The Washington Wizards have reached a point in their rebuild where they can afford to be selective, and the latest trade around AJ Johnson is a reminder of how far that process has come.
New Orleans is sending Jordan Hawkins, Micah Peavy, a future second-round pick and a future second-round pick swap to the Memphis Grizzlies for Johnson and Taj Gibson, according to ESPN. For a team still collecting young talent and draft capital, it was the kind of deal Washington might have entertained in a different stage of its rebuild. Instead, the Wizards can afford to watch it from the side.
That’s the key difference now. Washington has already spent years stockpiling picks and taking swings on young players, and the front office has been called on to evaluate talent more than almost anyone else over the last four draft cycles. The result is a roster and asset base that gives the Wizards room to pass on marginal bets like Hawkins, even if those kinds of moves once fit the franchise’s exact profile.
Johnson’s path has been a winding one already. Drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks in 2024, he eventually landed in Washington in the middle of the 2024-25 season as part of the deal that also brought Khris Middleton and helped move Kyle Kuzma along. He was picked after Alex Sarr and Bub Carrington and one spot ahead of Kyshawn George, then got 22 games and a 27 minute-per-night role with that group.
There were flashes of why teams keep betting on him. Johnson’s athleticism gave Washington’s transition game a little extra juice.
But the same problems kept showing up once the pace slowed down. He never found a dependable handle, and the outside shot didn’t come around enough to make him a real half-court threat.
That led to a quick slide. Johnson was buried in the Wizards’ rotation early in his second season, making only 25 appearances before February, and then he was included in the Anthony Davis trade. His stint with the Dallas Mavericks was more of the same: 3.9 points on 32.3% shooting from the field, numbers that closely tracked his career line of 4.9 points and 35.7% shooting.
Now Johnson is headed to New Orleans, where he’ll join Jordan Poole, another former Wizard. Memphis, meanwhile, picks up some future second-round value as it looks to deepen its prospect pool. And Washington, with a fuller pipeline of young contributors and the recent addition of Tre Mann, can keep moving forward without having to chase every flyer that comes along.
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Tristan Vukcevic Faces A Make Or Break Wizards Season
Tristan Vukcevic enters this season in a tricky spot with the Wizards, a young big man who has already logged 94 NBA games while bouncing between Washington and the G League on a two-way deal. The recent contract extension signals the organization still sees something worth developing, especially on the offensive end, where his skill set stands out for a player his size.
The problem is the roster around him is changing fast, and the path to steady minutes is getting tighter. Vukcevic has to prove he can carve out a role in a more crowded rotation, and the questions around his fit are still very real as Washington keeps reshaping the group around him. [Read more 🡒]