NBA Draft: 2 weaknesses that the Washington Wizards must address on draft night
By Ethan Smith
The Washington Wizards must address three-point shooting
No matter how you look at it, the Washington Wizards were among the worst three-point shooting teams last season. They shot it fewer than most teams, just 29 times each game (29th). They made it fewer than most teams, just 10.2 times each game (28th). And their average — 35.1 percent — was worse than most teams, too (23rd).
Individually, the Wizards did not have much firepower from beyond the arc. Of the seven players on the roster that shot at or above league-average from three (36.7 percent), four of them shot more than two three-pointers per game. Of those four, only three played more than 10 games for the Wizards: Davis Bertans, Garrison Mathews, and Raul Neto. Despite the numbers, Neto is no real three-point threat. And Mathews struggled to find consistent minutes, limiting his overall impact. Oh, and both could be gone by next season as they’ll both be free agents on August 2. Beal will always attract attention on the perimeter, but he shot below 36 percent for his third season in a row and below 38 percent for his fourth. Davis Bertans was really the Wizards’ only reliable three-point threat, and even he failed to live up to expectations.
With the 15th pick in the draft, the Wizards should look at Corey Kispert of Gonzaga and Chris Duarte of Oregon as potential picks that could increase their three-point potency.