When Should Wizards Prioritize Frontcourt Depth in NBA Draft?

With NBA Draft season coming into full swing this May, those who have to watch the playoffs from the outside looking in, like the Washington Wizards, often find it more productive to develop some pre-draft plans so they're not left high and dry in the weeks and days leading up to the main event.

The Wizards enter the draft in about as comfortable of a situation as one can imagine. They've already made their plans of rebuilding quite clear, losing enough games to solidify a solid pick near the top of the order, they have some semblance of a young core already in place, and have made up for their lack of winning results with positive player development to inspire belief in what's being built in DC.

They've brought in a number of long, defensive-minded athletes with the youth to learn, the awareness to play as members of a team, and the two-way upside to become respectable pros in the NBA. Wizards management enters the draft unburdened by massive holes that absolutely must be filled, as they're still minimizing the pressure put on the players to have to fit specific roles.

Still, some basic improvements can be made to the roster. They never quite recovered after trading veteran big Jonas Valanciunas to Sacramento at the mid-season trade deadline, losing a formidable rebounding presence.

Alex Sarr, the rookie center who seemed to greatly appreciate the time he got adjusting to the pace, space and size of the NBA, never quite filled that void. He's taller and younger than Valanciunas, but lacks in experience, professional instincts and, most significantly, muscle. The young Frenchman is considerably easier to push around in the post, evidenced in his 6.5 rebounds per game as the team's regular starting center.

The team could benefit from some other player to counteract Sarr's shortcomings as an imposing presence, a sturdy big who keeps things simple at the rim on both ends (not unlike the 31-year-old Richaun Holmes, who did Washington's dirty work as a key reserve for much of this past season).

Luckily for the team, they have plenty of draft capital to play around with if they want to fill that sort of need with one of their picks deeper into the draft. They're armed with No. 18 as the pick they acquired from Memphis in the Marcus Smart deal, along with an early second-rounder from Phoenix as collateral from the Bradley Beal trade.

This front office has proven themselves as decent drafters just two years into their administration, picking up a rare second-round win in Tristan Vukcevic along with consistent hits in all of their four other first-round selections in Sarr, Bilal Coulibaly, Bub Carrington and Kyshawn George. The first round seems crowded enough with high-potential NBA players that they could easily act there, or push their need to the early second round where the best scouting eyes separate themselves from the rest.

The flexibility to add talent without ownership breathing down a front office's neck, along with some young pieces already setting a foundation, puts the Wizards in a positive position entering the summer. The players they bring in are largely up to them, and their wide array of assets makes their job that much easier.

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