Wes Unseld Jr. is excited about the talent he’ll have available with the Wizards in his first NBA head coaching job, writes Fred Katz of The Athletic. Although the former Nuggets associate head coach is leaving the No. 3 seed in the West for a team that had to go through the play-in tournament last season, Unseld believes Washington is ready to compete right away.
He’s particularly thrilled about the addition of guard Spencer Dinwiddie, who agreed to a three-year, $62MM contract in free agency and was acquired in a complex five-team trade. Dinwiddie was a proficient scorer before missing most of last season with a partially torn ACL, and Unseld expects him and Bradley Beal to form a dangerous backcourt.
“On paper, it’s one of the most dynamic 1-2s, 2-1s, however you wanna call it, on the East Coast,” he said. “So, I’m excited to have both those guys. I think they’re about the right thing. I think they’re gonna play together, make us better. Honestly, the way they can score the ball, they’re gonna bail us out of a lot of tough spots.”
Unseld discusses several other topics in the lengthy interview with Katz:
On the versatility of Kyle Kuzma, who was acquired from the Lakers in the deal that included Dinwiddie:
“Whether you wanna call him a two, three or four, he’s gonna be out there. He’s gonna space the floor. He’s gonna make shots. I think the game has moved away from the standard point guard, two-guard, small forward, etc. I think you wanna put your best matchups out there.”
On sorting out playing time at center, where Daniel Gafford is expected to start, but Thomas Bryant will return from an ACL injury and newly-acquired Montrezl Harrell will also expect minutes:
“I made this point to those guys when I spoke to them. All of that is great, but all of our decisions are gonna be based on what’s best for the group. I may at times ask somebody to sacrifice a little bit for the betterment of the group. There’s times when I may ask (them) to do more. And I think that’s a fair way to look at it, and I think it’s just one of our pillars. It’s about us. It’s about ‘we,’ not ‘me.’ ”
On the plans for first-round pick Corey Kispert, who joins a team loaded with young wing players:
“I don’t know. I never wanna paint myself into a corner, commit to something I’m uncertain of, but I think he has a good chance to be impactful. I said at draft night, he’s got a discernible NBA talent. His maturity, the fact that he’s played four years at a high level for a great coach — he’s disciplined. He understands his strengths. He’s gonna play to his strengths. And his ability to stretch the defense is a premium in the league.”
On the significant changes the Wizards have undergone since the draft:
“On a macro level, (changes to the team) don’t change our overall philosophy when it comes to spacing, playing with pace, shots, as far as what we value. That doesn’t change. I think you’ve got to shift your gears as far as some of the nuanced things you run. … I think as coaches, we all steal from each other, so there are gonna be some things that are very similar-looking to what you’re accustomed to.”
Warriors take Moody at 14
Moody
Age 19.2
3pt 36%
Kispert 15th pick
Age 22.5
3pt 44%
Moody has more trade value, but Kispert is better now
For a team in win-now mode taking Kispert would’ve made more sense.
But at least the Warriors will have some young talent for their re-build.
The Warriors are in wish-now mode. Wishing on Thompson to return to form before age hits him, Curry and Green.
The Wizards hopes lie on Rui and Deni remembering they were drafted in the top 10.
rui was decent tho?
In the second half when Westbrook lit a match on his rear.
The Wizards are probably still battling for the 7-10 seed in an improved East…but I do think they have improved. And more important relieved themselves of Westbrook’s contract without having to give up picks, and still added some nice assets on top of it.
I mean, it ain’t looking great for WAS, clearly everyone can see that Dimwiddie is a massive, very massive downgrade on Russ… so I don’t see how they can compete right now when they couldn’t with the far superior player, that on top of that he willed all by himself the team into the play-in games, let’s not make a mistake about that!
Russ is a tough act to follow. Dinwiddie wanted WAS pretty quickly after Russ was traded but I have never been as sure of the job opening.
There is something there worth putting together though and that would be Din’s advantage over Westbrook. Like D-NBA indicated, Rui is probably subject to motivation, probably Bertans too, most players are to some degree, so that will matter.