The Washington Wizards created a roster crunch by recently re-signing free agent Anthony Gill. With Gill in the fold, the Wizards have 16 players on standard contracts and 22 on the training camp ledger, which is one more than the NBA allows. Therefore, the Wizards will have to make at least one more move before training camp begins on September 29.
3 Players In Jeopardy As Wizards Must Make At Least 1 More Roster Move Before Training Camp
Washington officially signed Gill on August 7 as the soon-to-be 33-year-old chose the Wizards over overseas opportunities. Gill, who was waived in June before his $2.5 million 2025-26 contract guaranteed, enters the season as the team’s longest tenured player. The six-year pro will see a slight bump in salary to $2.6 million, though the Wizards’ cap hit is only $2.29 million.
Gill has played his entire NBA career with the Wizards. While the 6-7 forward hasn’t been a major part of the Wizards’ rotation, he is a smart, versatile player who is also an established locker room presence. He averaged 2.8 points and 1.3 rebounds with shooting splits of 48.9/32.3/66 in eight minutes of action.
Washington didn’t give Gill a guaranteed deal to waive him during camp. However, the Wizards did ask him to waive his implicit no-trade clause.
Wizards Roster Options
Washington is still trying to find its identity. The Wizards improved their win total from the 2024-25 season by three victories, though they finished 15th in the East and missed the playoffs for the fourth straight season. The Wizards made a plethora of offseason moves to accumulate assets and increase future cap space.
Washington has added eight newcomers to its 2025-26 roster and re-signed a pair of their free agents (Gill, Marvin Bagley III). Six of the newcomers were acquired via trade, with Tre Johnson and Will Riley being first-round draft picks. They also added five future second-round picks.
Washington has a salary cap hit of $154.6 million for the 16 players. That puts the Wizards just $1.5 million over the cap, and $31.7 million below the luxury tax threshold. So, everything is on the table for the Wizards to get to 15 players. They project to be $130 million below the luxury tax next summer, so they could start making their move to become competitive then.
Alex Sarr, Tre Johnson, Bilal Coulibaly, Bub Carrington, AJ Johnson, and Kyshawn George are the building blocks for the Wizards. Corey Kispert, Will Riley, and possibly Cam Whitmore are part of their future plans. Khris Middleton and CJ McCollum are one-year rentals who are NBA trade deadline candidates. Gill and Bagley III project to be safe as they provide frontcourt depth.
Therefore, Dillon Jones, Justin Champagnie, and Malaki Branham are the players likely on the chopping block. All three players are wings, and the Wizards have plenty of them.
Justin Champagnie
Champagnie has three years left on his deal, though none of the seasons are guaranteed. But with the 24-year-old under team control and being very cost-efficient with the cap hit being $8 million, expect him to stick around.
Champagnie is coming off a career season and was part of the Wizards rotation, starting 31 of his 62 appearances. The 6-4 forward can play three positions and is a good shooter. He is also a decent rebounder and defender.
Dillon Jones
Jones was selected with the No. 26 pick in 2024. While the 23-year-old struggled overall, he did show some of his all-around game, averaging 10.7 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 3.3 assists. He had three double-figure games and compiled one double-double.
The athletic and versatile 6-5 forward can guard four positions, including center in a small-ball situation, and is an outstanding rebounder. He does need to improve as a shooter, as he had difficulty in the G-League and during the 2025 summer league play. However, Jones did close out Vegas play strong with a 25-point and 11-rebound double-double while also adding three assists as he made 8 of 13 shots from the field and 2 of 3 from deep.
Washington acquired Jones from the Thunder as a salary dump, as they sent Colby Jones, who had a non-guaranteed deal, to OKC. Jones is under team control through 2027-28, though the next two seasons are team options. He is due $2.7 million this year and $2.8 million next before a big jump in his last season.
Malaki Branham
Branham saw his role and production decrease the past two seasons with San Antonio after a decent rookie campaign in 2022-23. The 22-year-old combo guard averaged 5.0 points and 1.1 rebounds with shooting splits of 45.8/40.5/81.8. He is making $4.9 million this season in the final year of his deal. The Wizards acquired Branham, and since then, waived David Wesley in the Kelly Olynyk trade.
Last Word
Champagnie and Jones appear to have the upper hand here as they are cheap options under team control for the next couple of seasons. While cutting Branham will cost the Wizards twice as much in dead cap space as Jones, they can afford the hit due to their salary situation. Washington does have options.
Washington has filled its three-way spots with second-year pro Tristan Vukcevic, who is a talented 22-year-old and should be in their plans. 2025 second-round pick Jamir Watkins and undrafted rookie Kadary Richmond are the other players on minor league contracts. Watkins struggled offensively during summer league but was a standout on the defensive end. Meanwhile, Richmond saw 37 minutes of action over the final two summer league contests, struggling in both games.
The Wizards also have signed three players to training camp deals. The Wizards agreed to an Exhibit 10 deal with Australian Akoldah Gak a few days ago. Gak finished last season with the G-League Capital City Go after beginning the year with Cairns of the NBL. He averaged 4.7 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.7 assists in 16.8 minutes per game.
Rookies Keshon Gilbert and Jonathan Pierre have also inked Exhibit 10 training camp pacts. Gilbert, undrafted out of Iowa State in 2025, and Pierre, undrafted out of Belmont, struggled this summer, though both players did show some promise.
With Gak, Gilbert, and Pierre likely ticketed for the Go-Gos, the Wizards may waive at least one of the three players before training camp. If they go that route, the Wizards would be at 21 players, meaning that they could keep all 16 players on standard deals. That way, the Wizards could have a real training camp competition.
Photo Credit: Rhona Wise, Imagn Images
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