Since the championship runs by the Nationals, Mystics, and the Capitals in the late 2010s, DC’s major sports teams have struggled to move forward. Every year, we hope one of our beloved hometown teams can rise up and make an exciting playoff run, but that hasn’t happened recently. However, five of our major teams are in unique positions at the moment, making now a great time to examine how they’re doing.
The Washington Wizards continue to be one of the most miserable franchises in the NBA. During this year’s regular season, the Wizards finished second to last in a weak Eastern Conference and were not once a threat to even make the play-in tournament, at 15-67. A lot of this failure can be attributed to swapping out Bradley Beal for Jordan Poole before the season started. Poole is a prolific shooting guard who made a name for himself during the Warriors 2022 championship run, especially during the finals. When he came to Washington, many thought he would take a step up and put up nice volume stats on a bad team. That didn’t happen. Last season, he averaged a mere 17.4 points per game and no one on the Wizards improved from his presence. Poole didn’t become the superstar Washington wanted him to become, struggling with inconsistencies and they suffered greatly for it. The team however holds the number two pick in June 27’s NBA draft, looking to build around Poole and forwards Kyle Kuzma, Corey Kispert, and Deni Avdija.
The Commanders have been pretty bad as of late, but there may be some hope with the drafting of 2023 Heisman winner Jayden Daniels. The former LSU quarterback is a super athletic signal-caller who can make unbelievably accurate throws downfield and can use his legs with ease. Pairing him with franchise cornerstone Terry McLaurin, along with other solid offensive playmakers like Brian Robinson Jr. and Jahan Dotson could make the Commanders offense consistent for once. However, none of this matters because they’re still losing both regular season games to the Eagles next year. Jokes aside, the post-Dan Snyder era is looking somewhat bright for the Commanders, under new owner Josh Harris and company.
The Capitals are easily the best DC team right now, but that really isn’t saying much. They snuck into the playoffs this year, but unfortunately had to face the New York Rangers in the first round. They were swept. Since their Stanley Cup win in 2018, the Caps have been on a downward trend, not making it past the first round once. Alexander Ovechkin is getting old as he chases Wayne Gretzky’s all-time total goal record and the Caps don’t have enough depth to go on without him. The Capitals should look to invest heavily in draft stock for the next couple years if they want to become a yearly contender again.
Since their magical world series run in 2019, the Nationals have struggled to rebuild. They were one of the worst teams in baseball for a few years straight, and most of their star players have been traded. However, they have looked a lot better this year, recently having a win-loss percentage right around .500. Jesse Winker has been a surprisingly decent addition to the Nats offense; star shortstop CJ Abrams has taken a huge step up offensively this year and played like an all-star; Luis Garcia Jr. has also improved with consistency. Their pitching has improved, with a bullpen combining for a 3.75 ERA. Starters Trevor Williams, MacKenzie Gore, and Jake Irvin have all had really strong starts to the season, and closer Kyle Finnegan has looked like one of the best relievers in baseball. Although their playoff chances are slim, the Nationals are looking way better than they did two seasons ago, and DC sports fans should be excited for their future, especially with James Wood, Dylan Crews, and Robert Hassell waiting in the minor leagues.
The Washington Mystics have been off to a slow 0-6 start. This is far from the near .500 team they were last year. However, this is partially due to roster shortcomings, as star guard Britney Sykes is injured and newly drafted forward Aaliyah Edwards is not getting much playing time yet. They should do better once their roster is fully figured out, and they could make the playoffs. That being said, this team is going to need a lot more than what they currently have if they want to regain the heights of their 2019 championship run. Overall, their offense is mediocre at best. If they really want to be a title contender, they should look to add a star offensive threat that can run their offense and make the rest of the team better.
Although these teams are underwhelming at the moment, it will be interesting to see how they progress in the next few years. The Commanders and the Nats have promising futures, while the Wizards, Mystics, and Capitals should start rebuilding soon. All professional sports teams go through rough patches, and it’s important as fans to stick with them during these times. To those who have checked out in recent years, all I can say is if you’re not with us when we’re down, don’t be with us when we’re up.
