2023 NBA Offseason Edition: Washington Wizards
The Washington Wizards entered a full rebuild this offseason, trading their franchise guard and starting forward in a deal to acquire young talent and draft picks for the future. In a complete turnaround, the Wizards switched from a contending team to a fully rebuilding team, working on a number of trades that involved Kristaps Porzingis, Bradley Beal, Chris Paul, and Jordan Poole. As the 2023 offseason comes to a close, the Wizards look to grow their current roster and prepare for the 2024 NBA Draft.
On June 8th, the Wizards traded Kristaps Porizingis to the Boston Celtics in a three-team deal. The Wizards received Tyus Jones from the Memphis Grizzlies and Danilo Gallinari, Mike Muscala, and the No. 35 pick in the 2023 Draft from the Celtics. In return, the Wizards avoided a $30 million contract on their books over the next two years.
On June 24th, another three-team deal emerged to trade Bradley Beal to the Phoenix Suns. In exchange for the All-Star guard, the Wizards received Chris Paul, Landry Shamet, Bilal Coulibaly, a 2024 first-round pick swap, 2024 second-round pick, 2025 second-round pick, 2026 first-round pick swap, 2026 second-round pick. In this trade, the Wizards dealt their No. 8 pick (Jarace Walker) to the Pacers for their No. 7 pick, in which the team drafted Coulibaly.
On July 6th, the Wizards parted ways with Chris Paul to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for Jordan Poole. In addition to Poole, the Wizards received Patrick Baldwin Jr., Ryan Rollins, a 2027 second-round pick, 2030 first-round pick (top 20 protected), and cash considerations. After several reports of frustrations from the Suns’ former point guard, the team lands Paul with a contending team and gives the opportunity for the veteran to win a championship.
On July 7th, Kyle Kuzma officially returned with the Wizards on a four-year, $102M deal. Kuzma recently came off his highest-scoring season, averaging 21.2 points per game with 7.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.
As it stands, the Wizards receive an overall grade of an “A-”. In the past five years, the Wizards had reached the playoffs once in the 2020-2021 season, being in “no man’s land” with barely any success to show for. Thankfully, the organization completely restructured their front office with Michael Winger’s hiring as the president of Monumental Basketball and Will Dawkins’ hiring as the newest general manager of the Washington Wizard. A risky decision to trade away their disgruntled star, but a great realization and step forward towards a rebuilding process. By trading two ball-dominant players in Beal and Porzingis, the Wizards provide these young talents in Tyus Jones, Jordan Poole, and Kyle Kuzma to take that leap from a role player to a potential superstar. In addition to a boatload of draft picks, the team successfully built a roster where any up-and-coming athlete can thrive without the presence of a ball-dominant star player. While there are certain risks with Poole, the 24-year-old guard does show promise as an offensive threat with his advanced ball-handling and effortless scoring touch.
