NEWSLETTER
We always said Daniel Gafford was a second-round steal, and he is now getting paid like one.
The Washington Wizards agreed on a three-year, $40.2 million rookie-scale extension with the big man before Monday’s deadline last night, per Shams Charania. Gafford is now under contract with the Wizards for five more seasons (still two seasons left on his rookie deal).
Washington Wizards center Daniel Gafford has agreed to a three-year, $40.2 million contract extension, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 19, 2021
The Chicago Bulls traded the organization’s former No. 38 overall pick to the Washington Wizards as part of a three-team deal at last season’s trade deadline. Arturas Kanrisovas and Marc Eversley sent out Gafford, Chandler Hutchison, and Luke Kornet in return for Troy Brown Jr. (Wizards), Javonte Green (Celtics), and Daniel Theis (Celtics). Both Brown and Green currently remain on the Bulls 2021-22 roster.
For Gafford, this is one heck of a pay raise. While the big man proved to be a lob machine and blocking fiend early in his career, proving to be anything more than a sparkplug big man came with its struggles. During his first season under head coach Billy Donovan’s watchful eye, he only averaged 14.6 minutes per game as he popped in and out of the team’s rotation. The lack of a real point guard to pull out Gafford’s strengths on the offensive end was evident, and it sure didn’t help that the 23-year-old had issues staying on the floor due to foul trouble. But the potential for Gafford to be a winning talent and a high-energy role player was always there, and the Washington Wizards showed the league just that when he arrived in March.
Gafford played a pivotal role in the Wizards’ march to the playoffs at the end of last season. Over his 23 games with the organization, he averaged 10.1 points with 5.6 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per night (he ranked 7th in the league in total blocks after the deadline). He not only saw his offensive play improve thanks to the expert play of Russell Westbrook, but he also started to look far more reliable as a rim protector. Now, the Wizards will look for him to play a much-needed starting center role as fifth-year center Thomas Bryant continues to recover from an ACL injury, per Adrian Wojnarowski.
So … how does this move look for the Bulls front office roughly seven months out? Only time will tell. The Bulls could have acquired two reliable role players in Troy Brown Jr. and Javonte Green as part of this Gafford deal, but this season will be the ultimate test. If one thing is for sure, it’s that the Bulls could probably use a player like Gafford right about now. There is no denying the team lacks size in the frontcourt, and while Tony Bradley looks like he could be a cost-effective backup rim protector, the high-flying play of Gafford feels like it would be a great fit for this fast-paced Bulls team.
With that said, all of these moves have a domino effect, and not trading Gafford at the deadline may not have gotten us to the much-improved roster we see today. Not to mention, this money implies that the Wizards view Gafford as their potential center of the future (Bryant and Montrezl Harrell will both be free agents this upcoming offseason). This Bulls’ front office clearly was not as high on the big man’s ability to reach that full-time starter status.
