Now that the Cleveland Cavaliers have knocked them out of the playoffs for the third consecutive year, the Washington Wizards can begin looking towards next season. At the team's end-of-the-year press conference, Washington GM Ernie Grunfeld laid out his summer plans, and he certainly has his work cut out for him.
Grunfeld's first priority will be retaining the services of both Gilbert Arenas, who's become the face of the franchise in recent years, and unrestricted free agent Antawn Jamison. Arenas is eligible to opt out of the final year of his contract and join Jamison in unrestricted free agency. And Arenas seems intent on following Jamison's lead.
On his blog, Arenas recently declared he would opt out of his contract and not return to the Wizards unless the team re-signs Jamison. For his part, Grunfeld says that's fine with him, because he has every intention of re-signing Jamison. Of course, that will be easier said than done.
Jamison, who led the Wizards in scoring with 21.4 points per game, earned $16.3 million this season. Arenas earned $12.8 million while suffering through a knee injury that limited him to just 13 games played. He attempted to return for the postseason, but his knee wasn't fully recovered, forcing him to watch the end of the series from the sidelines.
Aside from Arenas and Jamison, the only other free agent on the squad is guard Roger Mason Jr, and he's expected to sign elsewhere.
