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The Wizards have had rumored interest in a number of guards in free agency to fill their combo-guard role off the bench, and according to Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski, have finally landed one in Gary Neal.
Free agent guard Gary Neal has agreed to a one-year, $2.1M deal with Washington, league source tells Yahoo.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) July 3, 2015
Washington uses its bi-annual exception on Neal, holding onto its full mid-level exception to offer West.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) July 3, 2015
Neal wanted the flexibility of a short deal combined with the chance to play back home (Baltimore) with Wall and Beal.
— David Aldridge (@daldridgetnt) July 3, 2015
Neal last played for the Minnesota Timberwolves this past season after being dealt at the trade deadline in February. This isn't a flashy signing by any means, but unlike Rodney Stuckey, who has been linked to the Wizards a number of times since the start of free agency, or even Ramon Sessions, Neal can actually provide the requisite spacing needed for those dual point guard lineups Randy Wittman has often gone to with John Wall at the end of quarters.
That will be key moving forward IF Neal's upcoming year with the Wizards looks more like his past seasons with the Spurs or most recently, his 11-game stretch to closeout last season where he raised his three-point shooting to a more respectable 36 percent after struggling in Charlotte. He's a streaky shooter with a questionable shot selection, but that sort of punch off the bench is what this team has lacked over the past few years.