Washington Wizards: The Key Moves to Improve for Next Season

Following the 93-72 loss to the Timberwolves at home, the Washington Wizards have fallen to 0-8 on the season, the only remaining team in the league without a win. With their dreadful start, all signs point to another losing season in Washington.

Beyond the losses, there is a much greater cause for concern.  The team has imploded internally.

Their selfish play on the court and immaturity in the locker room has made this Wizard team more dysfunctional than the cast of Jersey Shore. What hasn’t been mentioned enough is the effect all this is having on the city’s poster child and best player, John Wall. 

As recent history has showed us with Chris Paul in New Orleans and currently with Deron Williams in New Jersey, NBA stars don’t want to play for the bottom feeder teams of the league. 

Fortunately for Wizards fans, Wall is guaranteed under contract until the 2013-14 season with a player option in 2014-15. But in his second season, the Wizards have regressed significantly from his rookie campaign last year. 

To avoid another “Carmelo Anthony to New York” situation a couple years from now, the Wizards need to be proactive in making this team viable for Wall to want to stick around. Here are some viable options to go forward looking ahead to next season.   

This Season:

Fire Coach Flip Saunders. 

Unfortunately for Saunders, he’s lost total control of the group. 

A once successful coach in the league with veteran teams like the Kevin Garnett-led Minnesota Timberwolves and the “Bad Boy” 2.0 Detroit Pistons, Flip’s biggest vice of his coaching career has been his inability to have young players buy into his system. 

This Wizards team has turned on Flip in only eight games. Their point differential of -12.87 against opponents, worst in the NBA, says it all. Although their poor play may not entirely be Flip’s fault, a coaching change is normally the first domino to fall on a struggling team, just as it did for Paul Westphal in Sacramento. 

Trade for DeMarcus Cousins

If the rumors are true that Sacramento’s troubled second year center has asked to be traded, GM Ernie Grunfield needs to pull the trigger on a deal for Cousins immediately. 

There’s no question that Cousins is an extremely talented prospect, but his motivation and focus has been missing since his Elite 8 run in college with the Kentucky Wildcats. 

The potential reuniting of Washington’s stud point guard Wall and Cousins could rejuvenate the two’s young careers in this league and could ultimately lead to one of the better one-two punches in the game. 

All that said, the cost of what it would take to pry Cousins away from the Kings may be a high.  A potential JaVale McGee and Jan Vesely for Cousins could be a good starting point in trade talks. But all of this is pure speculation, as the Kings may be unwilling to part with Cousins altogether. 

Move Andray Blatche

Blatche is widely accused of being the biggest cancer on the team. Although he’s showed flashes of being an above average NBA player, his poor shot selection, attitude, and body language on and off the court have infuriated Wizards’ fans and have annoyed his teammates. 

At 6'11", Blatche has fallen too much in love with his inconsistent 15-18 foot jump shot and his defense has been nonexistent so far this season. 

Given how dysfunctional Blatche’s and the franchise’s relationship has been over the past few seasons, moving him for a second round draft pick to a team in need of some size and under the cap (Toronto, Charlotte, Cleveland) may be the most likely outcome.

This Offseason: 

Make a Run at John Calipari

To see Calipari coach one of his finest recruits in Wall (and Cousins if they could swing a trade) in Washington would certainly be a spectacle, but the price may be too high. 

Coach Calipari is already the highest paid coach in college basketball, earning around $4.5 million annually from the Kentucky Wildcats.

Calipari may also not want to return to the pros after his poor short-lived stint with the Nets back in the 90’s. After all, Calipari has still be unsuccessful of achieving his ultimate goal, winning an NCAA title. But if the Wizards head coaching position is still vacant and Kentucky has cut down the nets in 2012, the opportunity may be there for Coach Cal in Washington for the 2012-13 season. 

Draft a Player That Fits

It’s fairly safe to see that the Wizards will find themselves in the lottery once again this season. 

Fortunately for them, it will happen to be one of the deepest and star-studded drafts in recent years. 

Grunfield has drafted fairly well the past few years, selecting players like McGee, Wall, Trevor Booker, and more recently Chris Singleton, Shelvin Mack and the aforementioned Vesely. 

The Wizards should continue to draft guys who play well in an up-tempo still of play the way Wall likes to but its also important they focus their attention on unselfish, mature prospects who play hard night in a night out.  Here’s a few players that may fit that mold:

Harrison Barnes. As a sophomore, Barnes has shown great maturity in dealing with critics that have picked on him since he was a senior in high school.  

He has learned to defer to his teammates on a star-studded Carolina team while still being capable of carrying the team offensively some nights.

He has showed he plays much better with a point guard (Kendall Marshall) that can push them tempo and get him easy looks. Pairing him with point guard like Wall could maximize his potential in the NBA. 

Jared Sullinger.  If there is one thing the Wizards truly lack, it’s a post player in the half court set. 

Sullinger is arguably the best post player in college basketball this season.  His ability to create deep position in the post and his soft touch in the paint will take a lot of pressure off Wall and the team that has settled on way to many jump shots this season, shooting a woeful 39.7% from the field.

Additionally, his much slimmer frame from a season ago has given him the ability to out run opposing centers in transition.

Jeremy Lamb.  Coming off last season’s National Championship, Connecticut’s second year guard hasn’t missed a beat thus far this year in his attempt to lead the Huskies to a second straight championship.  

Lamb has proved he can play with a dominate lead guard, as he did with Kemba Walker last season, but has also shown how he can lead a team as he is this season.  His long, athletic frame and smooth jump shot could make a deadly combination in the backcourt with Wall. 

Acquire Some Veterans. 

No one in the league needs a veteran presence more than the Wizards. This season, the Wizards are the fourth youngest team in the league which an average age of 25.29 years, ahead of only the Sixers, Timberwolves and Kings.

Their immaturity on the court has spread into the locker room with many of the team’s player speaking out to the media regarding the lack of respect they have for one another and the selfish performances on a nightly basis.

The team lacks depth at point guard behind Wall. A seasoned vet like Andre Miller who can play both guard spots may fit the bill.  In the front court, re-signing a high character, high energy big like Ronny Turiaf would help. 

Other options could be the Thunder’s Nazr Mohammad or possibly Marcus Camby (who ironically played for Calipari back in college at UMass).