
Young understands what playoff basketball would mean to a fanbase that’s gone 50 years without an Eastern Conference Finals berth. He admitted he sees the outside noise and the constant disrespect thrown Washington’s way.
The 28-year-old wants to change that narrative. And it starts on opening night.
“I want to get back to that type of excitement and love for basketball again [in the DMV],” Young said. “[Wizards fans] have experienced the lows that we’ve been through these past few years. And as we start to win more as these years go forward, I want the fans to be a part of it. We can’t win without them.”