Mar 7, 2015; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Bucks center Zaza Pachulia (27) reacts after being charged with a foul as Washington Wizards center Marcin Gortat (4) warches in the second quarter at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

The Washington Wizards were reportedly in talks with Zaza Pachulia, but opted to sign Ian Mahinmi to a long-term deal instead

The Washington Wizards entered this summer with a plan: attempt to sign a star after agreeing to a deal with Bradley Beal or improve the depth of the roster by signing bench pieces.

After coming super close to landing Al Horford, who chose the Boston Celtics instead, the Wizards turned their attention to the second option.

The likes of Nicolas Batum and Ryan Anderson were already off the board, and the Wizards seemed reluctant to spent max money on a player of that caliber.

Washington then decided to pursue players that could strengthen their bench; a weakness that hurt their chances of making the NBA Playoffs this past season.

Soon after it was reported that Horford picked Boston over Washington, Grunfeld signed former Indiana Pacers starting center Ian Mahinmi to a four-year deal worth $64 million.

That total, at first glance, is certainly eyeopening.

Mahinmi – a player who’s been considered a backup for most of his career – got paid more money than Marcin Gortat, who’s a better all around center.

Plenty of people then began to wonder whether the Washington Wizards could have went a different route. There were big men available, but it seemed like Washington zeroed in on Mahinmi the second Horford went off the board.

As it turns out, they did have other options and had discussions with Zaza Pachulia, according to CSN Mid-Atlantic.

The Wizards could’ve had Zaza Pachulia, CSN has confirmed with multiple league sources, for less (two years, $20 million) but went with Mahinmi instead.

Pachulia would have reportedly made $10 million annually for two seasons in Washington. Given the rise in salary cap, that was probably the more financially savvy move by the Wizards.

So, why didn’t they make it?

Mahinmi was a top defensive center this past season. In fact, he posted a top-10 defensive rating, higher than Draymond Green, Paul George and Bismack Biyombo.

Pachulia, a solid defender himself, isn’t much of an anchor inside.

Mahinmi won’t reject many shots, but he does a great job of altering them in the paint and keeping a base against bigs that play with their backs to the basket.

Pachulia is one of those players that teams love to have on their side but hate playing against.

He gets by with scrappy defense and hustle.

Washington needed more than that, and decided to go with the more expensive Mahinmi.

Pachulia ended up signing a one-year deal for $3 million to chance a championship with the Golden State Warriors. He will likely replace the ousted Andrew Bogut as their starting center.

It’s also important to note the age difference. Pachulia is three years older than the 29-year-old Mahinmi. Their potential value on the trade market in the future was also likely taken into consideration.

If someone like DeMarcus Cousins, for instance, becomes available, the Sacramento Kings would probably find Mahinmi – a capable starting center under a long-term deal – more appealing than Pachulia.

Now, the deal for Mahinmi will continue to get criticized and I’m certain fans will bring up the Pachulia situation during the season. It will be interesting to see if the Washington Wizards made the right decision to pay Mahinmi instead of Pachulia.