The Washington Wizards have fallen on tough times over the past few years and after snagging the number three pick in the NBA draft lottery last month, many have speculated about what the team should do with it, including taking local Georgetown star Otto Porter or trading the pick all together to help add more talent to the roster.
The Wizards were not expecting to get a pick so high and while many feel they should trade it for a veteran or another wing player, the team could be weary of making moves after missing out on some stars in the draft after making trades, including when they dealt the fifth overall pick to the Timberwolves for Randy Foye. After making that move, the team had to deal with missing out on Stephen Curry, who has turned into a borderline superstar, as well as Ricky Rubio and Ty Lawson. The Wizards have some very talented players in former number one pick John Wall and Bradley Beal and even though there are some good prospects in the draft like Porter, Victor Oladipo and Trey Burke, the team could be better served making a deal.
According to Mike Wise of the Washington Post, the Wizards should consider trading away the pick at number three as the draft approaches, as they already got lucky from moving up to number three from being in the eighth spot entering the lottery and they could turn that into a deal that could help the team challenge for a postseason spot in 2013. Wise suggests the team should consider a deal with the Pistons or the Timberwolves in the first round, as they could get a solid established veteran to help the team and not take on too much financial pain. The report suggests deals like the number three pick and Trevor Booker to the Pistons for the number eight pick and Greg Monroe, or they could do the same with the Twolves for their number nine pick.
The Wizards could stay put and take a very solid player at number three in Oladipo, Burke, Porter, UNLV star Anthony Bennett or someone else, but all of those players would be a developmental pick and if the team is serious about at least trying to contend for a playoff spot next season, a trade is the best bet. Bennett is young and had a great season for the Rebels while averaging over 16 points and grabbing eight rebounds per game and the Wizards could fall in love with him heading into the draft and decide to select him. Porter is a good choice to give some excitement to the fans and after winning Big East Player of the Year last season he would bring some solid experience to the roster. Porter put up solid stats like Bennett of 16 points and 7.4 rebounds per game and that could give the Wizards a hard choice when it comes to the number three pick.
The Wizards were one of the worst teams in the NBA last season while coming in third in the Southeast division with a 29-53 record and the front office is hoping for some solid improvement next season. Wall led the team with nearly 20 points per game and ranked 28th in the league in scoring with 93 points per game and were eighth in points allowed with 95 per game. The team played solid defense for a team that won just 29 games and with some veterans in the lineup they could make some noise as a middle of the pack team in the east. The team ranked ninth in rebounding and 19th in assists and Wall should be able to improve on those numbers in 2013.
