New Orleans Pelicans at Washington Wizards

McGowens will miss the final game of the 2025-26 season, though to be fair, he hasn't played for the Pelicans since March 8 due to a fractured toe. He appeared in 42 games for New Orleans and made 13 starts, averaging 8.1 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists across 21.0 minutes per game.

Davis was limited to only 20 regular-season appearances with Dallas last season due to health issues, but Dawkins said the 10-time All-Star is currently in a "great frame of mind." Washington also views Davis as a starting-caliber center in a revamped frontcourt featuring Alex Sarr and Deandre Ayton. Davis and the Wizards reportedly postponed contract extension discussions earlier this offseason, but Dawkins declined to specifically address those talks Thursday.

General manager Will Dawkins said Thursday that Sarr is expected to be ready for the start of the regular season, so the limited workload to begin camp appears precautionary. Sarr underwent surgery in mid-June, and his progress during the preseason will be worth monitoring, but there currently doesn't appear to be significant concern about his availability for Opening Night.

With Young limited to 15 regular-season appearances in 2025-26 due to injuries, any sign of offseason rehab progress is notable. This report points to active conditioning work after his quadriceps issue, though it does not provide a return timeline or formal clearance update ahead of training camp for Washington.

Watkins, a two-way player for the Wizards, suffered the injury during the Summer League. Although Washington has yet to offer a timetable for a return, a typical recovery time for the procedure is approximately 9-to-12 months. That leaves Watkins in serious jeopardy of missing most, if not all, of the 2026-27 season, and it remains to be seen if the team will continue keeping him around on a two-way roster spot while he's injured.