The Washington Wizards went into training camp with 15 guaranteed contracts and brought in another five talented players to fill out the allowed 20 man squad. Today when the team was forced to trim their roster down to the max 15 man rotation ahead of the season opener on Wednesday, all five of the training camp invites, center Josh Harrellson, guard Jaron Johnson, guard Toure Murry, center Jaleel Roberts, and guard Ish Smith, were waived.
Washington had real talent in the five players they brought in and are going to hate letting them go back in the market without the lure of a developmental league team.
Harrellson, a former teammate of John Wall at Kentucky, showed off his stretch five capabilities by consistently hitting from beyond the arc. The big man totaled 27 points and 12 rebounds in 51 minutes of play during the preseason, but nothing close to what the Wizards would have needed to move a big such as DeJuan Blair.
Another big man, Jaleel Roberts was another interesting prospect for the Wizards because of his height at 7′ 1” and incredible length. Because of the benefits the Miami Heat are now reaping from the Hassan Whiteside project, the Wizards would love to keep the UNC Asheville product on the roster but he is in a similar position as Harrellson. Roberts only saw 21 minutes of action in the Wizards preseason and scored 10 points while grabbing three rebounds.
Ish Smith, who has significant playing experience in the NBA would likely have made the team as a point guard if not for Ramon Session‘s presence. Smith can run the high tempo offense Washington is transitioning to and recorded 20 assists in just 57 minutes of play during the preseason. It would not be a surprise if Smith finds himself back in the league at some point during the season.
Jaron Johnson and Toure Murry were both long shots at making the roster. Johnson had a couple of highlight reel dunks during the preseason but saw only 28 minutes of action. Murry just had 30 minutes of preseason action to put his skills on tape and just found himself way too far down the pecking order at point guard.
None of these moves surprise anyone as it was unlikely that the Wizards were going to create a roster spot, the main reason why former Terps star Dez Wells refused a training camp invite.
Heading into the season opener against the Magic on Wednesday, you can expect the Washington Wizards line up to stack up like the following:
- PG: John Wall, Ramon Sessions
- SG: Bradley Beal, Gary Neal, Garrett Temple
- SF: Otto Porter, Kelly Oubre, Alan Anderson, Martell Webster
- PF: Kris Humphries, Jared Dudley, Drew Gooden
- C: Marcin Gortat, Nene, DeJuan Blair
Expect Alan Anderson and even possibly Martell Webster to see more playing time than raw rookie Kelly Oubre Jr. once they return from their ankle and hip injuries, respectively.
