Wizards rest Russell Westbrook, Bradley Beal in preseason opener

Beal, Bertans and Westbrook are all healthy, but they rested Sunday night to give their bodies a few more full-speed practices before competing in a game. Their absence gave Coach Scott Brooks a chance to observe new players such as No. 9 overall pick Deni Avdija and see how young returners such as Rui Hachimura and Thomas Bryant had improved.

It wasn’t the easiest of opening games.

Washington got off to a shaky start against Nets stars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, who teamed up in the first half to make the youngsters’ lives difficult. Durant returned from an Achilles’ injury to play his first game since June 2019 and looked as if he hadn’t lost a step.

Here are four takeaways from the first of Washington’s three exhibitions this week:

Avdija logs a perfect debut

The 19-year-old forward earned a starting nod from Brooks and lived up to the charge. Avdija scored 15 points, grabbed four rebounds and shot a perfect 6 for 6 from the field, including 3 for 3 from beyond the arc, in just over 24 minutes Sunday.

Perhaps even more impressive than his numbers was Avdija’s comfort level on the court. The Israeli national has three years of pro experience playing overseas under his belt, and save one rookie mistake — he accidentally stepped out of bounds in the first quarter — his decision-making was sound and he didn’t appear hesitant.

“I talked to him before the game. [I said], ‘The only pressure that I will put on you is just go out there and play hard.’ … That’s how you gain respect from your teammates. That’s how you gain respect from your opponent,” Brooks said afterward in a virtual news conference. “That’s how you gain respect from the referees. Go out there and play hard, don’t complain about nothing, just do your job. I thought he did that tonight. He’s not going to go every night and not miss a shot, but he played the right way.”

An impressive ballhandler and remarkably speedy for 6-foot-9, Avdija put the exclamation mark on his debut performance near the end of the first half. He pulled off a buzzer-beater by leaping for a rebound, sprinting the length of the court and pulling up from the free throw line for a floater off of one leg.

Hachimura shows signs of growth

Perhaps Sunday was meant to be a night for No. 9 picks to shine. The Wizards’ selection at that spot last year was their other highlight of the night. Hachimura, starting at the forward spot he is expected to occupy all season, drew a colossal defensive assignment in guarding Durant.

The former MVP flashed just some of his arsenal in finding creative ways to get to the bucket for 15 points on 5-for-12 shooting in just under 24 minutes, but Hachimura performed well given the task. He stayed in front of Durant, contested shots well and threw his weight around under the basket, taking advantage of about 10 pounds of muscle he added in the offseason. Hachimura played more physically than he did in any of his outings in the NBA bubble this summer.

“KD is a handful for anybody in this league to guard. No matter what you do he has a way to get buckets, so many areas of the floor,” Brooks said. “But I thought Rui challenged himself to make it tough, make his catches difficult, make his shot attempts tough, don’t give him any easy looks. … I thought Rui was solid throughout the night, defensively.”

The forward from Japan flaunted some of the offseason work he had put in on his offensive game, as well. Hachimura led the team with 18 points in just over 23 minutes, shooting 7 for 16 from the field. Most impressive was his 3-for-4 shooting from beyond the arc — his shot looked noticeably smoother Sunday night.

It’s difficult to judge a slow start during a preseason game populated with young players going up against Irving and Durant, but trailing 38-20 at the end of the first quarter wasn’t the start the Wizards wanted. Brooks wrote it off as first-game jitters, but hardly anyone could get going on offense, and Washington shot 39.1 percent from the field. Hachimura and Bryant, the starting center, settled in as the game wore on, which seemed to steady the team.

Westbrook on the sideline

The Wizards’ own former MVP patrolled the sidelines all night in an apparently excellent mood. Westbrook was always in motion when cameras found him, either standing behind a player to shout encouragement or instruction or cheering for a solid play. At one point, he stood over Brooks, the longtime former coach with whom he is reunited in Washington, with a clipboard and marker in hand.

“No,” Brooks said when asked whether Westbrook was drawing up a play. “I wouldn’t listen to him anyway.”