Can you see a scenario where the Wizards are a contender?

[colts18]

Can you see a scenario where the Wizards a contender in the next few years? With the way the roster is currently constructed, I'm not sure we could be a contender in the future unless something drastically changes or Bradley Beal turns into Ray Allen.

[mohammed10]

I am sure other more knowledgeable Wiz fans will chime in, but for me, there are a few things I hope to see happen by next year that could build on this season's successes:

1. John needs to get selfish sometimes. If you get to the rim and are already in the air, put the ball in the basket don’t kick it out.
2. Beal averages 23 ppt (and gets to the FT line more frequently)
3. Bring in another scorer or someone you can trust in clutch moments. Beal is 2 or 3 years away from that and Wall is a floor general not a scorer.
4. Try to move Nene he is good but you can bank on him to miss 20 games a year and his play does not warrant 13.5 a year. You can get a much better play for that.

[nate33]

No. The Wizards as currently constructed cannot be a contender. Wall will probably get better, but I just don't see him become an elite superstar - a top 10ish player. I think he's merely going to be an occasional All Star - a top 20-30ish player, perhaps. He's always going to be a slightly flawed player whom teams can stop by forcing him to take jumpers.

Beal probably has a greater chance than Wall of becoming a superstar, only because he is so young. But my guess is that he will fall short of that level as well. I think he'll settle into that third-tier group of guys. He has no chance of being an elite all-time-great SG like Jordan, Kobe or Wade. He's got an outside chance of getting into the second tier of borderline HOF guys like Miller, Allen, Harden and Richmond. But I think the likelihood is that he'll settle into that third tier of guys who make a few all star games but are never really considered stars or HOF caliber players - guys like Joe Johnson, Rip Hamilton, Allan Houston, Joe Dumars and Hersey Hawkins. Those guys don't carry teams to a title.

I don't think a team with no top 10 superstars and just 2 roughly top 20-30 players has a shot at contention. The only real hope is to add a 3rd piece, like a Kevin Love, Al Horford or Kevin Durant. Either that or Bradley Beal REALLY improves in the next 2 years and ends up like James Harden with defense.

[montestewart]

I ccould see it happening with four of the five starters still here. Nene looks like the vet who's about to fall off a cliff. If Wall, Beal and Porter all made dramatic but not unheard of strides in their games, if the re-signed Ariza and Gortat approximately maintained their levels of performance, if all other players (except maybe Booker) were moved, if value returned, coupled with draftees and FAs, addressed guard, wing and big depth and found a starting PF, they could be contenders. Piece of cake.

[pancakes3]

+1 Nate. You really need some top tier talent to contend. The clippers have 3 all-nba caliber players, are as deep as any team in the league, have one of the few coaches in the league that actually has a ring and they still aren't within striking range.

[Dat2U]

No, not if were planning to bring everyone back as planned. As Beal and Wall improve, it's going to be offset by an aging front line and Ariza not being in a contract year. And if were keeping Ariza & stuck with Webster, Porter is likely not to develop or be eventually traded for pennies on the dollar.

I'm afraid this past two weeks may be as good as it gets under this current regime.

[AFM]

We need someone who can call ISO and create his own shot. Then, maybe.

[NbdyBeatsTheWiz]

Lebron either retires or goes West.

[Hypnotizer]

I am sure other more knowledgeable Wiz fans will chime in, but for me, there are a few things I hope to see happen by next year that could build on this season's successes:

1. John needs to get selfish sometimes. If you get to the rim and are already in the air, put the ball in the basket don’t kick it out.
2. Beal averages 23 ppt (and gets to the FT line more frequently)
3. Bring in another scorer or someone you can trust in clutch moments. Beal is 2 or 3 years away from that and Wall is a floor general not a scorer.
4. Try to move Nene he is good but you can bank on him to miss 20 games a year and his play does not warrant 13.5 a year. You can get a much better play for that.

5. John should practice 3-point shooting a lot this summer. I would love to see him more Curry-style.
6. I hope we can finally beat SAS next season.
7. Otto has to play heavy minutes, and if the second SF is Webby (not Trevor) I would like to see Porter as a starter just from the begining of the season.

[Upper Decker]

I think a better question is can this team contend with Wall as a max player (especially based on Nate's assessment, which I agree with)? He's good, don't get me wrong, but Brad Beal basically needs to become a consistent all-star level player AND Washington needs to get an elite level player (who will likely cost the max). At this point resource allocation is as follows:

1) elite player @ max (Love, Horford, Durant)
2) Beal becoming rock solid AS caliber player (his contract will expire soon enough and he'll be paid $10-13M)
3) Wall @ max

Essentially Washington becomes a carbon copy of Miami with their three players at max or near max, except 2 of Washington's big 3 are top 30ish players, where as Miami has the BEST player in the league with 2 top 15 players to support him.

As currently constructed I don't believe this team can become a contender because you need a Lebron level player and at least 1 top 15 player, or you need 2 top 10 level players to contend. After this season I annoint Wall into the Hall-of-very-good becuase his chances of becoming a top 10 player in the league are virtually non-existent in my book.

[SireWolf74]

No. They should focus on going all in for Durant in 2016. As long as Wall and Beal keep improving, you add Durant and then the Wizards can be contenders. Porter is likely a lost cause at this point. What a waste of a draft pick.

[nate33]

I think a better question is can this team contend with Wall as a max player (especially based on Nate's assessment, which I agree with)? He's good, don't get me wrong, but Brad Beal basically needs to become a consistent all-star level player AND Washington needs to get an elite level player (who will likely cost the max). At this point resource allocation is as follows:

1) elite player @ max (Love, Horford, Durant)
2) Beal becoming rock solid AS caliber player (his contract will expire soon enough and he'll be paid $10-13M)
3) Wall @ max

Essentially Washington becomes a carbon copy of Miami with their three players at max or near max, except 2 of Washington's big 3 are top 30ish players, where as Miami has the BEST player in the league with 2 top 15 players to support him.

Yeah, but we don't need to meet the Miami standard. Miami is a dynasty rather than merely a contender. Also, if we take the right steps, we could establish a Big Three PLUS Gortat since 2 of our max contracts are mini-max contracts. Miami doesn't have a 4th player anywhere near as good as Gortat.

[Illmatic12]

I think a better question is can this team contend with Wall as a max player (especially based on Nate's assessment, which I agree with)? He's good, don't get me wrong, but Brad Beal basically needs to become a consistent all-star level player AND Washington needs to get an elite level player (who will likely cost the max). At this point resource allocation is as follows:

1) elite player @ max (Love, Horford, Durant)
2) Beal becoming rock solid AS caliber player (his contract will expire soon enough and he'll be paid $10-13M)
3) Wall @ max

Essentially Washington becomes a carbon copy of Miami with their three players at max or near max, except 2 of Washington's big 3 are top 30ish players, where as Miami has the BEST player in the league with 2 top 15 players to support him.

Yeah, but we don't need to meet the Miami standard. Miami is a dynasty rather than merely a contender. Also, if we take the right steps, we could establish a Big Three PLUS Gortat since 2 of our max contracts are mini-max contracts. Miami doesn't have a 4th player anywhere near as good as Gortat.

Exactly, Miami is a dynasty with an ATG player. They aren't an ordinary title team.

There are so many other ways to build a contender, especially in the East. Look at the Pacers, who were #1 seed in the conference this year. They have a max contract defensive center, soon-to-be max #1 option, and a solid all-around 2 guard. Other than that the team is filled out with veterans and mercenaries.

[Zonkerbl]

No. The Wizards as currently constructed cannot be a contender. Wall will probably get better, but I just don't see him become an elite superstar - a top 10ish player. I think he's merely going to be an occasional All Star - a top 20-30ish player, perhaps. He's always going to be a slightly flawed player whom teams can stop by forcing him to take jumpers.

Beal probably has a greater chance than Wall of becoming a superstar, only because he is so young. But my guess is that he will fall short of that level as well. I think he'll settle into that third-tier group of guys. He has no chance of being an elite all-time-great SG like Jordan, Kobe or Wade. He's got an outside chance of getting into the second tier of borderline HOF guys like Miller, Allen, Harden and Richmond. But I think the likelihood is that he'll settle into that third tier of guys who make a few all star games but are never really considered stars or HOF caliber players - guys like Joe Johnson, Rip Hamilton, Allan Houston, Joe Dumars and Hersey Hawkins. Those guys don't carry teams to a title.

I don't think a team with no top 10 superstars and just 2 roughly top 20-30 players has a shot at contention. The only real hope is to add a 3rd piece, like a Kevin Love, Al Horford or Kevin Durant. Either that or Bradley Beal REALLY improves in the next 2 years and ends up like James Harden with defense.

We need Porter to become Kevin Durant I guess. That would do it. Otherwise, yeah. No clear path to championship contention. I can see a lot of paths downward though. Nene falls off a cliff and we can't replace him because we've traded away all our assets. We overpay for Gortat and Ariza. Porter turns into Jan Vesely.

[Illmatic12]

Can you see a scenario where the Wizards a contender in the next few years? With the way the roster is currently constructed, I'm not sure we could be a contender in the future unless something drastically changes or Bradley Beal turns into Ray Allen.

EVERY team that becomes a contender needs something to drastically change.

Do you think the 15-win Heat imagined becoming contenders just a few years later? Or even their middling teams before they got Shaq? Or the 24-win Celtics in 2007?

The question shouldn't be can we contend with our current roster. It should be "Do we have pieces on our roster that could eventually contribute to building a contender?"

[Illmatic12]

+1 Nate. You really need some top tier talent to contend. The clippers have 3 all-nba caliber players, are as deep as any team in the league, have one of the few coaches in the league that actually has a ring and they still aren't within striking range.

The Clippers are in the West. They would have easily come out of the East this year, heck even a team like GSW would have likely come out of the East this year.

We don't have to build a team as loaded as the Clippers to be a contender. Look at the Pacers, they only have 1 legitimate All-Star.

No, not if were planning to bring everyone back as planned. As Beal and Wall improve, it's going to be offset by an aging front line and Ariza not being in a contract year. And if were keeping Ariza & stuck with Webster, Porter is likely not to develop or be eventually traded for pennies on the dollar.

I'm afraid this past two weeks may be as good as it gets under this current regime.

As good as it gets? Who is our bigtime competition in the East? We won 44 games this season and nearly made the ECF. A team with two All-Stars is always gonna be capable of making a run in this conf, and we'll have two All-Stars for the next 5+ years. On top of that, we're probably gonna be closer to adding a top-end star than most teams because of our attractive backcourt (assuming we maintain some financial flexibility)

People keep taking the #Sowizards pessimistic viewpoint, but when you look around at the rest of our competition we aren't in a bad place at all. I agree that we have to let Ariza walk though

[Mizerooskie]

Yes, under new management and coaching.

I think the Wizards will have the best back court in the NBA in 3 years.

With competent management to build around that and good coaching to develop it and guide it, I think we could make a run at the conference title year-to-year.

[WallToWall]

The formula of picking up vets for the vet minimum is a good idea. Its a good way to augment the team. These vets can be very hungry for a ring and will play to get it.

I agree that Wall will not be an elite player. Not someone you can ride to a championship. In the offseason, I'd like to see Wall build more strength, so that when he drives/pushes the ball to the basket, he can get contact and still get the shot off. That will make officials call the foul. That, plus learning how to create the right kind of contact, to force the call from the officials. I remember Regie Miller who used to stick out his leg on a 3 point shot so that the defender touches it and he falls to the ground like a freight train hit him. Wall need to learn how to get that call. Some say he needs to improve his 3 pt shot. I think he needs to improve his mid-range - develop a fall-back shot. Doing this will make him a top 6 PG.

Beal will be a top 5 SG. He has more upside than Wall right now. He's got that 3pt shot. If he spends some time trying to learn Rip Hamilton's come off the screen mid-range shot to augment his already nice arsenal, improve his conditioning, learn effective hand checking, and get more consistency in his game, he could turn into an elite player. Beal can turn into that Reggie Miller "dagger" kind of player.

Porter - no idea what he will bring. Last we heard about him, he needed to bulk up, get his legs strong so he doesnt get pushed around... Basically, I have no idea what we have in him till he plays significant minutes. I will not call him a lost cause just yet.

Gortat - a top 12 center. Will give you 15 pts 10 rbs. I do think that he could use more bulk and strength. He is what he is, and I dont think you can teach this old dog new tricks. Practice FT shooting. Re-sign him.

Nene - trade him for a first round pick. I'm sure there is a team out there that thinks they are a Nene away. If we can get him to restructure his contract to 17mil for 3 yrs, then keep him and he can close out his career here. We cant get more than 50 games out of him, and out of that 50, he may be motivated for 35. So, in the offseason, I'd work on motivation and FTs. When motivated, he can be a force.

Ariza - re-sign him. We need a lock down defender who can take the opponents SG or SF. Dont underesimate this value. However, he is not going to give us great performances on offense at SF. Very good 3pt shooter. He's a very good role player...off the bench or sharing time with another SF who gets the same # of mins.

We need a good coach on offense. I like our defense. We need a motivator too. And a FT shooting coach.

So as constructed, we are not ready for making a run. We were lucky that the east was weak. Very weak. Getting to the 2nd rnd was fools gold. Dont get me wrong, i am really happy we got there! I hadnt tasted playoffs in I dont know how long. And watching the '78, and '79 team is still tops for me.

[dckingsfan]

+1 Nate. You really need some top tier talent to contend. The clippers have 3 all-nba caliber players, are as deep as any team in the league, have one of the few coaches in the league that actually has a ring and they still aren't within striking range.

The Clippers are in the West. They would have easily come out of the East this year, heck even a team like GSW would have likely come out of the East this year.

We don't have to build a team as loaded as the Clippers to be a contender. Look at the Pacers, they only have 1 legitimate All-Star.

No, not if were planning to bring everyone back as planned. As Beal and Wall improve, it's going to be offset by an aging front line and Ariza not being in a contract year. And if were keeping Ariza & stuck with Webster, Porter is likely not to develop or be eventually traded for pennies on the dollar.

I'm afraid this past two weeks may be as good as it gets under this current regime.

As good as it gets? Who is our bigtime competition in the East? We won 44 games this season and nearly made the ECF. A team with two All-Stars is always gonna be capable of making a run in this conf, and we'll have two All-Stars for the next 5+ years. On top of that, we're probably gonna be closer to adding a top-end star than most teams because of our attractive backcourt (assuming we maintain some financial flexibility)

People keep taking the #Sowizards pessimistic viewpoint, but when you look around at the rest of our competition we aren't in a bad place at all. I agree that we have to let Ariza walk though

OK, might be just me but... I can see several teams improving in the east, especially over the next two years (lots of cap space and draft picks). So, I think the Wizards have to improve to run in place.

[Illmatic12]

+1 Nate. You really need some top tier talent to contend. The clippers have 3 all-nba caliber players, are as deep as any team in the league, have one of the few coaches in the league that actually has a ring and they still aren't within striking range.

The Clippers are in the West. They would have easily come out of the East this year, heck even a team like GSW would have likely come out of the East this year.

We don't have to build a team as loaded as the Clippers to be a contender. Look at the Pacers, they only have 1 legitimate All-Star.

No, not if were planning to bring everyone back as planned. As Beal and Wall improve, it's going to be offset by an aging front line and Ariza not being in a contract year. And if were keeping Ariza & stuck with Webster, Porter is likely not to develop or be eventually traded for pennies on the dollar.

I'm afraid this past two weeks may be as good as it gets under this current regime.

As good as it gets? Who is our bigtime competition in the East? We won 44 games this season and nearly made the ECF. A team with two All-Stars is always gonna be capable of making a run in this conf, and we'll have two All-Stars for the next 5+ years. On top of that, we're probably gonna be closer to adding a top-end star than most teams because of our attractive backcourt (assuming we maintain some financial flexibility)

People keep taking the #Sowizards pessimistic viewpoint, but when you look around at the rest of our competition we aren't in a bad place at all. I agree that we have to let Ariza walk though

OK, might be just me but... I can see several teams improving in the east, especially over the next two years (lots of cap space and draft picks). So, I think the Wizards have to improve to run in place.

People have been saying the East will improve for years and years. Still waiting for it to happen.

The East is gonna be same as it always was, 2-3 really good teams, then the rest is wide open. Unless some East teams land dominant superstars in the draft (and even then it'd take a while for them to develop and build a team around them), I don't see the competition getting that stiff. The only team I'm worried about is the Bulls possibly getting Melo and/or Rose coming back to form.

Of course we're going to improve, our best players are 23 and 20. If we upgrade our bench and remain flexible in FA, we'll be competitive in the conference for years.