One of the bigger deals that were completed ahead of the 2022 NBA trade deadline was between the Sacramento Kings and Indiana Pacers. The Pacers, who accepted the harsh reality of needing to rebuild the roster, parted ways with two-time All-Star, Domantas Sabonis.
Sabonis, Justin Holiday, and Jeremy Lamb were sent to the Kings in exchange for Tyrese Haliburton, Buddy Hield, and Tristan Thompson. The Kings, desperate to make the postseason to not set an NBA record, are hopeful Sabonis can help them snap their 15-year streak.
To land Sabonis, the Kings had to come with a strong offer. While they weren’t bidding against only themselves, it was shocking to see them part ways with Haliburton, a player many believe is on an All-Star trajectory.
When Haliburton was put on the table, Indiana focused on trade talks with Sacramento, and rightfully so. However, other teams were linked to him. The Portland Trail Blazers and Phoenix Suns were two teams reportedly connected to the Pacers.
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Recently, we learned that there was at least a fourth team involved; the Washington Wizards. Bradley Beal confirmed that the Wizards tried to trade for Domantas Sabonis before the Kings landed him.
It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that the Wizards were shopping for upgrades ahead of the deadline. It was already announced that Beal was going to be sidelined for the duration of the season with a wrist injury, so the team was looking for upgrades to make a push for the playoffs with their best player sidelined.
In addition, Washington was trying to upgrade the supporting cast around Beal to convince him to sign a long-term deal with the team this offseason. Beal has a player option he is expected to decline, which would make him an unrestricted free agent.
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The Wizards will do all they can to convince him to stick around long-term. When they couldn’t acquire Domantas Sabonis, they took a shot on Kristaps Porzingis, acquiring him from the Dallas Mavericks. While Porzingis has some red flags, it was a worthwhile risk.
Paying Kristaps Porzingis going forward, who has All-Star upside, instead of Spencer Dinwiddie, who was playing poorly on both ends of the court, and Davis Bertans, who is signed for a season longer than Porzingis, is a worthwhile gamble to take. Dinwiddie and Bertans weren’t and aren’t going to elevate the Washington Wizards to levels that Porzingis can when he is healthy.
