Wizards head coach Scott Brooks will return next season, general manager Tommy Sheppard said on Wednesday, according to Ava Wallace of The Washington Post.
Brooks and the Wizards were invited down to the bubble in Orlando, Fla. but did not fare well, losing seven out of eight contests. However, Washington was without John Wall, Bradley Beal, and Dāvis Bertāns. They did see the continued development of second-year forward Troy Brown Jr. and rookie forward Rui Hachimura.
Despite the Wizards’ losses at the Walt Disney World campus and their overall record of 25-47, Sheppard was content with the job that Brooks did with the young squad. “Scottie did a heck of a job adjusting each year to what was in front of him,” he said. “I think this year, in particular, it really felt like we had dang near three seasons worth of time. And all these young players this year got better in their own way. And I think next year, we’ll see the benefits of all that.”
Here are more notes on D.C.’s basketball team:
- Because the NBA locked in lottery spots for the eight teams not invited to Orlando, the Wizards have the ninth-best lottery odds despite having the eighth-worst record in the NBA. But Sheppard believes playing in the restart was worth it, writes Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. “We had a lot of young players, we know we’re going to add another player if it was the ninth pick, the 15th pick; whatever,” he said. “We like 15 players [in this draft]. The benefit of having players play in that situation, in that environment, far outweighed anything else we could mess with.” Sheppard added that if the Wizards somehow made the playoffs, he would’ve been okay with them getting the No. 15 overall pick.
- Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington wrote about how the Wizards could opt to select a guard in October’s NBA draft, despite having Wall and Beal. Sheppard said the team may prioritize talent over fit, which might end up being a guard. “Need is always something that you’ve gotta focus on, certainly. But as you go through the draft, if there’s a player there where you say ‘Look, the talent is too good, too great to pass on,’ then you still have free agency to address that need.” In ESPN’s latest mock draft (Insider link), they have the Wiz taking former Iowa State guard Tyrese Haliburton.
- On Tuesday, Brooks gave an injury update on the statuses of Wall and Beal. He said that the 30-year-old Wall is 100% healthy following his torn Achilles, and that he and Sheppard plan on visiting him this offseason in Miami. In regards to Beal, who is recovering from a sore rotator cuff, Brooks said that rehab is going well. This season, the 27-year-old Beal averaged 30.5 PPG, 6.1 APG, and 4.2 RPG.
Wizards have no valuable assets to make good trade
Unless they get top 4 lotto pick, which is possible
I absolutely love what Sheppard said about the 9th vs the 15th pick. The difference between the players selected at those two picks is really not that much. This year is obviously different, but in a normal situation I would much rather see a team try harder in the last 2 weeks to get to the 8 seed than to move up from 12 to 9 in the lottery.
Too true, too true! Too many teams put too much emphasis on the draft!
Especially since the draft is so well-balanced this year. The difference between picks is negligible at best with so many solid yet unspectacular prospects. It really benefited players like Brown, Robinson, Bryant, and Rui to gain some more experience against elite competition.
I’m not sure why Brooks was considered to be on the “hot seat.” It’s not his fault Wall completely self-destructed after management handed him such a lucrative extension. I wasn’t sure Washington could even win 25 games coming into the season, so they certainly exceeded my expectations
I can see 12 good players this draft
I saw only 4 good players last year 2019