Washington Wizards fans held their breath Friday night when AJ Dybantsa sprained his ankle in the team’s preseason finale, a 107 to 106 loss at New Orleans.
In the second quarter, Dybantsa came down awkwardly on a midrange pull up jumper and turned his ankle. He went to the locker room and didn’t return. Before he left he was having a strong night, with 12 points in about 15 minutes.
After the game, head coach Brian Keefe said the team was being careful. “AJ’s got an ankle sprain,” Keefe said. “We just took him out of the game for precaution. We’ll look at it more when we get more information.”
The team hasn’t said whether Dybantsa will be ready for Wednesday’s regular season opener against Milwaukee at Capital One Arena.
On the court, Anthony Davis led Washington with 14 points and 11 rebounds in 27 minutes, and Kyshawn George added 14 points. Khris Middleton had 5 points and 4 rebounds in his preseason debut. Trae Young struggled, finishing with 7 points on 1 of 11 shooting along with 7 assists.
Turnovers were the problem all night. Washington coughed it up 23 times, and the Pelicans turned those into enough of a cushion to hold on. The Wizards made it close with a 36 to 26 edge in the fourth quarter but came up one point short. Saddiq Bey led New Orleans with 19 points off the bench.
Washington finishes the preseason at 2 and 2. The games start counting Wednesday at 7 p.m. against the Bucks.
