Washington Wizards NBA Rumors: Brandon Jennings Agrees to Join the Wizards
Looks like the Washington Wizards have finally found a reliable backup point guard to run the offense when John Wall is off the court.
ESPN's Chris Haynes has reported that Brandon Jennings has reached a verbal agreement with the Wizards. He will be joining the team for the rest of season once he clears waivers and becomes a free agent.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, Jennings will travel to Washington on Wednesday to meet with the Wizards and finalize the deal. Wojnarowski also said Jennings has already discussed his potential role in the team with Wizards general manager Ernie Grunfeld and Wall.
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The New York Knicks waived Jennings on Monday and gave his roster spot to guard Chasson Randle. Jennings actually played well as Derrick Rose's backup this season with the Knicks, but Wojnarowski said the team wasn't too fond of him.
"The Knicks' front office and coaching staff hadn't been enamored with Jennings' mindset amid the team's struggles this season, league sources said, and ownership agreed to pay him the balance of the $5 million owed him on his contract this season," Wojnarowski stated in his report.
The Wizards will have to waive a player themselves before they can sign Jennings because they already have 15 players on their roster. The Washington Post said rookie guard/forward Danuel House Jr. is the most likely to be released.
Jennings is a clear upgrade over current backup point guard Trey Burke. He has never been a good shooter, but he is a better ball distributor than Burke and he should address the Wizards problems with their second unit. Burke will be demoted to third-string point guard once Jennings joins the team.
Pundits initially believed that Jennings would sign with the Charlotte Hornets after the Knicks waived him, but the Hornets signed point guard Brianté Weber instead to play behind Kemba Walker.
