Top overall draft pick AJ Dybantsa scored 19 points on his long-awaited NBA debut on Wednesday night, but his Washington Wizards still lost 121-111 to the Cleveland Cavaliers in Cleveland. Dybantsa, who had missed Washington's first four games with a sprained left ankle suffered in the final preseason game on 16 October, started at shooting guard and played 26 minutes, making 8 of 12 shots.

A fast start, then the comeback

The 19-year-old made an immediate impression, scoring nine points in the first quarter — the most first-quarter points by a Wizards rookie on debut since at least 1996-97, according to Sportradar — and helping Washington to a 42-34 first-quarter lead. An alley-oop from Kyshawn George early in the third quarter put Washington 76-63 ahead, and at half-time the visitors led 69-59.

Mobley leads the rally

Cleveland's comeback was built on its frontcourt. Evan Mobley scored 24 points, including a career-high five three-pointers and 10 points in the fourth quarter, and grabbed 12 rebounds. Peyton Watson added a season-high 22 points, and Donovan Mitchell posted 19 points and seven assists. Mobley's layup with 11 minutes 19 seconds left gave Cleveland its first lead since the first quarter at 94-92, and after Dybantsa briefly put Washington back ahead 105-104, the Cavaliers scored nine straight points to take control.

What the debut means

For Washington, Anthony Davis and Alex Sarr scored 18 points each and Bilal Coulibaly added 17, making his first eight shots. The result is Cleveland's 17th straight win over Washington, the longest active streak in the league, and its third win in a row. For Dybantsa, though, the debut itself was the story: after weeks on the sidelines, he led his team in scoring on the night.

Sources: Reuters, theScore.