The Washington Wizards' selection of AJ Dybantsa at No. 1 overall marks the start of an era in the nation's capital that the fanbase has desperately been waiting for.
After years of constant struggling, leading to botched draft picks and a failure to find a cornerstone to build around, it feels like the franchise would never climb out of the hole at the bottom of the Eastern Conference.
However, since the new front office regime of Will Dawkins and Michael Winger came together, slowly but surely, the team and their fanbase have begun to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Landing Dybantsa seemed to be the final piece of the puzzle, pairing the top pick alongside proven All-Stars in Trae Young and Anthony Davis.
If you ask ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith, though, he'd tell you that the Wizards aren't even close to putting an end to the suffering.
Stephen A. Smith pours cold water on the Wizards hype train
On Wednesday morning's episode of First Take, Smith was asked if the combo of the Wizards' new trio could lead them to make some noise this season. His blunt answer? "No."
But that was just the start of his disrespectful take on the Wizards.
"I already told the Washington Wizards this, I have no faith, zero. They've been a basketball purgatory, an abomination." Smith said.
Smith spoke honestly, and you can't help but respect that. At the same time, though, several times in his rant, he used past-tense words that prove he's not giving the organization the benefit of the doubt that the new regime deserves.
The Wizards' struggles in the past make it understandable why it's hard for people to get behind what's being built in D.C., but those issues never once led them to the No. 1 overall pick and a generational talent like AJ Dybantsa.
Beyond that, there's an argument that this is the most talented roster that the Wizards have had in years, and that's dating back beyond the John Wall and Bradley Beal days.
Washington has absolute players from top to bottom, and whether Anthony Davis buys into the vision or not, the Wizards are in the perfect spot to make a run and silence the noise.
If the San Antonio Spurs can go from the No. 2 overall pick to the NBA Finals in less than a year, why can't the Wizards?
Making that type of leap is rare, but raining on the Wizards' parade for the mistakes of a previous regime feels pointless.
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