Washington Wizards Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Wizards Sign Craig Sword To Training Camp Deal, Waive Makur Maker

October 12th, 2022 at 5:08pm CST by Arthur Hill

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.

Southeast Notes: Beal, Porzingis, Rozier, Bridges, Herro, Magic

October 12th, 2022 at 2:12pm CST by Luke Adams

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.”

Fischer’s Latest: Suns, Johnson, Oladipo, K. Martin, G. Williams

October 12th, 2022 at 11:36am CST by Luke Adams

When the Suns engaged in trade talks for Kevin Durant this offseason, they made it clear that Cameron Johnson was off limits, according to Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports.

While it’s hard to believe that the inclusion of Johnson would’ve been a deal-breaker for the Suns if they had a realistic shot to land Durant, Fischer’s report suggests the team is high on the fourth-year wing and is hoping to lock him up long-term.

According to Fischer, “early indications” suggested that Phoenix would like to sign Johnson to an extension in the range of $72MM over four years. Whether that’s enough to get anything done with the young sharpshooter remains to be seen.

Fischer’s first roundup of NBA rumors for Yahoo Sports focuses primarily on the Suns and Jae Crowder, as we detailed earlier today. But there are a few more odds and ends within the article about other teams and players. Here are some of the highlights:

According to Fischer, the Wizards were one of the teams with legitimate interest in signing Victor Oladipo in free agency this past summer. Fischer writes that Oladipo turned down a “potential starting opportunity” in D.C. in order to remain with the Heat.
The Suns have had discussions about the possibility of acquiring Rockets forward Kenyon Martin Jr., who has also drawn interest from the Trail Blazers and Heat, Fischer reports. Martin reportedly spoke to Rockets management this offseason about the idea of being dealt.
Interestingly, Fischer cites sources who say there doesn’t seem to be a contract extension coming for Celtics forward Grant Williams. The team still has five more days to work out a potential deal with Williams before this year’s rookie scale extension deadline of October 17. If Williams doesn’t sign a new contract by then, he’ll become a restricted free agent next summer.

Bradley Beal In Health And Safety Protocols

October 9th, 2022 at 11:28am CST by Arthur Hill

Bradley Beal will miss Monday’s game at Charlotte after being placed in the NBA’s health and safety protocols, the Wizards announced (via Twitter).

Coach Wes Unseld Jr. said Beal tested positive for COVID-19 and is exhibiting some minor symptoms, tweets Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington.

Beal will return “upon receiving clearance under the current NBA guidelines,” the team added. Washington will wrap up the preseason Friday against the Knicks, so Beal may not play again until the regular season opener October 19.

The NBA revised its COVID-related protocols over the summer and now requires testing for vaccinated players only when they show symptoms of the virus. Unvaccinated players still must be tested once per week. Players are subject to isolation measures after a positive test.

Beal, who signed a five-year extension in July, has only appeared in one preseason game, scoring nine points in 18 minutes.

Wizards Notes: Kispert, Beal, Davis, Rotation, Gortat

October 8th, 2022 at 3:14pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Wizards swingman Corey Kispert is out for four-to-six weeks with an ankle sprain, but he’s looking at the silver lining, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington writes. Kispert is grateful that the injury didn’t happen during a playoff push.

“Well, it’s not going to last forever, right? In the grand scheme of things, a sprained ankle is not the end of the world,” he said. “It’s been a tough last couple of days. Getting out of bed and moving around has been difficult, but I know I’ll be back sooner rather than later. Thankfully I’m not missing important games down the stretch. The preseason is important, but if I were to choose a time to miss, it’d be now.”

We have more from the Wizards:

Bradley Beal has always stayed loyal to the organization but he admitted on JJ Redick’s podcast (hat tip to Alex Kennedy of Basketball News) that he has pondered a trade request in the past. “I definitely gave it some thought; I’d be lying if I said I didn’t,” he said. However, Beal also saw the flip side that the team acquiring him would have to give up important pieces to land him.
With Kispert sidelined, lottery pick Johnny Davis could see some significant early action, Hughes notes, though the rookie is dealing with a minor knee injury. “That’s why the team has guys like me on the bench, to be able to step up,” Davis said.
On that subject, Josh Robbins of The Athletic examines how the rotation will shake out in light of Kispert’s injury. He doesn’t see Davis getting a lot of playing time, predicting that Beal will play around 36 minutes and Will Barton will eat up a majority of the minutes at small forward with Rui Hachimura and Deni Avdija getting steady playing time off the bench.
Retired center Marcin Gortat has been helping out at camp as a temporary assistant coach. Coach Wes Unseld Jr. hinted he’d like Gortat to stick around beyond training camp if Gortat wants to make the time commitment, according to Hughes. “As long as he wants to stay, I love it,” Unseld said.

Corey Kispert Out 4-6 Weeks With Sprained Ankle

October 5th, 2022 at 11:53am CST by Luke Adams

Second-year swingman Corey Kispert will be sidelined for approximately four-to-six weeks due to a left ankle sprain, the Wizards announced today in a press release.

According to the team, Kispert sustained the injury when he stepped on an opponent’s foot during the first quarter of Sunday’s preseason contest vs. Golden State in Japan.

Viewed as one of the best shooters in the 2021 draft class, Kispert was selected 15th overall a year ago and appeared in 77 games as a rookie, averaging 8.2 PPG and 2.7 RPG in 23.4 MPG. He got off to a slow start, making just 28.6% of his three-point attempts through 35 games, but heated up in the second half, knocking down 37.6% of his tries in his final 42 games.

While Kispert shouldn’t miss a significant chunk of the season while recovering from the ankle injury, it’s a tough setback for a player who was looking to solidify his place in the Wizards’ rotation for opening night. The club will also miss his outside shooting, having ranked last in the NBA in 2021/22 in three-pointers made, notes Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link).

Kispert’s absence to open the season should create a path to expanded roles for players like Will Barton, Delon Wright, Deni Avdija, and Johnny Davis.

Wizards Notes: Japan Trip, Morris, Barton, Kispert, Hachimura

October 2nd, 2022 at 9:43am CST by Arthur Hill

The Wizards enjoyed being part of the Japan Games, but the hardest part of the trip to Asia will occur when they return home, writes Josh Robbins of The Athletic. The players will have to readjust their body clocks to East Coast time while preparing for a regular season that’s a little more than two weeks away. Coach Wes Unseld Jr. said the medical staff has a plan to help the team handle the time change, and the players are confident they can deal with it.

“Of course, we have to do the right thing and try to get in a rhythm as soon as possible,” Kristaps Porziņģis said. “But we’re all young. We’re all athletes. And I think we’ll adjust back to D.C. time pretty quickly, and we have enough days until the next game also. So it shouldn’t be a problem. It shouldn’t be an excuse going forward.”

Even though Washington lost both games to the Warriors, Unseld was mostly happy with what he saw on the trip. The team’s starters looked much better Sunday as the Wizards built a 16-point fourth quarter lead that the end of the bench couldn’t hold.

“I’m pretty satisfied outside of those last eight minutes this afternoon of where we are,” Unseld said. “I thought we did a lot of good things today, but overall I think we’re in a pretty good spot as far as fast-tracking some of the areas of concern from last year. Defensively, I think we’re in a better spot with the hand activity, causing deflections. I think our ball movement has improved. We still struggle to make shots, and I think that’s just a rhythm thing. But we’re creating some good looks. So all-in-all, I think it’s been a solid week and a half.”

There’s more on the Wizards:

Monte Morris made his second straight start at point guard Sunday, indicating that he might have that role locked up despite an expected competition with Delon Wright, notes Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. Morris, who was acquired in an offseason trade with the Nuggets, showed a polished midrange game and an ability to make shots in traffic, Hughes observes.
Will Barton, who was part of the same deal with Denver, made his preseason debut after missing the opener due to tightness in his lower back, Hughes adds. Corey Kispert was ruled out of Sunday’s game after suffering a sprained left ankle in the first quarter.
Rui Hachimura talks about the excitement of bringing the team to his home country in an interview with Kendra Andrews of ESPN’s “NBA Today” (video link).

Go-Go Acquire Kris Dunn's Returning Player Rights

October 1st, 2022 at 6:05pm CST by Rory Maher

The Wizards‘ G League affiliate, the Capital City Go-Go, has acquired the returning player rights to Kris Dunn from the Ontario Clippers. Ontario received Capital City’s first and second-round picks in this year’s G League draft, plus the returning rights to Yogi Ferrell. Dunn participated in a mini-camp with the Wizards this summer in the hopes of landing another NBA job. The former No. 5 overall pick has dealt with ankle issues the past couple years and remains a free agent after spending 14 games with the Blazers at the end of last season.

Robbins Predicts Wizards' Starting Lineup, Rotation

September 30th, 2022 at 9:18am CST by Luke Adams

Josh Robbins of The Athletic takes a look at the Wizards‘ projected depth chart and rotation, predicting that former Nuggets Monte Morris and Will Barton will join Bradley Beal, Kyle Kuzma, and Kristaps Porzingis in the starting five to open the season.

Assuming Wizards head coach Wes Unseld Jr. decides to roll with a 10-man rotation to open the season, Robbins projects Delon Wright, Deni Avdija, Rui Hachimura, and Daniel Gafford to be part of the second unit, with either Corey Kispert or Johnny Davis slotting into the second backcourt spot.

Wizards Sign Devon Dotson, Waive Davion Mintz

September 29th, 2022 at 11:12am CST by Luke Adams

SEPTEMBER 29: Dotson did indeed sign an Exhibit 10 deal, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, who tweets that Dotson is “expected to compete” for the Wizards’ open two-way slot.

SEPTEMBER 28: The Wizards have signed free agent guard Devon Dotson and waived guard Davion Mintz, according to their official website and the NBA transaction log at RealGM.com.

Terms of Dotson’s deal aren’t yet known, but it seems highly likely to be an Exhibit 10 contract, which could be converted into a two-way pact before the season or would entitle Dotson to a bonus worth up to $50K if he’s waived and then spends at least 60 days with the Capital City Go-Go, the Wizards’ G League affiliate.

Dotson, 23, went undrafted out of Kansas in 2020 and spent his first season-and-a-half in the NBA occupying one of the Bulls’ two-way slots before being waived in January. He saw extremely limited action in 22 total NBA games, logging just 135 overall minutes, but he has played well in the G League.

In 2021/22, Dotson averaged 21.0 PPG, 6.9 APG, 4.8 RPG, and 2.2 SPG in 25 games (33.4 MPG) for the Windy City Bulls, though he made just 24.5% of 4.1 three-point attempts per game. He suited up for the Wizards’ Summer League team in Las Vegas this July.

Mintz, meanwhile, is an undrafted rookie who signed with the Wizards after finishing his college career at Kentucky. Washington now controls his G League rights, so he’s a good bet to resurface with the Go-Go when the NBAGL season begins.

The Wizards still have a full 20-man training camp roster, with 15 players on guaranteed standard contracts, one on a two-way deal, and four on Exhibit 10 contracts.