As we’ve written about on this site before, the Wizards are the owners of an awfully unfortunate streak — every championship team since 2017 has featured a former Wizard on its roster.
A look at the list:
2024 (Boston Celtics) — Kristaps Porzingis
2023 (Denver Nuggets) — Jeff Green, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Thomas Bryant, Ish Smith
2022 (Golden State Warriors) — Otto Porter Jr., Gary Payton II, Chris Chiozza
2021 (Milwaukee Bucks) — Bobby Portis
2020 (Los Angeles Lakers) — Jared Dudley, Dwight Howard, JaVale McGee, Markieff Morris
2019 (Toronto Raptors) — Jodie Meeks
2018 (Golden State Warriors) — JaVale McGee, Nick Young, Shaun Livingston
2017 (Golden State Warriors) — JaVale McGee, Shaun Livingston
If you extend the streak to mere Finals appearances, Shaun Livingston was on the 2015 Warriors and the 2016 Warriors team that blew a 3-1 Finals lead to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Rashard Lewis was on the 2014 Miami Heat, and Juwan Howard and Mike Miller joined him on the 2013 Heat; Howard and Miller were also on the 2012 champion Heat.
In 2011 Caron Butler was a year removed from the end of his five-year Wizards tenure when he won a championship with the Dallas Mavericks alongside DeShawn Stevenson, Brendan Haywood, and Brian Cardinal, who suited up for five games with the Wizards during the 2003 season. That quartet defeated former Wizards Juwan Howard, Mike Bibby, and Mike Miller on the Miami Heat.
Rasheed Wallace of the 2010 Boston Celtics played for the Washington Bullets in 1999, while Rashard Lewis and Tyronn Lue were both members of the 2009 Orlando Magic. Wizards’ one-time no. 1 overall pick Kwame Brown was on the 2008 Lakers, and Larry Hughes was a teammate of LeBron James’ when the Cleveland Cavaliers were dismantled in the 2007 NBA Finals.
Jerry Stackhouse was on the 2006 Dallas Mavericks. Darvin Ham, Rip Hamilton, Ben Wallace, and Rasheed Wallace were all on the 2004 and 2005 Detroit Pistons. Someone named Aaron Williams was on the 2003 New Jersey Nets. Mitch Richmond was on the 2002 Lakers, and Greg Foster was on the 2001 Lakers.
This means that the last NBA Finals not to feature a former Washington Wizard on either team was the 2000 Finals contested between the Lakers and the Indiana Pacers.
Speaking of the Pacers, this insane streak that has been going on since 2001 is guaranteed to continue, as either the New York Knicks or the Pacers will be in the NBA Finals. Former Wizards Landry Shamet and Delon Wright are currently on the Knicks, while Thomas Bryant and Quenton Jackson are both on the Pacers.
It’ll be a long time before the Wizards themselves will be in contention for the NBA Finals; they last made the Finals in 1979.