What if the Wizards Miss Out on Cooper Flagg?

Duke forward Cooper Flagg is the favorite at the number one overall pick and at the top of most draft boards. If the Washington Wizards land the first overall pick, they should sprint to the podium. What if they don't? What if he goes back to Duke or the Wizards pick 2-5? There are other options, and it shouldn't be Cooper Flagg or bust.

Ace Bailey

Ace Bailey, out of Rutgers University, could be a great option for the Wizards. They need more scoring and someone to take the weight off Jordan Poole. Ace Bailey could do that. He's 6'10, has a scoring mentality, and can become an elite defender. He can play two-guard or wing, but it would be interesting if the Wizards would try to play him at power forward.

He does have things to work on. He shoots a lot of bad shots. He doesn't always let the plays come to him and can be a little ISO dependent. He could also work on paint penetration and seperation. That's the thing though, no prospect in this draft is a finished product. If the Wizards can develop him, he could be the leading scorer of the future for the Wizards. He's that good.

Dylan Harper

If the Wizards fall to the third pick and Ace is gone, they may feel compelled to go with the best player available and go with Dylan Harper. It's not that he's not good; he could create a logjam at guard, which could force the Wizards to trade one of them. That could be an option if you look at the fact that Jordan Poole has two years left on his deal, and the next step would be a max contract. The Wizards may not want to spend so much of the cap before resigning some of their young core.

Derik Queen

Derik Queen is a local prospect who could be a option for a team that lacks rebounding and interior scoring. He can do both and at a high level. He fits perfect at power forward and would compliment Alex Sarr and create a very formidable front court. Now if the Wizards are looking at Queen, the it's assumed that they fell to the fifth pick and later.

He does have limitations. He won't spread the floor from three to much. In 2024-25, Queen averaged 16.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.1 blocks, and 1.1 steals per game. He shot 52.6 percent from the field, 20.0 percent from three, and 76.6 percent from the foul line. So he can score, the question is, will he develop a more consistent mid-range and three-point game?

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