Marcin Gortat has always been a durable, efficient machine--the Polish Machine--for the Washington Wizards. Gortat started all 82 games last season (and played in 81, 82, and 75 games during his first three years with the Wizards, respectively) and finished with a dependable 10.8 PPG and 10.4 RPG, while shooting a career-high .579 from the field. Wizards fans knew what to expect on a nightly basis from the center. Gortat would grab his boards, get his points, set solid screens, and provide the type of competitive effort that comes with being a veteran leader. Even in the evolving pace-and-space NBA, Gortat seemed comfortable in his role as a traditional center. The Wizards were winning, Gortat was playing major minutes (31.2 MPG), all was good. Until it wasn’t. Is the Polish Machine breaking down, falling out of favor in the District, or is his role simply evolving?

At the conclusion of the Wizards’ Eastern Conference semifinal exit to the Boston Celtics last season, Gortat candidly mentioned that maybe he wasn’t valued or wanted in D.C. During an exit interview in the summer of 2017, Gortat said:

"I had 103 games this year and I haven't missed even one game. I didn't miss one practice or shootaround. On top of that I'm the oldest guy on the team. I know how the business works. I'm the oldest guy on the team. They signed Ian [Mahinmi] also. He's younger than me and he got a longer contract. I just know how the business works so I'm prepared for everything just in case. We're going to talk. I'm going to talk to [general manager] Ernie. I'm going to talk to management and we're going to figure it out."

Gortat’s relative late-season ineffectiveness, unhappiness, frustration, and decline, if it’s appropriate to it that, began after the All-Star break. The usually dependable center scored in single figures in 17 of the Wizards final 24 regular season games and logged more than 30 minutes of action in just three of those games. Comparatively, Gortat scored in single figures in only 15 games from the beginning of the season through February (56 games) and logged more than 30 minutes in 37 of those games. Gortat’s involvement was becoming less important, even as the Wizards were winning at a historical franchise rate.

Fast forward to the current season and Gortat’s decline is continuing. Gortat is playing fewer minutes (27.2 MPG vs. 31.2 MPG), scoring fewer points (8.7 PPG vs. 10.8 PPG), grabbing fewer rebounds (8.3 RPG vs. 10.4 RPG), taking fewer shots (6.8 FGA vs. 8.2 FGA), and shooting less efficiently (a career-worst .528 FG% vs. a career-high .579 FG%) than last season. All of this makes D.C. wonder if the Polish Machine is breaking down a bit. Will Gortat be traded at the deadline? Will he continue to start? Will he serve as a low-minutes, strategic big man in isolated spots? Will he be the candid, veteran leader who calls out poor play and apologizes for bad losses? It’s probably too early to tell, as the season is still young, but the evidence has been mounting since late last season that Scott Brooks may slowly be moving away from the traditional lineup of years’ past and toward a smaller lineup that can run and compete more fluidly in today’s NBA. Gortat has sat on the bench during several fourth quarters, as Brooks runs small with Markieff Morris at the “center’ position along with Otto Porter Jr., Kelly Oubre Jr., Bradley Beal, and John Wall (this small lineup yields +18.9 points per 100 possessions).

This suggested decline and apparent movement away from Gortat as an important player for the Wizards may be an overanalysis. The seemingly precipitous decline may simply be an evolution of an aging big man (he’s almost 34). While Gortat’s points, shot attempts, rebounds, and shooting efficiency are all down, he continues to lead the league in screen assists (5.0 per game) and gives John Wall creative opportunities off the pick-and-roll. Additionally, every lineup combination that yields the most points per 100 possessions has Gortat in it. From the five-man combo to the two-man combo (Gortat and fellow European Tomas Satoransky yield +10.8 points per 100 possessions when together), and everything in between, Gortat is the constant. Maybe the heavy minutes early in the year last season wore Gortat down and Brooks has decided to give him a break throughout this season so the Polish Machine is in prime operating condition come playoff time. Gortat’s drop in everything may, in fact, be a good trend moving forward.

Gortat getting the first offensive touch of the game is now a Wizards’ tradition. Wall typically feeds his big man on the block for the first field goal attempt. This tradition does two things: incorporates Gortat in the offense early to both find his touch and to keep him happy. While much about Gortat’s productivity has changed, Wall’s commitment to his veteran center hasn’t wavered. Maybe it has been Gortat’s durability, resilience, and tenacity that Wall has appreciated and admired the past five seasons--worthy of a nightly ceremonial first touch. Whatever it is, Wall is intent on keeping the Polish Machine happy so the Wizards don’t lose him and wonder what they’ve done. You never know what you’ve lost until it’s gone.