The Washington Wizards’ offseason plans will lock the team into NBA mediocrity

The Washington Wizards’ reported offseason plans are epically bad and are only going to result in continued mediocrity for the franchise. 

Entering this season, the hope for the Washington Wizards was that a core trio of Bradley Beal, Kristaps Prozingis, and Kyle Kuzma would show some promise. Or at least something that would give the team an indication that this most recent retooling around Beal was heading in the right direction.

That, simply put, hasn’t exactly been the case for the Wizards so far this season. More than halfway through the season, the Wizards are 22-26 and outside of the top 10 in the Eastern Conference standings.

Heading into the NBA Trade Deadline, objectively speaking, this is probably a team that should be open to the idea of a rebuild. Or at least another retooling around Beal, who signed a huge extension with the team during the offseason.

Instead, the early reporting surrounding the Wizards heading into the trade deadline and eventually the offseason is that they are going to double down on this core. The Wizards’ plan this offseason is to re-sign both Kuzma and Porzingis.

Even though Kuzma and Porzingis are individually having solid seasons, I’m not really sure what the thinking is here for the Wizards.

The Washington Wizards should probably be pivoting toward a rebuild during the offseason.

This core for the Wizards is not good enough to compete at the highest level in the Eastern Conference. Heck, it may not even be good enough to make the playoffs. So, it’s increasingly confusing that the front office has seen what the team has and hasn’t been able to do this season and still is like, yes this is the future we want for our team.

Sure, Beal has missed 20 games this season. But do the Wizards truly believe that Beal would make that much of a difference? Interestingly, the Wizards are 8-12 without Beal this season. That’s not that bad for a team playing without its superstar. With Beal, the Wizards are 14-14.

If the Wizards don’t have a change of heart heading into the offseason, this is the type of plan that is going to result in perpetual mediocrity for the Wizards, something that this franchise has been trying to break out of ever since John Wall suffered his first significant injury roughly five years ago.

Sure, I understand keeping and locking up your assets. But it’s unlikely that Kuzma’s trade value is going to be any better than it is now and Porzingis is not a player that has been consistent or healthy enough to build around at any point in his career.

Maybe they sign both of them at huge discounts, at a much lower price than any of us realize. If they do that, perhaps that can be understood. But I simply don’t see that happening.

The Wizards are about to make another organizational mistake that could potentially set this team back another 2-3 years and, perhaps most importantly, put the wheels in motion for a Bradley Beal trade demand.