The NBA’s trade deadline is on Thursday. Washington Wizards starting point guard and franchise player John Wall expects management to get a deal done before the deadline. From J Michael of CSN Mid-Atlantic:
“I think so,” Wall said when asked if he expected president Ernie Grunfeld to make a move as he has done the last several years, and the most recent being for Markieff Morris. “We’re looking at some options to help our bench out. Other than that I don’t know. I haven’t talked to him about it.”
After a slow start, the Wizards have been phenomenal this season. Their 34-21 record has them at third in the Eastern Conference. John Wall, Bradley Beal and Otto Porter have all had fantastic seasons. The problem: Beyond those three, the Wizards don’t have much.
Marcin Gortat is a good scorer and rebounder, but his defense is a problem. Ian Mahinmi is a good defender but is limited offensively. Markieff Morris is a good player but isn’t amazing. Kelly Oubre Jr. isn’t quite there yet, at least not consistently. Trey Burke isn’t very good, though he’s shot the ball well in limited playing time this season.
The Wizards could use some help with their depth. Former Sixth Man of the Year Lou Williams is a name that has consistently been brought up as a player that the Wizards could target. The Sacramento Kings, with DeMarcus Cousins gone, are shopping Darren Collison and Arron Afflalo (also Ben McLemore, but meh). The New Orleans Pelicans are shopping Terrence Jones. There are plenty of solid role players out there that Washington should take a good hard look at.
