Why Washington Wizards Do This Trade
The Washington Wizards made one of the biggest trades this offseason, sending Russell Westbrook to the Los Angeles Lakers. They received Kyle Kuzma, Montrezl Harrell, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and the No. 22 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft for him.
With him traded, many people assumed Bradley Beal would be on his way out next. While that hasn’t yet occurred and seems unlikely at this point, a deal like this coming across for him may be tough to turn down.
Washington is getting a lot of young, high-upside talent in this swap. But, some of this talent is already playoff-tested, giving them a group that can also help them improve immediately.
This trade would give the Wizards 22 players on their roster. They can only have 15 players under contract when the regular season begins, so they would have some more moves to make.
Kevin Huerter, Cam Reddish, Oneyka Okongwu and Jalen Johnson are all recent first-round draft picks, so they could be used as the new foundation in Washington or flipped in other deals as they pare down the roster. They would be joining Corey Kispert and Deni Avdija as recent first-round picks already on the roster.
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Sharife Cooper is another intriguing young player that was selected in the second round of the 2021 NBA Draft. Many analysts were surprised to see him slide so much and believe he can be one of the biggest steals of the draft.
Danilo Gallinari is another seasoned veteran that the team could use for his experience and mentorship. But, it is hard to see where he fits into a rotation with so many players, especially with Davis Bertans already locked into the stretch-four role and Kuzma also being on the roster.
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Trading Beal would signal a rebuild in Washington, but with this haul, they should remain competitive in the Eastern Conference. Figuring out who stays and who will go will be difficult, but those deals are likely to bring back more draft capital the team could use to swing a bigger deal.
