The Washington Wizards have come a long way since they were the Chicago Packers in the 1961-62 season. They’ve taken on a few other name changes, so their top 10 draft picks in franchise history leans towards recent successes.
The Washington Wizards are a franchise that is on the rise. Point guard John Wall, shooting guard Bradley Beal and veterans Markieff Morris and Marcin Gortat led a big charge this past season for the Wizards.
Wall and the Wizards finished the season with a 49-33 record, a win shy of finishing with their first 50-win regular season since 1969-70 — back when legendary center Wes Unseld was running things.
That’s where history begins here, around the 1967 season when the franchise was known as the Baltimore Bullets. Since then, they were known as the Capitol Bullets during the 1973-74 season. Then they were known as the Washington Bullets starting in the 1974-75 regular season.
The franchise became known as the Washington Wizards to begin the 1997-98 regular season. Since then, they’ve enjoyed seven trips to the NBA Playoffs with the last three appearances ending in Eastern Conference semifinals defeat.
The Wizards lost in seven games to the Boston Celtics in this past season’s NBA Playoffs. Although they lost the series, the Washington franchise has a lot to build on.
Even though they traded this year’s first round draft pick, head coach Scott Brooks has the franchise headed in a positive direction after season one. They also have a second round pick (52nd overall pick) in the 2017 NBA Draft.
There’s enough for them to work with on the current roster. Beginning with the 2010 NBA Draft, they’ve had relative success in the past drafting stars of the future. However, they haven’t found much second round success yet.
With the 2017 NBA Draft right around the corner on June 22, here’s a look at the Washington Wizards’ Top 10 draft picks in franchise history.