Re-Grading Every NBA Team's 2023 Free-Agent Pickups So Far | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors
William Harris Free-Agent Additions: Jared Butler (two-way), Eugene Omoruyi (two-way)
We close with another team whose roster-reshaping focused much more on trades and the draft than free agency.
The Washington Wizards finally blew up a roster that wasn't bad enough to secure high draft picks and wasn't good enough to pose a playoff threat, trading away Bradley Beal and Kristaps Porziņģis as part of a long-overdue rebuild.
Chris Paul was in town for about a half-second—he was key matching salary in the blockbuster that sent Beal to the Phoenix Suns—but the Golden State Warriors swooped in and sent Jordan Poole, Patrick Baldwin Jr. and Ryan Rollins to the Wiz for CP3. Porzingis wound up in Boston, replaced by former Memphis Grizzlies point guard Tyus Jones via a complicated three-way deal.
It's safe to say Jared Butler and Eugene Omoruyi, the Wizards' two outside signings, didn't recognize the place when they showed up.
Butler has appeared in seven games, while Omoruyi has seen the floor in 11. Both are averaging single-digit points, though Omoruyi, a burly 26-year-old forward known for his rebounding and physicality, has shot the ball much better. His per-36-minute projections—30.2 points, 10.1 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.4 steals—are interesting but certainly not representative of the production Washington would get if Omoruyi actually had a major role.
Butler is younger at 23 and was viewed as an intriguing hybrid guard prospect when the Jazz took him out of Baylor in 2021. He might have greater upside than Omoruyi, but he hasn't had as much of a chance to prove it.
Grant Hughes covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter (@gt_hughes), and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, where he appears with Bleacher Report's Dan Favale.