Los Angeles Clippers general manager Michael Winger has been hired as the new president of Monumental Basketball, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, making him the top executive for the Washington Wizards, the WNBA's Washington Mystics and the G-League's Capital City Go-Go. Winger replaces Tommy Sheppard as the chief basketball decision-maker for the Wizards.
Winger came up in the NBA working under Danny Ferry for the Cleveland Cavaliers, but made his name during a stint as the assistant general manager of the Oklahoma City Thunder. He spent seven years with the Thunder, helping them reach the NBA Finals in 2012 and the Western Conference Finals in 2014 and 2016. In 2017, he joined the Clippers as their general manager, though decision-making power in that front office ultimately resided with president of basketball operations Lawrence Frank.
Now, Winger will be able to run his own team, and he takes over a Wizards team in desperate need of guidance. Washington has missed the playoffs in four of the past five seasons. Two key players, Kyle Kuzma and Kristaps Porzingis, can become unrestricted free agents this offseason, and franchise player Bradley Beal missed 32 games after signing a five-year max contract that included a no-trade clause.
The Wizards have been famously resistant to a true rebuild under new owner Ted Leonsis, and Sheppard was fired in part because of the team's failure to compete over the past several seasons. It is unclear what direction Winger will be allowed to take the Wizards, but the Clippers notably built a Western Conference contender without committing to an aggressive tanking strategy. Whether he has ownership's building to rebuild or not, Winger will have his work cut out for him with a Wizards franchise that has won only four playoff series in the past four decades.
