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Washington Wizards 2016-2017 NBA Season Preview: 5 Reasons to Be Optimistic

By Ben Mehic

Mar 17, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Washington Wizards guard John Wall (2) yells from the players bench against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center. The Washington Wizards won 99-94. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 17, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Washington Wizards guard John Wall (2) yells from the players bench against the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center. The Washington Wizards won 99-94. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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May 13, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Washington Wizards guard
May 13, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Washington Wizards guard /

Washington Wizards NBA Season Preview 2016-17: Even though the Wizards underachieved last year, there are reasons to remain optimistic.

For the Washington Wizards, the 2015-16 NBA season didn’t go quite as planned.

After winning two straight playoff series, the Wizards seemed destined to finally take the next step towards contention. Paul Pierce helped the team gain a sense of confidence that’s been missing since John Wall entered the league in 2010.

We all expected that confidence and winning mentality to carry over into the next season. Ernie Grunfeld, with virtually no assets, added three players that were supposed to become key contributors in a new up-tempo offense.

Before the season even started, the injuries began to pile up and the team was out of sync.

So much emphasis was put into the offensive end of the floor that the Wizards completely abandoned their defensive identity.

No longer playing two big men at once, the Wizards were forced to quickly adapt to the run-and-gun system and it took much longer than expected. Some players just simply weren’t in shape and struggled to keep up.

Injuries, poor roster construction and the team ultimately giving up during the second half of the season led to one of the most disappointing years in recent history for Washington.

The team failed to live up to expectations and missed the playoffs. The optimism that fans had heading into the year was gone.

But, believe it or not, there are reasons to be optimistic for the 2016-17 season.

Next: 5) Randy Wittman Is Gone

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