The Washington Wizards have apparently fallen in love with Enes Kanter’s combination of size and skill, and it appears as though they’re looking to move up in the draft in order to get him.
According to Draft Express’ Jonathan Givony, the Wizards are discussing a trade that would involve them giving their #6 pick to the Jazz, as well as the #18 pick, for Utah’s #3 overall pick. The Wizards would take Kanter, and the Jazz would take whoever is left between Brandon Knight and Kemba Walker.
Probasketballdraft.com also has the Wizards trying to move up, and say they’re in discussions with the Cavaliers about their #4 pick. The Cavs were widely selected to take Lithuanian big man Jonas Valanciunas with the #4 pick, but his buyout issues mean that he will likely be available later in the draft. If the Cavs traded down, they may be able to grab Valanciunas, wait for him as he plays out his contract in Europe next season, and be able to grab another pick as well.
The Valanciunas news has sent shockwaves through the top-5 of the draft; we likely won’t know how all of this will end up playing out until after Thursday’s draft is over.