The logic goes like this: Washington needs to make a change at its core, John Wall’s contract makes him untradeable, and Bradley Beal has a lot of teams interested but the Wizards don’t really want to trade him, so their asking price is through the roof. That leaves...
Otto Porter. While he’s overpaid — $55.7 million over the next two years — he’s also a solid 3&D wing averaging 11.8 points a game and shooting 36 percent from three this season, a player a lot of people around the league think could thrive in a different environment. Around the league, the buzz is he’s maybe the first of the big three to get traded, and there are teams interested, including the Kings.
The Wizards say they don’t plan to trade him, reports Chase Hughes at NBC Sports Washington.
This is what Washington has to say. It’s a leverage thing.
It’s also meaningless. The Wizards are open for business, and if the right deal comes along they will move Porter. The Kings, in particular, could provide some cap relief in a trade, remember the Wizards are $7.8 million into the luxury tax and that’s a lot of money to pay for this roster. That could be tempting for Wizards management (at the behest of ownership).
However, the Kings want to get in on a deal if the Wizards are having a firesale, and that’s not Washington’s mindset. Washington right now is getting lowball offers, those should improve as we get closer to the trade deadline and everyone gets more serious. Will that be enough to get a trade done? Ask again in February.
