>“This is all new for me. This is the first time in my career I really am having a role [with] this high of a usage, so I’m learning on the fly — I’m learning pretty fast, too,” he said. “ … I played with some great players, so watching them, understanding how teams guarded them, I’m kind of seeing those things now — especially when we have guys hurt.”
>Kuzma is growing in other ways, too. He is averaging career highs in points (21.7), minutes (35.2) and field goal percentage (46.3), and his game is starting to catch up to the high Q Score he has enjoyed since entering the league.
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>he won’t count out the Wizards as a landing spot after he tests free agency this summer.
>He still plans to decline his player option for the 2023-24 season and become an unrestricted free agent; signing an extension with Washington limits his earning potential. And handing Kuzma a large payday would be extraordinarily complicated for the Wizards — No. 2 scorer Kristaps Porzingis also is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent in July, and Rui Hachimura is on the path to become a restricted free agent.
>Keeping all three would put the franchise at risk of paying the luxury tax, something owner Ted Leonsis has done just once since he became the majority owner in 2010. But Kuzma is keeping his options open as his career-best season chugs along.
>“Yeah, 100 percent, for sure,” Kuzma said when asked whether he could see himself returning to the Wizards should the right deal come along. “For me, it’s all about my growth and how I can improve. That’s the thing I’m always chasing — trying to get better. That’s the main, important thing.”
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Excerpts:
>“This is all new for me. This is the first time in my career I really am having a role [with] this high of a usage, so I’m learning on the fly — I’m learning pretty fast, too,” he said. “ … I played with some great players, so watching them, understanding how teams guarded them, I’m kind of seeing those things now — especially when we have guys hurt.”
>Kuzma is growing in other ways, too. He is averaging career highs in points (21.7), minutes (35.2) and field goal percentage (46.3), and his game is starting to catch up to the high Q Score he has enjoyed since entering the league.
–
…
>he won’t count out the Wizards as a landing spot after he tests free agency this summer.
>He still plans to decline his player option for the 2023-24 season and become an unrestricted free agent; signing an extension with Washington limits his earning potential. And handing Kuzma a large payday would be extraordinarily complicated for the Wizards — No. 2 scorer Kristaps Porzingis also is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent in July, and Rui Hachimura is on the path to become a restricted free agent.
>Keeping all three would put the franchise at risk of paying the luxury tax, something owner Ted Leonsis has done just once since he became the majority owner in 2010. But Kuzma is keeping his options open as his career-best season chugs along.
>“Yeah, 100 percent, for sure,” Kuzma said when asked whether he could see himself returning to the Wizards should the right deal come along. “For me, it’s all about my growth and how I can improve. That’s the thing I’m always chasing — trying to get better. That’s the main, important thing.”