Despite Added Size, Washington Wizards Plagued by Rebounding

The Washington Wizards knew they wanted to be big in 2026.

The moves they've made said as much. They knew being the 30th-ranked rebounding team in the NBA would have to change drastically to see a shift in success going forward.

Despite building an infrastructure around size and length, the Wizards' biggest weakness through five games this season is an area they likely thought they'd be much better in this time around.

Rebounding matters. The Wizards have learned the hard way.

"Making people miss, we've got to finish the rebound," Keefe said after Wednesday's loss to the Cavaliers. "It's something we have to take a look at the film. It's something we have to address, but we'll get better at it."

After building up a double-digit lead for much of the night in Cleveland, the Wizards' inability to finish defensive possessions persisted. The Wizards allowed 15 offensive rebounds, which the Cavaliers turned into 19 second-chance points. The Wizards were outscored by 20 in the second half.

"The offensive rebounds kind of killed us," Anthony Davis said after Wednesday's game.

Through five games, the Wizards are 28th in the league, averaging 40 total rebounds per game. Simply put, they didn't get enough contributions from their bigs on Wednesday. Trae Young's five rebounds were tied for a team high. Yes, I'm talking about Young, who is the shortest player on the team.

Davis has been one of the more stout rebounding players throughout his career. He's been adequate, but has reached double digits in only two of the five games so far. Alex Sarr's totals are more concerning.

Sarr has averaged five per game so far, which isn't enough for what the Wizards need at this time. His rebounding percentage is worse. Sarr's defensive rebounding percentage is only 13%. That's just four percentage points higher than Young's.

The lack of rebounding has played a direct role in multiple Wizards losses over the last week. On Monday, Washington allowed 20 offensive rebounds and allowed Charlotte to turn those into 26 second-chance points.

In Washington's two wins this season, it outrebounded its opponent. In all three losses, it lost the rebounding battle by double digits, with Wednesday's game against Cleveland resulting in a 20-rebound drubbing in that category.

Despite the subpar numbers on the glass, the Wizards have still had opportunities to compete in those games. If they had cleaned things up, they might have a third or fourth win already. Instead, they're 2-3 with a bottom-three rebounding unit.

Deandre Ayton, whom the team traded for to bolster its frontcourt depth, has provided solid production on the glass but plays in a much more limited role than he did with his previous teams.

For the Wizards, the rebounding struggles must be frustrating, considering their defense has improved. Opponents are shooting a 50.8% effective field goal percentage against them, the seventh-best mark in the NBA. The Wizards are forcing more misses than they did a year ago, but they aren't finishing possessions.

To make matters worse, they recently lost their pound-for-pound best rebounder.

Justin Champagnie underwent surgery on Wednesday to repair a fracture in his right foot, the team announced. The hope is that he could potentially return around the All-Star break. There are plenty of games between now and then, so the Wizards have to find another answer.

Could other wings, such as Bilal Coulibaly or AJ Dybantsa, fill the void? The Wizards hope they provide some needed stability, but replicating Champagnie's production is a massive ask.

Champagnie posted a wild 27.3% defensive rebounding percentage prior to his injury, according to Hoopology. That puts him in the 97th percentile at his position. Without him, Washington has struggled immensely over the last two nights.

The Wizards accomplished their goal of becoming a much bigger team. This has helped them improve their defense, but none of it matters if they don't improve on the glass.