Washington Wizards hoped Trey Burke would become a reliable backup, but it’s clear they need to sign Brandon Jennings to bolster the bench.
The Washington Wizards have suffered two disappointing defeats following the All-Star break – one to the lowly Philadelphia 76ers and another to the rising Utah Jazz.
Washington’s defensive intensity has slipped and their forwards, Otto Porter and Markieff Morris, haven’t been hitting shots from the perimeter like we’ve become accustomed to seeing.
The shot-making will come and go. Teams find rhythms, lose it and find it again. It’s a never-ending cycle, unless you’re the Golden State Warriors. That much isn’t a problem.
The Wizards’ defense and lack of depth has been a concern, though.
Against the Jazz on Sunday night, the Wizards went four minutes without scoring – all with their second unit on the floor. The team’s bench is 29th in scoring, rivaled only by the Minnesota Timberwolves, and last in assists.
Ernie Grunfeld failed to construct a reliable bench this past off-season and the Bojan Bogdanovic acquisition isn’t a cure-all.
For the Wizards to actually compete in the NBA Playoffs and push the Cleveland Cavaliers, they’ll have to find a way to bolster their bench.
On Monday afternoon, the New York Knicks waived Brandon Jennings and the Wizards immediately showed interest in the point guard.
This week’s Mailbag will be focused on that rumor.
https://twitter.com/imdancarillo/status/836225472585310208
So, the Washington Wizards wanted to get a scorer before the NBA Trade Deadline (who became Bojan Bogdaovic), but they also wanted to dump a bad contract (who became Andrew Nicholson).
For a team to want Nicholson’s contract – he has a four-year, $26 million deal – the Wizards had to attach a first-round pick.
The Los Angeles Lakers ended up trading Lou Williams to the Houston Rockets for a first-round pick and Corey Brewer, who had one year left on his contract, worth just over $7 million.
Williams, on paper and probably in practice, would’ve been a better fit for the Wizards than Bogdanovic, who’s a solid fit in his own right.
He’s more of a creator and doesn’t need others to get shots. Williams is one of the best isolation scorers in the league and does a fantastic job of getting to the free throw line, even if that skill evaporates during the NBA Playoffs, when the officials let the players get physical.
But the Lakers weren’t interested in taking Nicholson’s contract back, probably. Brewer’s contract is expiring after this season and Nicholson has three years left.
All signs point to Nicholson being a non-contributor and teams like the Lakers aren’t interested in taking those long-term deals back, just for the sake of adding another pick.
The Nets, though, are starved of picks and were willing to take Nicholson back for the pick.
It’s just another case of Ernie Grunfeld attempting to clean up a mess he created. And again, he did an okay job of doing so. The problem is, the Wizards have traded two first round picks in a row. Those players are on cheap contracts and could become a part of the team’s core. Now the Wizards don’t have any to work with.
has Jason smith played well enough as an energy big to earn consistent minutes even w mahinmi coming back?
— Wizards are Unserious (@ScrollinQuiet) February 27, 2017
Jason Smith should be playing over Ian Mahinmi and there’s only one reason he isn’t: Smith gets paid less (about $50 million less, to be exact).
The Washington Wizards wanted Mahinmi to be a defensive game changer – someone who can relieve Marcin Gortat and intimidate the opposition with shot blocking, and just his overall presence inside.
But he’s not the player the Wizards thought he was.
For most of his career, with the exception of last season in Indiana, Mahinmi has been relatively underwhelming. He has the size, but he doesn’t have the leaping ability. He’s not Bismack Biyombo. He has the strength, but doesn’t have the quickness nor touch. He’s not Dwight Howard or Hassan Whiteside.
Mahinmi has some of the physical tools, but he’s big, clunky and lacks natural skill. You can’t teach a 30-year-old how to hit free throws. He’s not fast enough and doesn’t have the size to run the pick-and-roll effectively, either. He’s kind of just there.
Smith, arguably, has been a better defender than Mahinmi. He’s also hitting 54 percent of his shots and 48 percent of his attempts from three. Mahinmi can’t make a shot outside of the paint.
Smith’s ability to space the floor is important and he’s been the most productive bench player the Washington Wizards have. And now he’s not in the rotation, simply because he’s getting paid less than Mahinmi.
The investment was a bad one. The Wizards need to play their best players. All of the evidence points towards Smith being better than Mahinmi.
The Washington Wizards will not make it to the Eastern Conference Finals with Trey Burke as their primary backup point guard. He’s averaging a career-low 5 points per game, but that’s not even the main problem.
Burke is too small to play shooting guard, not quick enough to play point guard and not good enough to contribute, to be blunt. He lacks the quickness to make up for being undersized. He lacks the scoring capability to make up for his lack of court vision. He really doesn’t add anything to the Washington Wizards (or really, to any other team).
Tomas Satoransky is too green to play consistent minutes. It’s his first year in the NBA, and despite having played professional ball overseas, he’s clearly still getting his legs underneath him.
Brandon Jennings isn’t without flaws. He’s made less than 40 percent of his shots and tends to be a gunner. He’s a liability defensively and shoots a lot on the other end.
But he can dribble and pass – something that point guards need to do. It’s amazing that the Wizards found a point guard (Burke) without any tools that a point guard needs.
At the very least, Jennings will be able to get the team into its sets. He’ll also take some pressure off Bogdanovic. He can handle the ball well and is an underrated passer. He’s creative – something the Wizards also lack from their backup guards.
Burke isn’t quite on Eric Maynor‘s level, but he’s getting close. It’s not his fault, either. All of his flaws are physical. If Burke was 6-foot-3 and quick, he’d be a star. But there’s a reason why the Utah jazz traded him for nothing.
Next: Reacting to the Wizards' Trade Deadline
Jennings won’t fix all of the Washington Wizards’ problems, but he’d instantly become the team’s best backup point guard.