Ernie Grunfeld was brought to Washington in 2003 to revive a Wizards franchise that had struggled with Michael Jordan’s failed return to the game and even bigger disappointment in the front office.
After building and rebuilding rosters with the New York Knicks and Milwaukee Bucks, Grunfeld made the Wizards competitive and entertaining for four consecutive seasons. But he’s also been at the helm as the franchise has explored new depths of historic disappointment and irrelevance over the past three years. Still, few NBA executives are as connected and experienced as Grunfeld, who’s been tasked by new team owner Ted Leonsis to again embark on constructing a team from the ground up. Has he done enough to earn that chance? The following timeline explores what has worked for Grunfeld, and what hasn’t, during his eight seasons in charge.
Timeline of Grunfeld’s tenure with the Wizards
Summer 2003
Gilbert Arenas signed as a free agent for six years, $63.7 million.
Reasoning » Grunfeld’s first move was to pounce on Arenas, a second-round draft pick who had just been named the NBA’s most improved player.
Verdict » Arenas made himself and the Wizards relevant. In 2005, he earned the first of three consecutive All-Star nods and led the Wizards to the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Summer 2004
The Wizards fifth pick (Devin Harris), Christian Laettner and Jerry Stackhouse were traded to Dallas for Antawn Jamison. They also signed center Brendan Haywood to a contract extension.
Reasoning » Stackhouse was injury-plagued and Jamison had just been named NBA sixth man of the year in his only season in Dallas.
Verdict » Jamison, an All-Star in 2005 and 2008, became Washington’s most consistent player but never developed into a clutch finisher. Stackhouse was a factor in the 2006 NBA Finals but was never a consistent starter again.
Summer 2005
Andray Blatche was drafted in the second round (49th pick). The Wizards traded Kwame Brown and Laron Profit to the L.A. Lakers for Chucky Atkins and Caron Butler. Larry Hughes signed as a free agent with the Cavaliers.
Reasoning » With no first-round pick, Grunfeld chose Blatche, a high school senior who’d expected to go in the lottery. In free agency, the Wizards unloaded former No. 1 pick Brown, Washington’s least-liked and most disappointing player. Grunfeld wasn’t prepared to pay Hughes but gave Butler a five-year, $46 million contract extension before the season.
Verdict » Arenas, Jamison and Butler, the highest-scoring trio of teammates in the NBA, averaged a combined 67.4 points per game. The Wizards made back-to-back playoff appearances for the first time since 1987-88 but drew Cleveland in the first round and lost. Blatche’s career has been defined by lofty expectations, All-Star potential and regular lapses in judgment and consistency.
Summer 2006
Oleksiy Pecherov was drafted in the first round (18th pick) and Vladimir Veremeenko in the second round (48th pick). The Wizards signed Darius Songaila and DeShawn Stevenson as free agents. Grunfeld signed a contract extension.
Reasoning » The Wizards added modestly priced Songaila and Stevenson while punting in the draft with two Europeans who wouldn’t play that season.
Verdict » Haywood and Etan Thomas split the mediocre difference at center. Stevenson started all 82 games, averaging 11.2 points. Songaila wasn’t great, Pecherov was a bust and Veremeenko never put on a Wizards uniform. The Wizards were in first place in the East in January 2007. But with both Arenas and Butler injured, they were swept in the first round of the 2007 playoffs by Cleveland.
Summer 2007
Nick Young was drafted in the first round (16th pick) and Dominic McGuire in the second round (47th pick).
Reasoning » It was easier to focus on bad luck with injuries than a win-loss record that hadn’t improved in three years. Neither Young nor McGuire disrupted the Wizards’ core.
Verdict » For better or worse, Young was mentored by Arenas then thrived when Arenas eventually was traded. Marc Gasol was selected one spot after McGuire, who was eventually traded for a second-round draft pick and salary cap relief.
Summer 2008
JaVale McGee was drafted in the first round (18th pick), and the Wizards’ second-round pick was sold to Boston. Jamison re-signed for four years, $50 million and Arenas for six years, $111 million.
Reasoning » Grunfeld kept the Big Three (Arenas, Jamison and Butler) intact even though it had been two full seasons since they’d played together due mainly to Arenas’ injury absence. Still expected to contend, the Wizards chose a project in the tall, athletic McGee.
Verdict » Arenas had another knee surgery in September, Haywood (wrist) was lost for the year in training camp and coach Eddie Jordan was made the scapegoat, fired after the Wizards’ 1-10 start. As for McGee, it’s taken three seasons for him to develop, and he still may never be a solid NBA starter.
Summer 2009
Pecherov, Songaila, Thomas and a 2009 first-round draft pick was traded to the Timberwolves for Randy Foye and Mike Miller. The Wizards sold their second-round pick to Houston.
Reasoning » With Arenas and Haywood healthy, and at the behest of then-owner Abe Pollin, Grunfeld went all in, hiring Flip Saunders as coach, rolling the dice with an expensive shooter in Miller and a tweener guard in Foye, and again bailing on the draft.
Verdict » Grunfeld ignored that the team he built had been good but not great, even when healthy. He also misread his locker room, where there was terrible chemistry between Arenas and Butler, resulting in struggles well before Arenas’ gun incident. The Wizards could’ve had Stephen Curry in the first round and DeJuan Blair in the second.
Midseason 2009-10
Butler, Haywood and Stevenson were traded to the Mavericks for Drew Gooden, Josh Howard, Quinton Ross and James Singleton. As part of a three-team trade, they traded Gooden to the Clippers and Antawn Jamison to the Cavaliers; Cleveland traded Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Emir Preldzic and a 2010 first-round draft pick to the Wizards; and the Clippers traded Sebastian Telfair to Cleveland and Al Thornton to the Wizards.
Reasoning » In a matter of weeks, Grunfeld expertly found ways to dump tradable veterans and get the Wizards under the salary cap.
Verdict » The Wizards celebrated their financial flexibility but got unlucky when Howard went down with a torn ACL. They set a franchise record with 16 consecutive losses en route to a tie for the fourth-worst record in the NBA.
Summer 2010
Vladimir Veremeenko was traded to Chicago for Kirk Hinrich, Kevin Seraphin and cash. Lazar Hayward and Nemanja Bjelica were traded to Minnesota for Trevor Booker and Hamady N’Diaye. The Wizards drafted John Wall with the first pick. And Quinton Ross was traded to the Nets for Yi Jianlian and cash. They also signed Andray Blatche to a $28 million extension through 2014-15.
Reasoning » Grunfeld stockpiled cash, and the Wizards believed that the backcourt of Wall, Arenas and Hinrich would be one of the best in the NBA.
Verdict » The spirit of Abe Pollin landed Wall, but committing long-term to Blatche was a huge mistake. There was no market for him and Blatche had broken his foot during the summer. Booker was a solid pick but never got a significant chance to prove himself until March. The Wizards frontcourt struggled, Hinrich was never happy, and neither was Arenas.
Midseason 2010-11
Arenas was traded to Orlando for Rashard Lewis. Mike Bibby, Jordan Crawford, Mo Evans and a first-round pick were acquired from Atlanta in exchange for Hinrich and Hilton Armstrong. Bibby and Thornton were bought out.
Reasoning » Grunfeld finally completed the demolition, shipping Arenas to Orlando and saving the Wizards at least $24 million. The Hawks needed an upgrade at point guard but had to give up Crawford to get one.
Verdict » The Arenas/Lewis swap was a gift from Magic general manager Otis Smith, Arenas’ friend and mentor. Crawford and Evans both helped the Wizards, who also gained another first-round pick in 2011, making it easy to forget that only 18 months prior, Grunfeld had expected to finish in the East’s top four.
Final verdict
Grunfeld’s tenure will always be linked to Arenas, who grew into a superstar but also carried too much of the franchise’s fortunes because of Grunfeld’s commitment to him.
Grunfeld built the Wizards into a contender, but he took too long to recognize the limits of the Big Three — Washington won only one playoff series with Arenas — and didn’t use the draft effectively to prevent the bottom from falling out.
Although he eventually dismantled the team with surgical precision, luck was responsible for John Wall, and regardless of a lockout or not, the Wizards will need as much good fortune as good strategy to return to relevance again.
