Wizards Notes: Kispert, Beal, Davis, Rotation, Gortat

Wizards swingman Corey Kispert is out for four-to-six weeks with an ankle sprain, but he’s looking at the silver lining, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington writes. Kispert is grateful that the injury didn’t happen during a playoff push.

“Well, it’s not going to last forever, right? In the grand scheme of things, a sprained ankle is not the end of the world,” he said. “It’s been a tough last couple of days. Getting out of bed and moving around has been difficult, but I know I’ll be back sooner rather than later. Thankfully I’m not missing important games down the stretch. The preseason is important, but if I were to choose a time to miss, it’d be now.”

We have more from the Wizards:

  • Bradley Beal has always stayed loyal to the organization but he admitted on JJ Redick’s podcast (hat tip to Alex Kennedy of Basketball News) that he has pondered a trade request in the past. “I definitely gave it some thought; I’d be lying if I said I didn’t,” he said. However, Beal also saw the flip side that the team acquiring him would have to give up important pieces to land him.
  • With Kispert sidelined, lottery pick Johnny Davis could see some significant early action, Hughes notes, though the rookie is dealing with a minor knee injury. “That’s why the team has guys like me on the bench, to be able to step up,” Davis said.
  • On that subject, Josh Robbins of The Athletic examines how the rotation will shake out in light of Kispert’s injury. He doesn’t see Davis getting a lot of playing time, predicting that Beal will play around 36 minutes and Will Barton will eat up a majority of the minutes at small forward with Rui Hachimura and Deni Avdija getting steady playing time off the bench.
  • Retired center Marcin Gortat has been helping out at camp as a temporary assistant coach. Coach Wes Unseld Jr. hinted he’d like Gortat to stick around beyond training camp if Gortat wants to make the time commitment, according to Hughes“As long as he wants to stay, I love it,” Unseld said.
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