NBA franchise story

Washington Wizards

Washington's franchise has crossed names and cities, from the Unseld–Hayes championship Bullets to the electric Arenas teams and the Wall–Beal backcourt.

Every era · The defining players · Five essential games

The franchise timeline

Every era of the Washington Wizards.

Move through the franchise chronologically. The jerseys identify each chapter’s central cast, and every curated card opens the complete story of that era.

Historical reference: Washington Wizards official team history ↗

The beginning

Franchise era

1961–62—1972–73

Wes Unseld

Earl Monroe

Gus Johnson

A traveling franchise finds Unseld

From Chicago to Baltimore

The Packers became the Zephyrs and then the Baltimore Bullets, reaching the 1971 Finals after Unseld's immediate MVP impact.

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Chapter 01

1961–62—1972–73

Franchise era

1973–74—1980–81

Wes Unseld

Elvin Hayes

Bob Dandridge

Unseld and Hayes reach four Finals

The champion Bullets

A veteran, physical core reached three Finals in five seasons and won the 1978 championship.

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Chapter 02

1973–74—1980–81

Franchise era

1981–82—1995–96

Jeff Malone

Bernard King

Manute Bol

Sporadic playoff teams, no lasting core

The long middle

Washington remained competitive at times but won no playoff series as injuries and turnover prevented a full rebuild.

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Chapter 03

1981–82—1995–96

Franchise era

1996–97—2000–01

Chris Webber

Juwan Howard

Rod Strickland

Talent returns briefly

Webber and Howard

A gifted young frontcourt ended the playoff drought, but the organization traded Webber before the group matured.

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Chapter 04

1996–97—2000–01

Franchise era

2001–02—2002–03

Michael Jordan

Jerry Stackhouse

Kwame Brown

A legend fills the arena

Jordan in Washington

Jordan's comeback made Washington must-see television, though neither season ended in the playoffs.

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Chapter 05

2001–02—2002–03

Franchise era

2003–04—2009–10

Gilbert Arenas

Antawn Jamison

Caron Butler

Scoring, personality and a restored rivalry

The Arenas teams

Arenas's fearless shooting led four straight playoff trips before injuries and a locker-room incident ended the era.

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Chapter 06

2003–04—2009–10

Franchise era

2010–11—2018–19

John Wall

Bradley Beal

Otto Porter Jr.

A dynamic backcourt reaches the second round

Wall and Beal

Wall's speed and Beal's shooting produced four playoff appearances and came one game short of the 2017 conference finals.

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Chapter 07

2010–11—2018–19

Franchise era

2019–20—present

Bradley Beal

Kyle Kuzma

Bilal Coulibaly

From Beal's scoring peak to a full rebuild

The overdue reset

After years of trying to compete around Beal, Washington finally moved its veterans and committed to draft development.

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Chapter 08

2019–20—present

Present day

The essential watchlist

Five Washington Wizards games to start with.

Curated from the franchise’s defining eras, championship stakes and the games that still carry its story.

#01 · NBA Finals

Milwaukee Bucks vs Washington Bullets

1971-04-30

#02 · NBA Finals

Washington Bullets vs Seattle SuperSonics

1978-06-07

#03 · Eastern Conference Semifinals

Eastern ConferenceSemifinals

Washington Bullets vs Boston Celtics

1982-05-05

#04 · Eastern Conference First Round

Eastern ConferenceFirst Round

Chicago Bulls vs Washington Wizards

1997-04-30

#05 · Eastern Conference Semifinals

Eastern ConferenceSemifinals

Miami Heat vs Washington Wizards

2005-05-14

Season history

Past seasons

65 seasons · newest first

Game archive

Washington Wizards games

5,488 total · loaded 10 at a time