What will the Washington Wizards do with Jabari Parker

Jabari Parker has only been aWizard for a few months, but he showed promise in his brief stint in DC. Now the Washington Wizards are forced to decide on what his future with the team will be.

The Washington Wizards acquired Jabari Parker in February from the Bulls in the Otto Porter trade. Parker only played 25 games as a Wizard, but in this brief period he showed that he could be a valuable member of the team.

Off the bench, Parker proved that he is a great scorer. He averaged 15 points per game while shooting just over 52% from the field last season on the Wizards. Parker has great talent offensively. He can drive to the rim with ease and pull up from three. Parker also is a very strong rebounder, averaging 7.2 rebounds per game as a Wizard.

While he is a great offensive spark, Parker struggles mightily on defense. He can also be lackluster with the ball, turning it over nearly three times per game with the Wizards.

Parker was once believed to be destined for greatness in the NBA. He was selected second overall in the 2014 draft by the Bucks. In the 2014 annual survey of NBA General Managers, 75% of GMs believed Parker would be rookie of the year and 36% believed that he would be the best player in the draft class down the road.

Parker showed promise with the Bucks. However, he spent much of his time in Milwaukee on the sidelines as he was riddled with injuries, including tearing his ACL twice. These injuries greatly affected his play. Parker was not developing into the star many thought he would be.

After four years with the Bucks, Parker wanted a fresh start, joining the Bulls last summer in free agency. However, he found himself out of the Bulls rotation by December and was then traded to the Wizards at the trade deadline.

Now with the offseason underway, the Wizards need to decide what to do with Parker. Parker has a team option of $20 million. If the Wizards pick up the option, Parker will return to the Wizards next season and will be set to become a free agent in 2020. If the option is declined, Parker will become a free agent this summer. The Wizards must make a decision by June 30.

The Wizards are expected to decline Parker’s option because $20 million for a year is a huge cap hit and too much money for a player of Parker’s caliber. However, the Wizards could still re-sign him in free agency at a cheaper price.

Re-signing Parker at a cheaper price would be a wise move as he was a great spark off the bench. However, it could come at a cost as it may hinder their ability to afford their other free agents such as Bobby Portis and Tomas Satoransky. Depending on the length of his new contract, it could also hurt their ability to sign free agents in the future.

The Wizards should attempt to bring Jabari Parker back after declining his team option. However, they must not overpay for him. If Parker is asking for too much money, the Wizards should let him walk.