The Wizards could acquire pieces rather than selling them off. The few names Washington has been linked to include the Spurs’ Jakob Poeltl and the Rockets’ Jae’Sean Tate.
Many Washington fans are frustrated with the mediocrity of the Wizards (24-29), and are disappointed the team remains hesitant to enter a full-scale rebuild. But this is the correct decision for a simple reason: teams don’t get better by getting worse.
Just look at the team the Wizards share an arena with, the NHL’s Capitals.
After the 2017 season, the Caps had a number of expiring contracts. Calls came to blow up the team, with some suggesting to trade superstar Alex Ovechkin.
Instead, they kept as much of the core intact as possible and won the Stanley Cup the following year.
The Wizards don’t have an Ovechkin on their team. But they do have pieces. Bradley Beal, Kristaps Porzingis and Kyle Kuzma are each averaging at least 20 points. All are younger than 30.
Beal, Porzingis and Kuzma may not ever be part of a championship core together. But should they ever be traded, it should be in a deal that helps the team win now, not later.
Tanking in any sport is a risk that often outweighs the reward — especially so in the NBA, where the league’s worst team only has a 14% chance of winning the draft lottery. Teams that resort to tanking often take several years to hit on a top prospect, and even longer to start winning with that prospect.
For instance, during the Philadelphia 76ers’ infamous “Process,” they struck gold on Joel Embiid. However, they also spent high picks on Markelle Fultz, Nerlens Noel and Jahlil Okafor.
Even with Embiid, the 76ers have still yet to make it past the second round of the playoffs. The same can’t be said for the Phoenix Suns, though, who had been stuck in the league’s cellar for several years despite having a franchise cornerstone in Devin Booker.
Rather than dealing away Booker and starting over, the Suns traded for Chris Paul, which paid immediate dividends with a trip to the 2021 NBA Finals.
It’s much easier to build a contender when you’re not starting from scratch. Teams that tank aren’t guaranteed a long-term payoff but are guaranteed short-term futility. Teams that don’t tank, meanwhile, are always guaranteed to be in position to have a chance.
So as the Wizards remain in mediocrity purgatory, let’s not overthink this: their goal should be to start winning, not losing.
