The Washington Wizards announced its first NBA pre-draft workout on Friday, as the draft is less than three weeks away. March Madness star Markquis Nowell headlines the group of players working out for the Wizards.
Nowell is a 5-foot-8 point guard that rose to stardom last season at Kansas State. After averaging 14.8 points and 5.8 assists in three seasons at Little Rock, Nowell transferred to K-State in 2021. But last season, he took off, averaging 17.6 points and 8.3 assists in 36 games.
Markquis Nowell led the Wildcats to a 26-10 record and a third-place finish in the Big 12 standings. Nowell was named first-team All-Big 12, the conference’s All-Defensive Team, and received the Bob Cousy Award for the nation’s most outstanding point guard. He was named third-team All-American as well.
In the NCAA Tournament, Nowell guided Kansas State to an Elite Eight appearance before bowing out of the tournament to Florida Atlantic. But, Nowell left a lasting impression in a Sweet 16 in his hometown of New York City at the Madison Garden. He dropped an NCAA Tournament single-game record 19 assists in a win over Michigan State to go along with 20 points.
His height and age of 23 may be roadblocks in his NBA evaluation. Nowell expects to get drafted late in the second round or become a Summer League invite. Coincidentally, the Wizards have two second-round draft picks — 42nd overall and 57th overall.
Washington is undergoing a front office shakeup. Last week, owner Ted Leonsis hired former Los Angeles Clippers general manager Michael Winger as President of Monumental Basketball after firing the president of basketball operations and general manager Tommy Sheppard in April. In his duties, Winger will broadly oversee the Wizards and its G-League affiliate, the Capital City Go-Go.
The Wizards have hired former Atlanta Hawks president of basketball operations Travis Schlenk to the front office. The team will also add a general manager to handle the day-to-day operations of the Wizards.
With the draft vastly approaching, it’s unclear how deep into the evaluations the Wizards’ front office is with a changing of the guard.
Additionally, the Wizards will work out LSU forward KJ Williams, South Alabama guard Isaiah Moore, Marshall guard Taevion Kinsey, Missouri guard D’Moi Hodge, and Providence forward Ed Crosswell.
The names on the list outside of Norwell may not be noteworthy to some fans, but the process allows the Wizards to evaluate for the second round, Summer League, and fill out their Go-Go roster.
Whether it’s a retool or rebuild, Washington appears to be restructuring the organization’s direction through the new front office. Given the track record of Winger and Schlenk, the upcoming workouts shouldn’t be taken lightly, and Nowell is a name to follow throughout the process with the Wizards.
