- A group led by Wizards owner Ted Leonsis has emerged as the frontrunner to buy baseball’s Washington Nationals, report David Aldridge, Brittany Ghiroli and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Leonsis also owns the NHL’s Capitals and the WNBA’s Mystics.
- Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington takes a look at what we learned about the Wizards‘ rotation based on their first game of the season. Notably, Delon Wright and Will Barton were part of the club’s closing lineup, Rui Hachimura was the first player off the bench, and rookie guard Johnny Davis was a DNP-CD.
Deni Avdija earned the nod to start at small forward for the Wizards in their season opener at Indiana, notes Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. As Hughes writes, the news is somewhat surprising because Avdija suffered a groin injury last month playing for Israel during EuroBasket, causing him to miss all four of the Wizards’ preseason games.
The 6’9″ Avdija provides more size to balance the small backcourt of Monte Morris and Bradley Beal and is a much better defender than Will Barton, which gave him a leg up for the starting job, per Hughes.
Unfortunately, the third-year forward suffered a sprained right ankle during the contest, but X-rays were negative and it’s considered to be “nothing serious,” a source tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link). The Wizards officially listed him as questionable to return, with Anthony Gill starting in his place at halftime, according to Ava Wallace of The Washington Post (Twitter links).
2022/23 is a big season for Avdija, as he’s eligible for a rookie scale extension next summer after the Wizards exercised their fourth-year team option on his rookie contract for ’23/24. The 21-year-old former ninth overall pick averaged 7.6 points and 5.1 rebounds over his first two NBA seasons.
Here’s more on the Wizards:
- In an exclusive, in-depth interview with Josh Robbins of The Athletic, Beal said winning is his primary focus going forward. “I’ve been an All-Star, I’ve been an All-NBA guy, I’ve scored 30-plus points in back-to-back years,” he said. “What individual goals am I really after, right? Those would be great. Those come with winning. It doesn’t make sense to score 30 a game and get snubbed to be an All-Star because you’re not winning. So if we win games, those little accolades take care of themselves. But I just want to win. I want to be able to get my team to the playoffs, win a series, get to the next series, win a series, get to the conference finals, win that series, get to the finals and hopefully win that.”
- Beal also recently shared his thoughts on the team’s young players, Hughes writes in another story for NBC Sports Washington. The star guard was particularly pleased with forward Rui Hachimura, who will be a restricted free agent in 2023 after failing to reach a rookie scale extension. “Rui’s been spectacular all preseason and all summer. I think the work that he’s put in is starting to really show pretty often,” Beal said.
- The Wizards’ second unit has real upside in ’22/23, according to Hughes. Headlined by Barton, Hachimura, Delon Wright and Daniel Gafford, the bench combined to score 43 points in the 114-107 victory over the Pacers.
- Can the Wizards break out of their cycle of mediocrity? Wallace ponders that question in a piece for The Washington Post, noting that the team has drafted between ninth and 15th since 2018, which is arguably the worst place to be in the NBA — not bad enough to land a top pick, but not good enough to be relevant.
- Guard Jordan Goodwin had his Exhibit 10 contract converted into a two-way deal by the Wizards over the weekend. He will try to live up to the contract by being messy — in a good way, as he told Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. “[I’m] just a guy that can do a lot of things,” Goodwin said. “I think my main focus here is just going to be defensively. Try to come in and muck things up, make things a little messy. Just make the right play offensively, whether that’s shoot the ball or make the extra pass, screening.”
Several notable fourth-year NBA players who were eligible for rookie scale contract extension agreements did not come to terms with their current clubs, and will now enter restricted free agency next summer with the extension deadline having passed.
Adrian Wojnarowksi of ESPN reports (via Twitter) that newly-promoted Suns starting power forward Cameron Johnson, Hornets forward P.J. Washington, and Celtics forward Grant Williams all failed to reach extension deals with their respective clubs.
With former Phoenix starting four Jae Crowder demanding his way out of town, it would have perhaps behooved the Suns to lock up Johnson to a long-term deal, but the team’s ownership situation could have made figuring out an agreement difficult. Williams had an erratic postseason for Boston during the team’s Finals run. Washington could get some additional run this season with the availability of forward Miles Bridges up in the air.
A source informs Christian Clark of NOLA.com (Twitter link) that Pelicans center Jaxson Hayes did not ultimately reach an agreement on a contract extension with New Orleans. Clark suggested that Hayes and his team would most likely resume negotiations when the big man reaches restricted free agency next summer, so it appears New Orleans does hope to keep him aboard.
Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports tweets that Sixers swingman Matisse Thybulle similarly did not agree to an extension with Philadelphia, and is now set to reach restricted free agency in the summer of 2023. Thybulle is a terrific perimeter defender, but his offensive limitations impede his value.
Even though Wizards GM Tommy Sheppard and head coach Wes Unseld Jr. gave him positive preseason performance reviews, forward Rui Hachimura also will now enter restricted free agency in the 2023 offseason, reports Ava Wallace of The Washington Post (Twitter link).
Knicks forward Cam Reddish, the tenth pick in the 2019 draft, did not get an extension from New York, his second NBA team, The Athletic’s Fred Katz reports (via Twitter). Katz notes that an agreement was not anticipated. Reddish struggled to carve out rotation minutes when the Hawks traded him to the Knicks, even though the team was clearly lottery-bound near the end of the 2021/22 season.
Tony Jones of The Athletic (Twitter link). reports that, in another anticipated move, combo guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker did not reach an extension agreement with the Jazz.
Rob Schaefer of NBC Sports Chicago writes that the Bulls also opted to not extend reserve guard Coby White, the seventh pick in the 2019 draft. Schaefer notes that, though Chicago considered trade offers for the 22-year-old out of UNC, the team eventually decided to not move him.
White will compete for minutes in a crowded backcourt that includes starting point guard Ayo Dosunmu and starting shooting guard Zach LaVine, plus reserves Alex Caruso and Goran Dragic. If Lonzo Ball returns from a recent knee surgery, he would supplant Dosunmu in the starting lineup, and further dilute White’s minutes load.
Here’s the full list of players eligible for rookie scale extensions who didn’t sign new deals before Monday’s 5:00 pm CT deadline:
- Nickeil Alexander-Walker (Jazz)
- Darius Bazley (Thunder)
- Goga Bitadze (Pacers)
- Rui Hachimura (Wizards)
- Jaxson Hayes (Pelicans)
- Cameron Johnson (Suns)
- Romeo Langford (Spurs)
- Cam Reddish (Knicks)
- Matisse Thybulle (Sixers)
- P.J. Washington (Hornets)
- Coby White (Bulls)
- Grant Williams (Celtics)
- Dylan Windler (Cavaliers)
Extension-eligible veterans on expiring contracts remain eligible to sign new contracts throughout the season, while extension-eligible vets with multiple years left on their contracts can extend their deals up until 10:59 pm CT tonight.
Though the roster deadline has passed and every team is in compliance, that doesn’t mean there will be no additional moves tonight and tomorrow before the games begin. That said, in general, team rosters are set with the 2022/23 season set to tip off on Tuesday.
Luke Adams contributed to this report.
3:45pm: The Wizards have, as expected, waived Sword, Dotson, and Jackson, the team confirmed in a press release.
The Wizards also announced that they signed and waived center Jaime Echenique today. He’s a safe bet to return to the Capital City Go-Go, Washington’s G League affiliate, which is where he spent most of last season.
The team’s roster is now set for the regular season, with 15 players on standard contracts and a pair on two-ways.
2:03pm: The Wizards have converted Jordan Goodwin‘s Exhibit 10 contract into a two-way deal, according to NBA.com’s transaction log.
Goodwin, who will turn 24 next Sunday, spent his rookie season in the Wizards’ organization after going undrafted out of Saint Louis in 2021. For most of the year, he was a member of the Capital City Go-Go, averaging 16.1 PPG, 6.1 RPG, 4.6 APG, and 2.0 SPG with a .412/.302/.792 shooting line in 31 NBAGL games (32.4 MPG).
Goodwin also got a chance to make his NBA debut when he was signed to a 10-day hardship contract in December. He appeared in two games for Washington during that time.
The Wizards had been carrying four players on Exhibit 10 contracts. Goodwin’s conversion to a two-way deal likely means that Craig Sword, Devon Dotson, and Quenton Jackson will be waived. That would leave the team with 15 players on guaranteed standard contracts, plus Goodwin and Jordan Schakel on two-ways.
The Raptors and Celtics both expressed an interest in trading for Malcolm Brogdon this summer but he told the Pacers he’d prefer Boston, Brogdon said during a SiriusXM NBA Radio appearance, as Brian Robb of MassLive.com relays.
“We knew there was Boston, we knew Toronto we knew (the Wizards),” Brogdon said of his trade options. “(The Wizards) fell off after the draft since they were thinking about trading that 10th pick for me. Toronto and Boston popped up. We had a choice to pursue — there wasn’t an offer on the table yet from either of them but the Pacers came to me and said we could pursue either of them and which one would I rather pursue?”
It’s unclear what sort of offer the Raptors might’ve made for Brogdon, since they don’t have obvious salary-matching pieces they’d want to part with. However, it was ultimately a moot point, since the guard encouraged the Pacers to pursue a deal with Boston.
“I thought this team was farther along,” Brogdon said of the Celtics. “They have a superstar in Jayson Tatum and probably another superstar in Jaylen Brown as well. I thought it would be a great fit for me because I wanted to win right now.”
Brogdon is projected as Boston’s sixth man entering the regular season.
We have more from the Atlantic Division:
- Raptors big man Chris Boucher will be out “a couple of weeks” due to a hamstring injury, according to coach Nick Nurse, Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca tweets. Forward Otto Porter Jr. hasn’t been on the court in recent weeks due to a similar injury and will likely miss some time.
- Seth Curry, who had left ankle surgery in May, apparently won’t be ready for the season opener. Nets coach Steve Nash said Curry still has some hurdles to clear but has been getting some individual work in, Nick Friedell of ESPN tweets.
- Nets guard Kyrie Irving admits he has some regrets about the way last season played out, he told Friedell in a Q&A session. “I think we all think about times we could have made better decisions, and times we wish we could have done things differently and I feel the same way at times throughout my life. … I legitimately just want to play the long game and not put too much pressure on myself or the people that I’m around,” he said.
- Celtics guard Marcus Smart suffered a minor groin injury when he slipped on a wet spot in the preseason finale against Toronto on Friday, Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe tweets. “I feel like I’m all right. But the adrenaline is still going right now,” Smart said. “Hopefully, in the morning I feel all right.”
Wizards forward Deni Avdija, who has been dealing with a left groin strain this fall, played 5-on-5 on Thursday for the first time since training camp began, tweets Ava Wallace of The Washington Post. As Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington writes, Avdija told reporters earlier this week that he was taking painkillers to deal with the injury while playing for the Israeli national team in August and September.
“It was just something that popped up this summer. I played on pills with the national team to kill the pain,” Avdija said. “At the end of the (EuroLeague tournament), I was barely walking. So, I knew coming into the season, it was kind of frustrating for me after the good summer that I had, taking some backsteps, but it is what it is. I’m here now.”
As Avdija goes through the ramp-up process and attempts to work his way back into game shape, here are a few more notes on the Wizards:
- In another story for NBC Sports Washington, Hughes takes a closer look at the Kyle Kuzma‘s role for 2022/23 as the veteran forward adjusts to playing alongside Bradley Beal and Kristaps Porzingis. While it may take some time to establish chemistry, Kuzma’s wide-ranging skill set should help him coexist with Washington’s stars, says Hughes.
- Porzingis (ankle) will sit out the Wizards’ preseason finale on Friday, but his absence is considered precautionary and he expects to be ready to go for next week’s regular season opener, tweets Ian Begley of SNY.tv.
- Wizards big man Vernon Carey entered the NBA’s concussion protocol on Thursday after being involved in a minor traffic accident, the team announced (via Twitter). Carey is considered day-to-day.
- John Hollinger of The Athletic thinks the Wizards are capable of finishing with a top-10 offense this season, but will struggle on defense due to a “glaring lack of perimeter stoppers.” He projects a 38-44 record and the No. 11 seed in the East.
The Wizards have brought back shooting guard Craig Sword on a training camp contract, the team announced (via Twitter). Center Makur Maker was waived to make room on the roster.
Sword, 28, appeared in three games for Washington last season after signing a 10-day contract under the hardship exemption in late December. Sword spent most of the year with the team’s G League affiliate in Capital City.
Maker joined the Wizards in August on an Exhibit 10 contract, and the organization is planning for him to play this season in the G League. He will receive a bonus worth up to $50K if spends at least 60 days with Capital City.
The moves leave Washington with a full 20-man roster.
The Wizards‘ two stars remain on track to be available for the team’s regular season opener next week. Bradley Beal, who briefly entered the NBA’s health and safety protocols, was cleared on Monday following a negative COVID-19 test and has since rejoined the club at practice, according to Ava Wallace of The Washington Post and Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter links).
Meanwhile, Kristaps Porzingis sprained his left ankle during Monday’s preseason game vs. Charlotte, but that injury is considered very minor, Hughes writes for NBC Sports Washington.
“I already knew it was nothing major. I wanted to go back in in the second half,” Porzingis said. “But I just wanted to be smart, they told me to relax and get ready for the next one or for the regular season.”
Here’s more from around the Southeast:
- The Hornets, who aren’t exactly loaded with point guard depth, are expected to shift Terry Rozier over from his shooting guard spot to take on additional ball-handling responsibilities while LaMelo Ball recovers from an ankle sprain, according to Rod Boone of The Charlotte Observer. “Look, Terry was the starting point guard on a team that went to the Eastern Conference Finals,” head coach Steve Clifford said, referring to the 2018 Celtics. “So it’s a role that he’s comfortable with. And if that ends up being the situation, that’s how we’d do it.”
- The preliminary court hearing for Hornets forward Miles Bridges has been delayed yet again, according to Baxter Holmes of ESPN, who tweets that the new date is October 17. That hearing for Bridges, who has pleaded not guilty to three felony domestic violence charges, was initially scheduled for August 19.
- Trading Tyler Herro after signing him to a rookie scale extension would have been tricky due to the poison pill provision. However, that didn’t stop the Heat from making their initial extension offer to the fourth-year guard on July 1, even as they remained involved in the Kevin Durant sweepstakes, writes Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald. According to Herro, that original offer was worth $100MM over four years. He eventually accepted once the Heat upped their offer to a guaranteed $120MM. “Thirty million a year is what I thought I was worth,” Herro said.
- Khobi Price of The Orlando Sentinel takes a look at how the Magic intend to compensate for the play-making they’ll be missing with guards Markelle Fultz (toe) and Jalen Suggs (knee) sidelined to start the season. “We talk about this often — sometimes injuries provide opportunities for others,” head coach Jamahl Mosley said. “With that being said, Franz (Wagner) will have an opportunity to handle the ball more, Paolo (Banchero) will handle the ball more. We play maybe a little bit more — as you saw last year — through Wendell (Carter). Those are going to be the opportunities to happen as we move forward.”