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Wizards player says team was 'held back' while tanking for AJ Dybantsa

Original: Wizards player says team was 'held back' as team tanked for AJ Dybantsa https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7652753/2026/10

A Washington Wizards player, Bub Carrington, has said the team was 'held back' as the franchise appeared to prioritize losing games to improve its chances of drafting top prospect AJ Dybantsa. The comments, reported by The Athletic, add a player's voice to ongoing criticism of tanking, where teams deliberately field weakened rosters for better draft positioning.

Why now: A player publicly criticizing his own team's tanking strategy is rare and fuels the wider debate over draft-lottery incentives in the NBA.

Washington WizardsBub CarringtonAJ DybantsaThe AthleticNBA

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• Wizards player says team was 'held back' as team tanked for AJ Dybantsa https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7652753/2026/10/02/bub-carrington-wizards-tanking-aj-dybantsa/ # Sports # Basketball # Journalism · nyt_sports@robot.villas · 1

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