The Washington Wizards are in Year Two of a rebuild, which requires patience, perseverance, and plenty of losing on the way to the top. What they’re doing is no different than what most small-market sports teams do, but Wizards fans are especially jaded given that the team’s only title was in 1978, when it was called the Bullets.However, Miami Heat coach and three-time NBA champion Erik Spoelstra likes what he sees in Washington.
“I don’t think they want my advice. No, seriously, they know what they’re doing,” he said before Miami beat Washington 120-94 on Monday. “They have a plan, Coach [Brian] Keefe is doing a really good job with the team. He’s getting them to play hard and build an identity. But they have a plan.”
Spoelstra won two titles coaching LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh on the Heat in 2012 and ’13 and won as an assistant with the team in ’06. Additionally, the Portland alum has led Miami to four other Finals appearances during his tenure. It’s safe to say that his word means something, although coaches rarely criticize another team publicly.
Still, Spoelstra’s “identity” comment is well-founded. The Wizards have built a culture based on player development since General Manager Will Dawkins and Team President Michael Winger took over in the 2023 offseason, and it’s yielded results: Jordan Poole is having a career year and broke the franchise single-season made three-point record on Monday, second-year wing Bilal Coulibaly is already a standout defender, and the rookies have made strides.
Erik Spoelstra compliments Wizards’ Alex Sarr
No. 2 overall pick Alex Sarr headlines Washington’s rookie class, and Spoelstra also had high praise for him.
“Very talented young guy…On any given night, you can see why he was drafted so high,” he continued. “You have to respect that because our job is to make guys look young. But there’s a great deal of potential.”
The Heat did make the 19-year-old “look young” on Monday, holding him to just eight points (3-17 FG, 1-7 3 PT) with three rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and one steal in 31 minutes. However, he averaged a career-high 16.4 points on 39.8 percent shooting (33 percent 3 PT) in March and won Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month honors in December. He’s also third in the NBA Rookie Ladder and likely would be higher if he hadn’t missed all but two games with an ankle injury in February.
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The Wizards don’t have the luxury of being a destination for star free agents, so they must build through the draft. After years of the previous regime spinning its wheels as a fringe playoff contender with Bradley Beal, the new administration rightly stripped the team down to gain long-term assets, which will help it contend for a title by 2030.
The trade-off is to be bad enough for a few years to gain high lottery picks, which is Washington’s best chance of landing a star. Sarr was its first top-five selection since Otto Porter in 2013, who didn’t perform to expectations. Before that, though, it snagged Beal No. 2 overall in 2012 and John Wall No. 1 overall in 2010, two of the best players in franchise history and the best it’s had since picking them.
Sarr isn’t guaranteed to reach Wall and Beal’s heights, but he has All-Star potential. Meanwhile, the Wizards are in a position to land another top-five pick this summer as star prospects Cooper Flagg, Dylan Harper, and Ace Bailey await. After that, they have a 2026 top-eight protected selection in a class with high school stars AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, and Cameron Boozer.
A portion of this process will come down to luck, as the NBA Draft Lottery randomizes the picks. Even if Washington gets who it wants, the prospect might not live up to their potential (see: Porter).
With that being said, the Wizards have at least given themselves a chance of breaking its decades-long title drought in a few years, and that’s why they’re being complimented by the likes of Spoelstra and former NBA champion Rick Carlisle.
“[I’m] impressed. I like their drafts, I like the job that Brian Keefe is doing,” the latter coach said before his Indiana Pacers beat Washington 134-130 in overtime on Feb. 12. “They’re playing fast, they’re playing hard. They’ve got some veterans mixed in, which I think really helps in developing young players. And they’re doing it with a level of accountability, which is how you have to do it.”
After their matchup with the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday, the Wizards have six more games before their offseason begins. On May 12, they’ll find out what pick they get in the lottery.
