Can ball movement be a trademark of Unseld Jr.? originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington

Earlier this season, while playing against the Wizards as a member of the New Orleans Pelicans, Tomas Satoransky noticed some things he liked about Washington’s offense under the head coach. freshman Wes Unseld Jr.

“I like the game the Wizards have played this year,” Satoransky said. “I already told them at the beginning of the year when we were playing against them that I love the game they play. A very selfless group of guys, an international group of guys who know how to play and they play hard.”

Little did Satoransky know he would sign with the Wizards a few months later, returning him to the franchise he started his NBA career with. He was bought out by the Spurs and signed a deal with Washington, and shortly thereafter worked his way into the starting lineup. Even with the Wizards losing to the Hawks on Wednesday night, they’re 5-3 with him as the starting point guard.

Satoransky now leads the offense for Unseld Jr., who has been showing some great ball movement lately. Tuesday night in their win over Minnesota, the Wizards set a season high with 38 assists. They’ve had over 30 assists in three of their last five games.

Unseld Jr. and his coaching staff preached splitting the ball and creating an equal opportunity offense. It’s especially helpful with star guard Bradley Beal and Kyle Kuzma out through injury. Although they have Kristaps Porzingis as their No. 1 scoring option, their offense needs to be in committee to thrive without Beal.

“The coaching staff and Wes, they gave us stats on when we get [29] assists, or beyond that number, we are [13-3]crazy number,” Porzingis said. “The message was pretty much the more assists we get, the more we share the ball, the better we play and the better our defensive numbers are as well.”

The Wizards have made more assists this season than last year, averaging 288.5 assists per game this season compared to 267.5 in 2020-21. Their assists are down slightly, but about the same; 25.1 per game versus 25.5. But that number hinges on making open shots, which was a major issue for the Wizards earlier this season in particular.

Whatever the numbers, Satoransky’s comments suggest there has been a difference in style, a difference players can appreciate. Unseld Jr. was happy to hear this assessment.

“It’s a compliment. Of course, we want to schematically dictate how we play who we have. That’s going to dictate a lot. But it’s something we’ve preached from day one,” he said. .

“To see him gain a bit more momentum right now, and when you take shots, of course, the assists go up, but the guys bought into that and his selfless nature. And it’s not it’s also the assists in hockey, it’s the assists on screen, it’s cut and give for your teammate. All this mentality; do something for someone else. I think guys like to play that way.

Ball movement has always been the Wizards’ focus this season, but recent personnel changes may have contributed to that cause. In addition to the first assist Satoransky, the Wizards acquired point guard Ish Smith at the trade deadline and were able to give second-year forward Deni Avdija more ball-handling responsibilities. All three have a knack for creating pieces for others.

The Wizards saw a slight increase in offense after these changes. Since the trade deadline, the Wizards’ offensive rating has risen to 114.2 from their season average of 110.5.

Granted, they still have plenty of room to improve, but the way the Wizards are playing under Unseld Jr. caught Satoransky’s attention. Maybe it will do the same for other players down the road.