Washington Wizards
The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games at Capital One Arena, in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. an arena they share with the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the Georgetown University men's basketball team.
| Washington Wizards | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023–24 Washington Wizards season | ||||
| Conference | Eastern | |||
| Division | Southeast | |||
| Founded | 1961 | |||
| History | Chicago Packers 1961–1962 Chicago Zephyrs 1962–1963 Baltimore Bullets 1963–1973 Capital Bullets 1973–1974 Washington Bullets 1974–1997 Washington Wizards 1997–present | |||
| Arena | Capital One Arena | |||
| Location | Washington, D.C. | |||
| Team colors | Navy blue, red, silver, white | |||
| Main sponsor | Robinhood | |||
| President | Michael Winger | |||
| General manager | Will Dawkins | |||
| Head coach | Brian Keefe | |||
| Ownership | Monumental Sports & Entertainment (Ted Leonsis, Chairman/CEO) | |||
| Affiliation(s) | Capital City Go-Go | |||
| Championships | 1 (1978) | |||
| Conference titles | 4 (1971, 1975, 1978, 1979) | |||
| Division titles | 8 (1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1979, 2017) | |||
| Retired numbers | 5 (10, 11, 25, 41, 45) | |||
| Website | www | |||
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The franchise was established in 1961 as the Chicago Packers in Chicago, Illinois; they were renamed the Chicago Zephyrs in the following season. In 1963, they moved to Baltimore, Maryland, and became the Baltimore Bullets, taking the name from a previous team of the same name. In 1973, the team moved to the Washington metropolitan area and changed its name first to the Capital Bullets, then the following season to Washington Bullets. In 1997, they rebranded themselves as the Wizards.
The Wizards have played in four NBA Finals; they won in 1978. They have appeared in 28 playoffs, won four conference titles (1971, 1975, 1978, 1979), and won eight division titles (1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1979, 2017). Their best season record, in 1975, was 60–22. Wes Unseld is the only player in franchise history to be named NBA MVP (1969) and Finals MVP (1978). Four players (Walt Bellamy, Terry Dischinger, Earl Monroe, and Unseld) have won the Rookie of the Year award.