The Washington Wizards have grown accustomed to their poor decision-making coming back to bite them down the road.
Between the disastrous decision to give injury prone guard Bradley Beal a no-trade clause that they were fortunately bailed out of, the negligence to offload the contract of Kyle Kuzma when they had the chance and the boneheaded decision to give Kristaps Porzingis up for nearly nothing, Washington has created a bit of a bad reputation for themselves.
However, through all of their regretful decisions, there may not be one bigger than the team's impatience leading to them trading away a player who looks destined to become a future All-Star.
Deni Avdija has emerged as a star in Portland
Deni Avdija was selected with the No. 9 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft by the Wizards with high upside and the versatility to be a dynamic wing with the right development.
The Croatian product had the size, feel for the game and offensive ability to not only be an impactful scorer on offense, but a playmaking forward.
Not only would Avdija given the Wizarda a cornerstone to build around, but he would have answered a much-needed question in the team's frontcourt giving them a wing that could do it all.
Through his first four seasons in Washington, the forward showed flashes of the potential Washington drafted him for, averaging 14.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists in his final season in the DMV.
However, Washington's impatience led to the team forfeitting on Avdija's development and making a trade with the Portland Trail Blazers, which netted the Wizards two first-round picks and Malcolm Brogdon.
Brogdon would offer a veteran presence to mentor the team's backcourt and one of those picks were immediately used to select Bub Carrington.
Fast forward to now, not only has Brogdon's retirement and Carrington's sophomore slump made this decision look poor, but Avidja's emergence has only added to the team's regret.
Avdija is in the midst of a career-year, averaging 25.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.3 assists, while shooting 46.9% from field goal range and a career-high 37.7% from beyond the arc.
The 24-year-old has quickly become a key piece to the Trail Blazers rebuild and Portland's willingness to instill the confidence in Avdija has seemingly been a major key to his rise.
As for Washington, the Wizards are forced to watch their former draft pick develop into a future All-Star as they continue to navigate their season outlook which looks destined to end with yet another top 10 pick.