Wizards Re-Sign Former Top-Five Draft Pick They Traded Midseason

The Duke product will reportedly get a mulligan in Washington.

Marvin Bagley III, here a member of the Grizzlies, reacts during a game against the Mavericks. / Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

It appears forward Marvin Bagley III will spend 2026 in familiar territory.

Bagley is signing a one-year contract with the Washington Wizards, according to a Thursday afternoon report from Shams Charania of ESPN. The deal is noteworthy because the Wizards traded Bagley at the deadline on Feb. 6—sending him to the Memphis Grizzlies in a three-team trade.

Having put in 12 regular-season and two playoff games' worth of service for the Grizzlies, Bagley appears to be heading back to Washington.

An All-American and the ACC Player of the Year at Duke in 2018, Bagley has struggled mightily to live up his status as the No. 2 pick in that year's draft. He played four mostly underwhelming seasons for the Sacramento Kings, enduring constant comparisons to the player drafted immediately after him—former Dallas Mavericks and current Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic.

Bagley, a career 12-point-per-game scorer, also has parts of three seasons with the Detroit Pistons under his belt from 2022 to '24.

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