It is the most pressing question the Washington Wizards face right now, with the first night of the 2026 NBA Draft looming on June 23, just 13 days from now: What are the chances the Wizards will trade down from the No. 1 pick?
It’s such an important question that it was the most widely mentioned topic when I asked readers to submit questions for a Wizards mailbag.
That’s the first topic I address this week. I will get to more of your questions in a future installment.
So, let’s dive in. The usual caveat applies: Questions have been lightly edited for clarity and grammar.
What are the chances the Wizards could extract Ace Bailey and Darryn Peterson for AJ Dybantsa? — Josh K.
On the one hand, trading down in a draft this top-heavy is not insane. But the kinds of things added to sweeten such a deal are things the Wiz already have: future picks/swaps, promising young players with genuine potential and notable veterans. The one thing that would make it work, in my eyes, is a young player who has already proven he is quite likely to be a star (hello, Ace Bailey) — and I cannot see a team offering that. Given this, a trade down is essentially unlikely, correct? Or do you see it differently? — Will L.
Josh: There is only one question! Will the Wizards trade down?!? — William C.
Wizards officials believe that this year’s draft class includes more than one foundational player. Whether the front office puts the total number of foundational players at two, three or four is unclear.
But a team source said the prevailing opinion among team officials is that two prospects have separated themselves from everyone else.
That, in turn, likely negates any scenario in which Washington would entertain offers to move past the No. 2 pick, which is owned by the Utah Jazz.
A primary goal of the Wizards’ multiyear roster teardown (what Wizards general manager Will Dawkins labeled the “deconstruction phase”) was to put the team in a position where it had the opportunity to select a foundational player. Given the enormous sacrifices involved with the team bottoming out in the league standings for three consecutive years, it would make little sense for the Wizards to risk not drafting an upper-tier player now by dropping out of the top two draft spots.
If the Wizards’ opinion matches the apparent consensus among executives and scouts throughout the league, the two most likely players atop the Wizards’ draft board are BYU wing AJ Dybantsa and Kansas guard Darryn Peterson, though not necessarily in that order.
Although the Wizards have a preference at this moment (a preference that they’re not willing to share) and have conducted extensive research on all potential draft targets, team officials might not make a final decision on their preferred draft pick until several days before the draft at the earliest.
In his prior two drafts as the Wizards’ general manager, Dawkins has valued his in-depth conversations with draft targets that have taken place between the draft combine and draft night. His approach is unlikely to change this time.
All of that said, I believe Washington is unlikely to make any trade that would prevent it from drafting its final preferred candidate.
I think a trade with the Jazz would occur only if the Wizards could ensure that their preferred choice would be available at No. 2. Then, such a deal would almost certainly need to have significant additional value attached to the Jazz’s incoming pick, most likely Ace Bailey and some future draft capital. Whether Utah’s front office would be willing to include Bailey in a potential deal pick is an additional question entirely.
So, I think it’s unlikely that the Wizards will trade down. With the draft 13 days away, I expect them to keep the No. 1 pick.
What the playoffs have demonstrated is that to be a perpetual challenger, you need size and athleticism. Given that, why would the GM consider anyone other than Dybantsa? — Anthony S.
I agree with your underlying assumption here, with a slight change: Positional size and athleticism are crucial characteristics of perennial contenders. The Wizards do have many players who have excellent/good positional size, including Alex Sarr, Anthony Davis, Kyshawn George, Bilal Coulibaly and Tre Johnson.
Dybantsa has excellent positional size and athleticism for a wing. At the combine, he measured 6-8 1/2 without shoes and recorded a wingspan of 7-0 1/2, and his scores on the physical tests were excellent. He can also score and create.
But Peterson is no slouch, either. If he projects as a lead guard, then his measurement of 6-4 1/2 without shoes is very good. He also has a 6-9 3/4 wingspan. For comparison’s sake, San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle, who already has established himself as one of the league’s top perimeter defenders, measured 6-5 1/2 without shoes with a 6-9 wingspan at the 2024 NBA Draft Combine.
But if Peterson doesn’t project as a lead guard, then he would not have a positional size advantage.
Darryn Peterson averaged 20.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game at Kansas. (Kirby Lee / Imagn Images)
If the Wiz draft Dybansta, they still have some holes. What position do you think they will address via free agency? — Rob G.
Similar to Rob G’s question, where does the Wizards front office feel it needs to strengthen the team in the offseason? As an example, this past year we witnessed a lack of interior presence and rebounding. You could argue this was by design, but I’d like to know if the front office has designs to address this. — Andrew O.
What are some possible free-agent signings to shore things up? Like, a backup power forward to start when we flip Anthony Davis for a bag of chips? — egwilhelm500
What would you see as the biggest need in free agency? My guess might be another quality big. If so, would KP be a possibility to return? — Noel D.
I feel like the team has so much depth already. Any thoughts on how the team will change in free agency? — Christian G.
Everything I’ve been told indicates the front office intends to add another big who would slot after Sarr and Anthony Davis in the rotation — preferably someone who has the size and heft to match up defensively against physical centers and rebounds well on defense.
Washington ranked 29th during the 2025-26 regular season in defensive-rebounding percentage. A lot of that indeed was by design given the Wizards’ imperative to hold onto their protected first-round pick. Also, Sarr did improve as a defensive rebounder last season, finishing in the 63rd percentile among all bigs in defensive-rebounding percentage, according to the advanced analytics database Cleaning the Glass.
Davis has been an elite defensive rebounder over the last four seasons, so he should help.
But Washington would like to add another big who would slot in the rotation ahead of Tristan Vukčević, who improved his block percentage and physicality last year but still has a ways to go to develop as a defensive rebounder and rim protector.
The Wizards project to have the non-tax midlevel exception at their disposal this offseason, worth approximately $15 million. Perhaps the Phoenix Suns’ Mark Williams would make sense, but because Williams will be a restricted free agent, the Suns will have the right to match any offer he would receive.
Washington also could attempt to trade for a backup big, drawing perhaps from the fringes of its pool of young players.
It’s also not clear to me who will be Washington’s backup point guard behind Trae Young. Bub Carrington seems like the most likely candidate given who is on the roster now and the possibility of the team parting with D’Angelo Russell.
Apart from adding a big and perhaps addressing the depth at point guard, it wouldn’t surprise me if Washington attempts to add another veteran who could serve as a ninth or 10th man on the roster. A bit more experience couldn’t hurt as long as it doesn’t detract from young players’ development curves.
