After a bumpy start to his NBA career, Washington Wizards rookie Alex Sarr is starting to find his feet, with the second overall pick awarded December's Rookie of the Month.
A key piece of Washington's rebuild, Sarr is already tied for eighth-most blocks per game in the league, and has already pushed his scoring average up over double digits, putting in 11.6 points and 6.7 rebounds per game.
His form has seen him surge to the front of the Rookie of the Year race, and the 7-foot-1 Frenchman has credited his year in the NBL with the Perth Wildcats for preparing him to hit the ground running in the NBA.
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Alex Sarr credits NBL for success
Taken with the second pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, Alex Sarr became the latest in a long line of lottery picks to spend time in Australia's NBL, joining the likes of LaMelo Ball and Josh Giddey.
Playing for the Perth Wildcats, Sarr averaged 9.4 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, seeing his draft stock rise to the point where he was in serious contention to be the first name off the board.
Now three months into what is shaping up to be a promising career, Sarr has said that his time down under was key in preparing him for life in the NBA.
"I think [the NBL] definitely helped me, it gave me a sense of the level of physicality that I would need to adjust to," Sarr said.
"It was definitely an adapting period for me when I first got to the NBL, but I felt like towards the end of the year I kind of knew how to play against people that were more physical than me.
"The physicality at first was the biggest adjustment, and I think that's kind of normal coming from playing with people your age to playing with grown men."
Sarr maintains top spot in Rookie of the Year ranks
The Washington big man's season so far has been so impressive that he is the current favourite to claim the 2024-25 Rookie of the Year award.
Despite early surges from names like Zach Edey, Stephon Castle, Jaylen Wells, and Yves Missi, and the season-ending injury to presumptive favourite Jared McCain, Sarr has firmed as the most likely winner, as he continues to show his talent on both sides of the ball.
NBA 2024-25 Rookie of the Year odds
| PLAYER | ODDS |
| Alex Sarr | $2.70 |
| Stephon Castle | $2.85 |
| Jaylen Wells | $3.80 |
| Zach Edey | $9.00 |
| Yves Missi | $14.00 |
| Isaiah Collier | $21.00 |
| Kel'el Ware | $21.00 |
| Zaccharie Risacher | $21.00 |
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