There were no secrets that the Washington Wizards dealt with chemistry issues and locker room dissension. Those hurdles prompted general manager Tommy Sheppard to shake up the roster ahead of Thursday’s NBA trade deadline. One of the players Sheppard traded away was 6-foot-10 shooter Davis Bertans.
Now a member of the Dallas Mavericks, Bertans opened up about what led to Washington’s struggles with chemistry.
“For me personally, you know the rotations of players, multiple players getting limited minutes, it’s tough to have team chemistry when every single day, the team is basically fighting with each other about, ‘I want to get more minutes’ and ‘I want a bigger role,'” Bertans said Saturday, per Hoop District. “That was probably the biggest part of struggles for most guys during the season.”
Bertans’ comment echoes those of Wizards guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Pope said “egos and agendas” plagued the team.
The Wizards started the season with a 10-3 record and were in first place in the Eastern Conference. Their fast start was attributed to a deep roster. However, that early success may have played a role in the team’s division.
Apparently guys wanted more credit towards the culture change. That made it harder for first-time head coach Wes Unseld Jr. to handle and piece together playing time and roles.
The returns of Rui Hachimura and Thomas Bryant in January only added to the issue of dividing playing time. From that point on the season altered for the worse.
Bertans added, “Once you start going downhill, it’s really hard to turn around and start going up again.”
Since Jan. 12, the Wizards are 3-10 following Saturday’s loss to the Sacramento Kings.
The Wizards brought in a whole group of new players this past offseason with a new head coach. The start was great, but over time the mesh wasn’t there.
Rumors swirled about Bradley Beal and Spencer Dinwiddie not getting along. It was evident the two didn’t fit on the floor together. Then there was the halftime fight between teammates Montrezl Harrell and Caldwell-Pope during a Jan. 11 game.
On Thursday, the Wizards traded Bertans and Dinwiddie to the Mavericks for forward Kristaps Porzingis and a future second-round draft pick.
Washington dealt away Harrell to the Charlotte Hornets, as well as Aaron Holiday to the Phoenix Suns. The hope is Sheppard cleared some of the issues from the Wizards’ locker room.
