The Washington Wizards still have one roster spot to fill, and the trade market gives them a few different ways to do it. Free agency is the usual path in the summer, but it is not the only one, and with one opening left, a deal could be the cleaner answer. The challenge is finding someone who is actually available and can help right away.
One option is Nikola Topic. He would not come cheap in terms of development patience, but he checks a box the Wizards could use.
He is a strong facilitator and was regarded as a finisher through contact coming into the league. The problem has been health, which has already hit him hard early in his career.
Even so, Washington could afford to wait a year or two and see whether he can stay on the floor and grow into a rotation role.
Vit Krejci is another name worth watching, and this one feels a little more straightforward. He just put together a career year after some rough early seasons, first carving out a role in Atlanta and then getting dealt to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Washington needs a backup point guard, and Krejci fits that job. He is likely on the move if Damian Lillard returns from injury, and the Wizards could get him by sending out two second-round picks.
He also shot 39 percent from three.
The Wizards also have a real need for more size behind their frontcourt options. If two of Anthony Davis, Alex Sarr, and D'Andre Ayton were to go down, Tristan Vukcevic would be forced into heavy minutes.
If his defense takes a step, that is one thing. If not, Paul Reed would make sense as a stopgap.
He defends well, averages almost a block and a steal per game, and helps on the glass. With one year left on his deal, he would be a sensible rental for a second-round pick.
Kris Dunn belongs in the same general bucket as Krejci, though with a different flavor. The Clippers are in a strange place while they wait on the results of the Kawhi Leonard-Aspiration investigation, and they are also beginning to shift toward a rebuild.
Dunn is older, which makes him a logical candidate to be moved for draft capital. He can handle the ball, shoot it, and hold up defensively.
If Washington could land him for two seconds, that would be a strong way to close out the offseason.
Then there is the swing-for-the-fences option: Thomas Sorber. That one is more of a long shot, but it is not impossible.
With the Thunder taking Aday Mara in the draft, Sorber could end up squeezed out of the center rotation, which would create a reason for Oklahoma City to get something back. For the Wizards, the appeal is obvious.
They would be getting a young center with a chance to be the best big in his class, plus a local player who played at Georgetown. He is a facilitator for his size, and he would instantly become a fan favorite in Washington.
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Anthony Davis Enters A Pivotal Season With Pressure On Early
Anthony Davis is heading into a season that already feels like a referendum on what comes next in Washington. The Wizards are counting on him to get healthy, settle in after a stretch of injuries and look like the top-end player they need if they are going to push back into playoff contention, especially with additions like Trae Young and AJ Dybantsa giving the roster more structure around him.
The timing matters because this is the last guaranteed year left on Daviss deal, which puts a real spotlight on how he opens the season and how quickly he can reestablish himself. Washington has built enough around him to make the picture intriguing, but Davis still has to be the player who tilts it, and the early months may go a long way toward determining how the rest of his future takes shape. [Read more 🡒]
AJ Dybantsa May Need A Different Path To Matter For Wizards
AJ Dybantsa arrives in Washington with a rsum that would normally make him the center of attention. The No. 1 pick in the most recent NBA Draft followed a strong run at BYU, where he led the Big 12 in scoring and collected Rookie of the Year honors, giving the Wizards plenty to like about his scoring polish and long-term upside.
The early read inside the organization, though, is that his best path to making an impact may not look anything like the one he took in college. Washington wants him to adjust to life as more of a secondary or tertiary offensive piece while also becoming a more disruptive defender, with full-court pressure part of the equation. For a player who has been used to carrying a heavy scoring load, that shift could end up being the biggest test of his rookie season. [Read more 🡒]