Washington Wizards Complete Mock 2016 Off-season Version 1.0
By Osman Baig
The Washington Wizards have plenty of cap space and a lot of needs going into the 2016 NBA Free Agency period. Here’s a complete mock of one scenario
The Washington Wizards enter the 2016 offseason with only five players under contract and Bradley Beal as a restricted free agent.
Assuming those six roster spots are set, that leaves potentially nine spots open.
To fill those roster spots, the Washington Wizards have approximately $30 million dollars in cap room. To get there, I’m making the following assumptions:
- Washington retains the current core and maintains their cap hold of approximately $14.2 million for Beal
- The Wizards will maintain Garrett Temple’s cap hold at $980,431
- $543,417 for five roster spots to get to minimum 12 for cap purposes
- Because Martell Webster was waived using the stretch provision, $830K of his salary counts towards the 2016 cap. That salary, however, does not occupy a roster spot.
So, that leaves the Washington Wizards with approximately $30 million in cap space to fill out their roster. Additionally, Washington will also have the room exception of $2,898,000.
A point of clarification: any player signed will slide into a minimum salary slot so the hit against the cap won’t be $1 for $1.
For example, if the Wizards decide to retain Jarrell Eddie at his non-guaranteed 2016 salary of $980,431, the impact will only be the difference between that and the minimum salary. Hence, retaining Jarrell Eddie will only cost the Wizards $437,114 in additional cap room.
That being said, that’s not a move I will project for this summer, so let’s start with the roster makeup.
Priority Needs – Star Power, Backcourt Depth, Third Big
Star Power is hard to quantify as a need but make no mistake about it: this team NEEDS the type of jolt a star can bring.
The Washington Wizards planned around this summer for one primary reason: to land an upper echelon free agent. Failing to land one should be considered a failure and a disappointment.
Let’s assume that the chances of acquiring Kevin Durant in free agency are slim to none and the Wizards have to move on to plans B, C, and D. What would that entail?
Scenario 1: Address the Center position long-term
Why? Marcin Gortat is under contract at a very reasonable 2016 salary of $12 million. He’s coming off a season where he averaged roughly 13.5 points and 10 rebounds. He also has been durable and has shown few signs of wearing down but he is still going into his age 32-33 season. It’s fair to think that at some point he’ll start to decline.
The other four projected starters for the Wizards are all 26 and under and still have varying levels of potential “upside” to their game. Couple that with the deep crop of free agent centers and this could be an area of focus this summer.
Available free agent Centers (ordered by preference)
- Andre Drummond – Restricted free agent
- Hassan Whiteside– Unrestricted free agent
- Festus Ezeli – Restricted free agent
- Bismack Biyombo – Unrestricted free agent
- Dwight Howard – Unrestricted free agent
- Al Jefferson – Unrestricted free agent
- Joakim Noah – Unrestricted free agent
Let’s filter through this list a bit.
Drummond is a restricted free agent and much like Bradley Beal is unlikely to go anywhere. Dwight Howard, Joakim Noah, and Al Jefferson are all older free agents who have had injury issues recently, which defeats the purpose of getting younger at the position.
That leaves Hassan Whiteside, Festus Ezeli, and Bismack Biyombo.
Whiteside is an unrestricted free agent and as crazy as it may seem to think he’d leave Miami, they do not have his Bird Rights and cannot exceed the salary cap to retain him.
Ezeli is a young center with defensive upside but has had injury issues including a knee injury this season which has kept him out of action and pretty much out of the rotation in Golden State.
While Festus offers similar upside to Whiteside at likely a lower rate, his injury history makes him a tough option to rely upon when committing big free agency dollars.
Biyombo can fit the Washington Wizards’ need for a rim protector, but his lack of offense could hurt a team that already struggles to score in half court sets.
Move #1:
The Wizards sign Whiteside to a 4-year/$93 million max contract in free agency. His contract would start at $21.8 Million with 4.5% annual raises. Whiteside may not qualify as a “star” but he can absolutely impact and change a game with his defensive prowess.
Why would Miami let him go? I don’t think they will let him go without a fight, but not having bird rights doesn’t help their odds.
That would leave Washington with approximately $8.7 million in cap space plus the room exception to fill out the remaining 5-7 spots on the roster.
Now the Washington Wizards have two centers, neither of whom would likely be pleased to come off the bench, which leads us to…
Move #2:
Washington shops Gortat for salary cap relief to a team that loses a center in free agency (possibly Miami in this scenario). The Wizards, in additional to salary cap relief, should be able to net some type of asset in return for a productive center like Gortat.
That moves nets Washington an additional $12 million in cap space which puts them back at $20.1 million in cap room with the following depth chart.
and Hassan Whiteside.
A recent report out of Europe indicates that Washington is ready to offer Tomas Satoransky multi-year guaranteed deal. The combo guard would likely come here and assume primary responsibilities behind John Wall while his length provides position versatility.
Considering he was requesting the mid-level exception to sign with Washington previously, it’s likely those demands remain consistent.
Move #3:
Washington signs Satoransky to a 3-year/$17.6 million deal. With a starting salary of $5,628,000, Washington is left with $15 million in salary cap space with front court depth and a scoring wing remaining their needs.
Front Court/Wing Possibilities (ranked by preference)
This list is comprised of dependable veterans (Jared Dudley) to guys who could be the next Al-Farouq Aminu in terms of impact with a larger role (Dwight Powell).
Move #4:
Washington signs Dwight Powell for 3-years/$24 Million.
Admittedly, Powell will be tough to land as a restricted free agent. Dallas likely will attempt to retain him which is why an overpay is likely necessary. However, he is the type of free agent Washington should pursue – banking on upside rather than their current production.
Powell is a young big with athleticism, the makings of a decent shooting stroke, and a player who can contribute without having plays run for him. The Washington Wizards, according to CSN, were set to take him had he not been selected 45th overall in the 2014 NBA draft – just one spot ahead of where Washington was selecting.
One spot and we could have avoided all the hand wringing over the Wizards selling their selection to the Los Angeles Lakers which turned into Jordan Clarkson.
Acquiring Dwight Powell could be a longshot, making a player like Jeff Green or Jared Dudley being more likely.
Let’s just assume they land Powell, though. The updated depth chart now looks like this:
This is looking better, but a backup center and a scoring wing are still needs, and with Washington only $7 million under the cap, the options are going to be limited.
Move #5:
Washington signs Miles Plumlee 2-year/$7 Million contract.
There was rumored interest in Plumlee at the trade deadline and while that didn’t materialize then, it does now as he fills the needs for an insurance policy behind Whiteside, is active on the glass and can run the floor.
Leaving roughly $3.5 million in available cap room, Washington must fill the void behind Bradley Beal, especially when you take into account his injury history.
Move #6:
Washington, in need of perimeter shooting, signs Anthony Morrow to their remaining cap space on 2-year/$6 million contract. Capped out, the depth chart looks like this.
That’s an actual young roster – not an old roster that’s being sold as a young core.
Ernie Grunfeld, however, is now likely desperate for a veteran presence on the roster and based on their ability to exceed the cap to sign him…
Move #7: Washington re-signs Garrett Temple to a 2-Year/$5 million contract.
Shooting is still needed on this roster and with the room exception of $2,898,000 they will – in true Ernie Grunfeld – fashion offer the exception to several free agents and say first come, first serve.
Move #8: Washington signs Brandon Rush to a 2-year/ $6 million contract.
The roster now stands at 13 and the balance will be comprised of the best from camp invites and Aaron White, Washington’s second round selection from the 2015 NBA Draft who spent last season playing in Germany.
Final Depth Chart
What I like about this scenario:
Washington becomes much more athletic, and with Whiteside anchoring the defense, can become a defensive juggernaut.
This potential roster doesn’t lack rim protection and can also get out and run the floor. The integration of Satoransky also gives Washington something they’ve needed – a secondary ball handler.
What I don’t like about this scenario:
While I filled the team needs, the lack of a high quality wing scorer still stands out. Let’s say the end of game lineup features Wall, Beal, Porter, Morris, and Whiteside. Who gets the last shot? Who does the offense flow through for scoring and who can get a basket when it’s absolutely needed?
Another issue I have with this roster is while Satoransky does give Washington a second ball handler, unless they play heavy minutes together, the team still with often have only one ball handler on the floor at the time.
No starting player in the frontcourt adds that dynamic under this scenario.
Next: 2016 Wizards Draft and Free Agency Preview
Note 1: Washington should have the advantage when it comes to signing priority undrafted free agents given the number of open roster spots they have and the limited cap room. Agents likely will view Washington as a landing spot where a fringe player can stick due to their cap constraints.
Note 2: This scenario can play out with additional cap room if the Wizards settle for a less expensive center like Festus Ezeli or Bismack Biyombo.