Washington Wizards Free Agency 2016: Potential Last Minute Roster Additions
By Ben Mehic
The Washington Wizards still have the room exception left to spend. I took a look at the potential free agent candidates.
The Washington Wizards had defined roles for their players under Randy Wittman.
John Wall was the team’s anchor, Bradley Beal was often the closer and Jared Dudley was the team’s glue guy.
When things started to fall apart and injuries began to pile up, the roles started to become murky.
Washington is hoping that with a younger roster, the injury problem will be solved.
We know what Wall, Beal and Marcin Gortat are going to bring to the table. To a lesser extent, we also know what to expect from Otto Porter and Markieff Morris. The bench, on the other hand, is still going to be defined.
Scott Brooks is going to be tasked with figuring out the rotation without having coached the team before. Training camp is relatively short, and it might ultimately come down to experience.
Ian Mahinmi will presumably be the backup center, but besides that, we don’t know what the second unit will look like.
Andrew Nicholson and Jason Smith will compete for minutes, while Trey Burke and Tomas Satoransky will likely become the backup guards. Somewhere, Marcus Thornton and Kelly Oubre will probably find a way to fit in.
Washington doesn’t have a sixth man right now.
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From the first player signed to the last, every reserve will have the opportunity to play big minutes.
The Wizards don’t have a Ramon Sessions-type of scorer on their second unit anymore.
That sort of role is typically handled by the sixth man, and the Wizards lack a clear candidate for that gig at the moment.
The Wizards still have the room exception to spend, which is worth just under $3 million, and they’re reportedly still active on the free agent market.
The roster is constructed in a way that the 13th or 14th man signed could make a legitimate difference. Again – the roles haven’t been defined yet and the players on the market could easily sneak into the rotation, replacing one of the players that obtained a roster spot before.
Washington’s roster is deeper, but I’m not certain it’s more talented than it was last season. That’s why a seemingly unimportant signing, like the one the Wizards will probably make soon, could make a legitimate difference.
I’ve taken a look at some available players in the past, but here’s an updated list of free agents that might be solid fits for the Washington Wizards:
Lance Stephenson
He’s still available. Lance was born to be a Wizard, as I’ve said in the past, but it’s kind of alarming that he’s still available.
It’s August and no one has even been linked to him.
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I don’t think Stephenson will go unsigned, but teams are hesitant to pursue him for good reason.
In this instance, the Washington Wizards already have one question mark on their team with Morris.
As some say, you can only have one potential problem in the locker room. Washington would go over the quota if they added Stephenson.
But, let’s just say that the character issues are really just a misunderstanding.
Stephenson is still an unknown on the court. His inability to shoot the ball really hindered his development. He was virtually unplayable in Charlotte.
It’s probably worth the risk, but it says something when everyone else has passed on him. If he does end up signing somewhere and it pans out, that team will make the 29 others look dumb for not taking the chance. Right now, though, all 30 teams seem to be saying “I’m good.”
Mario Chalmers
Chalmers ruptured his achilles with the Memphis Grizzlies and was subsequently waived. If the injury didn’t occur, he would have been off the market by now.
Washington will rely on Burke as their primary backup point guard and Satoransky will have some ball handling duties as well. The problem is, neither player has proven they can take on such a role. If both Burke and Satoransky flop, the Wizards are going to be in trouble.
Chalmers is aiming to be ready by training camp. He’s played on winning teams and he’s pretty versatile. Chalmers averaged over 10 points on an above average player efficiency rating (17.33) last season.
Josh Smith
Washington reportedly wants a defensive-minded forward, and if it was 2010, I would be super hyped for Smith. In 2016, signing Smith would be only mildly exciting – like eating expired potato chips late at night.
He’s still capable of running the floor and defending three positions. The Wizards already have five big men, so signing Smith wouldn’t make much sense. I don’t think we could survive watching him shoot long twos either.
Derek Fisher
Fisher played under Scott Brooks in Oklahoma City, and after a disastrous coaching season with the New York Knicks, he wants to return to the NBA as a player. Fisher would bring veteran lead- nah, I’m just playing.
But, he’s seriously trying to make a comeback.
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The players available aren’t exciting. A Stephenson, Chalmers or Smith might be able to make a difference, and at $3 million, none of them would be super risky. It’ll be interesting to see if the Wizards sign anyone notable, or if they just decide to roll with what they have.