Rounding Up the Wizards' Draft and Monetary Assets Beyond 2026 Centerpiece

The Washington Wizards have plenty of pieces to continue bolstering their corps of hand-drafted players outside of this summer's gem of an draft pick.

Mar 5, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Injured Washington Wizards forward Anthony Davis (M) watches from the bench against the Utah Jazz in the first halfat Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

The Washington Wizards are as free from the shackles of other franchise's decisions as they've ever been over the course of their thorough deconstruction.

Finally, the worst regular season team has turned the gun of offseason control on each of their more conventionally-successful peers, as they now hold the rights to the first selection point in the upcoming 2026 NBA Draft. Whichever headlining prospect emerges as the Wizards' pick will set the tone for the next phase of their rebuild, a checkered flag to indicate to onlookers that the days of stacking noncompetitive losses in the name of bolstered draft odds are over.

But even beyond this keystone asset, the Wizards have plenty of other flexibility to look forward to in building out their vision through the end of this decade. Between their trove of distant draft swings, presently-rostered pieces and financial flexibility along the margins, there's room to remain excited about Washington's long-term upside outside of this singular stroke of lottery luck.

Upcoming Draft Picks

As my Wizards On SI colleague Bryson Akins pointed out in his early offseason guide, the team has 19 picks to its name over the next seven years, including every one of its own first-rounders to continue spending as Washington takes the turn into routine playoff participants.

Jun 25, 2025; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Tre Johnson stands with NBA commissioner Adam Silver after being selected as the sixth pick by the Washington Wizards in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

To soon look forward to: Three more players will join the Wizards' young corps this summer.

Beyond the obvious first-overall pick that Washington earned back from the New York Knicks the hard way, its front office has multiple second-round chances to play around with at 51 and 60, as well as nine other second-rounders to anticipate through 2032.

Quirks to note: Fans can thank the frequently-maligned Deni Avdija-for-Bub Carrington trade for one additional first round asset, an unprotected 2029 first that'll narrow down to the best position between the Portland Trail Blazers, Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics.

This, as well as numerous Phoenix Suns swap rights to monitor through the remaining 2020s, should keep Washington scouts busier than your average organization's draft room.

Noteworthy Contracts

All of the picks whom this version of the Wizards have already cashed in on over the last three draft cycles remain on the roster, an expansive list that includes six former first-rounders and two second-round prospects in Tristan Vukcevic and Jamir Watkins.

They're each working on minimum-caliber, team-friendly options with plenty of "get out of jail free" cards attached even after proving themselves above your average two-way contracts, and the yet-to-be-extended likes of Alex Sarr, Bilal Coulibaly, Kyshawn George, Bub Carrington, Tre Johnson and Will Riley are similarly making next-to-nothing by NBA standards.

Jan 29, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Wizards forward Kyshawn George (18) celebrates with center Alex Sarr (20) during the first half against the Milwaukee Bucks at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images | Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

They, along with Cam Whitmore, are each likely to anticipate second deals over the next couple of offseasons when their agents gradually anticipate respective deadlines. That youthful foundation and a few of their less homebred teammates will offer up some tempting swaps to consider over the coming years of further team-building.

Extension-eligible expectants: Coulibaly, Whitmore, Trae Young

2023 draft classmates Coulibaly and Whitmore are each on the hook for one more technical year of control in D.C., but they're each good for re-ups over the comings months.

Coulibaly, the seventh-overall pick from that year's talent batch, is the much likelier to ink a fresh agreement following three years of patient development out of the swing forward. His strong finish to this past season proved to doubters that he's still worth investing in as an athletic transition weapon and quick-twitch defender, especially alongside a table-setter in Young capable of unlocking cutting and above-the-rim threats.

Mar 21, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) drives as Washington Wizards guard Bilal Coulibaly (0) defends during the second half at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-Imagn Images | Brad Mills-Imagn Images

Whitmore isn't quite the same guarantee to return on the same financial boost, having arrived to his hometown team last summer only to see his chance at a fresh start foiled at the hands of season-ending blood clots. Should Washington look to escape the tough decision as to whether they should keep him around, he could be traded before an even-tougher call has to be made.

Young is much closer to Coulibaly if we're ranking the likeliest Wizards to stick around for another go-around, especially considering how little he cost to acquire and how much his bounce-back changes his new team's fortunes.

As much as the No. 1 pick in a draft full of star-caliber creators is worth getting excited over, Young remains a veteran point guard who can dole out assists and get to the rim better than any other guard in Washington, and that's worth keeping around for at least a few more years.

Low-leverage bait: Jaden Hardy

Similar to Whitmore, Hardy arrived in Washington as a score-first trade chip looking for a fresh start, and poor health luck didn't get in his way like it did with the former Houston Rocket.

One last throw-in from the Wizards’ end-of-season media availability to close out the week, here’s Jaden Hardy on straddling the line between his impressive resume of big games and how the other young guys view him as a member of a different generation pic.twitter.com/Jkq8G3QLDq

— Henry J. Brown (@henryjbr_sports) April 17, 2026

He, too, showed comfortability finding his own shots as a burly driver and a perimeter creator, and did so on some of the better efficiency marks of his career.

The deal he signed with his previous employer, the Dallas Mavericks, remains a manageable one that will look even better if he transfers his admittedly-sporadic style to next season's bench. $12 million split evenly over the next two years, the latter of which includes a team option, makes for a fine theoretical addition to the Wizards' depth, as well as a favorable throw-in in the event of a bigger swap like the one that originally brought him to the nation's capital.

Major wild card: Anthony Davis

Davis has been much less committed to helping to build out the next iteration of Wizards basketball than Young, having yet to be publicly convinced that Washington's slow-burn method of development favors his more limited personal timeline.

Apr 5, 2026; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Washington Wizards forward Anthony Davis (23) talks with forward Leaky Black (14) during the first half against the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

The 33-year-old All-Star seems as unwilling to wait to win as the Wizards are to speed up their process. He's set to earn $58.5 million next year with a $62.8 million player option looming in 2027-28, giving both sides enough time to gauge his place in the vision as a healthily-meaningful contributor.

Should he and the program butt heads following a summer spent angling for the future, here's one of the NBA's biggest names to dangle in front of the league's bidders in an attempt to keep the trade machine moving. If he plays, something he didn't do during the Wizards' loss-filled close to the 2025-26 campaign, he'll reap much more than he would in the event of a hypothetically-ugly departure.

Financial Breathing Room

Even with Davis' lofty contract, the Wizards are still far from being cap-bound.

They don't project to make any other financial leaps after spending under $183 million this past season, leaving over $12 million standing between them and the first tax apron and nearly $40 million before they reach the dreaded second apron projection of $222 million.

Outside of those aforementioned extension candidates, a few names lining the margins of the Wizards' recent cap sheet will see their fates similarly determined over the coming months while the suits plot their next move.

Soon-to-be free agents: Anthony Gill, D'Angelo Russell

Unlike Russell, who never reported to Washington following his similar inclusion in the Davis-centered mega-swap, Gill was a key member of the Wizards' reserve rotation in the tail end of this past season.

Apr 5, 2026; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Washington Wizards forward Anthony Gill (16) drives to the basket against Brooklyn Nets forward Ziaire Williams (1) during the first quarter at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

The longest-tenured Wizard isn't just useful for his physicality; he knows his role better than anyone on and off the court as the neighborhood helping hand, and would leave a major hole to fill in Washington's locker room should he get stood up in a free agency re-entry.

Russell's likely departure opens up enough roster spots for the incoming first-overall pick, meaning that Gill would only have to pack his bags if Washington wanted to wrangle in another newcomer out of the open market. It's not much additional financial breathing room, but it's worth noting if the team's decision-makers have another big maneuver planned.

Two-way overflow: Any yet-to-be accounted-for Wizards will have to contend for attention along the team's fringes.

Julian Reese, Sharife Cooper and Leaky Black occupied the group' final trio of two-way slots after Vukcevic and Watkins proven themselves as full-time Wizards. Should Washington spend both of their incoming second-round tokens, only one of those players can stick around to retain those spots for the fall.

Mar 16, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) blocks out Washington Wizards forward Julian Reese (15) during the first half at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-Imagn Images | Brad Mills-Imagn Images

Cooper and Black are each down to just one remaining year of two-way eligibility apiece, with both of the mid-20-somethings growing redundant amidst the Wizards' increased backlog of guards and wings.

Reese, an undrafted rookie who earned his keep with a devotion to rebounding that other Wizards bench bigs lacked, has worked his way into the frontrunner to return to Washington on yet another cheap-o agreement. Again, not much space to track entering the season of spending, but every wrinkle counts as management, analysts and fans conduct their necessary housekeeping.

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