Wizards first-round pick Alex Sarr has NBA debut to forget

While the Washington Wizards played slightly above expectations against the world-champion Celtics in their home opener, their prized rookie played horribly in the first game of his NBA career.

As noted by Hoop Central on X, Alex Sarr only scored 2 points on 14 percent shooting from the floor with the first-year player being unable to make any of his five attempts from the 3-point line.

Sarr is looked at as one of the few players in this rookie class who has star potential, given his size, mobility and defensive upside. Many scouts think that the big can play well with him having guard-like quickness at the height of 7-foot-1.

He was also welcomed to the league by star Jayson Tatum who created enough separation to drain a 3-pointer over Sarr late in the second quarter.

With the rookie looking to rebound in his next game against the Cavaliers, it's obvious that his debut was one to forget.

Alex Sarr's debut NBA performance was one to forget

The Wizards may not win a lot of games this season but the big man has plenty of players to help him develop — like Kyle Kuzma and Jones Valanciunas. Bigs often take longer to develop and rookies are notoriously bad on defense. The fact that he looked like a fish out of water against the defending champions is not exactly surprising nor a cause for concern.

Several other top picks struggled in their debuts, including No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher who went 2-of-8 fromt he field with one turnover and one rebound in 19 minutes for the Atlanta Hawks. There is still a lot of time for Sarr to bounce back and develop as the season goes along. Still, any Wizards hoping for him to explode right out of the gate will have to be patient.