Washington Wizards: 5 goals for Ian Mahinmi in 2017-18

The Washington Wizards’ only insurance plan to their frontcourt is currently Ian Mahinmi. Here are five goals that can make him the reliable big man the Wizards need him to be.

The Washington Wizards addressed improvement needed in the backcourt this summer with the additions of Tim Frazier, Jodie Meeks and the questionable two-way forward in Mike Scott. However the Wizards have given themselves no insurance behind Marcin Gortat other than the four-year, $64 million commitment they’ve already made in Ian Mahinmi.

This year there will be a host of options on the table by the trade deadline, given the evaluation of players like Kelly Oubre Jr., Jason Smith and Mahinmi.

All three of these players need to be able to come off the bench and post consistent and reliable numbers for Washington to not be a repeat of 2016-17. Although the Wizards had an exceptional recipe for success, their bench became an anchor weighing them down, preventing further advancement into the playoffs.

While Smith and Oubre Jr. were inconsistent during particular stretches, Mahinmi only appeared in 31 games during the 2016-17 season. This has become a hot topic issue throughout his career. 2016-17 became the fourth time he appeared in fewer than 41 games — not including his sophomore NBA season, which he missed entirely.

Ian Mahinmi is now headed into his 10th NBA season and will be 31 years old this upcoming November. At best, Mahinmi can be — and should be — a reliable big man to come off the bench while Marcin Gortat remains a Washington Wizard.

However, he should not be mistaken for a possible replacement when Gortat decides to hang it up or the Wizards dump him for assets. Here are five goals to ensure Ian Mahinmi can become a reliable part of the Washington Wizards’ rotation for the 2017-18 season.