March 27, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Washington Wizards center JJ Hickson (21) moves the ball against Los Angeles Lakers forward Larry Nance Jr. (7) during the second half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Washington Wizards: Catching Up With The Rebuild Crew (Blatche, McGee, Nick Young) by Ben Mehic

Washington Wizards will decide not to re-sign J.J. Hickson, who’s likely headed to play basketball overseas in China.

The Washington Wizards botched summer ’15 and did their best to salvage the season by adding some players mid-season. J.J. Hickson, who was waived by the Denver Nuggets after the trade deadline, was a part of the last ditch effort to save the season.

Ernie Grunfeld failed to acquire any athletic big men during the off-season, instead relying on veterans. Unfortunately, when most of your roster is comprised of broken down vets, things are eventually going to fall apart.

When Nene inevitably got hurt and the other bigs – Kris Humphries, DeJuan Blair and Drew Gooden – became unplayable, Grunfeld reached out to Hickson.

Hickson had fallen out of the Nuggets’ rotation and the team decided to part ways with him after they couldn’t find a deal for him during the deadline.

Washington took the “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure approach” and added Hickson with hopes of him giving them a spark before the season ended.

The 27-year-old surprisingly did a solid job in Washington, posting 19 points and 12 rebounds per-36 minutes.

Out of almost every player that became a free agent this summer, it seemed like Hickson had the best chance of realistically returning to Washington.

He’s a high-energy big man, runs the floor well and executes the pick-and-roll in the half-court.

As a third or fourth big man, most teams could do a lot worse than Hickson.

To my surprise, Hickson went unsigned this summer.

The Wizards quickly filled up their frontcourt by signing Ian Mahinmi, Andrew Nicholson and Jason Smith, giving them five big men on the roster.

At that point, re-signing Hickson, even to a league minimum deal, didn’t make sense.

Right now, it looks like the former highly-touted prospect will head overseas to play in China, according to David Pick.

J.J. Hickson, last with Nuggets and Wizards, negotiating a deal in China, according to source. — David Pick (@IAmDPick) August 19, 2016

Most players that typically sign deals in China have an NBA-out in their contract – meaning, if a an NBA team expresses interest and wants to bring them back, they can leave their respective team in the Chinese Basketball Association.

The CBA season ends shortly before the NBA Playoffs begin, so players can also return if a team wants to bolster their bench before the postseason. The Washington Wizards added Will Bynum two years ago shortly after his season ended in China.

Hickson’s inability to score outside of the paint and suspect defense probably scared some teams away from signing him this summer. He should put up monster numbers in China and will likely make more money than he would have in the NBA this season.

As long as he stays healthy, I would be surprised if we don’t see Hickson in the big league in 2017. He’s capable of contributing on a winning team. His short stint in Washington certainly didn’t hurt his chances.