As the trade deadline approaches, the Washington Wizards were quite busy last night. With news of the Wall injury (ruptured achilles) coming out recently, it's not surprising that their former stance of keeping their core three (Wall, Beal, Porter)has evidently changed.
Prior to the start of last night's loss to Milwaukee, the team let Otto know he wouldn't be playing during pregame warmups as he would be part of a trade that evening. Following the game, the Wizards made another transaction by moving forward Markieff Morris.
The first trade consisted of Porter being shipped to the Chicago Bulls for forwards Bobby Portis and Jabari Parker. Also included in that deal was a 2023 second round pick.
Parker and Portis offer some versatility in the front court as Jabari can play the three and four(small forward and power forward), while Bobby can play the four and five( power forward and center).
Most important in all of this for Washington is that both players are essentially expiring deals. Porter obviously had more years left on his deal, Portis is a free agent at the end of the season and Parker has a team option. The Wizards will most likely decline said option for the cap space as they're in desperate need of it. This move along with the Morris deal brought Washington under the luxury tax by about $200,000.
The second deal of the night for Washington saw Morris and a 2023 second round pick go to the New Orleans Pelicans for Wesley Johnson. Like Portis, Johnson's contract expires at the end of this season. The veteran wing may be able to provide some depth for the remainder of the year.
There's still time before today's deadline, so Washington could still have potential moves in play. We'll find out later today.
