Alex Sarr

[willbcocks]

Also, a lot of this is projection, but I like Sarr's attitude. He appears to shake everything off and just focus on moving forward. He was getting criticized from all directions this summer, especially for the shooting and not playing big, but just seems to go out there and continue to play his game. Also seems very engaged and plays hard.

[The Consiglieri]

If Bilal can kick the door down after one season, I have hope that Alex will do the same after a couple of years, I would still draft other center prospects, JV is too-slow to run with these young bucks.

I would too (draft other center prospects) but we don't know what this team will look like '26-'27 and beyond. How many guys on it now are on it then? 2-3? I don't know who the young bucks are, but right now it looks like there's basically 2-3, maybe 4 of them. So who knows what kind of pace needs a Center will need to have once the build is largely finished (hopefully summer '26 or '27).

[nate33]

Most impressive stat for Sarr as a rookie bigman: average more blocks (2.8) than fouls (2.6) per game. Averaging under 5 fouls per 48 minutes. Shows his incredible body coordination and ability to move his feet. Look at the numbers compared to Clingan and Edey, who are on pace to foul out after 30 minutes (granted they are doing other things well):

Edey: 3.3 fouls vs 0.4 blocks in 18.3 minutes.
Clingan: 2.6 fouls vs 1.6 blocks in 12.9 minutes.

I also feel like Sarr has been a bit more physical - much better than in Summer League. He is initiating contact with a shoulder bump before going into a spin or a Euro-step. It doesn't always work because he sometimes just bounces off his stronger opponent, but that doesn't worry me. His effectiveness will get better as he puts on muscle. I'm just happy to see that he is willing to try and be physical.

I'm growing more optimistic about his ultimate upside.

[tontoz]

Most impressive stat for Sarr as a rookie bigman: average more blocks (2.8) than fouls (2.6) per game. Averaging under 5 fouls per 48 minutes. Shows his incredible body coordination and ability to move his feet. Look at the numbers compared to Clingan and Edey, who are on pace to foul out after 30 minutes (granted they are doing other things well):

Edey: 3.3 fouls vs 0.4 blocks in 18.3 minutes.
Clingan: 2.6 fouls vs 1.6 blocks in 12.9 minutes.

I also feel like Sarr has been a bit more physical - much better than in Summer League. He is initiating contact with a shoulder bump before going into a spin or a Euro-step. It doesn't always work because he sometimes just bounces off his stronger opponent, but that doesn't worry me. His effectiveness will get better as he puts on muscle. I'm just happy to see that he is willing to try and be physical.

I'm growing more optimistic about his ultimate upside.

He does look better on offense when he isnt camped out behind the 3 pt line. He has shown a few nice moves closer in.

Good activity on defense, especially protecting the rim.

[nate33]

5 games in. Among his fellow rookie class, Sarr ranks:

2nd in points per game
1st in rebounds per game
9th in assists per game
1st in blocks per game
8th in steals per game
5th in minutes per game

You can make a real case that he is the front runner for ROTY at the moment.

FWIW Bub Carrington ranks:

3rd in points per game
9th in rebounds per game
2nd in assists per game
2nd in steals per game
1st in minutes per game

[closg00]

5 games in. Among his fellow rookie class, Sarr ranks:

2nd in points per game
1st in rebounds per game
9th in assists per game
1st in blocks per game
8th in steals per game
5th in minutes per game

You can make a real case that he is the front runner for ROTY at the moment.

FWIW Bub Carrington ranks:

3rd in points per game
9th in rebounds per game
2nd in assists per game
2nd in steals per game
1st in minutes per game

Do you have any data on which rookies from this class are getting PT and average minutes played?

[nate33]

5 games in. Among his fellow rookie class, Sarr ranks:

2nd in points per game
1st in rebounds per game
9th in assists per game
1st in blocks per game
8th in steals per game
5th in minutes per game

You can make a real case that he is the front runner for ROTY at the moment.

FWIW Bub Carrington ranks:

3rd in points per game
9th in rebounds per game
2nd in assists per game
2nd in steals per game
1st in minutes per game

Do you have any data on which rookies from this class are getting PT and average minutes played?

https://www.nba.com/stats/players/traditional?DraftYear=2024&dir=A&sort=MIN

[dckingsfan]

5 games in. Among his fellow rookie class, Sarr ranks:

2nd in points per game
1st in rebounds per game
9th in assists per game
1st in blocks per game
8th in steals per game
5th in minutes per game

You can make a real case that he is the front runner for ROTY at the moment.

FWIW Bub Carrington ranks:

3rd in points per game
9th in rebounds per game
2nd in assists per game
2nd in steals per game
1st in minutes per game

Do you have any data on which rookies from this class are getting PT and average minutes played?

That would be interesting. TSS, DRB%, Assist%, etc. for the rookie class. Guessing this is small sample size and we need to wait.

And this was supposed to be a weak draft class... so probably rookies aren't getting many minutes?

[nate33]

5 games in. Among his fellow rookie class, Sarr ranks:

2nd in points per game
1st in rebounds per game
9th in assists per game
1st in blocks per game
8th in steals per game
5th in minutes per game

You can make a real case that he is the front runner for ROTY at the moment.

FWIW Bub Carrington ranks:

3rd in points per game
9th in rebounds per game
2nd in assists per game
2nd in steals per game
1st in minutes per game

Do you have any data on which rookies from this class are getting PT and average minutes played?

That would be interesting. TSS, DRB%, Assist%, etc. for the rookie class. Guessing this is small sample size and we need to wait.

And this was supposed to be a weak draft class... so probably rookies aren't getting many minutes?

All true.

Also, NBA.com's stats page makes it very difficult to compare TS% at the same time that you are looking at shooting volume. Overall, Sarr's TS% is about middle-of-the-pack among guys with over 200 possessions. Carrington has been pretty efficient though. Among guys with at least 200 possessions, only Dunn, Mogbo, Knecht and Edey have a higher TS%

[Benjammin]

Sarr certainly has a better feel for the game than JaVale for instance and that's quite important.

[dckingsfan]

Do you have any data on which rookies from this class are getting PT and average minutes played?

That would be interesting. TSS, DRB%, Assist%, etc. for the rookie class. Guessing this is small sample size and we need to wait.

And this was supposed to be a weak draft class... so probably rookies aren't getting many minutes?

All true.

Also, NBA.com's stats page makes it very difficult to compare TS% at the same time that you are looking at shooting volume. Overall, Sarr's TS% is about middle-of-the-pack among guys with over 200 possessions. Carrington has been pretty efficient though. Among guys with at least 200 possessions, only Dunn, Mogbo, Knecht and Edey have a higher TS%

Good points all. One more interesting factoid. HoopsHype: Wizards’ Carlton Carrington leads first-year players in scoring with 10.5 ppg. That would be the worst mark for a top-scoring rookie in NBA history.

Pretty interesting.

[bsilver]

I'm willing to eat crow on Sarr. Thought after Summer League it was a bad pick.
But I like his mobility, aggression, and shot creation. Not many his size can guard the perimeter.
He was abused by Adebayu the other night, but he's only 19, so will put on weight and muscle. Hopefully that will improve his interior defense and rebounding.

[Rafael122]

I'm willing to eat crow on Sarr. Thought after Summer League it was a bad pick.
But I like his mobility, aggression, and shot creation. Not many his size can guard the perimeter.
He was abused by Adebayu the other night, but he's only 19, so will put on weight and muscle. Hopefully that will improve his interior defense and rebounding.

Summer leagues are not great for bigs. You got a bunch of guys hogging the ball in hopes of getting a camp invite so they're not gonna run anything resembling an NBA offense.

[doclinkin]

Washington Post:

Digging into Alex Sarr’s defensive stats reveals an incongruity.

Through six games, it’s clear Sarr can block shots at a prolific rate. Entering Wednesday, he was fourth in the league in blocks per game at 2.8. But that’s only a portion of rim protection — so let’s look at the larger picture. Opponents are shooting 49 percent on shots inside six feet with Sarr defending, per NBA.com. That ranks fifth among players who have faced at least 40 such shots and indicates that Sarr, drafted No. 2 largely because of his athleticism and defensive potential, is having the expected impact.

But as you look closer, the picture gets fuzzier. Cleaning the Glass, a basketball analytics website that excludes garbage time and end-of-quarter heaves, measures field goal percentage allowed at the rim, defined as shots within four feet of the hoop. There, Sarr allows opponents to shoot 69.3 percent, putting him in just the 24th percentile.

One theory for the discrepancy: Much of Sarr’s defense rests on his immense wingspan. The rookie, at 230 pounds, is lighter than many big men. That lack of heft could lead to him being displaced down low, as in this play against 255-pound Bam Adebayo during Saturday’s loss to the Miami Heat in Mexico City.

The rookie doesn’t think weight alone is the deciding factor for interior defense.

“We’re not on a scale,” he said Monday. “It’s about how you can move your body and bump the guy.”

The Wizards believe Sarr can improve his already-impressive rim protection by adding mass and developing his timing, body positioning and knowledge of personnel.

[AFM]

Get him on the zion williams diet

Start filling his gatorade bottles with mambo sauce

[Chocolate City Jordanaire]

Sarr will be a Javale McGee type center as a rebounder and defender.

He has a great handle, and he seems to be a lot more coordinated. I wonder how much better Sarr will end up being than Javale?

[9 and 20]

Read on Twitter

Movement here is impressive. Still needs to get stronger, but not too many guys Sarr's size can move and handle the ball like this.

[DCZards]

Read on Twitter

Movement here is impressive. Still needs to get stronger, but not too many guys Sarr's size can move and handle the ball like this.

That's what attracted a lot of us to Sarr in the first place...his unique blend of size and fluidity.

[9 and 20]

Sarr again showed some ridiculous flashes. Ballhandling and leading the break and a couple of really nice assists. He's already shown a lot on defense. The guy just needs another ten pounds and a shot of tuff juice before next season. Everything else is there. Looks to me like he's on the JJJ and Evan Mobley trajectory.

[tontoz]

Sarr's TS of 44% is awful. Spending so much time outside the 3 pt line means he isnt getting the easy points inside that typical bigs get.