When NBA.com released its annual GM survey, two players in particular were left off the list.

John Wall and Bradley Beal did not get any votes when general managers picked who they thought was the best point guard and shooting guard in the league. Beal hasn’t received any votes in the survey since he entered the league and Wall’s injury last season likely contributed to his exclusion from this year’s list. The Wizards have committed major money to both players and have to be slightly disappointed neither one appeared on the list. Wall and Beal should be upset as well.

After publicly complaining about his contract, Wall got a four-year, $170 million extension last summer. The Wizards took him first overall in the 2010 draft with the expectation he would become the face of the franchise. Wall had everything a franchise wanted. He was a star at Kentucky on the court and he had personality off of it. He singlehandedly made Troop 41 relevant with his dance move at Kentucky’s Big Blue Madness event in 2009. In case you were wondering, they don’t have any other songs.

Wall’s production has matched his lofty draft status since he entered the league. Here’s how Wall ranked among point guards in points and assists per game since entering the league in the seasons he qualified with games.

Season	Wall PPG Rank	Wall APG Rank
2010	6	T-6
2011	6	7
2013	7	2
2014	8	2
2015	8	3
2016	8	2

 

Wall is consistently one of the best-distributing point guards and ranks in the top 10 in scoring, so it is a little odd he didn’t get a single vote for top point guard in the league. His backcourt mate has similar case.

Beal was an inconsistent shooter in college, but he’s become one of the game’s deadliest marksmen in a short time. A 39.3 percent three-point shooter for his career and just 25 years old, Beal still has the potential for improvement. He’s been third among shooting guards in scoring the last two seasons and his three-point percentage ranks are solid given his insane volume. Beal doesn’t have the consistent production Wall does, but he’s got an upside factor Wall doesn’t at this stage in his career.

When Beal signed a five-year, $127 million contract in 2016, the Wizards were banking on some improvement. Maybe being snubbed by the league’s GMs will push Wall and Beal to the next level.

The Wizards have been stuck in neutral despite a high-powered backcourt. Washington has made the playoffs in four of the last five seasons, but failed to make it past the second round.

After matching the Nets’ four-year, $106.5 million offer on Otto Porter Jr., the Wizards have locked their core into long-term contracts worth an insane amount money. They are already capped out next season despite having three expiring contracts worth a combined $26.7 million. To jump into the contention realm in the Eastern conference, Washington will have to rely on internal growth.

Kelly Oubre and Troy Brown should provide plenty of scoring off the bench, but Oubre’s lack of a consistent three-point shot hinders Washington’s ability to play small. If Oubre can become even a serviceable three-point shooter, the Wizards could wreak havoc with Wall and four shooters. Brown is not a good three-point shooter either, but should get opportunities for easy baskets with Beal and Porter drawing the opposition’s best defenders.

Washington finally upgraded from Marcin Gortat, and even though a 32-year old Dwight Howard playing on his fourth team in the last four seasons doesn’t sound like an upgrade, it is.

Asked about his recent travels the past few years, Howard has a ready-made answer: “I learned Magic for eight years. Went to La-La Land. Worked for a while with Rockets. Learned to fly with some Hawks. Got stung by the Hornets. And it all taught me how to be a Wizard.”

— David Aldridge (@daldridgetnt) July 23, 2018

Howard ranked third in defensive rebounding percentage and should boost a Wizards team that finished 21^st in defensive rebounds. Howard is also an above-average defender and should boost Washington’s league-average unit from a season ago. Although he doesn’t space the floor, Howard will provide Wall with an athletic big man who can routinely make plays above the rim. There will be chemistry issues, but Howard’s play on the court boosts the ceiling of this team.

Washington’s three big-money players are good enough together to keep the team in playoff contention. Porter was nine free throws away from joining the 50-40-90 club in 2016. Last year, he was 10 away. In Washington’s five-best two-man lineups that played at least 48 minutes together, Porter was in four of them.

The Wall-Beal, Beal-Porter and Wall-Porter tandems all produced positive net ratings and their three-man unit was one of Washington’s best when accounting for minutes played. If Porter ups his scoring while maintaining his efficiency and Beal takes another step forward, the Wizards won’t need much from their peripheral players to compete.

After failing to back up their public talk of being the best team in the conference over the last few seasons, Washington might finally be a real threat in a LeBron James-less East.