Evan Fournier Shot Down The Washington Wizards

Originally posted on Washington Wizards on SI
By Tom Brew | Last updated Sep 4, 2024 4:49 PM ET

It's tough for the Washington Wizards right now. With no real star on the roster and one of the worst records in the league over the past 20 years, there just isn't much of a bright side within the franchise currently. There are some young players on the team with a lot of potential, but the franchise, fans and pundits are already talking about the Wizards being in the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes for the 2025 NBA Draft. Because of that, even lower-tier free agents are not interesting in playing for the Wiz.

It's being reported by French journalist Maxime Aubin that veterain sharpshooter Evan Fournier spurned the Wizards for a chance to play overseas.

Evan Fournier said he was offered a 2 years contract with the Wizards in NBA, but he wasn’t interested in a “mentoring role” with the youngsters, “in a losing team”.

Added he wants to “compete” in Europe and “enjoy playing basketball again”.

Reported by @lequipe &…
— Maxime Aubin (@MaximeAubin1) September 4, 2024

Instead of staying in the NBA to play for the Wizards, Fournier opted to sign a two-year, $4 million deal with Olympiacos. It's hard to fault the French hooper. He's been in the NBA since the 2012-13 season when he joined the Denver Nuggets as the 20th overall pick and has never been on a major contender. Last year he played for the Detroit Pistons, which was the only team that lost more games than the Wizards. It's not surprising that Fournier hasn't enjoyed basketball much lately. Playing overseas should give him a much better chance to find more minutes and more success.

This article first appeared on Washington Wizards on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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