Kyle Kuzma doesn't want to 'fit in' Wizards' plans

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Kyle Kuzma’s Washington Wizards tenure has reached a breaking point. What will the front office do as the Feb. 6 NBA trade deadline approaches?

That question is now more pressing after the 29-year-old’s postgame comments on Saturday night, via The Athletic’s Josh Robbins.

“I think today I just decided to be myself and not really just try to fit into everything that we’re doing here, and just really played in the moment,” Kuzma said. “I think my mom helped me out with that. I saw her today.”

Kuzma had his best game of the year in the 119-109 loss to the Phoenix Suns (23-21), as his 30 points (12-of-24 FG, 5-of-9 3Pt) were a season-high, while his 11 rebounds tied his season-high. The former NBA champion also added four assists across 34 minutes.

Kuzma mentioning his mother Karri Kuzma is notable, as she reposted Marc Stein’s report that Washington was exploring trade options for her son on Dec. 28. Stein also mentioned that the former NBA champion was ready to move on after the Wizards’ rough start to the season.

“I’ll sit this right here,” she said in a quote tweet.

On Saturday, Kuzma himself made the eyebrow-raising comments.

“I mean just not trying to fit into what we’re trying to do here,” the former Los Angeles Laker clarified. “Just being more assertive, demanding the ball, not just going out there and trying to let people develop. Just playing my game.”

Kuzma’s comments are ironic considering that he asked Washington’s front office to not trade him when it received an offer from the Dallas Mavericks last season. Just a year later, the Utah alum has lost interest in what the Wizards (6-38) “are trying to do,” which is developing their young players instead of winning for now.

Where does Washington go from here?

Kyle Kuzma-Wizards marriage has run its course

Kuzma said in February that he wanted to stay in the nation’s capital and “build something,” via Robbins. However, the difficulties of that may have worn on the eighth-year veteran since then.

That’s understandable, as Kuzma’s timeline doesn’t fully align with Washington’s. The Wizards are gunning for another high lottery pick in the 2025 draft to add to a young core of Bilal Coulibaly, Alex Sarr, Bub Carrington, and Kyshawn George. This requires losing most of their games for now as they give those players lots of minutes, shots, and on-ball reps.

Kuzma’s played mostly off the ball as a result, and he’s tired of holding back.

"I think I've tried to fit in,” the former NBA All-Rookie First Teamer said. "I think I've tried to help the young guys build confidence and do their thing. I think today I was just really the most assertive I've been all year."

Carrington’s recent comments about Kuzma show that the latter player indeed has paid it forward.

Bub Carrington shares advice that Kyle Kuzma gave him recently:

"Kuz told me to study guards' early quarter and late quarter tendencies. It helps because most guys are rhythm guys who do the same thing multiple times…it gives you an advantage in guarding them."#Wizardspic.twitter.com/OOiET5SJ5S

— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) January 15, 2025

"Kuz told me to study guards' early quarter and late quarter tendencies,” the 19-year-old said after practice on Jan. 15. “It helps because most guys are rhythm guys who do the same thing multiple times…it gives you an advantage in guarding them."

While Kuzma’s invested in the youngsters, he also admitted that being aggressive on the court can get in the way.

"Sometimes," he said. "Sometimes, only because there's certain positions on the floor where we run plays. Probably (in) past years, I might have been in those, you know?"

Kuzma did handle the ball much more for Washington in previous seasons, but that role has gone primarily to Jordan Poole and Coulibaly this season. That’s left the former First-Team All-Pac 12 honoree in an awkward position.

When the Lakers traded Kuzma to the Wizards in 2021, it gave him the chance to regularly start after winning a title as a role player in ’20. Naturally, he posted the best numbers of his career, culminating in a career-high 22.2 points on 46.3% shooting with 6.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists across 32.6 minutes per game last year.

However, the team’s record plummeted to 15-67 after the new regime traded Bradley Beal and Kristaps Porzingis for long-term assets. This year, Washington is pacing toward an even worse finish.

The roster overhaul was necessary for the Wizards, as their Beal-led team had no chance to win a title. Now, they could eventually become a fixture at the top if their rebuild goes well.

That’ll take a few years, though, and Kuzma’s contract expires in the summer of 2027. At this point, it makes more sense for him to be a role player on a contender again.

Washington might have gotten a better return for Kuzma last season, as he’s had a down year amid an injury-riddled campaign. He’s averaging 14.6 points on 42.3% shooting with 5.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists across 27.7 minutes, which is his worst output since getting to D.C. Regardless, it’s hard to see a way forward with the current setup.

At this point, it may be best for both parties to get a trade done before Feb. 6. The Wizards could flip Kuzma for draft capital and/or a young player, and he could get the chance to play playoff basketball in 2025.

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