Wizards Land NBA Champion in Proposed Trade

The Washington Wizards could add some championship experience to their roster.

Jan 8, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. (1) heads to the bench in the second quarter against the LA Clippers at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The Washington Wizards are expected to be an active team in the weeks leading up to the Feb. 6 trade deadline.

The Wizards can go in a couple of different directions, including one where they get a potential building block for their roster.

Bleacher Report writer Greg Swartz conjures a trade idea that would send Denver Nuggets forwards Michael Porter Jr. and Zeke Nnaji for Kyle Kuzma, Jonas Valanciunas and Saddiq Bey.

"Nikola Jokić leading the NBA in scoring probably wasn't the plan coming into the season for these Nuggets, who have needed their three-time MVP to put up points to have a chance to win on most nights. Losing Porter hurts, although parting with him would help improve Denver's overall depth while adding two proven scorers to the rotation," Swartz writes.

"Kuzma's declining salary year-over-year would help with the Nuggets' ever-increasing payroll and Valančiūnas finally solves Denver's backup center issues," he continued. "Bey, 25, could still return from a torn ACL at some point this season and will only make $12.5 million total over the following two years. Trading for him now would be a smart long-term play by the Nuggets."

While the deal could make sense for the Nuggets, it would be an interesting direction for the Wizards to go in. Kuzma and Valanciunas are arguably their two biggest trade chips, and to not be able to get a single first-round pick (or any future draft selection) for that matter would be a questionable move.

However, they would land a true potential leading scorer for the franchise in MPJ, who could thrive if given more responsibility in a new setting. Porter Jr. is averaging 18.8 points as the third-leading scorer for the Nuggets.

If his usage rate grew with the Wizards, he might be able to get well over 20 points per game, establishing himself as an alpha scorer in the NBA.

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