Mediocrity is a word that has been associated with the Washington Wizards organization for quite some time. Despite this team's lack of success, very few moves have been made through the years to try and increase their outlook in the Eastern Conference.
At long last, owner and CEO of Monumental Sports Ted Leonsis has decided to step up and will his team to success by making a big change in the front office. Firing team president Tommy Sheppard after the Wizards missed the playoffs yet again, Leonsis made a monumental move by hiring former Los Angeles Clippers general manager Michael Winger to be his new president of basketball operations.
Yes, the pun was fully intended!
Winger is set to not only oversee the operations of the Wizards, but the WNBA's Washington Mystics and the G League's Capital City Go-Go as well. Working with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Oklahoma City Thunder prior to joining the Clippers in 2017, Winger is a well-respected executive who will now be tasked with trying to figure out how to unscramble Washington's problems.
Winger will need to hire a new general manager and/or vice president of basketball operations to handle most of the day-to-day operations of the team while also filling out the rest of this front office, but he has full control over this franchise moving forward. As Ava Wallace from The Washington Post states, the new Wizards president will have carte blanche to do whatever he wants with this roster.
Bradley Beal's Wizards future
Obviously the first player that comes to mind when hearing this is All-Star Bradley Beal and what his future looks like.
Beal put pen to paper on a five-year, $251 million max contract last offseason, making him a Washington Wizard until the 2026-27 season, when he has a $57.1 million player option. Perhaps the more intriguing aspect of his contract is the fact that he has a true no-trade clause. As a result, the three-time All-Star shooting guard has full control and say over if the Wizards can trade him.
When, where, why, how … it does not matter, as Beal decides if he wants to be with Washington for the long haul.
It is safe to assume that Beal will have a voice in regards to how this organization operates in the offseason and moving forward given his contract stipulations, but whether they decide to fully rebuild or build up their roster is ultimately Winger's decision. According to The Athletic's Josh Robbins, Leonsis is open to a rebuild if that is the route Winger wants to pursue. This is certainly a possibility entering the offseason given the status of the roster.
However, after getting hired, Winger did speak glowingly of Beal in an interview with Andrew Greif of the Los Angeles Times.
“His former coaches, his former teammates, they all have extraordinarily high regard for him, and he is unequivocally a superstar,” Winger said. “The hardest thing to do in the NBA is acquire a superstar talent and it’s even harder to acquire superstar talent with his level of character. And so, I think it’s an extremely, extremely fortunate starting point. So to me, that’s really exciting to have somebody like Brad on the team.”
If the Wizards do keep Beal around, what about the roster around him?
What will Wizards do with Kristaps Porzingis and Kyle Kuzma?
Next to Beal, Kristaps Porzingis and Kyle Kuzma are the two other core members of this team, with both players owning player options this summer and possibly becoming unrestricted free agents. Porzingis reportedly held discussions about a massive contract extension, but nothing has come to fruition yet and the clock is ticking before his June 23 player option deadline.
Kuzma is almost certainly hitting free agency given his $13 million player option. Following the best season of his young career in which he averaged 21.2 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game while shooting 44.8 percent from the floor, Kuzma is set to make a lot of money in a weaker free agent class.
The Wizards were adamant about keeping the 27-year-old forward at this season's trade deadline despite interest in him across the league, as he is a player they were wanting to keep.
That was the old regime, though, and Winger could have other ideas.
A sign-and-trade involving Kuzma is certainly in play this offseason should the organization look to rebuild, but he is a player they could commit to and build with alongside Beal. With younger players like Corey Kispert, Deni Avdija and Johnny Davis still on rookie contracts, the Wizards do have the makings of a young core already.
The lack of overall production and high-level talents on this roster is very apparent, though, especially in the backcourt alongside Beal. Guards Monte Morris and Delon Wright each have one more year left on their contracts and will be talking points for this team in trade discussions.
The Wizards' 2023 NBA Draft situation
There is then the discussion of what to do in the NBA Draft, which is less than a month away now. The Wizards are set to pick eighth overall this year and also own two second-round picks at 42nd and 57th overall. Winger's decision of what the next several years of Wizards basketball looks like factors into not only what the team does with the eighth pick, but whether they look to be aggressive in this draft.
Washington has an obligation to send its 2024 first-round pick with top-12 protections to the New York Knicks, a pick that was originally dealt to the Houston Rockets in the Russell Westbrook for John Wall swap in 2020. The protections change each year that Washington retains this pick through the 2026 NBA Draft. Other than that, they own all of their first-round picks through 2030 and can be aggressive in any deal they seek, whether it is during the draft or later in the offseason.
Moving out of the 8-spot is more unlikely than the Wizards staying in this spot on draft night, but keep an eye on them potentially moving up. Several of the prospects at the top of draft boards this year have star-like potential. Regardless of Winger's decision to reset the franchise or continue with what they have, a top-five player in this class can instantly help them.
While they made some noise in 2014, 2015 and 2017 by advancing to the Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Wizards have truly not been a factor in the East since Hall of Famers Wes Unseld and Elvin Hayes led them to their only title in 1978. One Unseld led Washington to a title in the past and now another in Wes Unseld Jr. will be looking to do the same, only this time on the sideline as the head coach.
What Unseld's team will look like heading into the 2023-24 season and whether the Wizards can get back to being a championship-level team depends on Winger's vision. A lot is set to happen with the Wizards over the course of the next several weeks. Many new faces will be joining Winger's front office, plenty of draft prospects will be coming in for private workouts with the team and the 2023 NBA Draft on June 22 will paint a better picture as to what we should expect from Washington heading into the 2023-24 season and the foreseeable future.
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