Wizards vs. Grizzlies preview: Washington kicks off Summer League action Saturday afternoon

Game Info

When: Saturday, July 8 at 4 p.m.
Where: Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas, Nevada
TV and streaming: CSN Mid-Atlantic, ESPNU, and ESPN3

What to watch for

Who is going to start at point guard?

The Wizards are pretty set 2-5 on this roster. Sheldon Mac, Michael Young, and Daniel House will get lots of burn on the perimeter, while Chris McCullough and Daniel Ochefu should be the key big men. But who’s going to be the one handling point guard duties, especially with the starting unit?

Marcus Keene, who led the nation in scoring last season, is intriguing, but he’s more of a scorer than a distributor. Do you want him taking away shots from the rest of the starting lineup who need to get reps?

On the other end of things you have guys like Maalik Wayns and Kevin Pangos, who are more traditional and experienced point guards, but aren’t as explosive off the dribble, which may make it harder to create openings for the guys the Wizards really want to shine.

It seems like it would make more sense to bring Keene off the bench and have Wayns or Pangos run the show, but if Keene can leverage his ability to score off the bounce and fire away from anywhere into better looks for the other starters, maybe it’s worth it in the end. We’ll see how it plays out soon enough.

Can Sheldon Mac take the next step as a scorer?

Mac had some nice flashes as a scorer with the team as a rookie, but if he wants to solidify his place in the league, he has to do better outside the arc. Last season, he was only 7-30 from deep. This summer will give him a chance to show if he’s made any improvements from deep. If he can take the next step, perhaps it will make the team think twice about pursuing Jamal Crawford.

Most Likely Wizards Killer (YES WE’RE STILL DOING THIS FOR SUMMER LEAGUE): Dillon Brooks

Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

The Grizzlies traded a future second round pick to Houston for the chance to take Brooks with the 45th overall pick in June’s draft. There are questions about how his game will translate to the NBA level, but if nothing else, he should be quite a scoring threat in Vegas. He can get to the hole, he shot over 40 percent from deep last season, and he’s a respectable passer as well. The Wizards will have their hands full trying to keep him in check.