Isaac Bonga set to be unrestricted free agent after Wizards decline qualifying offer

The Washington Wizards declined to extend a qualifying offer to forward Isaac Bonga, making him an unrestricted free agent this offseason, according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Free agency is set to start on Monday evening. The Wizards not extending a qualifying offer to Bonga is not much of a surprise for multiple reasons. The 21-year old’s development stalled in two seasons under Scott Brooks.

Known for his strong on-ball defense, Bonga’s offense leaves a lot of room for improvement. After one season with the Los Angeles Lakers, Bonga was traded to the Wizards ahead of the 2019-20 season.

His first year with the Wizards, Bonga had an uptick in opportunity and minutes. He played in 66 games, starting 49 of them. He shot 50.4% from the field on limit shot opportunities. But, with expectations higher entering the 2020-21 season, Bonga had a huge decline in games and minutes.

Last season, he appeared in a mere 40 games, starting eight. He fell out of favor with Brooks in large due to his lack of production on offense. He shot a struggling 37.0% from the field, including 27.7% from three, and 62.5% from the free throw line. Bonga averaged 2.0 points in 10.8 minutes per game.

The Wizards added Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in the Russell Westbrook trade to the Los Angeles Lakers. They also added Corey Kispert and Isaiah Todd in the NBA Draft. With a need for a viable point guard to replace Westbrook, there may not be a spot for Isaac Bonga in new head coach Wes Unseld’s rotation.