While Christian Wood is coming off an underwhelming season with the Dallas Mavericks, his abilities at the forward-center position still make him an enticing player in this year’s free-agency class. Although he did not enter the league with the most refined game, Wood has developed tremendously as a player throughout his career and has established himself as a premiere stretch-big in the NBA. It’s unlikely that Wood will be returning with the Mavs this offseason, especially after Dallas added big men Richaun Holmes via trade and Dereck Lively II in this year’s NBA draft. While Wood’s market in free agency is still relatively uncertain, the 27-year-old can still find himself in a new role with a contending team and be an X-factor in the frontcourt with his skills.
Christian Wood 2023 NBA Free Agent Profile
Background
After going undrafted in the 2015 NBA Draft, Wood spent much of the following five years bouncing back and forth between the NBA and the G-League. Wood’s career trajectory was not looking too high during those five years. He could not play more than 20 games for any team until the 2019-2020 season with the Detroit Pistons.
In November 2020, Wood caught his first big break in the league. He was signed and traded to a three-year, $41 million contract from the Detroit Pistons to the Houston Rockets. Wood had a breakout season with the Rockets, averaging 21 points and 9.6 rebounds per game in 41 starts.
In June of 2022, Wood was traded to the Dallas Mavericks in hopes of him being a key addition to their already talented roster that made the 2022 Western Conference Finals. However, Wood had a disappointing 2022-2023 season in Dallas. He averaged just 16.6 points and seven rebounds in 26 minutes per game last season with the Mavs. Now, Wood will have a chance to find a new and better fit during this NBA Free Agency period.
Strengths
Wood’s ability to stretch the floor as a big man has been one of his premiere strengths since entering the league. For his career, Wood is shooting 38% from three-point range on 3.5 three-point shot attempts per game. His best three-point shooting season came during the 2021-2022 season with the Rockets, where he shot 39% from three on five attempts per game. His ability to shoot from three, both off the dribble and in catch-and-shoot situations, has helped Wood establish himself as one of the more notable stretch bigs in the league.
Wood’s offensive versatility also serves as one of his main strengths. He has the rare ability of a big man to create a shot from the perimeter. Wood also works well in the pick-and-roll, with his ability to finish well at the rim and pop out for a three. He has also developed his post-up game since he entered the league. Overall, Wood’s large offensive repertoire makes him a viable scoring option on any team.
Wood is also a capable rebounder when he dedicates himself to crashing the boards. Wood has regularly averaged around a 16-17% total rebound rate since entering the league. This ranks him in the 95th percentile among active players. While his rebounding numbers took a dip last season in Dallas, only averaging 7.3 rebounds per game, he averaged closer to 10 rebounds per game in his two prior seasons with the Rockets. While not among the elite rebounders in the league, Wood is still more than capable of averaging close to double-digit rebounds for a season.
Weaknesses
While Wood is known for his offensive prowess in the league, his defensive reputation tends to be more on the negative side of things. Since coming out of college, many people have questioned Wood’s ability to defend opposing bigs in the league. While he has improved a bit defensively since coming into the league, he still struggles at times defending some of the more imposing bigs in the NBA. His frame and lack of agility can sometimes make him a liability when defending bulkier opponents in the post. Throughout his career, Wood is averaging a -0.4 defensive box plus/minus, which ranks him toward the bottom half of the league in that category.
Wood’s shot selection and lack of playmaking can also hinder his overall contribution on offense at times. Since he doesn’t rely too much on his post-game, Wood can sometimes find himself settling too much for jumpers or throwing up wild shots when driving toward the rim. Wood also doesn’t possess too many skills as a playmaker, which has translated into him only averaging 1.5 assists per game in his career. These flaws sometimes cause the offense to stagnate a bit when Wood is on the floor, which has caused him to lose playing time in the past. However, more times than not, Wood is still more of a positive than a negative on the offensive side of the ball when he is on the floor.
Potential Fits for Christian Wood
As the Free Agency negotiating period begins, one team that has been heavily linked to Wood is the Miami Heat. After coming off one of the best playoff runs in their franchise’s history, the Heat are looking to make any potential moves that could give them that extra edge to return to the Finals and become NBA champions once again. With Wood on the market, Miami could be a team that makes a run at the 27-year-old stretch big during this free agency period. Wood could offer the Heat some much-needed shooting at the forward/center position, and he could play well alongside their star center in Bam Adebayo. Overall, signing Wood would be a key addition to Miami’s roster this offseason if they can strike a deal with him.
Another intriguing team that could potentially extend an offer to Wood could be the Los Angeles Lakers. While the Lakers won’t be able to offer Wood the most lucrative contract in free agency, Wood could potentially take a ‘prove-it’ year deal from the Lakers to bolster his market come next year’s free agency. Wood could offer some needed depth in the frontcourt with the Lakers and a reliable floor spacer alongside Anthony Davis. Wood’s defensive liabilities would also be more masked playing for a Lakers team that showed great team defense during the playoffs this past season.
While Wood may not get as large of a contract as he might have hoped for, this could be a great opportunity for him to join a contending team and show off his value once more as a key rotational player, which could eventually allow him to land a bigger contract not too far down the line.
