A Closer look at the Washington Wizards Point Guard Race

With Isaiah Thomas injuring his left thumb, the Washington Wizards point guard race just got extremely messy and complicated.

As if next season was not bad enough, the Washington Wizards newly signed point guard, Isaiah Thomas, hurt his thumb during a routine workout last Monday. Thomas underwent surgery to repair the ruptured radical collateral ligament in his left thumb. He is expected to be sidelined six to eight weeks and will miss the start of the season.

With John Wall likely missing all of next season to rehab his torn his achilles and Tomas Satoransky signing with the Bulls in free agency, the Wizards are left with zero of their point guards from last season.

In the offseason, the Wizards signed Thomas, a two time All-Star and former MVP candidate. While he had been sidelined much of the last couple seasons due to injuries, Thomas was projected to be the Wizards starting point guard on opening night.

Now with Thomas expected to miss the start of the season, the starting point guard spot on the Wizards likely falls to Ish Smith. The Wizards also signed Smith, an NBA veteran, in the offseason. Smith played the last three seasons with the Pistons, mostly backing up Reggie Jackson. Last season, Smith averaged 8.9 points and 3.6 assists while coming off the bench.

Here is where things get complicated. The Wizards currently have no other point guards on a guaranteed deal. This means that the Wizards backup point guard will likely be a guy on the Wizards training camp roster who has a non-guaranteed or partially guarenteed deal.

There are two options for backup point guard, Jordan McRae and Justin Robinson. The Wizards currently have two open spots for their active roster. It would not be surprising to see both of the players on the opening night roster.

Of the two, McRae has the best shot of making the team and taking over as backup point guard. The 28 year old was a second round pick in 2014 out of Tennessee. He has played in the G-League, overseas, and with the Suns and Cavaliers.

Last season, the Wizards signed McRae to a two-way contract. He played 31 games with the Capital City Go-Go and was the G-League’s highest scorer, averaging 30.4 points per game. McRae also played in 27 games for the Wizards last season, averaging 5.9 points per game.

Another potential option for the Wizards is Justin Robinson. The Wizards signed Robinson as an undrafted free agent out of Virginia Tech this offseason. Robinson reportedly turned down opportunities to be drafted in the second round of the 2019 draft to instead sign with the Wizards as an UDFA. He impressed in the Summer League, averaging 8.8 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists per game.

Robinson was originally thought to be a two-way player for the Wizards, meaning he would spend a lot of his time in the G-League. However, with the Wizards look slim at the point guard position, his chances to make the active roster has increased.

Another option for the Wizards is to have guys like Troy Brown or Bradley Beal play point guard. Whether the Wizards are considering doing this remains to be seen.

The Washington Wizard’s point guard position is a mess. Let’s just hope Isaiah Thomas can return to the court as soon as possible.