The Washington Wizards were one of the most active teams at the NBA trade deadline. The 9-41 franchise has the worst record in the NBA but facilitated multiple deals to teams above them in the standing to start altering their roster before a potentially transformative summer.
Among the major additions were Khris Middleton and AJ Johnson from the Milwaukee Bucks, Marcus Smart from the Memphis Grizzlies, Colby Jones, Sidy Cissoko, and Alex Len from the Sacramento Kings. That’s six new players to integrate even after they waived Reggie Jackson after acquiring him from the Philadelphia 76ers.
Kyle Kuzma, Jonas Valanciunas, Patrick Baldwin Jr, Jared Butler, Marvin Bagley, and Johnny Davis all left the franchise over the last few days.
The Wizards are going through a major roster change, but have held onto many of the foundational pieces on the roster. While the franchise won’t start stacking wins now that these players are here, the veteran influence of many of these stars could set the Wizards up for success in the future.
Starting Lineup
Jordan Poole, Bilal Coulibaly, Khris Middleton, Kyshawn George, Alex Sarr
The Wizards have identified a core of young players which likely will continue starting over many of the veterans this season. Jordan Poole has emerged as the definite No. 1 option on the team this season, averaging 20.3 points. There are still habits in his game that might not be conducive to winning, but at least he’s shown he can still be productive after a rough debut season with Washington last year.
Bilal Coulibaly is arguably the team’s franchise cornerstone right now, with the 20-year-old wing developing into a two-way monster. He even had a triple-double in his last game and will continue receiving big minutes to end the season. The same applies to rookies Kyshawn George and Alex Sarr, as the team is invested in developing these stars.
Khris Middleton starting isn’t certain, but the Wizards have made it clear that they want Middleton on the roster for the remainder of the season. Injuries have slowed him down over the last few seasons, so he could just remain on a minutes restriction but start games to give the team structure and a veteran influence.
The Wizards will not have a definite starting five for the rest of the season, as the team is also invested in developing many of the players who are technically reserves at the moment.
Reserves
Bub Carrington, Malcolm Brogdon, Marcus Smart, Richaun Holmes, Corey Kispert, Anthony Gill, AJ Johnson, Saddiq Bey, Justin Champagnie (Two-Way), Tristan Vukcevic (Two-Way)
The Wizards’ bench might be competitive if it was on a contending franchise, but the tanking franchise will have to manage quite a diverse bench to see out the season.
The key piece here is rookie Bub Carrington, who’s averaged 8.5 points and 3.9 assists this season. Carrington might be the team’s long-term point guard with Poole next to him and Coulibaly as the small forward. While he’s not steady enough to be a starting guard in the NBA yet, the Wizards are investing in him to ensure he can be a future star.
The only other compelling youngster on the bench is AJ Johnson, who joined the team from the Bucks. Johnson hasn’t played much for Milwaukee but the 20-year-old has a high ceiling that he could start reaching with playtime on the Wizards bench.
There are plenty of veterans on this bench that will be more helpful as locker-room presences than on the court, as they could legitimately push the franchise toward more wins.
Malcolm Brogdon is still a capable guard for a contender but durability issues meant no team was willing to part with assets to acquire him via trade as an expiring contract. Marcus Smart will likely find his way to a contending franchise in the summer as he’s still an elite perimeter defender, a skill the Wizards don’t have much use for this season.
Richaun Holmes is a serviceable backup big while Kispert has signed a long-term extension and could be a crucial piece next season as a shooter if the Wizards hope to start turning their fortunes around and make a Playoff push like the Detroit Pistons are doing this season.
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