Wizards Coach Randy Wittman asked around the league and said all he received were “rave reviews.” And two of Morris’s former teammates in Phoenix on Washington’s roster – Marcin Gortat and Jared Dudley – were as effusive. Both assured Wizards brass that Morris simply needed a change of scenery.

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“In my opinion, it was blown out of proportion,” said Gortat, who played with Morris for two seasons — 2011-12 and 2012-13 — in Phoenix. “Listen, this guy is emotional. I’m not saying he’s a quiet kid. Yeah, he’s kind of a spicy kid. Kind of an aggressive kid. From time to time he’s aggressive. But this is what we need. You want to have a good basketball player and you want to have a guy who’s going to go out there and is going to compete. And I think he’s going to be a great addition to this team.

“This guy is going to come face to face with somebody else if somebody is going to foul me or John or anybody else. He’s going to go and challenge a guy face to face. And this is what we need. We need this guy, who’s going to stand up for his teammates and he’s going to fight. I’m quite sure Markieff is going to do that.”

Morris’s stormy year began last April when he and his twin brother Marcus were each charged with two felony aggravated assault counts following an incident at a Phoenix recreation center.

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Three months later, the Suns blindsided the brothers by trading Marcus Morris to the Detroit Pistons to create cap room to sign free-agent center LaMarcus Aldridge, who ultimately joined the San Antonio Spurs, after the twins had agreed to discounted contract extensions to play together the previous September. The brothers, who would’ve been restricted free agents last summer, were given $52 million to split over four years. Markieff Morris, who had his best season as a pro last year, took $32 million. His brother signed for $20 million.

The unexpected move prompted Markieff Morris, who could’ve garnered substantially more than his $8 million annual salary in free agency last summer, to publicly demand a trade and declare his future was not in Phoenix. The outburst resulted in a $10,000 fine from the NBA. The tension bled into the season: He was benched in early December, served a two-game suspension later in the month for tossing a towel at Coach Jeff Hornacek, who has since been fired, and shoved teammate Archie Goodwin during a timeout last week.

“When I was there, he had no problems,” said Dudley, who played with Morris his rookie season. “He had one problem obviously this year when he had the situation where he felt disrespected, felt betrayed. I’m not going to defend him. Some of the stuff he did was unprofessional, but that being said, I guarantee you have no problems with him here. He’s a good friend of mine. His mom lives 35-45 minutes away from here. He’s excited about coming here. I’ve already talked to him.”

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Gortat and Bradley Beal added that Morris will supply toughness and stand up for teammates, something the Wizards have lacked this season. But ultimately he was brought on board because he’s a proven talent who could help the Wizards this season and beyond as part of a potent young nucleus that includes Beal, John Wall, Otto Porter Jr., and Kelly Oubre Jr. while still affording them the cap space to sign a player to a max contract this summer.

Morris will likely start at power forward, which will move Jared Dudley to the second unit. Dudley is a far better three-point shooter, but Morris is a reliable mid-range jump shooter and a better post player who can capitalize more often when teams switch on pick-and-rolls. The Wizards are banking on the Morris that seemed to put his troubles behind him in five games under interim Coach Earl Watson and averaged 20.6 points, 7.6 rebounds and 4.6 assists in 34.9 minutes on 33.3 percent shooting from three-point range and 44.8 percent shooting overall, will also surface in Washington.