Bilal

Coulibaly

Coulibaly will be one of the first players off the bench for the Wizards once the regular season begins. He wasn’t a reliable fantasy option in his first three seasons, and the reserve role limits his ceiling in 2026-27. However, Coulibaly may benefit from a full season with Trae Young because he can get out in transition and finish. He should be rostered in dynasty leagues, but fantasy managers don’t need to select Coulibaly in most redraft leagues.

Watkins reportedly suffered the injury during the Wizards’ summer league opener against the Jazz, which explains why he didn’t appear again after playing 20 minutes as a starter in that game. Watkins was selected with the 43rd pick in 2025 and was solid as a rookie, especially down the stretch of the season. Now, there is a chance he misses the entirety of his sophomore campaign. It’s unclear if he would’ve had much of a role this upcoming season, but this solidifies that Bilal Coulibaly and Will Riley will see most of the wing minutes off the bench.

Dybantsa entered the 2025-26 season as one of the top prospects in this draft class, and his lone season at BYU did no harm to that status. The 6-foot-9 wing averaged 25.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.4 three-pointers last season, earning consensus first-team All-America honors. Dybantsa shot 51.0 percent from the field, 33.1 percent from three and 77.4 percent from the foul line. An excellent athlete who can score on all three levels and provide some playmaking, Dybantsa needs to become a more consistent three-point shooter. That said, he projects to be a franchise cornerstone for years to come. He’ll join a core in Washington that features young studs Alex Sarr, Tre Johnson and Kyshawn George, as well as veteran stars Trae Young and Anthony Davis. Dybantsa should start from day one and be a strong scoring option.

The Wizards will be light on options for Sunday’s season finale, especially on the perimeter. The absence of Coulibaly and Johnson will mean more opportunities for Will Riley and Leaky Black. As for Vukčević, his continued absence does not change much in the frontcourt, with the Wizards continuing to rely on Julian Reese.

Back in the lineup after missing Thursday’s loss to the Bulls, Coulibaly recorded his first stat line this season with at least 25 points, five rebounds and five assists. Given the Wizards’ many young wings and the fact that they’ll likely hold onto their top-8 protected first-round pick, Coulibaly will face significant competition for rotation minutes when training camp opens next fall. Nights like Friday can only strengthen his case for a starting spot.

Coulibaly is back after missing Thursday’s loss to the Bulls and reclaims his place in the starting lineup. Will Riley heads to the bench, but he should still play plenty due to the Wizards still being shorthanded on the wings.

Coulibaly will return to play the second leg of Washington’s back-to-back set after sitting out Thursday’s matchup with the Bulls. He should handle his typical workload for Washington’s 81st game of the season.

Four of the Wizards’ five starters are unchanged from the quintet that the Bulls blew out on Tuesday. Bilal Coulibaly (heel) is out, and he has been replaced in the lineup by Riley. The rookie wing should play plenty in the Wizards’ final three games of the season.

Coulibaly, who was held out of Sunday’s loss to the Nets due to heel bursitis, logged 24 minutes in Tuesday’s loss to the Bulls. His absence for Thursday’s rematch opens up a spot in the starting lineup, with Will Riley and Justin Champagnie being potential replacements.

Coulibaly played in Tuesday’s loss to the Bulls, logging 24 minutes as part of the starting lineup. If he can’t play, Justin Champagnie and Will Riley are potential replacements. While Riley is not on the injury report, Champagnie is also questionable with a knee injury.