Washington Wizards Sign Jordan McRae to a One-Year Deal

The regular season may not even be over yet but the Washington Wizards are already making moves that will impact their team next season.

The Washington Wizards now have five players under contract for next season: John Wall, Bradley Beal, Ian Mahinmi, Troy Brown…and Jordan McRae.

In the second move of the post-Ernie Grunfeld era, the Wizards signed the 28 year-old shooting guard to a non-guaranteed deal through the 2019-20 season. The news was first reported by The Washington Post’s Candace Buckner.

McRae spent most of the season with the Capital City Go-Go in the G League as a two-way player, despite having multiple seasons of NBA experience under his belt. In his 31 G League games this season, McRae averaged over 30 points per game and finished the regular season as the G League’s top scorer. And he didn’t do it purely on volume. McRae shot 48% from the field and just over 34% from three on his way to being named to the 2018-19 All-NBA G League First Team.

It wasn’t often that we saw McRae getting meaningful minutes this season for the Wizards. But he did make the most of his chances. Despite playing in just 27 games with the Wizards this season, and starting none of them, McRae scored 10 or more points seven times.

When given a little more time on the court, he was impressive. In the 14 games in which McRae played over 10 minutes, he averaged 10 points on 47% shooting. The man has proven to be a walking bucket, but there’s a reason he hasn’t stuck in the NBA. Sometimes, the defensive deficiencies are glaring.

McRae’s deal is the second major roster move the Wizards have made since former team president and GM Ernie Grunfeld was relieved of his duties. On April 5, the Washington Wizards decided to waive Wesley Johnson whom they acquired at the trade deadline.

The Wizards have announced that McRae’s contract is a standard NBA contract. They have also signed Tarik Phillip ahead of tonight’s season finale against the Boston Celtics.