The Washington Wizards have been a team that has done nothing but draw attention to the current state of the franchise over the last few months.
After dealing Kyle Kuzma away for Khris Middleton ahead of the NBA trade deadline in Februrary and then landing Marcus Smart shortly after, it seemed like general manager Will Dawkins' plan was crystal clear.
Taking a page out of Sam Presti and the Oklahoma City Thunder's book, it seemed the Wizards were focusing on landing veterans who could increase their trade value with extended minutes in a rebuilding situation for them to soon flip for additional assets.
That was the plan for Malcolm Brogdon, Jonas Valanciunas, Khris Middleton and Marcus Smart.
Of the names mentioned, the Wizards have only managed to find a trade partner for one player in Valanciunas.
The rest? Brogdon played out his deal until he was able to enter free agency, Marcus Smart was bought out and Khris Middleton remains.
However, he's not the only aging veteran to help fill out the roster as the team took on the steep contract of CJ McCollum at the beginning of the offseason in exchange for Jordan Poole.
With McCollum and Middleton being the lone two veterans on the roster now, it began to draw questions about which direction the Wizards were moving in heading into 2025.
The young talent on the roster is certainly among the best in the league and with two veterans who have helped win at a high-level, some began to think that Washington could be looking to compete in a wide-open Eastern Conference this coming season.
Nonetheless, that seems to be the opposite of what the team is trying to do with recent reports that both McCollum and Middleton are not apart of the team's long-term plans moving forward.
Khris Middleton and CJ McCollum are NOT expected to be part of the Wizards long-term future, per @AmicoHoops
— Fullcourtpass (@Fullcourtpass) July 29, 2025
(https://t.co/fPqFumdIdJ) pic.twitter.com/4GKsMpFdj6
Does this come as a surprise? Not really considering the age of the two veterans.
But considering the team's struggles to find a way to move on from aging players on big contracts over the last few seasons, it's hard to envision the Wizards luck with this changing anytime soon.
Regardless, heading into next offseason, the Wizards financial flexibility puts the among the top of the league and if they can continue to find ways to offload salary or take on expiring contracts to continue adding to their expected cap space, they'll likely jump at the opportunity.
That said, the Wizards plan seems to be finding a way to move on from both McCollum and Middleton prior to February's trade deadline and potentially take a swing on more expiring vets. All that to say, Washington plans to remain active on the trade market.