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Deal of the Day, Salary cap rules may be bent but hopefully not broken”. (We already broke some.) 39 days till the draft!
Today’s Deal: Acquiring a Former Wizard
Received another email without a screen name. Come on y'all let me shout you out! The challenge is to trade for a former Wizard that might still help. I immediately knew who the target should be but not exactly how it would look.
The Portland Trail Blazers trade forward Trevor Ariza and their 2020 second round pick No. 46 overall to the Washington Wizards for center Thomas Bryant and guard Jerome Robinson. Portland selected Udoka Azubuike in my most recent mock draft.
Why do the Blazers make the deal?
Hassan Whiteside was a one year rental and in an alternate timeline a possible S+T to the Wiz. Nurkic is back so they could use a complement to his game. Zack Collins has been hurt or less effective than hoped and is due an extension soon. Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum finally get a true 3 point shooting stretch 5 to help spread the floor.
In Robinson they accept the salary to make the deal work. They add a former lottery pick who showed a bubble bounce.
Why do the Wizards make the deal?
Some challenges just have correct answers. This one is for all the Wizards fans who still love A-Three-Za and for all the fans whose heads might explode at the thought of bringing him back AGAIN.
As for the player Ariza is at 35? He played 33 minutes per game and shot 40% from 3 for Portland. Much better than the 35% he was shooting for the Kings. 11-5-2 and over 1 steal per game sounds about right. I’m a big believer in peer learning so giving Bonga a season of tutelage under Trevor makes me happy. The pick is a must add in but feels like even that’s not enough for a 23 year old center shooting 40% from deep range.
Trevor’s PPA in Sactown was 71 with the Blazers it was 115. The obvious concern is that we get the guy who played meh for the Kings.
In my most recent mock draft the Wizards took James Wiseman at 9 and Robert Woodard at 37. At 46 Kansas’ Devon Dotson is tempting, but I’d take 6’6 wing Jayden Scrubb, the junior college All-Everything that was headed to Louisville before deciding to enter the draft instead. Roster with MLE and BAE still to use.
After it’s all said and done, here’s what the roster could look like:
- G: Wall - Ish / Troy - Napier (UFA)
- G: Beal - Scrubb / Mathews (RFA)
- F: Ariza - Bonga - Woodard
- F: Wiseman - ________ - Wagner - Pasecniks (camp guarantee)
- F: Hachimura - Bertans (UFA) - Schofield
Have to admit I kinda like the look of all of those athletic forwards matching up defensively while we get longer and taller in the backcourt too. Still need a vet center, a shooter and worth looking for PG insurance.
Trade Resources
Want to request a trade target or send a challenge? Email me at Jheiser3 at gmail.com and include your Bullets Forever screen name.