<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/wizards-news-kyle-kuzma-breaks-ben-simmons-ankles-airballs-3-point-shot');   ga('set', 'title', 'Wizards’ Kyle Kuzma breaks Ben Simmons’ ankles but airballs 3-point shot');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Kyle-Kuzma-breaks-Ben-Simmons-ankles-but-airballs-3-point-shot.jpg"></figure><h1>Wizards’ Kyle Kuzma breaks Ben Simmons’ ankles but airballs 3-point shot</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-14T18:40:45-07:00">October 14th, 6:40pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-14T18:40:45-07:00">October 14th, 6:40pm</time><address><a>Matt De Lima</a>Matt De Lima is an Associate Editor for NFL and college football at ClutchPoints. He has been covering sports for over 12 years at sites like Sports Illustrated, The Game Day, and countless others. Born and raised in California, he is a graduate of Virginia Tech and a diehard Hokies fan who now resides in southern Maryland.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Washington Wizards small forward Kyle Kuzma, the subject of <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-news-kyle-kuzma-reveals-only-untradable-nba-player-rumors">relentless trade rumors</a> this offseason, hit Ben Simmons with a simple feint, sending him to the floor. But the 29-year-old couldn’t finish the play. Kuzma followed that up with a well-short airball, <a href="https://x.com/CourtsideBuzzX/status/1845978358368092532" rel="noopener">drawing groans</a> from the crowd in Washington’s preseason game against the Brooklyn Nets.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">KYLE KUZMA DROPPED BEN SIMMONS WITH A HESITATION… THEN AIRBALLED 😳😂 <a href="https://t.co/itoYXpAemy">pic.twitter.com/itoYXpAemy</a></p><p>— Courtside Buzz (@CourtsideBuzzX) <a href="https://twitter.com/CourtsideBuzzX/status/1845978358368092532?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 15, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>The expectations are already pretty low in Washington. How low? As a point of conversation, Kuzma is comfortable talking about what the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-news-kyle-kuzma-reveals-wont-worst-season">Wizards won’t be worst at anymore</a> after discussing the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-news-washington-stealing-lebron-james-lakers-target-free-agency">addition of Jonas Valanciunas</a>, per MSN’s Chase Hughes.</p><p>“We’re not going to be the worst defensive rebounding team in the league anymore,” Kuzma said.</p><p>For what it’s worth, this might be a good year to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/bold-cooper-flagg-led-2025-draft-class-take-nba">tank for the first pick, considering the talent available in the 2025 NBA Draft</a>.</p><h2><b>Will Kuzma, Wizards tank in 2024-25 season?</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wizards-Kyle-Kuzma-rising-up-for-the-shot.jpg"><figcaption>© Geoff Burke-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Now in his fourth season with the Wizards, the stat lines have never been better for the former 2017 first-round pick. He posted career-bests with 22.2 points and 4.2 assists per game. He also added 6.6 rebounds to go along with a solid .463/.336/.775 slash line. With a little better shot selection from Jordan Poole, the Wizards might accidentally improve.</p><p>In ClutchPoints’ <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-power-rankings-2024-25-thunder-challenge-celtics">NBA Power Rankings</a>, Brett Siegel has the Wizards last at No. 30.</p><p>Malcolm Brogdon and Valanciunas add a lot of veteran experience, and it’ll be fun to watch how Alex Sarr, the Wizards’ No. 2 overall pick from the 2024 draft, takes to the league.</p><p>Poole has been impressed with unheralded role players Kyshawn George and Corey Kispert. It’s good to see him lift up his teammates.</p><p>“Just (George’s) poise, the way he’s playing. His confidence in taking open shots, he’s really long and athletic, so he’s good on the defensive end as well,” Poole said. “All of our young guys have been coming along really well. I’m excited.</p><p>“I love Corey’s game. I love playing with Corey, he plays hard. Elite shooter, high-level shooter, so he can space the floor, but he also makes the right plays,” Poole said. “I think his athleticism is also underrated as well. He’s strong, he can get to the basket read coverages.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Jordan Poole talks up Kyshawn George and Corey Kispert, who’ve both been preseason standouts ahead of tonight’s game against the Nets <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/wizards?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#wizards</a> <a href="https://t.co/DMKnVFyeX6">pic.twitter.com/DMKnVFyeX6</a></p><p>— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1845844977898635498?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 14, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>The Wizards’ regular season begins at home against the Boston Celtics on Thursday, October 24 at 7:00 p.m. EST.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Wizards’ Kyle Kuzma breaks Ben Simmons’ ankles but airballs 3-point shot

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/wizards-news-jordan-poole-hypes-kyshawn-george-corey-kispert-preseason-heaters');   ga('set', 'title', 'Wizards’ Jordan Poole hypes Kyshawn George, Corey Kispert amid preseason heaters');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wizards-news-Jordan-Poole-hypes-Kyshawn-George-Corey-Kispert-amid-preseason-heaters.jpg"></figure><h1>Wizards’ Jordan Poole hypes Kyshawn George, Corey Kispert amid preseason heaters</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-14T14:18:34-07:00">October 14th, 2:18pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-14T14:19:38-07:00">October 14th, 2:19pm</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>While <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-news-jordan-poole-challenged-himself-2024-25-season">Jordan Poole is one of the Washington Wizards’</a> best players, he’ll need support from his teammates in order to succeed this year. Luckily, Kyshawn George and Corey Kispert have both shown they’re up to the task thus far.</p><p>Poole <a href="https://x.com/joshvaldez100/status/1845844977898635498?s=46" rel="noopener">explained what he likes</a> about George as a player.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Jordan Poole talks up Kyshawn George and Corey Kispert, who’ve both been preseason standouts ahead of tonight’s game against the Nets <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/wizards?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#wizards</a> <a href="https://t.co/DMKnVFyeX6">pic.twitter.com/DMKnVFyeX6</a></p><p>— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1845844977898635498?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 14, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“Just his poise, the way he’s playing. His confidence in taking open shots, he’s really long and athletic, so he’s good on the defensive end as well,” Poole said. “All of our young guys have been coming along really well. I’m excited.”</p><p>George has made an impact in all three preseason games, totaling 31 points on 61.1% shooting with 11 rebounds, seven assists, six steals, and three blocks across 64 total minutes. The 2024 second-round draft pick is also 7-of-11 from long range. If he plays like this into the regular season, he could be one of the steals of the draft.</p><p>Poole also praised Kispert.</p><p>“I love Corey’s game. I love playing with Corey, he plays hard. Elite shooter, high-level shooter, so he can space the floor, but he also makes the right plays,” Poole said. “I think his athleticism is also underrated as well. He’s strong, he can get to the basket read coverages.”</p><p>After a <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-fans-chill-corey-kispert-is-supposed-to-be-bad-at-nba-summer-league">quiet outing in the preseason opener, Kispert</a> scored 34 points on 12-of-20 shooting across the last two contests. The Gonzaga alum was 4-of-7 from deep against the Toronto Raptors on Friday, showing what can happen once he gets in a rhythm.</p><p>“Trying to get him going as early as possible just because it opens up so much for us over the course of the game, so trying to continue to get Corey to play how he’s been playing,” Poole continued.</p><p>A dialed-in Kispert will inevitably space the floor for a Washington squad that has a more cohesive plan this year than in seasons past. With Poole as the permanent point guard, the former Golden State Warrior could use another reliable outside shooter alongside him as he facilitates the offense. Spreading the ball and avoiding isolation-heavy sequences will make the Wizards harder to defend, but that only works if several players are constantly shooting well.</p><p>Poole, though, is also looking inward as he starts his second season in the nation’s capital.</p><h2><b>Jordan Poole defines his Wizards goals</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Jordan-Poole-dribbles-basketball.jpg"><figcaption>Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Poole admitted that “Point Poole” is still a work in progress when discussing his goals for the upcoming season.</p><p>“Getting more comfortable in the offense, gotta get guys in the right positions, figuring out the pace we can play at,” Poole said. “Just a learning process, overall in general just finding ways to play.”</p><p>With the additions of George, Alex Sarr, Bub Carrington, Jonas Valanciunas, and the injured Malcolm Brogdon, there are plenty of new cooks in the kitchen for Poole to work with. The remaining preseason games will be crucial towards figuring out the offensive pecking order as the 2022 NBA champion tries to find himself as a facilitator.</p><p>Poole came into the league as a shooting guard on a Warriors roster with the likes of Steph Curry and Klay Thompson. Back then, the Michigan alum was a role player on Curry’s offense, a hot-and-cold scorer who rarely had the controls. Now, he’s a main character on a young Wizards team that needs his leadership.</p><p>Poole acknowledged that <a href="https://x.com/joshvaldez100/status/1845905151816528041" rel="noopener">there’s a learning curve</a> as he adjusts to his new situation.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="qme"> <a href="https://t.co/JRDS3scYcS">pic.twitter.com/JRDS3scYcS</a></p><p>— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1845905151816528041?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 14, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“Trying to keep speeding up my process. I feel like I sped it up already up until this point, so nothing’s changed, keep working,” Poole explained. “In moments like this where you’re playing a different position, new offenses, playing with new players with different skillsets, you’re learning so much about yourself as well as just the game in general, so getting through all of this in training camp and finding ways to grow my game.”</p><p>Poole was benched in February after a rocky start to his Wizards tenure, but he regained his mojo once he came off the bench and switched to point guard full-time, continuing to play well once re-entering the starting lineup.</p><p>The trials and tribulations of last season’s 15-67 campaign helped head coach Brian Keefe and company figure out that “Point Poole” is the best plan of action for the team offensively. Poole’s quickness and dribbling skills give Washington a reliable foundation as its young players continue to grow, and he’ll inevitably develop as a passer the more he plays the position as well.</p><p>If Poole can consistently get open looks for Bilal Coulibaly and the rookies, he’ll be one of the franchise’s most valuable players in years.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Wizards’ Jordan Poole hypes Kyshawn George, Corey Kispert amid preseason heaters

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/wizards-news-1-skill-bilal-coulibaly-promises-develop');   ga('set', 'title', '1 skill Wizards’ Bilal Coulibaly promises he’ll develop');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wizards-news-1-skill-Bilal-Coulibaly-promises-hell-develop.jpg"></figure><h1>1 skill Wizards’ Bilal Coulibaly promises he’ll develop</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-14T11:38:43-07:00">October 14th, 11:38am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-14T11:48:25-07:00">October 14th, 11:48am</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Mini-Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Although 2023-24 was a rough season for the Washington Wizards, it provided then-<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-news-kyle-kuzma-sage-advice-for-bilal-coulibaly-amid-rookie-struggles">rookie Bilal Coulibaly with vital experience</a> at the top level, finishing with 8.4 points per game on 43.5% shooting with 4.1 boards and 1.7 assists across 63 contests. However, the 2023 seventh overall pick isn’t satisfied.</p><p>Coulibaly <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1845574560864989563" rel="noopener">wants to improve</a> a vital area of his game.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">I asked <a href="https://twitter.com/Bilaal_6?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Bilaal_6</a> what he wants to work on the most this year <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/wizards?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#wizards</a> <a href="https://t.co/KP1eG9Ut4E">pic.twitter.com/KP1eG9Ut4E</a></p><p>— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1845574560864989563?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“I’m actually working on my playmaking a lot more, wanna get better at pick-and-rolls and everything, so yeah, probably my playmaking,” the French international said during practice on Sunday.</p><p>Although Coulibaly is a shooting guard, Washington’s offense could use a boost to his assist numbers from last season. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-reveal-intriguing-jordan-pool-plan">Jordan Poole will start at point guard</a> and be the primary ball-handler this year, but it never hurts to have multiple players who can create their own shot and looks for teammates.</p><p>Coulibaly’s passing is still a work in progress, as he has three assists through three preseason games this year. However, the 20-year-old shot well in both contests against the Toronto Raptors, going 4-for-6 from the floor on October 6th and 3-for-5 on Friday. Sandwiched in between, though, was a 1-for-9 effort against the New York Knicks, as he was stifled by their elite perimeter defense.</p><p>Employing pick-and-rolls with Alex Sarr and Jonas Valanciunas, as Coulibaly alluded to, could help space the floor and create opportunities against upper-echelon squads, especially when Poole is off the floor. While rookies Kyshawn George and Bub Carrington could be in the playmaking mix as well, more will be expected of Coulibaly as the second-year player.</p><p>Coulibaly, though, doesn’t lack confidence despite the bumps in the road.</p><h2><b>Bilal Coulibaly feels good after bulking up for Wizards</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Wizards_-Bilal-Coulibaly-falling.jpg"><figcaption>© Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Coulibaly is a new man this season as, he claims to have <a href="https://x.com/JoshuaBRobbins/status/1840784633643843723" rel="noopener">gotten taller since last year</a> and measured at 6-foot-7-and-a-half without shoes, via The Athletic’s Josh Robbins. On top of that, the 2024 Olympian added 10 pounds.</p><p>Coulibaly’s larger frame may have<a href="https://twitter.com/chasedcsports/status/1845857066293850451" rel="noopener"> given him confidence</a>, as he elevated for a rejection against Raptors All-Star Scottie Barnes on Friday. However, he admitted that he <a href="https://twitter.com/chasedcsports/status/1845857066293850451" rel="noopener">gets carried away sometimes</a>, via Monumental Sports Network’s Chase Hughes.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Bilal Coulibaly spoke yesterday about how confident he is on the court after growing and adding 10 lbs. in the offseason. On his highlight block vs. Scottie Barnes: “I’m just trying to block everybody.” <a href="https://t.co/BOINyqhkFF">pic.twitter.com/BOINyqhkFF</a></p><p>— Chase Hughes (@chasedcsports) <a href="https://twitter.com/chasedcsports/status/1845857066293850451?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 14, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“[His confidence is] Probably a little too high because I missed that wide-open dunk,” he said with a smile. “But I’m really confident. I can get to my spots, I know where I can raise up and everything, so yeah.”</p><p>Down 53-50 with 10 minutes left in the third quarter, Coulibaly blocked Barnes at the rim, leading to a possession on the other end.</p><p>“It’s cool, I’m just trying to block everybody, so it’s cool to block him,” Coulibaly said about the 2022 NBA Rookie of the Year.</p><p>While rim protection isn’t likely to be a big part of Coulibaly’s game moving forward, it’s those type of effort plays that should excite Washington fans. Having both a high motor and desire to improve are both key pillars of success for young players, and he fits the bill.</p><p>Monday night’s game against the Brooklyn Nets is another opportunity for Coulibaly to build on his previous three outings, with emphasis on playmaking and efficient shooting. Between the rookies and Valanciunas, who’s a new free-agent signee, there are plenty of teammates that he needs more time to mesh with offensively as the regular season approaches.</p><p>The Wizards and Nets tip off at 7:30 PM EST at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

1 skill Wizards’ Bilal Coulibaly promises he’ll develop

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/wizards-news-brian-keefe-simple-1-word-request-alex-sarr');   ga('set', 'title', 'Wizards coach Brian Keefe’s simple 1-word request for Alex Sarr');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wizards-news-Brian-Keefes-simple-1-word-request-for-Alex-Sarr.jpg"></figure><h1>Wizards coach Brian Keefe’s simple 1-word request for Alex Sarr</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-13T17:01:17-07:00">October 13th, 5:01pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-13T17:01:17-07:00">October 13th, 5:01pm</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Washington <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-news-brian-keefe-no-1-priority-development-of-alex-sarr-washington-rookies">Wizards didn’t draft Alex Sarr</a> No. 2 overall for his three-point shooting, but he’s been hot from deep so far this preseason. The French international is 7-for-12 from long range through three games, making at least two in each contest.</p><p>However, Wizards coach Brian Keefe wants Sarr to <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1845507290541035600?s=46" rel="noopener">focus on what’s most important</a>.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Wizards head coach Brian Keefe on what he wants Alex Sarr to focus on:</p><p>“Defense, defense, defense”<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/wizards?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#wizards</a> <a href="https://t.co/lP0jYC3NV0">pic.twitter.com/lP0jYC3NV0</a></p><p>— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1845507290541035600?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 13, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“He’s made ’em [his shots], so it’s great. He stretches the floor and he’s been working really hard on that,” Keefe said. “But again, number one thing is defense. Defense, defense, defense.”</p><p>While <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-biggest-alex-sarr-concern-summer-league">Sarr’s shooting is</a> an undeniable asset, Washington primarily needs him to protect the rim and help on the perimeter defensively. Luckily, the seven-footer has excelled on those fronts too, with five blocks and plenty of impactful moments that don’t show up on the stat sheet.</p><p>One <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5835490/2024/10/11/alex-sarr-nba-scouts-evaluation/" rel="noopener">of those instances happened during</a> Washington’s opening game against the Toronto Raptors on October 6th, via The Athletic’s Josh Robbins.</p><p>“Raptors guard Jamal Shead rejects a screen from teammate Kelly Olynyk and attempts to blow by the Wizards’ Bub Carrington,” Robbins said. “Sarr, who had been guarding Olynyk, helps Carrington on Shead’s foray toward the basket, and Sarr has no problem matching Shead stride-for-stride.”</p><p>“With the path to the hoop obstructed, Shead winds up kicking the ball back to Olynyk for a wide-open, feet-set 3 from the top of the arc, which is a bad shot to give up,” Robbins continued. “But, at the same time, Sarr demonstrated his foot speed and his agility, and he showed a capability that Washington’s defense can employ in the future.”</p><p>Sarr’s ability to simultaneously shut down big men and help on faster guards will undoubtedly help a Wizards team that had the NBA’s third-worst defensive rating last season.</p><p>“It’s probably why we drafted him. This is some of the gifts that he has, right?” Keefe said after that game. “This is why we keep talking about his defensive versatility to be able to guard on the perimeter guards and then being able to play down low and protect the rim against bigs.”</p><p>Sarr is still a work in progress, but the early signs are promising.</p><p>“He’s going to learn. There’s still a lot for him to learn,” Keefe continued. “So, these are just the first couple of steps, but those are the things we’re going to keep focusing on.”</p><p>What is Sarr’s ceiling based on what he’s shown thus far?</p><h2><b>Alex Sarr could be a force on both ends for Wizards</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/07-18-24-sarr-french-image.jpeg"><figcaption>© Lucas Peltier-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>The results of three preseason games should never be taken as gospel, but they do show elements of what teams are capable of. In Sarr’s case, he’s been both a red-hot stretch four and a defensive anchor.</p><p>Washington fans should expect peaks and valleys from the 19-year-old once the regular season starts, though, as game intensity increases and the grind of the constant action wears on him. With that being said, Sarr has shown exciting signs.</p><p>The former Australian National Basketball League player struggled shooting in the Summer League, finishing just 9-for-47 from the floor, including a 0-for-15 outing. However, Sarr’s preseason thus far indicates that that was clearly an outlier performance.</p><p>Once Sarr hones his skills for multiple seasons, the flashes he’s showing now could blossom into consistent All-Star-level play. Add in further development from the likes of Bilal Coulibaly, Bub Carrington, and Kyshawn George, and the Wizards will be a problem down the line.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Wizards coach Brian Keefe’s simple 1-word request for Alex Sarr

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/air-jordan-12-french-blue-releasing-2025');   ga('set', 'title', 'Air Jordan 12 ‘French Blue’ releasing 2025');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Air-Jordan-12-French-Blue-releasing-2025.jpg"></figure><h1>Air Jordan 12 ‘French Blue’ releasing 2025</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-11T12:11:06-07:00">October 11th, 12:11pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-11T12:11:23-07:00">October 11th, 12:11pm</time><address><a>Dominik Zawartko</a>Dominik Zawartko is a Michigan State graduate with a degree in Political Science and English. Having previously worked in the nonprofit and legal sectors, he decided to pursue his true love of writing with ClutchPoints. Dominik's hobbies include painting, cooking food, training Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and always having a laugh. His main focus areas are UFC coverage and all things sneakers.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Mini-Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>After a number of rumors around the updated 2.0 release for the Air Jordan 12 “French Blue,” all indications are that the upcoming 2025 release will base itself off the OG silhouettes that were dropped in 2004 and 2016. It’s been almost nine years since the popularity retro colorway graced us and come next year, sneakerheads will have another chance to grab the French Blue 12’s.</p><p><i><b>Check our <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/sneakers">Sneakers news</a> for more upcoming releases and breaking content!</b></i></p><p>Originally <a href="https://stockx.com/jordan-12-retro-french-blue-2004">released in 2004</a> and then retroed in 2016, the “French Blue” Air Jordan 12 was never a colorway Michael Jordan had worn on the court. The shoes dropped just one year after Michael Jordan played his final NBA season for the Washington Wizards and we can immediately see the connection between the two sides given this ensemble.</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/air-jordan-12-blueberry-releasing-december-2024">Jordan 12</a> is often an overlooked silhouette in the Air Jordan line given their placement between the ever-popular Jordan 11 and the unique Jordan 13. The 12 is based by the “rising sun” of Japan and features a simple, yet effective construction as a very clean and wearable shoe.</p><h2>Air Jordan 12 “French Blue”</h2><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">UPDATE: The “French Blue” Air Jordan 12 is officially returning Fall 2025. These will NOT be a “2.0” version, but a re-release of the 2004 colorway. ✅🌊 <a href="https://t.co/MeTgE4BAWW">pic.twitter.com/MeTgE4BAWW</a></p><p>— zSneakerHeadz (@zSneakerHeadz) <a href="https://twitter.com/zSneakerHeadz/status/1844143577838035134?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 9, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">BREAKING: The Air Jordan 12 "French Blue" is releasing in 2025.</p><p>First reported to be slightly different from the OG, Jordan Brand is in fact releasing the original 2004 version next Fall.</p><p>Full details &gt;&gt; <a href="https://t.co/eGV7bB6IYr">https://t.co/eGV7bB6IYr</a> </p><p>📰: <a href="https://twitter.com/zSneakerHeadz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@zsneakerheadz</a> <a href="https://t.co/iiGolwqBiu">pic.twitter.com/iiGolwqBiu</a></p><p>— Sneaker News (@SneakerNews) <a href="https://twitter.com/SneakerNews/status/1844155175981748606?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 9, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>The sneakers will release in accordance with the original drop from 2004, indicating the use of premium material, maintaining the shoe’s original shape, and using the exact tone of French Blue that we saw in the OG pair. The uppers will be done in white tumbled leather with the iconic stitching to create the “rising sun” pattern. The midsoles will feature a hit of thick leather in French Blue extending to the outsoles.</p><p>Finer details reveal silver hits throughout the eyelets, heel tab, and Air Jordan logo on the midsole. We see a French Blue Jumpman logo on the tongue and the outsole reveals a red carbon fiber plate for maximum performance. While these aren’t likely to be a huge hit on the court, sneakerheads already have their calendars marked to grab their pair.</p><p>With no hard release date set, these are expected to drop alongside other retro models during the fall 2025 season. Quantities could be limited and with how popular these have been in the past, expect these to see a sold-out release once they go live.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Air Jordan 12 ‘French Blue’ releasing 2025

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/wizards-news-bradley-beals-bold-2017-claim-lebron-james');   ga('set', 'title', 'Bradley Beal’s bold 2017 claim will raise LeBron James’ eyebrow');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wizards-news-Bradley-Beals-bold-2017-claim-will-raise-LeBron-James-eyebrow.jpg"></figure><h1>Bradley Beal’s bold 2017 claim will raise LeBron James’ eyebrow</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-08T17:48:18-07:00">October 8th, 5:48pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-08T17:48:18-07:00">October 8th, 5:48pm</time><address><a>Matt De Lima</a>Matt De Lima is an Associate Editor for NFL and college football at ClutchPoints. He has been covering sports for over 12 years at sites like Sports Illustrated, The Game Day, and countless others. Born and raised in California, he is a graduate of Virginia Tech and a diehard Hokies fan who now resides in southern Maryland.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Washington Wizards have had one division title since 1980, which came in the 2017 season. Former <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-news-bradley-beal-sends-plea-ted-leonsis-amid-virginia-relocation-rumors">Washington Wizards star Bradley Beal</a> recollected that season, which saw the Wiz losing in seven games to the Boston Celtics. While on the Run Your Race Podcast, Beal talked about how his Wizards team would’ve <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/celtics/top-stories/bradley-beal-makes-bogus-claim-about-celtics" rel="noopener">proved to be a better matchup</a> against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.</p><p>“The 2017 team. We talk about it all the time. The Cleveland dudes were like ‘y’all lost.’ We felt like we woulda gave them a better matchup than Boston. Cause remember, we took Boston to seven (games) that year. Our team was going crazy.</p><p>“That whole year with the Celtics, from ’16 to ’18, it was like their funeral. We’d wear black suits to the games.”</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Bradley Beal says the 2017 Wizards could’ve beaten the 2017 Cavs and believes they would’ve put up a better fight than the Boston Celtics did that year 👀</p><p>(🎥 <a href="https://twitter.com/TidalLeague?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TidalLeague</a> ) <a href="https://t.co/N9x5kMhj4t">pic.twitter.com/N9x5kMhj4t</a></p><p>— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheDunkCentral/status/1843691790752501846?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 8, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Ultimately, after losing to the Celtics in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, Cleveland beat Boston in five games, and the Golden State Warriors won the title that year in five games.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/suns-news-phoenix-blockbuster-bradley-beal-trade-wizards">Beal was traded to the Phoenix Suns</a> last summer.</p><h2><b>Like the Wizards, Bradley Beal merely exists in the NBA</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wizards-Bradley-Beal-playing-against-the-Celtics-back-in-2017.jpg"><figcaption>© Geoff Burke-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>There’s no denying Bradley Beal’s individual talent. But he floundered on mostly bad Wizards’ teams for a decade. Even during their prime that Beal is happy to discuss, does he have a signature game, moment or season?</p><p>The three-time NBA All-Star has not played more than 60 games since 2018-19 and has missed 150 games over the last five seasons. At his absolute best, he was a good, but never great shooter on good, but never great teams.</p><p>Later in the interview, <a href="https://x.com/ClutchPoints/status/1843693110343413767">Beal says he believes the Phoenix Suns</a> would’ve been the West’s No. 1 seed if he was healthy.</p><p>“I missed 30 games and we won 49 games… If I played half of them games, we are the number 1 seed in the West, or at least competing for the number one seed,” said Beal.</p><p>Beal also said he almost ended up on the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/suns-bradley-beal-drops-khris-middleton-revelation-failed-bucks-trade">Milwaukee Bucks if they had traded Khris Middleton</a>.</p><p>“My transition though to Phoenix was like a complete 360,” Beal said. “First off, Phoenix wasn’t even in the picture for me to go to… [The Heat] didn’t want to do it… [The Bucks], I was like straddling the fence. They were [trying to trade Khris Middleton]. … The loyalty part in that, trading somebody who won y’all a championship the previous year and was a key piece to y’all winning the championship, it didn’t sit right with me.”</p><p>Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Beal will put their best foot forward in Phoenix when their regular season starts on the road against the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday, October 23, at 7:00 p.m. EST.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Bradley Beal’s bold 2017 claim will raise LeBron James’ eyebrow

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/wizards-trade-candidates-entering-2024-25-training-camp');   ga('set', 'title', '3 Wizards trade candidates entering 2024-25 training camp');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/X-Wizards-trade-candidates-entering-2024-25-training-camp.jpg"></figure><h1>3 Wizards trade candidates entering 2024-25 training camp</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-08T06:16:20-07:00">October 8th, 6:16am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-08T06:16:20-07:00">October 8th, 6:16am</time><address><a>Ben Cooper</a>Ben Cooper is a sports journalist that covers key stories around the NBA and NFL for ClutchPoints, where he has worked since 2021. This includes free agency signings, trades, editorials, and opinion articles. Ben is also the Head Writer for LakersAllDayEveryday and an NFL News Writer for NFL Analysis Network.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Mini-Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Washington Wizards are in rebuild mode heading into the 2024-25 season, looking for their young core to grow. The Wizards selected Alex Sarr with the second overall pick in the draft this summer.</p><p>Washington added two more rookies in the first round, selecting Bub Carrington and Kyshawn George. These young players join Bilal Couilibaly as their long-term core. However, the Wizards also have some solid veterans on their roster.</p><p>Kyle Kuzma and Corey Kispert have proven to be solid contributors for Washington. This offseason, Washington <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-rumors-brian-windhorst-lakers-trade-jonas-valanciunas">added Jonas Valanciunas</a> and Malcolm Brogdon as veteran pieces in their rotation.</p><p>Valanciunas inked a three-year $30 million deal with the Wizards this offseason. The 32-year-old big man averaged 12.2 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 2.1 assists with the New Orleans Pelicans in 2023. He shot 55.9 percent from the field and 30.8 percent from three.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-news-malcolm-brogdon-trade-revelation-rebuild">Brogdon was traded to the Wizards</a> this offseason and will be a solid veteran guard. The 31-year-old appeared in 39 games for the Portland Trail Blazers, averaging 15.7 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game. He shot 44 percent from the floor and 41.2 percent from deep.</p><p>Washington’s veteran acquisitions could help them early in the season but be trade assets at the deadline. With that said, here are three Wizards trade candidates entering the 2024-25 training camp.</p><h2><b>Jonas Valanciunas</b></h2><p>Valanciunas is a solid veteran big man who will be a mentor for their rookie Sarr early on. However, with his reasonable contract, many contenders could be interested in acquiring him this season.</p><p>Trade rumors surrounded Valanciunas as soon as the Wizards acquired him. Washington is a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5824442/2024/10/07/bilal-coulibaly-johnny-davis-washington-wizards/" rel="noopener">young and rebuilding team</a> that should take advantage of their veteran role players like Valanciunas for draft capital.</p><h2><b>Malcolm Brogdon</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Malcolm-Brogdon.jpg"><figcaption>Geoff Burke-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Brogdon is another veteran who was just acquired and could be moved. The 31-year-old <a href="https://www.cbssports.com/fantasy/basketball/news/wizards-malcolm-brogdon-out-at-least-one-month/#:~:text=During%20a%20training%20camp%20practice,miss%20at%20least%20a%20month." rel="noopener">has injury concerns</a>, but he’s productive as an efficient scorer, playmaker, and defender. Brogdon’s contract will make it more complicated to get a deal done.</p><p>Brogdon will earn $22.5 million this season but is in the final year of his deal. The 2022-23 Sixth Man of the Year award winner is a productive role player and could be the missing piece for a contender.</p><p>Brogdon is excited to play for Washington, stating “I’ve always had extended family in DC that I’ve had growing up. … “This is like a full-circle moment for me to be able to play for the Wizards. It’s a team I’ve always wanted to put the jersey on for.” While Brogdon is excited to play for Washinton, it makes the most sense for them to move him for draft capital or young talent.</p><h2><b>Kyle Kuzma</b></h2><p>Forward Kyle Kuzma is entering his fourth season with the Washington Wizards. Kuzma appeared in 70 games for Washington in the 2023-24 season, averaging 22.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game. The 29-year-old shot 46.3 percent from the field and 33.6 percent from downtown.</p><p>Kuzma is a quality all-around forward, playing solid defense paired with his scoring punch. He is entering the second year of a four-year $90 million contract. Kuzma is a major candidate for a trade, as he does not fit the timeline of the Wizards’ young core.</p><p>Washington may not be very competitive in the 2024-25 season, but they have tradeable assets. Valanciunas, Brogdon, and Kuzma could all be impactful players on contenders, making the Wizards a major player as a seller.</p><p>Adding draft capital and more young talent around Sarr, Couilibaly, Carrington, and George could set the Wizards up for a bright long-term future.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

3 Wizards trade candidates entering 2024-25 training camp

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/wizards-reveal-intriguing-jordan-pool-plan');   ga('set', 'title', 'Wizards reveal intriguing Jordan Pool plan');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Washington-reveals-intriguing-Jordan-Pool-plan.jpg"></figure><h1>Wizards reveal intriguing Jordan Pool plan</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-05T13:46:44-07:00">October 5th, 1:46pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-05T13:46:44-07:00">October 5th, 1:46pm</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Washington Wizards don’t have their whole rotation squared away yet, but one thing is for certain: this will be the season of “Point Poole.” A relative of the “Poole Party,” moniker, it alludes to the imminent unleashing of <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-news-jordan-poole-challenged-himself-2024-25-season">second-year Wizard Jordan Poole</a>.</p><p>Poole will<a href="https://x.com/bijan_todd/status/1841631785823666671" rel="noopener"> play point guard</a> and handle the ball for Washington, via Monumental Sports Network’s Bijan Todd.</p><p>The Michigan alum struggled out of the gate last season but heated up post-All-Star break after switching to the point and primary ball-handler. Poole averaged 20.9 points on 43.4% shooting with 5.8 assists and 35.9% from deep across 26 contests.</p><p>If<a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nba-odds-jordan-poole-the-slim-betting-favorite-to-win-most-improved-player-over-mikal-bridges"> Poole can match or even improve</a> on those numbers, he could establish himself as a long-term option for the Wizards. However, can he facilitate the offense on a high level across a full season?</p><h2><b>The Wizards are the perfect team for Jordan Poole</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Jordan-Poole-dribbles-basketball.jpg"><figcaption>Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Poole has had a rocky time recently. The Golden State Warriors traded the 2019 first-round pick after Draymond Green punched him in training camp before last season, and got benched after struggling early in Washington. However, he’s in a good position to bounce back due to his positional alignment and having a full year under his belt to adjust to the nation’s capital.</p><p>Fellow veteran Kyle Kuzma <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hza6UFZCCAU&amp;t=573s" rel="noopener">sees a new</a> Poole this year, via Go4itRadio (9:37).</p><figure class="op-interactive"></figure><p>“From last year, to over the summer, to now, I think Jordan is a much different person,” Kuzma said. “I think he’s more relaxed, I think he’s more at home, I think for him, coming to a new situation off the first time of his career was probably really, really hard and a little bit different.”</p><p>Poole went from being a role player on the Warriors’ 2022 championship squad to carrying a struggling team on his shoulders on the opposite side of the country, along with Kuzma.</p><p>“Everybody moves and develops at a different pace, so you gotta give people grace… I love where he’s at from a mentality standpoint,” he continued. “I think that he’s Jordan Poole. I don’t think last year he necessarily was. He was a little bit quiet, a little bit standoffish… I think that I see more of what Jordan Poole is now.”</p><p>Poole is in the second year of his four-year, $128 million rookie extension he signed with Golden State. If the 6-foot-4, 194-pounder excels this year, it’ll be hard for Washington to get rid of him.</p><p>General manager Will Dawkins and the rest of the new-look Wizards front office paired second-year guard Bilal Coulibaly with 2024 draftees Alex Sarr, Bub Carrington, and Kyshawn George to form a promising young core. However, Poole is still young enough to become an upper-echelon player and become a pillar of Washington’s future alongside them.</p><p>This season will go a long way toward determining that fate. However, Poole put up good numbers with a limited supporting cast as point guard last year on a 15-67 team. With the additions of the rookies as well as veterans like Jonas Valanciunas and Malcolm Brogdon, the Milwaukee native should have the necessary floor spacing and catch-and-shoot options surrounding him to excel.</p><p>While Poole is known more for scoring than passing, he could be considered indispensable if he unlocks Sarr’s potential offensively. The No. 2 overall pick shot just 9-of-47 from the field in Summer League, so he could use Poole’s veteran help to get him open looks and improve his confidence on that end of the floor.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Wizards reveal intriguing Jordan Pool plan

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/jonas-valanciunas-net-worth');   ga('set', 'title', 'Jonas Valanciunas’ net worth in 2024');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Jonas-Valanciunas-net-worth-in-2024.jpg"></figure><h1>Jonas Valanciunas’ net worth in 2024</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-04T08:52:32-07:00">October 4th, 8:52am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-04T08:52:32-07:00">October 4th, 8:52am</time><address><a href="https://www.facebook.com/spencersee10" rel="facebook">Spencer See</a>Spencer See is a part-time writer at ClutchPoints focusing on the NBA, evergreen content and celebrity lifestyle. He is also a lifelong fan of LeBron James. In his free time, he either goes fishing or watches basketball.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">Editorials</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Jonas Valanciunas’ net worth in 2024 is $35 million. Valanciunas is a center for the Washington Wizards after they acquired him in a <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/pelicans-extract-value-from-departing-ufa-jonas-valanciunas">sign-and-trade deal with the New Orleans Pelicans</a>. Valanciunas is an NBA All-Rookie Second Team player. Here’s a closer look at Jonas Valanciunas’ net worth in 2024 as he prepares to start his 15th season in the NBA.</p><h2><b>What is Jonas Valanciunas’ net worth in 2024?: $35 million (estimate)</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Jonas-Valanciunas-talks-with-Raptors-players.jpg"><figcaption>John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Jonas Valanciunas’ net worth in 2024 <a href="https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-athletes/nba/jonas-valanciunas-net-worth/" rel="noopener">is $35 million</a>. This is according to reputable outlets such as Celebrity Net Worth.</p><p>Jonas Valanciunas was born on May 6, 1992, in Utena, Lithuania. As early as a teenager, Valanciunas already embarked on a career in basketball.</p><p>Valanciunas’ professional basketball career was started when he was signed by the Lithuanian National Basketball League’s Perlas Vilnius. Here, he developed his skills and potential as a big man during the 2008-09 season. Valanciunas averaged 7.5 points and 3.4 assists per game.</p><p>With Valanciunas flashing his potential, it wasn’t long before Lietuvos rytas Vilnius called him up from Perlas Vilnius. At the same time, Valanciunas inked a long-term contract with Lietuvos rytas Vilnius.</p><p>In the 2010-11 season, Valanciunas averaged 7.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks per game on 71% shooting in his Euroleague season debut for the Lietuvos rytas Vilnius. The Lithuanian center also played for the club in the EuroCup a season later, averaging 10.8 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks per game while making 63% of his shots.</p><h2><b>Jonas Valanciunas is drafted by the Raptors</b></h2><p>After making waves in Europe, Valanciunas was considered a top prospect. He eventually declared for the 2011 NBA Draft. On draft night, the Toronto Raptors selected Valanciunas in the first round with the fifth-overall pick.</p><p>Shortly after, Valanciunas signed a two-year rookie deal worth $6.9 million with the Raptors, according to <a href="https://www.spotrac.com/nba/player/transactions/_/id/8055/jonas-valanciunas" rel="noopener">Spotrac</a>. In his rookie season, the Lithuanian prospect put up 8.9 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game while shooting 56% from the field overall.</p><p>A year later, Valanciunas had a better sophomore season. He improved his numbers to 11.3 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 0.9 blocks per game while hitting 53% from the field overall.</p><p>After three solid seasons with the Raptors, they rewarded Valanciunas with a lucrative four-year contract extension worth $64 million, <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nba/2015/08/20/raptors-sign-7-foot-jonas-valanciunas--64m-extension/32070469/" rel="noopener">according to a report</a> by USA Today. Fresh from a lucrative deal, Valanciunas posted respectable numbers. He tallied 12.8 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game on 57% shooting from the field overall.</p><p>But more importantly, with Valanciunas on the roster, the Raptors became a consistent playoff fixture. In 2016, Valanciunas was part of the Raptors team that made it as deep as the 2016 Eastern Conference Finals before falling to the Cleveland Cavaliers in six games. The Lithuanian center put up 13.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game on 57% shooting from the field.</p><h2><b>Jonas Valanciunas is traded to the Grizzlies</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Jonas-Valanciunas-plays-for-the-Grizzlies.jpg"><figcaption>Kim Klement-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Midway through the 2018-19 season, Valanciunas was part of a blockbuster trade that sent him to the Memphis Grizzlies. In exchange, the Raptors received Marc Gasol, who played an instrumental role in helping Toronto win its franchise’s first NBA championship.</p><p>On the other hand, Valanciunas had a solid stint individually for the rest of the 2018-19 season with the Grizzlies. He tallied a career-high 19.9 points, to go along with 10.7 rebounds and 1.6 rejections per game on 55% shooting from the field.</p><p>After Valanciunas’ deal expired, the Lithuanian big man returned to Memphis on a three-year deal worth $45 million, <a href="https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/sports/nba/grizzlies/2019/06/30/memphis-grizzlies-jonas-valanciunas-nba-free-agency/1612199001/" rel="noopener">as per reports</a>. Valanciunas served as the Grizzlies’ starting center for the next two seasons, averaging a double-double.</p><h2><b>Jonas Valanciunas is traded to the Pelicans</b></h2><p>After more than two seasons in a Grizzlies uniform, they traded Valanciunas to the New Orleans Pelicans in a deal that also involved Steven Adams and Eric Bledsoe. Shortly after, Valanciunas agreed to a two-year deal worth $30 million with the Pelicans, <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/pelicans/news/new-orleans-center-jonas-valanciunas-a-pillar-of-the-pelicans-team" rel="noopener">based on online outlets</a>.</p><p>Valanciunas also served as the Pelicans starting center and does so until today. In 235 games across three seasons thus far, Valanciunas posted 14.6 points, 10.1 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks per game on 55% shooting from the field overall. Moreover, Valanciunas has also helped the Pelicans make two playoff appearances in the span of three seasons.</p><p>Given that Valanciunas is a legitimate starter, it isn’t surprising that the Lithuanian center has garnered some popularity in the NBA. As a result, some well-known brands have decided to partner with the Pelicans center. <a href="https://www.sportskeeda.com/basketball/jonas-valanciunas-net-worth" rel="noopener">According to sources</a>, Valanciunas has endorsed brands such as UBER and Itty Bitty Ballers.</p><h2><b>Jonas Valanciunas representing Lithuania internationally</b></h2><p>Valanciunas has represented the Lithuania national basketball team as early as the youth level. He put up 15.7 points and 10.4 rebounds per game early on, collecting bronze at the 2007 U-16 European Championship and gold medals at the 2007 European Youth Olympic Festival, 2008 U-16 European Championship, 2010 European U-18 Championship, and 2011 U-18 World Cup.</p><p>The Wizards center has also played at the seniors level for Lithuania. He answered the call of duty for Lithuania in five EuroBasket tournaments, collecting silver in 2013 and 2015. In addition to this, Valanciunas also played in Lithuania’s European World Cup qualifying games and Olympic Qualifying Tournament in 2020.</p><p>Valanciunas has also led Lithuania to two Olympic appearances and three FIBA World Cup appearances. In the 2014 FIBA World Cup, Lithuania finished in fourth place allowing them to pocket $350,000 each.</p><p>Five years later, Valanciunas led his home country to a ninth-place finish, raking in $550,000 in additional prize money. Just recently at the 2023 FIBA World Cup, Lithuania finished sixth, collecting $960,000 overall, <a href="https://www.sportingnews.com/in/nba/news/fiba-basketball-world-cup-2023-prize-money/815f902d187159cdb638d653" rel="noopener">as per reports</a>.</p><p>Nevertheless, were you at all stunned by Jonas Valanciunas’ net worth in 2024?</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Jonas Valanciunas’ net worth in 2024

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/wizards-news-washington-adds-familiar-face-front-office');   ga('set', 'title', 'Wizards add familiar face to front office');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Washington-adds-familiar-face-to-front-office.jpg"></figure><h1>Wizards add familiar face to front office</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-02T19:23:16-07:00">October 2nd, 7:23pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-02T19:23:16-07:00">October 2nd, 7:23pm</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Former <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-video-6-foot-guard-ish-smith-gets-the-two-hand-block-on-6-foot-10-cristiano-felicio">Washington Wizards guard Ish Smith</a> is a classic feel-good story. The former Wake Forest alum went undrafted in 2010 before enjoying a 14-year NBA career, and his next stage is a full-circle moment.</p><p>The Wizards hired Smith <a href="https://x.com/JoshuaBRobbins/status/1841531902928232786" rel="noopener">to the front office</a>, via The Athletic’s Josh Robbins.</p><p>“The Washington Wizards have hired former NBA point guard Ish Smith as a pro scout, team officials said,” Robbins reported. “Smith, who had two stints with the Wizards, played for an NBA-record 13 different teams.”</p><p>Smith played in Washington from 2019-21 and then got traded back to the team in 2022 after signing with the Charlotte Hornets. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/nuggets-news-denver-trades-monte-morris-will-barton-to-wizards-for-kentavious-caldwell-pope-ish-smith">Wizards then dealt the journeyman</a> just five months later to the Denver Nuggets, who won the 2023 NBA Finals.</p><p>Smith then returned to the Hornets, playing in 43 games before getting waived on February 8. The North Carolina native averaged 7.1 points, 3.8 assists, and 2.4 rebounds in 19.2 minutes per game across his career. In addition to the aforementioned teams, he played for the Houston Rockets, Memphis Grizzlies, Golden State Warriors, Orlando Magic, Milwaukee Bucks, Phoenix Suns, Oklahoma City Thunder, Philadelphia 76ers, New Orleans Pelicans, and Detroit Pistons.</p><p>What will Smith bring to Washington’s scouting department?</p><h2><b>Ish Smith should be a good talent evaluator for the Wizards</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Former-Wizards-guard-Ish-Smith.jpg"><figcaption>© David Berding-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Smith has a <a href="https://twitter.com/TheMattPetersen/status/1841543647910670494" rel="noopener">sharp basketball mind</a>, via NBA.com’s Matt Petersen.</p><p>“So cool for Ish Smith. Had an absolute gift for identifying brand new teammates’ tendencies during his entire career. That dude is perfect for player evaluation,” Petersen said.</p><p>With Smith’s record-setting journey around the NBA, it’s no wonder how he developed the ability to learn player tendencies on the fly. It takes time to develop chemistry with teammates so the fact that the 36-year-old was productive despite bouncing around so much is a testament to his hoops IQ.</p><p>Smith wasted no time getting started in his new role, <a href="https://twitter.com/ByVarunShankar/status/1841529090974646390" rel="noopener">as he attended</a> Washington’s practice on Wednesday, via The Washington Post’s Varun Shankar.</p><p>Smith, who was a second-team All-ACC honoree with the Demon Deacons, has seen it all in the basketball world. The Wizards, who are focused on acquiring young talent to nourish their rebuild, can only benefit from his knowledge.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Wizards add familiar face to front office

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/wizards-news-kyle-kuzma-reveals-wont-worst-season');   ga('set', 'title', 'Kyle Kuzma reveals what Wizards won’t be ‘worst’ at this season');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Kyle-Kuzma-reveals-what-Washington-wont-be-worst-at-this-season.jpg"></figure><h1>Kyle Kuzma reveals what Wizards won’t be ‘worst’ at this season</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-02T17:35:33-07:00">October 2nd, 5:35pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-02T18:00:08-07:00">October 2nd, 6:00pm</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>The Washington <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-2024-offseason-shape-rebuild">Wizards had one of the busiest offseasons</a> in the NBA this past summer, and Kyle Kuzma is excited. The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-news-washington-stealing-lebron-james-lakers-target-free-agency">signing of 6-foot-11 big man Jonas Valanciunas</a> made him especially giddy.</p><p>Kuzma <a href="https://x.com/chasedcsports/status/1840775322335171000?s=46" rel="noopener">gave a blunt reason</a> as to why, via Monumental Sports Network’s Chase Hughes.</p><p>“That we’re not going to be the worst defensive rebounding team in the league anymore,” the 29-year-old said.</p><p>Washington was actually the seventh-worst team with 31.9 defensive boards per game last season. However, it did finish 29th with 48.5 total rebounds per contest.</p><p>Regardless, Valanciunas adds some much-needed size to the Wizards. The Lithuanian international has averaged 9.5 rebounds per game since entering the league in 2012. Small forward Deni Avdija led Washington with 7.2 boards last year, and he got traded over the summer. With that being said, big man, Marvin Bagley III did average 8.1 over 24 games after the team acquired him from the Detroit Pistons in January.</p><p>While Bagley is serviceable, the arrival of both Valanciunas and second-overall pick Alex Sarr showed that the Wizards’ front office identified size down low as a primary need.</p><p>Kuzma, though, isn’t only excited about one player.</p><h2><b>Kyle Kuzma is loving Wizards’ new era</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Kyle-Kuzma-dribbling.jpg"><figcaption>Reggie Hildred-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Kuzma has only seen losing seasons since getting traded to Washington in 2021. However, the team’s <a href="https://twitter.com/chasedcsports/status/1840779171703738831?s=46" rel="noopener">new acquisitions have energized him</a>, via Hughes.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Kyle Kuzma: “This is the best team I’ve been around in terms of chemistry, camaraderie and character since I’ve been in Washington.” <a href="https://t.co/ARRjwbA1sq">pic.twitter.com/ARRjwbA1sq</a></p><p>— Chase Hughes (@chasedcsports) <a href="https://twitter.com/chasedcsports/status/1840779171703738831?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 30, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“This is the best team I’ve been around from a standpoint of like chemistry, camaraderie, character since I’ve been in Washington. I think everybody here is very similar because we all love basketball,” the 2020 NBA champion said. “I think the young guys that the front office drafted are phenomenal in that aspect.”</p><p>In addition to Sarr, the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-2024-nba-draft-grades-every-pick">Wizards drafted Pittsburgh guard Bub Carrington</a> and traded for Miami guard Kyshawn George in the second round. While Sarr is the headliner, Carrington is a 2024 ACC All-Rookie team honoree and George rose to prominence after filling in for injured teammates in his one-and-done season with the Hurricanes.</p><p>“They fit right in along with everybody from a standpoint of getting along and being a part of something, and the vets that they brought in as well, Malcolm [Brogdon], Jonas, to name a couple, are on that same type of time too. I expect some good vibes this year,” Kuzma continued.</p><p>Kuzma deserved an infusion of talent around him. While the former Los Angeles Laker won a title out west, he didn’t fully blossom until arriving in the nation’s capital, setting career highs with 22.2 points on 46.3% shooting and 4.2 assists per game last season. The 6-foot-9, 221-pounder has three years left on the four-year, $90 million deal he signed with Washington.</p><p>After a tumultuous 15-67 campaign that resulted in <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-news-wes-unseld-jr-fired-head-coach-theres-twist">head coach Wes Unseld Jr.’s firing</a>, it’s no wonder why Kuzma is excited. General Manager Brian Dawkins has pointed the organization in the right direction since taking over in 2023, blending a mix of promising young players and established veterans to surround Kuzma and Jordan Poole, who is a bounce-back candidate after a rocky first year with the club.</p><p>While Washington still has a ways to go before contending, Kuzma can now enjoy being the top player on a team with a cohesive plan moving forward. The Wizards could be a major player in the Eastern Conference by the time his contract expires in 2027, as players like Sarr and Bilal Coulibaly will be entering their primes.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Kyle Kuzma reveals what Wizards won’t be ‘worst’ at this season

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/wizards-news-malcolm-brogdon-trade-revelation-rebuild');   ga('set', 'title', 'Wizards’ Malcolm Brogdon drops future trade revelation amid rebuild');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wizards-news-Malcolm-Brogdon-drops-future-trade-revelation-amid-Washington-rebuild.jpg"></figure><h1>Wizards’ Malcolm Brogdon drops future trade revelation amid rebuild</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-02T15:22:57-07:00">October 2nd, 3:22pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-02T18:16:41-07:00">October 2nd, 6:16pm</time><address><a>Joshua Valdez</a>Joshua Valdez started his journalism career as the Sports Editor for the Rutgers University newspaper before becoming an associate editor and Washington Wizards/Mystics reporter for ClutchPoints. He is a diehard Yankees, Jets, Knicks, Rutgers, and Tottenham Hotspur fan. When Joshua is not either watching a game or writing about one, you can find him in an art-house movie theater or working on a screenplay.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>While the Washington <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/wizards-2024-nba-draft-grades-every-pick">Wizards drafted three rookies</a> over the summer, they also brought in veterans to help guide the young bucks. One of them is 31-year-old guard Malcolm Brogdon, who they got from the Portland Trail Blazers in the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/grading-blazers-trade-malcolm-brogdon-wizards-deni-avdija">Deni Avdija trade</a>.</p><p>Brogdon <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1840815184358576524" rel="noopener">likes what he sees</a> so far in Washington.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Malcom Brogdon admits that he may not be around for the end of the Wizards’ rebuild, but he’s committed to building a winning culture while he’s here <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/wizards?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#wizards</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dc?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#dc</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/nbamediaday?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#nbamediaday</a> <a href="https://t.co/7KzjlKxTNW">pic.twitter.com/7KzjlKxTNW</a></p><p>— Joshua Valdez (@joshvaldez100) <a href="https://twitter.com/joshvaldez100/status/1840815184358576524?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 30, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>“It’s been good signs here of them trying to build culture the right way. That’s the first thing they said to me, ‘We wanna build culture the right way here, you’re a culture guy, we brought you in here to help us do that.’ In my mind, I’m thinking “Alright, I wanna see you guys do your part,’ and they are, they’re doing their part,” Brogdon said. “And that might not be a 50-win, 60-win season right now, you know.”</p><p>Brogdon praised the organization for investing in player development. However, the 2016 second-round pick admitted that he may not be with the Wizards long-term.</p><p>“That’s something they’re trying to get to pay off, this is a long-term process. That’s three, four, five years down the road, we want the habits we’re building today and the money we’re spending today to pay off at that point,” he continued. “I might not even be here to see it but my job is to make sure we’re taking steps this year to plant those seeds.”</p><p>The <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/celtics-news-malcolm-brogdon-wins-sixth-man-of-the-year-award">2023 NBA Sixth Man of the Year</a> is in the last year of his contract, so he could get traded in-season or walk to a playoff contender in free agency. However, he’ll enjoy his time in the nation’s capital for as long as he can.</p><h2><b>Malcolm Brogdon always wanted to play with the Wizards</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wizards-Malcolm-Brogdon.jpg"><figcaption>© Geoff Burke-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>Players don’t always get traded to places they have built-in connections to. Brogdon, <a href="https://twitter.com/chasedcsports/status/1840919100941615536" rel="noopener">though, got lucky,</a> via Monumental Sports Network’s Chase Hughes.</p><p>“I feel like I’m coming back home. I’ve always had extended family in DC that I visited growing up, ended up coming to school here, an hour and a half down the road,” he said. “My wife is from Northern Virginia, so man, this is like a full-circle moment for me to be able to play for the Wizards. It’s a team I’ve always wanted to put the jersey on for. I’m super excited to be here.”</p><p>Brogdon had a prolific career on the Virginia Cavaliers from 2011-16. The two-time ACC Defensive Player of the Year earned numerous honors, including ACC Player of the Year (2016), consensus first-team All-American (2016), Naismith award finalist (2016), and three first-team All-ACC selections. The university retired his No. 15 jersey on February 20, 2017.</p><p>With the DMV area playing such an important role in Brogdon’s life, it makes sense why he’s invested in helping a young team in the early stages of a rebuild. However, the 6-foot-4, 229-pounder is still just as valuable on the court as he is in the locker room.</p><p>Brogdon instantly upgrades Washington’s perimeter defense and shooting, as he’s only a year removed from shooting a career-high 44.4% from deep on the Boston Celtics. Players like Bilal Coulibaly, Alex Sarr, Bub Carrington, and Kyshawn George will all benefit from playing with a reliable “three and D” veteran.</p><p>Whether Brogdon stays for half the season, the whole season, or even re-signs, he has the chance to pay it forward to a city he has a soft spot for.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Washington
Wizards NEWS

Wizards News: Get the latest Washington Wizards news, scores, stats, standings, fantasy games, and more from ClutchPoints.

Latest Wizards News

Wizards’ Kyle Kuzma breaks Ben Simmons’ ankles but airballs 3-point shot

Wizards’ Jordan Poole hypes Kyshawn George, Corey Kispert amid preseason heaters

1 skill Wizards’ Bilal Coulibaly promises he’ll develop

Wizards coach Brian Keefe’s simple 1-word request for Alex Sarr

Air Jordan 12 ‘French Blue’ releasing 2025

Bradley Beal’s bold 2017 claim will raise LeBron James’ eyebrow

3 Wizards trade candidates entering 2024-25 training camp

• Wizards reveal intriguing Jordan Pool plan

• Jonas Valanciunas’ net worth in 2024

• Wizards add familiar face to front office

• Kyle Kuzma reveals what Wizards won’t be ‘worst’ at this season

• Wizards’ Malcolm Brogdon drops future trade revelation amid rebuild

WashingtonWizards NEWS

Wizards News: Get the latest Washington Wizards news, scores, stats, standings, fantasy games, and more from ClutchPoints.

Latest Wizards News

Wizards’ Kyle Kuzma breaks Ben Simmons’ ankles but airballs 3-point shot

Wizards’ Jordan Poole hypes Kyshawn George, Corey Kispert amid preseason heaters

1 skill Wizards’ Bilal Coulibaly promises he’ll develop

Wizards coach Brian Keefe’s simple 1-word request for Alex Sarr

Air Jordan 12 ‘French Blue’ releasing 2025

Bradley Beal’s bold 2017 claim will raise LeBron James’ eyebrow

3 Wizards trade candidates entering 2024-25 training camp

• Wizards reveal intriguing Jordan Pool plan

• Jonas Valanciunas’ net worth in 2024

• Wizards add familiar face to front office

• Kyle Kuzma reveals what Wizards won’t be ‘worst’ at this season

• Wizards’ Malcolm Brogdon drops future trade revelation amid rebuild

Washington
Wizards NEWS