NBA Offseason Survey: Wizards get a surprising vote for best offseason

Recently, ESPN ran an NBA offseason survey that asked various questions to NBA coaches, scouts and executives. 15 NBA decision-makers took part in the survey that asked a wide range of questions.

While some questions received answers that most NBA fans could confidently predict, there were also some very interesting responses that are sure to catch the attention of certain NBA fan bases. For example, three players got mentioned in response to the question ‘Who is the best player in the NBA right now?’.

Those three were LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Stephen Curry. Some of the most popular and best players in the game today.

Among the questions that received much more interesting answers? ‘Which team had the best offseason?’

That is where the Washington Wizards were (surprisingly) mentioned by one rival scout. Before anyone asks – No, it wasn’t a scout within the Wizards organization. The ESPN article made it clear the scout that praised the Wizards off-season works for a Western Conference team.

Wizards moves praised, but is this an overreaction?

Among the Wizards moves praised in the piece were their decision to lock up Bradley Beal long-term as well as their trade of Ish Smith and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope that brought back Monte Morris and Will Barton.

First, the Beal move is likely to be seen more favorably by NBA insiders than it is by NBA fan bases. Those in charge can better understand and grasp the importance of loyalty and how players and agents around the league value seeing such a move made.

In terms of the trade with the Denver Nuggets, it’s extremely fair to see the value the Wizards got in the two-for-two swap. Does that move rival the kind of game changing trades or additions made by teams like the Boston Celtics, though? No.

This seems like a pretty obvious overreaction from an NBA scout that simply thinks the Wizards offseason might be going a little bit under the radar so far. Why this scout felt the need to praise the moves is unknown, but a safe assumption is that they simply felt the solid moves did not get enough attention around the league.

It’s pretty hard to see how the Wizards had the best NBA offseason let alone a top five NBA offseason. They went from a late lottery team to, at best, a low end playoff team that is unlikely to make it past the first round. It’s pretty easy to see how they could simply end up being a late lottery team again despite the small plus moves they made.

Wizards fans aren’t going to buy much into this reaction and rightfully so. They have seen the moves made and evaluated them somewhat fairly. One unnamed NBA scout isn’t going to change what was already blatantly obvious.