The Washington Wizards are gearing up towards their pivotal offseason and with the NBA Draft Lottery looming, a peak inside the team's front office's thoughts as the draft nears have been released.
For awhile, all eyes have been on Washington as a potential landing spot for likely No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg. Since the Wizards early season struggles began, the team and their fanbase seemed to be content with the idea of tanking for the possibility to land the generational talent.
However, down the stretch, the lines got blurred as the Wizards sudden surge of wins put them in potential to drop out of the top five as a whole if the NBA Draft Lottery takes a turn for the worse.
Nonetheless, with Washington tied with the Utah Jazz and the Charlotte Hornets with the highest odds of a 14% chance to earn the pick, the team is more likely than not to end up with a top three selection.
Assuming they miss out on No. 1, the Wizards reportedly have their eyes locked on Dylan Harper if they can manage to earn the No. 2 overall pick at the very least.
Dylan Harper has fans in Wizards front office
Dylan Harper has long been mentioned as the next-best prospect in this draft class behind Flagg. Some may even argue that the Rutgers guard has the potential to be a better player at the next level depending on where he lands and the supporting cast/developmental plan around him.
At 6-foot-6, the point guard has the positional size and athleticism to intrigue every team in the league, even if he was just a raw prospect. However, the playmaker proved he's a polished prospect during his freshman season at Rutgers, averaging 19.4 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4 assists, while shotiing 48.4% from field goal range and 33.3% from beyond the arc.
Not only is Harper a three-level scorer, but he has a tremendous feel for the game and his ability to manipulate a defense has so much room to improve in the league that his ceiling is a top backcourt player in the entire NBA when it's all said and done.
Of course, missing out on Flagg would be looked at as a disappointment by many, but the Wizards contingency seems to have a comfortability with the possibility that Harper is their top first-round selection in the coming months, that is if they can land the No. 2 overall pick.