Not Every Wizards Prospect is Part of the Future

The Washington Wizards have a treasure trove of young talent and a bag full of draft picks but one obstacle remains: you eventually have to pay your core and with the Wizards full of so much talent, they're not going to be able to pay everyone. Right now, everyone is playing for a long-term place in the Wizards future. What are the hard choices that the Wizards Front Office will eventually have to make?

Thin out the young herd following the 2025-2026 season

Next season will be year three of the Wizard's rebuild and the final teardown and evaluation year. Culture and chemistry will continue to build, and the Wizards front office and coaching staff will be in the business of further evaluating who is and isn't part of the future. Not every Wizards prospect will be on the team in 2-3 years. GM Will Dawkins has currently made 5 draft choices in his first two drafts. He also has two 1st round picks in 2025 and in 2026. Plus, you have Colby Jones and AJ Johnson.

That's 11 players, and you don't even know who your veteran players are going to be. That's going to get expensive, and even if Ted Leonsis decides to pay the luxury tax, with the way most of these prospects are progressing, they're not going to realistically be able to retain all of that talent. They must start to thin the herd following the 2026 NBA Draft and look to move some players and picks for the Donovan Mitchell type trade that the Wizards would need to get over the hump and into contention.

To pay or not to pay Jordan Poole

Jordan Poole is playing at an All-Star level this season and will get better and better. The thing is, the better he plays, the more expensive and valuable he becomes. Now, if the Wizards see him as a long-term answer in DC, they'll have to pay up. He does like DC and has bought in, but he would also want to get paid based on his value, and it continues to shoot up. He's got two years left on his deal and could extend, but then you have to extend Bilal Coulibaly shortly after that, and after that, potentially Sarr, Carrington, or George. The truth is, two out of that trio will be in DC long-term.

Jordan Poole could also get you a huge return on the trade market, as well as Corey Kispert and possibly Saddiq Bey. They plan on drafting their franchise cornerstone in this draft and veterans Poole, Kispert, and Bey could just be keeping the seat warm while the Wiz-Kidz continue to develop and improve. Yes, they have tough choices, but they have choices, and choices are a good thing.