The Washington Wizards have officially won the draft lottery, securing the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. Although the Wizards shared the best odds of landing the top pick, it was still a crapshoot at 14.0 percent odds. Now, they'll have the luxury of deciding between three franchise-altering prospects, as a top tier seems to be emerging consisting of BYU's AJ Dybantsa, Kansas' Darryn Peterson, and Duke's Cameron Boozer.
This was a brilliantly executed rebuild by the Wizards' front office. It makes their relatively cheap trade-deadline acquisitions of stars Trae Young and Anthony Davis look even better, as they are now ready to accelerate the rebuilding timeline around a true face of the franchise, like Dybantsa.
But the Wizards actually laid the groundwork for this ideal position in 2024, when they traded rising star Deni Avdija to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Wizards just reaped the rewards of trading Deni Avdija
In a vacuum, Portland absolutely won the trade, stealing away an All-Star on a team-friendly deal for just two first-round picks as the headliner.
But both things can be true: Washington should've received more for Avdija, but they also were right to trade him.
Avdija was just 23 years old when they traded him away, yet Wizards President Michael Winger mentioned that he didn't fit their age curve. He was also adamant that this trade was "not a mistake" despite Avdija's star ascension in Portland.
After seeing how the lottery just played out, it turns out Winger was right.
Wizards suddenly have a higher ceiling than the Blazers
Avdija got Portland back to the postseason, but his arrival was somewhat of a double-edged sword. The Blazers didn't have that star draft pick to rebuild around, particularly after missing on Scoot Henderson. But with Avdija, and to a lesser extent, Toumani Camara in the mix, their young core was suddenly too talented to bottom out for another top draft pick.
As a result, the Blazers' ceiling is relatively limited, as they still search for that missing superstar to become true contenders. As great as Avdija has been in Portland, he's not the 1a option to lead this team to a title, and the quick first-round playoff exit to the San Antonio Spurs should be further confirmation of that.
The Wizards took a more volatile approach, resetting the roster by trading Avdija to increase their chances of winning the lottery. There are multiple ways to go about a rebuild, but I think Washington's approach is generally more effective at raising one's ceiling than Portland's.
The Wizards have been heavily criticized for trading away Avdija, especially after he became an All-Star with the Blazers just two seasons later. But it turns out many were too quick to judge, as the Wizards' long-term plan has yet to play out.
After winning the top pick in what could be a generational draft, the decision to trade Avdija and fully bottom out looks better than ever.
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