Wizards Draft: Anthony Black is the Perfect Pick As Potential Rebuild Approaches

Over the past several days, it’s become increasingly clear that Bradley Beal’s time with the Washington Wizards is close to coming to an end. With the Miami Heat and Phoenix Suns emerging as front runners, it appears likely that a trade could be made before Thursday’s draft.

As such, Washington’s draft needs would shift. With Beal potentially heading out the door, an elite guard prospect should be a priority.

The Wizards selected Johnny Davis with the No. 10 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, but his professional career has gotten off to a slow start. He spent most of his time in the G League last season, but still has tremendous upside. There’s absolutely no reason to give up on Davis as a prospect at this point. He’s a sturdy 6-foot-5 guard with two-way upside and a winning mentality.

With that in mind, finding the right backcourt pairing for Davis should be the priority. Luckily for Washington, there’s a perfect prospect in the 2023 NBA Draft that’s projected to be available with their No. 8 overall selection. As the Wizards begin a re-tooling of the roster, Arkansas guard Anthony Black should be the no-brainer pick, if he’s available. Standing at 6-foot-7, he has great positional size and the skillset to compliment Davis.

While Davis is more of an off-ball guard with scoring prowess, Black is much more of a natural point guard with facilitation upside. Given his height, he can also slide to the wing in certain lineups as well, which leaves the door open for Washington to play a third guard in the future.

Defensively, a backcourt duo of Davis and Black would be lethal. At the point of attack, both are extremely disruptive. Davis brings strength while Black brings length and versatility.

While nothing is official yet on the Bradley Beal front, the Washington Wizards should turn their focus to Anthony Black as the next era of the franchise is set to kick off.

Want to join the discussion? Like Draft Digest on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest NBA Draft news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.