The Washington Wizards have officially solidified the young core with six key players getting extended last week. The 2024 draft trio: Alex Sarr, Bub Carrington, Kyshawn George, and AJ Johnson all saw their third-year team options get picked up. Additionally, fourth-year players Bilal Coulibaly and Cam Whitmore had their team options exercised.
Wizards Exercise 6 Key Players’ Team Options
With these six players getting their contracts secured for an extra season, the Wizards’ core is in good standing. While some players will no doubt be a part of the team in the future, this move also could lead to alternative situations down the line.
2024 Squad
The 2024 class will no doubt be in Washington for the next few seasons. Sarr is playing like a top-10 center in the NBA, while George has looked like a potential centerpiece with his great first week of the season. Both are averaging over 18 points, 8 rebounds, with multiple assists and a few stocks (steals and blocks) as well.
However, Carrington and Johnson could be seen as trade assets for Washington. Carrington hasn’t started the season strongly and was moved to the bench when Coulibaly came back from his EuroBasket injury. While he’s shooting over 45% from three, his field goal percentage has dropped almost eight percent as a whole. The only major stat to see a jump instead of regression so far is his steal numbers.
Johnson is in a much different situation. Through the first five games of the year, he’s only seen the floor three times, with about three minutes per contest. Keeping that in mind, Johnson has failed to score this season, with only one rebound and one assist in his 10 minutes of playing time this season.
Are Johnson and Carrington considered trade pieces? Most likely no (at the moment). However, the 2026 draft class is full of talented athletes and could turn out to be better than the 2025 class. These two players could be moved in a trade to get an extra pick, or move up the board come draft night.
2023 Assets
The 2023 duo of Coulibaly and Whitmore could both be potential cornerstones or provide vast trade market demand towards the deadline. However, Washington doesn’t need to move on from either, so the franchise has lots to go over before dealing one or both of them.
Coulibaly, after a solid rookie season, and then regressed in year two. A huge topic over the offseason was the Wizards’ push for the second pick in the draft for the opportunity of drafting Dylan Harper. Reports surfaced that the front office was willing to ship out “surprising names” to land the pick. Coulibaly was heavily rumored to be one of the said names.
While his defensive skillset is needed for the 28th-ranked team in defensive rating, his offensive game isn’t nearly consistent enough. In other words, he’s needed for now, but could be moved for the right price.
Whitmore can’t seem to find his footing in Washington. Just about all of his numbers have seen a stagnation or a regression effect. Unfortunately, he can’t seem to figure out his offensive game. Defensively, he’s been one of the better players, with a top-five defensive rating for the Wizards. However, he’s only one of two players currently with a negative offensive win-share on the team.
Again, could we see these players labeled as trade pieces? Probably not. However, these two are more likely to be moved before the offseason to contenders who may be selling picks in exchange for a title opportunity. Coulibaly’s defensive ability would make him one of the most attractive assets on the market. For Whitmore, his defensive consistency is a plus. However, his offensive game must find rhythm before a team is seriously interested in buying in.
The Last Word
Overall, it wasn’t surprising to see Washington pick up everyone’s team options. All players have amazing potential for the Wizards. However, some could provide more use in the trade market. As of now, it seems they all have a good outlook in D.C.
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