The Washington Wizards traded their first round pick last year to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for Marcin Gortat. This year, they have the 19th and 49th pick.

While they haven’t worked out many first round projected prospects, they’ve had a number of other young players visit the Verizon Center with hopes of impressing Washington’s front office and coaching staff. During the draft, teams are going to be constantly communicating — some wanting to move up and others looking to deal their pick.

So far, the Wizards have been all over the place in terms of players they’ve worked out. From Jerian Grant, a standout guard from Notre Dame to Satnam Singh, a 7’2″ Indian prospect looking to make history, Ernie Grunfeld has gotten a chance to observe a number of different players before this month’s draft.

On Thursday, the Washington Wizards will host more prospects. That group of players will be headlined by Rashad Vaughn from UNLV and Dez Wells from Maryland:

Rashad Vaughn will be the third first round projected prospect the Washington Wizards have worked out, along with Grant and Delon Wright. All three players are guards.

Vaughn is just 18-years-old, and although he won’t be expected to contribute right away, he possesses a lot of upside.

Vaughn averaged nearly 18 points per game in his lone season with the Rebels and shot over 38 percent from three. The 6’6″ guard has the potential to become a legitimate scoring threat in the NBA.

Given that Washington lacked depth in the back court last season, Vaughn might be able to contribute by giving them a spark off the bench. Since he’s only 18-years-old, I’m not sure that Grunfeld and Co. will pull the trigger, even though he’s undoubtedly one of the most skilled guards in this year’s draft.

A team that has patience and looks to develop his overall game will eventually get rewarded.

On the other hand, Dez Wells is someone that local DMV sports fans should be familiar with.

Wells averaged over 15 points, 5 rebounds and about 3 assists per game with the Terps last season. Washington does need a backup guard, and although he’s not projected to get picked, Wells wouldn’t be considered a reach with Washington’s second round pick.

He shot over 51 percent from three during his last season in Maryland.

Wells grew up with John Wall, so perhaps that will help his chances of rockin’ a Washington Wizards uniform next season.

The NBA Draft is just a few weeks away, so the Washington Wizards don’t have much time in determining their pick. As I’ve said before, the Wizards aren’t just a piece or two away from competing for an NBA championship. They’re missing a stretch four, back court depth and possibly even another big man.

At this point, they should probably take the best player available.