The Washington Wizards are in the midst of an ongoing and long awaited rebuild.
Washington hopes to get one step closer to contending in a loaded Eastern Conference, but to do that, they'll need at least one of their young players to take the leap in order to be the cornerstone the Wizards have desperately been seeking.
However, it'll be hard for the Wizards to find that cornerstone piece if they continue using the same stategy that they have over the last few seasons.
And if you don't believe me, just look at what the Wizards' impatience left them with as the dust settles on the Deni Avdija trade.
Washington selected Avdija with the No. 9 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft and in the first few seasons in D.C., the versatile wing showed flashes of what the Wizards drafted him to for.
Nonetheless, after a few seasons of showing flashes and not taking the leap to be the star player the Wizards hoped he could become immediately, general manager Will Dawkins elected to move on from the former lottery pick.
Not only did the Wizards move on from Avidja, but they did it in an effort to land veteran guard Malcolm Brogdon for veteran leadership in the backcourt and we already know how that went for the Wizards.
In addition to Brogdon, Washington also landed another young prospect in Bub Carrington with the lottery pick they landed as part of the package Avdija brought in.
Despite that, Carrington's development in Washington could run into the same dead end that Avdija's did if the Wizards don't learn to adapt to the highs-and-lows like the Portland Trail Blazers.
You see, Portland took some time to get Avdija to show the elite part of his game that flashes have always shown of his potential , but when they did, it looked as if Portland may have truly found a new building block to add around.
To get that out of Avdija, head coach Chauncey Billups and general manager Joe Cronin deserve all the credit in the world for their patience and allowing the forward to play through his errors.
Sticking with Avdija even through his mistakes that his aggressive play style led to, Portland allowed for the former Wizard to gain confidence, learn on the fly and grow comfortable in his newfound role.
If Washington hopes to develop a franchise player of their own soon, they'll have to learn to be patient even when the going looks tough.