Delon Wright quickly proved indispensable in first season with Wizards
Wright quickly proved indispensable in first Wizards season originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
WASHINGTON -- In order to qualify for official rate statistic leaderboards in the NBA, you need to play at least 58 games (70%) over the course of an 82-game regular season. If it weren't for that, Delon Wright's 1.8 steals per game would rank second in the entire NBA.
Head coach Wes Unseld Jr. believes Wright's games played total may have affected his chances at another distinction.
"You could argue, had he met the threshold, he would be in line for one of the All-Defensive teams," he said.
That's high praise and a callback to a discussion Wright and Unseld Jr. had the previous summer when Wright signed a free-agent deal to join the Wizards. They agreed that would be his goal for the season.
Though a hamstring injury suffered in late October affected those plans, Wright made an All-Defense level impact while he was available. The team had their lowest defensive rating when he was on the floor. In addition to the steals, Wright also would have been seventh in the NBA in deflections per game (3.2) if he had the games to qualify.
"There’s a presence and I think it helps the group, but it’s also something other teams are aware of. When he’s around and he’s on the floor, it’s disruptive to offenses," Unseld Jr. said.
Wright played 50 games for the Wizards with the team going 26-24 when he was available. The Wizards were far worse (9-23) when he was out due to injury.
Now knowing how much he means to the Wizards, Wright is glad he chose them in free agency.
"[The injury] was kind of a blessing in disguise because when I got hurt I was trying to find a rhythm and then once I went out, kind of saw how the team needed me and the team kind of saw how they needed me," he said.
Wright missed 29 games from late October to late December during a span of nearly two months with what was diagnosed as a Grade 2 hamstring strain. It was one of the more arduous rehabs he's gone through in his eight-year NBA career.
The fact he came back to play in 45 consecutive games without suffering a setback can be considered an achievement by the team's medical staff. Hamstring strains are notorious for being easy to reaggravate and Wright was not 100 percent when he first returned.
The Wizards had to monitor his progress using a minutes restriction and it took time for him to gain full mobility.
"It takes a lot of luck not to just roll an ankle or get sick. There’s a lot of things that go into that," Wright said.
"But I feel like the medical staff and the strength and conditioning staff did a good job of making sure I stayed on top of my routines and my workout plans. Just getting a lot of treatment and massages. Just taking care of the body. So, thank you to those guys."
About a month after returning, Wright started to produce more on the offensive end. It took time to establish a rhythm as he was also working towards full strength with the hamstring.
As Wright developed into one of the Wizards' most important defensive players, he realized just how demanding that role would be. He hopes to be better prepared for it after the work he puts in this summer.
"Getting in better shape so I can play both sides of the ball at a higher level," Wright said of his summer goals.
"I feel like when I came back I focused more on just defense and offensively I just tried to fit in and do the little things. Coming back, I feel like I just need to be in better shape to be more aggressive offensively."
Either way, Wright figures to be a key member of the Wizards' rotation next season due to his defensive versatility. If he can add some more offense, that will be a nice bonus.
