Washington Wizards: Biggest strengths and weaknesses for 2017-18
By Randy Porga
Strength: The core remains intact
Along with the Washington Wizards extending John Wall, the front office did well in making sure they retained Otto Porter Jr.
On July 13, Washington matched the four-year, $106.5 million offer sheet that was initially made by the Brooklyn Nets to bring Porter back through the 2019-20 regular season. Although the price tag may be considered high for a player who has completed just four seasons in his career, he displayed enough upside to warrant such a contract.
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Last season he made massive improvements across the board, from his minutes on the court to points per game all the way to more efficient shooting. Even as a third option scorer, he proved reliable, shooting 51.6 from the field and averaged 13.4 points per game. Considering he averaged 10 field goal attempts per game, while fellow teammate Wall averaged roughly 18 per game, also shows he knows where he stands in the pecking order on offense.
He makes the most of his opportunities and was also one of the better components of a struggling defense, though his Defensive Box Plus/Minus was only 0.9 to finish the season.
The focus of this offseason was to primarily improve the Wizards’ bench. But retaining the core will prove to be wise over the next couple years, as this team should continue to improve as individuals and also build chemistry while other teams maneuver through trading assets and stars.
Talent is certainly important when building a winning team, but the Wizards have shown that chemistry will also play a part in moving forward with the future.