The Wizards will have plenty of options with the No. 10 pick in the 2022 draft, but it’s not realistic to expect the team to select its starting point guard at that spot, writes Ava Wallace of The Washington Post.
President of basketball operations Tommy Sheppard referred to the Wizards’ need for a point guard and their objectives in the draft as “two separate issues,” adding that the team will target the best talent available, rather than focusing on fit. He also left the door open for the possibility of moving up or down in the draft — or trading out of the first round entirely.
“For us, you’ve got to step back and say: ‘Do we have enough young guys? Do we need more talent?’ Whatever it is, we have this time to evaluate our roster, and the league tells you what it thinks about your players by the calls you get,” Sheppard said, according to Wallace. “We’re going to hear from a lot of people, already have heard from a lot of people. We can move up, we can move out, we can move — all these things are on the table.”
Here’s more from around the Southeast:
- The sideline altercation between Heat star Jimmy Butler and head coach Erik Spoelstra during a March game vs. Golden State was the culmination of “three seasons’ worth of give-and-take” between the two men, according to Brian Windhorst of ESPN. However, as Windhorst writes, they quickly moved past the confrontation and Butler has proven once again with his performance in the 2022 postseason that he’s worth some occasional drama.
- Heat forward P.J. Tucker rarely puts up big numbers, but teammates and coaches appreciate his contributions that go beyond the box score, writes Wes Goldberg of The Miami Herald. “He’s one of the biggest reasons why we’re winning, because he does all the little things,” Butler said after Game 1. “It’s easy to follow suit whenever you’ve got somebody like that leading your team.” Tucker holds a $7.35MM player option for the 2022/23 season.
- In a conversation with Chris Kirschner about the Hawks‘ upcoming offseason, John Hollinger of The Athletic explains why he thinks it’s unlikely that Atlanta and De’Andre Hunter reach an extension agreement this offseason and suggests that no one on the roster outside of Trae Young should be off-limits in trade talks.
- The Hornets control the Nos. 13 and 15 picks in next month’s draft, and Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer (subscriber-only link) believes the team should be willing to trade both of them for more immediate help, arguing that bringing in two more rookies wouldn’t do much for the team’s 2022/23 playoff aspirations.
I’ll admit they should have paid Jimmy. They wasn’t in favor of it bc year 4 and 5 seemed like they would look terrible but he’s kept himself in great shape and hasn’t fallen off at all. He isn’t going to lead the league in any category but he can turn it on any given night.
Led the league in steals last year
We clearly should have waited on extending Kevin Huerter last summer. He’d def be cheaper rn coming off that uneven season & also Cam Reddish possibly doesn’t ask for a trade if not for us extending Kev. Dre Hunter’s situation is the opposite. He’s coming off a fairly uneven yr & rn we could get him cheaper than he’ll prob be this time next season. Also unlike Kev, we can’t afford to lose Dre. We had/have Bogdan who could easily take Kev’s spot but we have nobody near able to replace Dre. We don’t wanna be trying to match some huge offer sheet to retain him next yr. There’s also the fact that the Hawks have historically been very hesitant to give guys like Dre (Josh Smith, Josh Childress, Cam Reddish) 2nd contracts while having no issue overpaying to retain other guys (Jon Koncak, Chris Crawford, Kevin Huerter). Hawks seemed to have been past that type thing for the most part, it would not be good to return to that strategy for multiple reasons
Return to what strategy?
Hunter had a bad campaign, PER 11. Not a good time for him to extend. Or, for the Hawks to know what they have.
An extension decision on Hunter doesn’t need to be made until after the balance of the off season is complete. ATL’s roster and projected payroll will likely have a somewhat different look at that point, and both will likely be more friendly to a Hunter extension.
So u agree they should extend him?
Ideally, sure, if he wants it at numbers that are fair to him and the team right now. He’s a keeper either way though.
Wizards should definitely not draft a point guard although it’s clearly the teams biggest need. This class is extremely weak on point guards, you much better getting a point guard in free agency or by trade.
I’d be looking at DAngelo Russell, Ben Simmons, Colin Sexton, Malcom Brogdan, Terry Rozier, Jalen Suggs, Markelle Fultz, Jalen Brunson, Eric Bledsloe and Denis Schroder to name a few.
Of those names the ones which stand out as being likely would be Brogdan, Fultz and Bledsloe.
Trade KCP and 1 of Avidja/Hachimura/Kispert for Brogdan, that’s likely all it’ll take.
Pacers get an expiring contract and a good young player in order to offload Brogdan who has injury issues and is tied to a long term deal.
Fultz can probably be had for the same offer. KCP on an expiring helps fill the gap at SG and they get a young player for Fultz who is behind Suggs and Cole and is getting overpaid for what he does on the Magic.
Lastly Bledsloe in FA, blazers will definitely cut him and he will be on the look out for yet another new team. Looking at his career averages 28 minutes, 14-5-4 and slightly below average from three. He’s a decent fill in for a season or two. He was all defensive first team 2019 and all defensive second team 2020, which would complement Beal nicely in the backcourt. I could easily see a 1 year 8mil deal with a team option for 8mil again.