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5 things Wizards fans should know about Jared Butler

5 things Wizards fans should know about Jared Butler originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington

Several members of the Washington Wizards' new front office overlapped during their time leading the Oklahoma City Thunder. President of Monumental Basketball Michael Winger and general manager Will Dawkins oversaw the Thunder from 2010-17, and now are starting to bring some familiar faces to the nation's capital.

After signing former Thunder forward Eugene Omoruyi to a two-way contract earlier this summer, the Wizards' new brass signed Jared Butler to a two-way deal at the end of July. Butler has familiarity with Dawkins, and now lands in Washington with hopes of cracking the Wizards' depth chart in the backcourt.

Here are five things to know about Butler:

Baylor standout

If the name Jared Butler rings a bell for you, it probably stems from the three years he spent at Baylor. It makes sense, because he was one of the best players in the conference -- nay, the nation -- during his time as a Bear.

Butler was named First-Team All-Big 12 twice, Big 12 All-Defensive Team once, was a consensus first-team All-American in 2021 and was named NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player that same year. Oh, and he also won a National Championship that year with Baylor. Averaging 16.7 points and 4.8 assists per game while shooting a sublime 47.1% from the field will do that to a person.

Familiar faces in D.C.

When Will Dawkins was a key member of the Thunder's front office, he built a track record of being able to scout, identify, and develop talent. That should be a testimony to the potential of Jared Butler, who most recently played in the Thunder's organizational ranks.

Butler was drafted 40th overall in 2021 by New Orleans but was soon traded to the Utah Jazz. He spent the first two years of his career bouncing between the NBA and G League in both the Jazz and Nuggets organizations before being scooped up by OKC in March of last season. He didn't get a ton of opportunities with the Thunder, but when he did, he made it count -- he played six games for Oklahoma City, averaging 6.2 points in under 13 minutes of game time, shooting 46.9% from the field and an incredible 50% from three.

From foes to allies with Corey Kispert

Butler and Wizards wing Corey Kispert have an interesting history together. Kispert joined Butler -- along with potential budding NBA stars like Cade Cunningham and Ayo Dosunmu -- on the 2021 NCAA Basketball All-Americans list. The same year Butler was putting up numbers with Baylor, Kispert was doing the same in the Pacific Northwest with Gonzaga, dropping 18.6 points and 5.0 rebounds per game while shooting 52.9%.

The culmination of Butler and Kispert's relationship, though, came during the 2021 National Championship game. Butler showed out, tying a game-high 22 points to go along with seven assists and three rebounds. Kispert put up 12 points of his own, but Butler's Bears squad would hoist the trophy with an 86-70 victory. Butler would be named Final Four Most Outstanding Player for his efforts:

His confidence has been high since college

Butler might be familiar with the faces he'll see in D.C., given that he was interviewed by the Wizards at the 2021 NBA Draft Combine. As Chase Hughes noted on the day of that interview, Butler sounded confident about his future in the NBA.

"It's almost like a job convention and I'm interviewing for my next job," Butler said of the workout process. "It's very professional and highly competitive, for sure, especially around all these great athletes...Winning a national championship helps. I know how to win and be in big moments."

Explosive Summer League outing

Entering his third season in the NBA, Butler is now acclimated to the rigors of playing professional competition, which showed in his most recent Summer League outing in Las Vegas.

Butler was arguably Oklahoma City's best player during his four Summer League appearances, dropping 20 points and 4.3 assists per game while knocking down shots at a 50% clip. He was even OKC's best player when they dropped a 105-89 contest to the Wizards on July 14, putting up 22 points and four assists off just 14 field goal attempts.