Some hype from the Washington Wizards’ opening-night contest against the Milwaukee Bucks took a hit on Tuesday when Head Coach Brian Keefe announced after practice that the face of the franchise, №1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, AJ Dybantsa, would miss what was scheduled to be his debut.

​At Capital One Arena on Wednesday night, 18,805 showed up as the team’s faithful rocked from the opening tip.

​Making sure to boo former Wizard Kyle Kuzma gave the arena an instant hostile environment that helped the Wizards gain momentum early as they held a 25-23 lead after one quarter off the play of 10-time All-Star Anthony Davis who showed the play that made him a NBA 75th member with 10 points, and 6 rebounds.

​Led by 1st-year Head Coach Taylor Jenkins, you know the Bucks were going to come in prepared, buttoned up, and ready to get their season off on the right track by stealing one from the Wizards.

​Two of the newest Bucks, Tyler Herro and Jaime Jaquez Jr were intent on that happening. Speaking with Jenkins pregame about how Jaquez will handle the depth of wings that the Wizards house, he said, “He’s gotta set the tone for us.” and that he did, netting 21 points with Herro’s 17 midway through the 3rd quarter as the Bucks held a 74-66 lead.

​The fans understandably began to get antsy before “The Brow” introduced him to D.C., scoring 18 points in the 3rd quarter, showcasing a level of dominance that the Wizards haven’t had in a long time.

​After being down by three to begin the final period, the outstanding and timely play of Justin Champagnie and veteran big Deandre Ayton put the Wizards up 97-96 with 10 minutes to go in the contest.

​And they never looked back, growing the lead out to as much as 13, including winning the crucial 4th quarter(38-23) that featured impressive performances from all 10 guys that starred in getting the Wizards to 1-0 on this young season.

​Whether it is the 34 points, 11 boards, and 4 assists that Davis had, the 18 points and 13 assists from Young, the impressive 18 points that Kyshawn George had, the 11 from Bilal Coulibaly, who started in place of Dybantsa, or even Justin Champagnie, who had the highest +/- tonight, this was an exciting victory that should have all Wiz fans ready for what this season brings.