Washington Wizards Clarify Stance On Kyle Kuzma's Future

Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma is one of the hottest trade names among NBA forums and message board after garnering interest from a ton of teams in the offseason, however management is not entirely keen on letting him walk.

In a report by Shams Charania of The Athletic, Wizards general manager Tommy Sheppard "has made clear that it views Kuzma as a cornerstone moving forward as the franchise has seen him thrive since the mega-trade in the 2021 offseason."

Kuzma found himself in Washington after the organization decided to pull the trigger on the Los Angeles Lakers' massive package that they sent to acquire Russell Westbrook.

"We've had great respect for Kyle since he's been in the league... [W]hen the trade happened, it allowed Kyle an opportunity to join our program, have a bigger role, start for us, and he has been outstanding. Kyle has such a great personality and demeanor, and he has so much more room to grow in the future for us. We're really excited for his future growth here," Sheppard told The Athletic.

The interest surrounding Kuzma is surely intriguing as his three-year, $39 million deal could be prematurely put to an end by the player as it contains a player option that he can exercise in the summer.

It would be an understandable decision for Kuzma as he has made himself an extremely desirable asset for teams in need of a versatile power forward.

According to rival executives that Charania had been in contact with, they expect Kuzma's next deal to make him around $20 million to $25 million per year.

Kuzma revealed that he had given the Lakers a "hometown discount" and will surely want to ask for money this time around which he definitely deserves.

The Wizards may be 11-13 to start the season, but it does not fully indicate how far this team can actually go if their core remains healthy.

Bradley Beal had just been declared out for at least a week due to a hamstring strain while fans are already anxiously waiting for Kuzma or Kristaps Porzingis to be declared with injury at some point.

It is worth noting that Porzingis has been fairly durable thus far into the season, and many are surprised about it since he has been known to be fragile at times.

However, he is playing like an All-Star this season and Washington fans could not be any happier.

Based on Sheppard's comments keeping Kuzma, Beal and Porzingis together is a priority for the front office and it would seem to be the right call–though the only thing separating them from being postseason contenders is a solid point guard.

Monte Morris has done a fine job so far, but if they could snatch someone up in the buyout or trade market, the Wizards have a very solid team.

Sheppard looks like he knows what he is doing, and it is very likely that they will be buyers rather than sellers of talent this season.