2. Washington Wizards

There was no shortage of optimism surrounding the Washington Wizards after the team had traded away John Wall in exchange for Russell Westbrook. So far, that hasn’t quite translated to success in the wins department as they have gone 1-5 to start the NBA season.

Despite having the 5th most efficient half-court offense in the NBA, the Wizards still remain at the bottom of the Eastern Conference. The issue has been their genuinely poor defensive execution and it doesn’t appear that will be changing a whole lot in the near future.

It was a real struggle for the Wizards to execute defensively last season and the start to their 2020-21 NBA campaign has been no different. Washington has allowed 113.4 points per 100 possessions through their initial six performances— ranking 25th in the NBA.

Having an impactful rim protector to anchor the unit as a whole goes a long way for a team and the Wizards simply don’t have that. It’s especially valuable when a unit features a player like Westbrook who likes to take aggressive gambles on defense throughout games, too.

There isn’t an answer to the Wizards’ defensive woes on its current roster. That’s simply a fact. Thomas Bryant is an intriguing offensive-oriented big that has developed nicely but he lacks the intangibles to ever be an asset defensively. A trade for a rim protector seems to be the only answer to get this Wizards team to being much closer to league average.